INDOOR LACROSSE
Vyse basks in the glow of weekend with stars
Roger Vyse could have spent last weekend sitting around the house, relaxing after the physical grind of a half-season of National Lacrosse League play. Instead, he went to Denver and played another game.
Some All-Star “break.” But the Buffalo Bandits forward enjoyed every second of it.
“Oh yeah, it was a great time,” Vyse said after returning from his first NLL All-Star Game.
Vyse will be back in regular-season action tonight when the Bandits play in Rochester (7:30
p. m., Radio 1400 AM; game can be watched on nll.com). However, he’s still savoring the first chance of his career to play with the best players indoor lacrosse has to offer.
“It’s definitely an honor just to make the team itself,” Vyse said. “There was a good group of guys out there. It’s kind of a level down in intensity. It’s not as tough as a regular-season game. Everyone was there to have fun.”
Vyse’s first formal activity of the weekend came when he took part in the skills competition on March 6. He finished second in the competition to determine the players’ hardest shot, checking in at 92 miles per hour. Stephen Peyser of New York was the winner at 105.
“I have had my shot timed, but not since I was a junior,” Vyse said. “I had a shot at 101 [last week] that was my highest, but I missed the net. It was all right. I didn’t even do any stretching beforehand.”
A day later, Vyse went right to work in the actual All-Star Game. He scored the game’s first goal at 1:42, with the assists going to two of the best in teammate Mark Steenhuis and legendary Rochester forward Gary Gait.
“I definitely wanted to get on the scoresheet,” he said. “It’s fun to be out there with so many talented players.”
Steenhuis was voted the most valuable player of the game for the third time, as he piled up seven goals and six assists. Vyse knows Steenhuis is particularly good in an All-Star format when the defense is something less than attentive.
“He’s definitely dangerous when he’s getting a couple of extra steps to move,” Vyse said.
Vyse spent some of the rest of the weekend doing public appearances, working with children and signing autographs. Now he’s ready to get back to work, hoping to build on the best season of his career.
The 27-year-old already has 17 goals and 11 assists in eight games. He’s closing in on his 2008 mark of 21 goals.
Vyse and the rest of the Bandits (7-2) will be happy to put their last game in the rear-view mirror. They couldn’t hold a couple of big leads two weeks ago in dropping a one-goal decision at home to Minnesota.
“We shouldn’t be losing games like that,” Vyse said. “We made some bad mistakes, and that’s what happens.”
The Bandits have had a pair of practices since that game, and team defense has been stressed.
“We had a five-goal lead, and then a three-goal lead in the fourth quarter,” Bandits coach Darris Kilgour said. “We had two defensemen hurt, but we can’t use excuses. We have to close games out. The big thing is, we gave up eight goals in eight minutes. The rest of the game we were fine. . . . You have to play 60 minutes against every team.”
Vyse added, “It [the defeat] is on us. It’s pretty much up to us to get going.”
Rochester (3-5) might seem like it could be a good cure for what ails the Bandits. Buffalo won the first meeting between the teams, 23-6, on Jan. 16. On the other hand, the Knighthawks are likely to have extra motivation to avoid another embarrassment like that.
“They definitely had a bad taste in their mouths after that one,” Vyse said. “We have to come prepared to play our best.”
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