Through some rough patches this season, it seemed the Red Deer Renegades lost confidence.
A pair of losses in late May derailed a perfect Rocky Mountain Lacrosse League Tier II Junior B season, but since then they’ve been on a roll and are red hot heading into the playoffs.
They’ve won five of their last six games including a decisive 27-2 win over the Strathmore Venom and a sound 19-6 beatdown of the Rockeyview Rage on the weekend.
Red Deer will finish the regular season on Saturday in Calgary against the Axemen.
“It seemed the team had been deflated but in good old Red Deer fashion the boys have come together and really buckled down,” head coach Mike Martel said.
“They have one goal in sight and that is to play hard for the guy next to you no matter what every game.”
The Renegades are also chasing down a pair of club records, with 257 goals on the season, just two behind the 2014 team that notched 259. Their goal differential could also be a club record if it holds at the current mark of 163. The previous record is plus-153.
Currently, the Renegades are second in the South Conference with a 14-3 record and 28 points. If they earn a bye in the first round of the playoffs, it won’t get started until late July. If they end up third in the South Conference, they’ll start the playoffs at home on July 7.
We’re going to be entering playoffs with a huge advantage with experience,” Martel added.
“Knowing what to expect from other teams is critical in playoffs, you might have faced these teams all year in the regular season but lacrosse becomes a whole other beast when it’s playoff time.”
Email sports tips to Byron Hackett
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