History was made Saturday night in Buffalo, New York and four St. Catharines natives were a big reason why.
The National Lacrosse League (NlLL) Buffalo Bandits became just the second team in league history to three-peat as Champion.
The Bandits stopped the Saskatchewan Rush 15-6 in the third and deciding game led by all-world goaltender, and St. Catharines native, Matt Vinc who made 42 saves, including shutting out the Rush for the entire second half of the game to win his 6th NLL Championship and add to his hall of fame career.
Here’s what Vinc, a local teacher at Denis Morris High School in St. Catharines, has accomplished during his illustrious career:
– 6x NLL champion (three-peat in Buffalo and Rochester)
– 8x NLL Goaltender of the Year
– Holds regular season career records for minutes played, saves made & goaltender wins
– Holds playoff career records for minutes played, saves made & goalie wins
– Holds NLL record for most games played (regular season & postseason combined)
“You gotta have the right group of guys and the right situation,” Vinc told TSN after the game. “I’ve had that in two good franchises, two good coaching staffs, two good ownership groups and then obviously great teammates. That’s what it comes down to, a great team.”
Vinc’s older brother Eric is the assistant coach with the Bandits, working under Lacrosse Hall of Famer John Tavares.
Buffalo captain Steve Priolo has played for the Bandits since 2010.
Priolo is the reigning St. Catharines Athlete of the Year after winning Gold with Team Canada at the World Indoor Box Lacrosse Championships, the NLL and Mann (Canadian Sr. A Championship) Cup in 2024.
What makes Priolo’s story even more interesting is that he came to lacrosse after concentrating and playing University basketball.
Fellow defender Thomas Whitty joined the Bandits via a trade last September to become a first-time NLL Champion. Whitty is part of the 13th Street Winery Whitty family.
All four St. Catharines natives are former members of the city’s oldest sporting franchise – the St. Catharines Jr. A Athletics.
“We’re very proud that all four of these tremendous athletes played their junior lacrosse for the Athletics,” said the organization’s longtime President Paul Coates.
“The sport of lacrosse is synonymous with St. Catharines and these four men added to its rich history. Many people forget that the Ontario Lacrosse Hall of Fame calls St. Catharines home. I think there’s a good chance we will see at least a couple of these names enshrined there in the coming years.
The Buffalo Bandits sold-out most of their games at KeyBank Center (home of the Buffalo Sabres) this season including over 19,000 Saturday
In fact, the Bandits average better regular season attendance than 22 of the 32 NHL teams, and 17 of the 30 NBA teams.
So the question has to be asked, is a four-peat possible?
Most lacrosse experts and pundits think so.
Either way, four Niagara natives celebrated making lacrosse history Saturday night playing Canada’s National summer sport.
Congratulations to all.
Rod Mawhood is a lifelong Niagara native who has had the pleasure of working in all three mediums – Radio, Print and TV – for over 20 years. His first announcing gig was with the then St. Catharines Stompers. Since then he’s worked in radio and TV in Toronto, and currently is the announcer for the Niagara IceDogs and Niagara River Lions.
Rod also covers the Buffalo Bills for FOX Sports and the Buffalo Sabres for NBC Sports.
