Points leader Robert Church leads Saskatchewan Rush into long-awaited Buffalo rematch

Not much is new these days to Robert Church, a veteran forward with the Saskatchewan Rush who’s currently in the middle of his 12th season in the National Lacrosse League.

This year’s Rush team is a bit different, however, enjoying a 10-1 start to the season and a nine-game win streak hearkening back to Church’s first season as a professional athlete with the Edmonton Rush before the team relocated to Saskatchewan.

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“It’s probably the second-longest win streak I’ve been a part of in my career,” Church said.

“The first one was my first 14 games (in the league). It’s been awesome. It doesn’t really feel like there’s anything hanging over us.”

Church is making history in more that one way with Saskatchewan’s league-leading first half of the season, tallying five points in the team’s 14-6 victory over the Philadelphia Wings on Sunday.

Now up to 951 career points – split between the Saskatchewan and Edmonton Rush – Church has surpassed longtime teammate Mark Matthews for the most points scored in franchise history, with 949.

“Jimmy (Quinlan) had a game ball for me after the game, and mentioned it,” Church said.

“It’s something I’m proud of. I’ve played a long time, managed to stay healthy, and I’m fortunate to stay with one team.”

Last year, Church took over as the Rush’s leader in points scored since the team’s move to Saskatoon back in 2015. He now stands atop the franchise’s all-time list when factoring in the former Edmonton Rush, Ottawa Rebel and Syracuse Smash programs.

It’s not the first record Church has set this season, as he became the Rush’s all-time leader in games played during the team’s season-opening win over the Calgary Roughnecks.

On Sunday, the Rush overcame an early 3-0 deficit to explode in the second half with 10 goals and come away with the team’s ninth win in a row against the Wings.

That has been the case all season for the Rush, with the team frequently falling into early holes only to dig themselves out before the final buzzer.

Church said he isn’t sure why the team has been slow out of the gate for most of the year, but he noted the intensity other teams are bringing at the start of their games.

“When you’re top of the league in the standings, teams are coming out extremely hard,” Church said. “They’re playing at a pace that they can’t really keep up with for 60 minutes. We kind of just got to weather that storm.”

The Rush players will need to be at their best this weekend as they continue their road trip through New York with games on back-to-back nights.

That includes a rematch of last year’s NLL Finals between the Rush and Buffalo Bandits on Friday, Saskatchewan’s first visit to KeyBank Center since falling in a game-three heart breaker.

While Church said the focus has been on each opponent as they’ve arrived on the schedule, the tilt against the Bandits is a game he’s had his eye on for a while.

“Obviously the way our season ended and them beating us for a third straight championship, we’ll have a little extra motivation going into this one,” Church explained.

Rush defender Holden Garlent will be back in the lineup after being placed on injured reserve following Saskatchewan’s 12-9 victory over the San Diego Seals on Feb. 7.

The Rush and Bandits will square off at 6:30 p.m. on Friday, before Saskatchewan visits the Rochester Knighthawks for a game on Saturday at 6 p.m.