Indian Time - A Voice from the Eastern Door

The Mohawk Bears Den Medicine Men's inaugural season has come to an end. The First Nations Junior B Lacrosse League's newest team finished 2017 as runners up for the league title.

The Seneca War Chiefs swept the team 3-0 in a best-of-three playoff series. The final bout was at the Medicine Men's home field, Massena Arena, on Saturday, July 22. The War Chiefs won 11-6. They won game two by the same score and game one 12-7. They were played at Seneca.

Akwesasne Coach Kariwate Mitchell said he thought they would be able to beat the War Chiefs, if they could pull off a win in either game one or two, but it didn't happen.

"This game in particular (July 22), I really felt that we were going to win. The boys were in a good mood, warm-ups looked good and in the first few shifts we outplayed Seneca. The second period seemed to be our downfall in that game, we dropped a few passes and their offence executed," Mitchell said. "I didn't think that the War Chiefs would sweep the series, I believed that we had a chance to win this series but we needed to win one at their home and we didn't."

The Medicine Men had previously handed Seneca their only regular season loss.

"I am very proud of this entire team and what we have accomplished in our first year, we beat the Seneca War Chiefs, I will always remember that game, our guys played awesome at every aspect in that game. I wish we could have won the league and went to the Founders Cup, but we have to remember, this is our first year, I'm satisfied knowing that we competed," Mitchell said. "The highlight of this season is definitely beating the War Chiefs. They were undefeated for three years in regular season play."

The coach said he went into the season thinking it would be a struggle, since 13 of the 25-man roster had never played box lacrosse. However, they pulled off an early win against a more experienced team, his view changed.

"Looking back this season, I will say without a doubt that it was a success. In the beginning, I really thought that we were going to be crushed by everybody and that it would be a struggle. But, after going to Onondaga back in May and beating them, my view on the team changed. That first win really helped change the players view as well, it gave them confidence. This team really adapted well to box lacrosse," he said.

Mitchell said the team improved upon losing their tempers during games. Their home opener against the War Chiefs was called short in the third period due to a bench-clearing brawl involving both teams. In the final minutes of their final 2017 game, a War Chiefs player hauled off and punched a Medicine Men player in the face. There was no retaliation from the Akwesasne player who was hit, nor from any of his teammates.

"I saw that one of their players really wanted to fight in the last few minutes of the game. I don't know why, they were up on us and knew that they were going to win. Our guys have really learned to be disciplined. I think our guys knew that it was pointless to fight at that point," he said.

Coach Mitchell said although he is proud of his entire roster, three players stand out for their contributions and improvements this season.

"Logan Ransom stood out the most to me. He came from a junior C program and he showed that he can play at the junior B level," Mitchell said. "Sako Rourke became a solid defender for us. He has a good floor sense and he knows where to push the ball to create transition. He also became a good physical presence on the floor for us.

The Mohawk Bears Den Medicine Men wrapped up their inaugural season as runners up for the First Nations Junior B Lacrosse League championship. They played their final 2017 game against the Seneca War Chiefs at Massena Arena.

"I guess I should mention an offensive player that improved, and hopefully will return next season, is Josh Huiatt. He is so aware of his surroundings and he knows when to shoot or when to pass. He was often targeted by the other teams who recognized his offensive ability. I have to say though, the whole team played well above what I expected."

He says next season, he "will expect a lot more from the team."

"This team is very young and we should have the majority of them around for 3 to 4 years. I think we need to improve on the offence and executing the chances. That's something that we will definitely be scoping in on," the coach said. "Next year, the Seneca War Chiefs are hosting the Founders Cup in Salamanca, N.Y. We will gear towards going to that."

He says he is grateful to the hundreds of fans who came to Massena and traveled to see the team on the road, and also thanked those who gave financial support.

"I would like to thank the fans who came out and supported us in our first season. We had good crowds all year and we appreciate all your support. I would also like to thank Brandon Tarbell of Bears Den for the financial support to help us get started," Mitchell said.