The San Diego Seals scored six goals in the final five minutes of the game to come back and beat the Philadelphia Wings on Saturday night at Pechanga Arena San Diego in a battle of the league’s two expansion teams.
“It was not our best game by any means,” said general manager and head coach Patrick Merrill. “Especially in the third quarter, but what an exciting finish for our fans. Our guys stepped up and made some huge plays in the fourth quarter and we pulled one out. I’ve been a part of a lot of big comebacks in this league and I’ll surely see some more before the season ends, but this one was pretty sweet for sure.”
In a rollercoaster game, the Seals early three-goal lead was diminished with a six-goal run by the Wings. The Seals’ six goals in the fourth quarter were enough to come back and beat their fellow expansion team in the East.
“We could not have done it without [the crowd] tonight,” continued Merrill. “It made the hair stand up on the back of my neck. They were able to put the wind in our sails and we embraced the energy and played off it.”
Veteran forward Dan Dawson scored five goals and added two assists in a historic night for the future hall-of-famer. With his assist in the second quarter, Dawson now sits alone in third place on the National Lacrosse League All-Time leaderboard in career assists with 858 assists.
“He’s a beast,” said forward Connor Kelly. “He’s one of the all-time greats. Honestly, I look up to him as a player. I try and pick his brain every practice. He’s such a smart player and obviously he became the third all-time assist leader tonight, so he deserves it.”
Forward Garrett Billings finished the night with seven assists, while forward Casey Jackson added three goals and three assists in the Seals win. Goaltender Frank Scigliano stopped 34 shots on the night, including 21 in the first half.
“It was the best comeback I’ve seen in my career,” continued Kelly. “It was an awesome night and the place was rocking. It felt awesome and it was an awesome win.”
The Seals return to Pechanga Arena San Diego on Friday night when the Saskatchewan Rush make their first trip to America’s Finest City. Come see your first-place San Diego Seals, reserve your seats at SealsLax.com.