The secret is out on the Prince George Posse.
After two convincing wins Friday in their first games this season at the A2 midget level, they are no longer snakes in the grass at the provincial lacrosse championship.
Not with the likes of Jake McIntosh, Doug Porter and Andrew Heitman inflating opponent's goals-against averages and Connor Adams, Ethan Brown, Bobby Legare and Griffin Wal throwing their weight around like they did in Friday night in their 10-6 win over the Coquitlam Adanacs.
Whatever the Posse tried it seemed to work, and they left the Adanacs frustrated.
McIntosh got the offence going in the second period. His first of three in the game broke a 3-3 deadlock and with support from Heitman and Porter, they left the Adanacs unable to stop the bleeding.
"That was our best game of the year, we've got three games left and hopefully we'll build on each game," said Posse co-coach Don Wittmeier. "Every line was contributing, they were keeping them out and a lot of times they didn't get a shot on net."
When they did, Posse goalie Jonathon Wittmeier was a cool customer, smothering most of the rubber fired his way.
Porter, the Posse captain, said his team is getting the close competition it didn't get playing as a B team in tournaments leading up the provincials.
"We're just pumped right now, two wins at home is just great," said Porter, who picked up two goals and four assists. "We haven't played at home ever and it's a good feeling. We played B all season and the competition wasn't as good and we had a lot of blowout wins. We had to step up our game and this is more fun. The crowd is so supportive."
In a penalty-filled morning game, the first game they'd ever played in their minor lacrosse careers as a rep team in a home arena, the Posse overcame a 2-0 deficit with two late goals in the first period and went on to hammer the Kamloops Rattlers 9-4.
"It was pretty hard coming back from a 2-0 (deficit) right away but my dad (Posse co-coach Blake McIntosh) calmed us down and we pulled through in the end," said Jake McIntosh, who led the Posse with four goals in the opener.
Kamloops goalie Kevin Boettger was besieged with pressure much of the game but kept the Rattlers within striking distance, down 6-4 with eight minutes left.
The Posse got into penalty trouble in the third period but goalie Wittmeier stood up to the power-play pressure with two Posse players serving major penalties.
Alex Nimmo spotted Cameron Prouse streaking down the floor and fed him a long breakaway pass to add to the lead while shorthanded and a few minutes later McIntosh connected for his second power-play goal of the game. Nimmo capped the scoring late with his second goal.
Porter and Justin Parker also scored for the Posse.
Chace Jones led the Rattler attack with two goals and an assist. The Rattlers had just seven spare runners on the bench, while the Posse started the game with a full lineup of 17 players. The extra bodies made a difference.
"We didn't play the smartest game and Prince George runs hard and gets to the holes on the floor and they dominated us,' said Rattlers coach Doug Clark.
"The ball just didn't go in for them probably as much as it should have. I thought we beat ourselves by taking dumb penalties all over the floor and not moving our feet on offence."
The Posse had two days to watch the A1 midget provincial tournament and the 16-year-old McIntosh said they learned a few things.
"Watching the best teams in the province it makes you want to play better," he said. "You watch the best players out there and they get beat on and everyone targets them but they have so much discipline they don't retaliate at all. Being on the PK all the time is pretty hard."
The Posse closes out the round-robin today at noon at Kin 1 against top-ranked Port Moody.
Other A2 results Friday were: Nanaimo 8 Semiahmoo 7; Penticton 8 Port Coquitlam 7; Port Moody 9 Coquitlam 3; Semiahmoo 6 Penticton 4; Port Coquitlam 5 Nanaimo 3; and Port Moody 7, Kamloops 5.
In A1 action Friday, New Westminster beat Juan De Fuca 6-3, Coquitlam defeated Ridge Meadows 4-1 and Langley topped Saanich 8-7. Coquitlam remains undefeated at 4-0, followed by New Westminster 3-1, Langley 2-2, Ridge Meadows 2-2, Juan de Fuca 1-3 and Saanich 0-4.
In the midget B provincial tournament, Jordan Bunce scored three goals and added an assist but it wasn't enough for the Quesnel Wildfire, which lost its opener 7-5 to Abbotsford. Colton Lundy fired three goals for Abbotsford. Quesnel faced Coquitlam in a late game Friday.
The Vanderhoof Bears opened the C tournament with an 18-0 win over the Fort St. John Thunder.
Samuel Peet collected five goals and Alex Winch and Kyler Boucher each scored three. Hunter Floris picked up the shutout. Vanderhoof went on to face Williams Lake in the later Friday at Kin 3.
Other Friday results were: B - Peninsula 6 New Westminster 2; Ridge Meadows 7 Shuswap 1; Comox Valley 7 Coquitlam 3; C - Juan de Fuca 11 Williams Lake 0; Peninsula 7 Ridge Meadons 1; Comox Valley 9 Abbotsford 4.
