In his return to Prince George senior C lacrosse, Andrew Schwab rose straight to the top.
"I'm kind of excited because I wasn't expecting to get this many goals so far," said Schwab, about leading the league with 89 points (45 goals) upon his return to the Twisted Cork/Regional Security Stylers. "I think the last year I played [senior C] I only got 70 points in the entire season."
The 21-year-old was drafted first overall by the Stylers out of the Prince George Midget Lacrosse league five years ago. He suited up for two seasons in his hometown before heading south where he played three years in the Delta Islanders' system, starting in junior B before making the leap to junior A.
In 2011, Schwab played in 13 games with the junior A Islanders, collecting four goals and 12 points and helping the team to a third-place finish in the regular season with a 12-8-1 record, behind the undefeated Coquitlam (21-0) and the always powerful New Westminster in the eight-team league.
Schwab credits his close friend and Stylers' teammate Mike Padelic for the offensive domination he's displayed.
"Without him I probably wouldn't get half the points that I get," said Schwab. "When he's not there I don't seem to do as good. My main goal is to try and get him out. We've been playing together since we were in peewee and we know where each is going to be on the floor.
"He almost stopped playing because [the Stylers] weren't winning anymore, so he's glad to have me back," he added.
Padelic, also 21, has 36 points for the Stylers in seven games this season.
"Even when we're not playing games we're out there throwing the ball back and forth," said Schwab.
The camaraderie among his teammates and, with opponents after games, is what Schwab said he enjoys most about playing in the Prince George league, admitting he'd like to follow in Stylers' goaltender Ray Masson's footsteps for longevity.
"It's pretty amazing that he's doing it," said Schwab about the 61-year-old goalie. "I'd like to be playing when I'm his age. Hopefully I'll retire in this league."
Schwab said one of the biggest differences between playing on the Lower Mainland and in Prince George is how serious the players are.
"People will spend their whole week thinking about the game, unlike here where people start thinking about the game about 10 minutes before it happens," said Schwab. "Both have their pros and cons. It's good here because it's a little more laid back, you can work all day and then go and hang out with your buddies and right after you're done the game hangout with some more buddies."
The graduate of D.P. Todd secondary school has played all 10 games for the Stylers this season and has the squad poised for its best finish in three seasons with a 6-4 record.
"I just wanted to play every single game and help the team out as much as I could because they only had one win in the last two years," he said.
Unfortunately for the Stylers, they won't have Schwab for their final three regular-season games because his job is taking the offensive threat to Rocky Mountain House in Alberta for a couple of months.
"I plan to be back for playoffs," said Schwab. "It just depends how the work schedule goes. If it's really busy I won't be able to come back. It's a good thing my old man's the boss, he might be able to pull some strings."
Schwab's teammates will miss his offensive production, but Drew Doig of the BX Pub Bandits, second in scoring with 59 points, may be counting down the days.
"I think he's pretty excited about [me leaving]" laughed Schwab.
In the Stylers game Wednesday - a 14-9 win over the College Heights Pub Assault - Schwab had five goals and six assists. Tonight the Stylers and Shooters Pub Devils face off at the Coliseum, 6 p.m., in the first game of a doubleheader. The Assault play the winless Quesnel Crossfire at 8 p.m.
The senior C regular season ends June 24.
