NC Fusion Men's League Recap: Week 3
Alright folks, pull up a chair, crack one open, and let me tell you about Tuesday night — because this league just got interesting.
Titans 18 – Storm 15
The Titans are rolling. Three-and-oh. Undefeated. Untouchable. And if you ask their goalie, Bert "KeeperOfTheGatez" Innella — former Verizon Wireless MVP, current brick wall — they're actually on a twelve-game win streak going back to the inaugural season. He wants you to know that. He needs you to know that. I'm being told to make sure you know that.
And look, some of y'all had things to say about Bert. I saw the message boards. "He looks heavy." "He's washed." "Is he a shell of his former self?" The man turned 35 last October and half the league had him fitted for a rocking chair. Well, Bert heard every single one of you, and he responded with 22 saves and 3 assists. Three assists. From the goalie. The man isn't just stopping shots, he's quarterbacking the offense. Retirement? Brother, he's just getting started. Consider your mouths shut.
This was also the Storm's first loss of the campaign, dropping them to 2-1. Not a panic situation, but the aura of invincibility? Gone. The Titans took it and hung it on the wall next to that win streak banner Bert is probably having made at Kinko's as we speak.
NightHawks 22 – Grinders 21
One goal. Again. The Grinders have now lost two straight by a single goal, and honestly, at this point, you just feel for 'em. Zero and three, and it's not like they're getting blown out. They're right there. That's almost worse. That's the kind of losing that follows you to the parking lot.
The NightHawks move to 1-2, and they can thank their resident heel, Duncan Glover, for dragging them to the finish line. Duncan — the league's villain, the guy your girlfriend asks about — scored after his defender's stick literally snapped in his hands. Did Duncan show any mercy? Any sportsmanship? Any humility? Absolutely not. He flexed. He jogged back down the field like he'd just won the Super Bowl. The man has no shame and even less chill, and honestly? We're giving him early MVP favorite status. It's between him and his stick, and his stick puts in work too.
Speaking of broken sticks — that was the theme of the night. A Titans player caught a wide-open, uncontested pass and his stick just... gave up. Snapped clean. And look, I'm not a mind reader, but based on his positioning, body language, and general aura, that ball was going top corner. Absolute snipe. The lacrosse gods said no. The other team got lucky and they know it.
Goalie Night
Your MVPs of the evening are the guys standing between the pipes, because every single one of them showed up.
Bert had the stat line we already covered — 22 and 3 is generational.
Griffen Glover turned in another steady, consistent night for the NightHawks. Every week this guy keeps his team in the game, and every week he doesn't get enough credit for it. We see you, Griff.
And then there's C.J. Peake — who played goalie for the Grinders AND the Storm. Two games. Two good ones. The kid handed out at least five doorstop stuffers to the Titans in game one, the kind of saves that make grown men rethink their shot selection. C.J. is one of the youngest players in the league, and he played like he had something to prove twice in one night.
Fun fact on C.J.: he's the son of Western Guilford alum Chevy Peake, who is objectively one of the best faceoff specialists the state of North Carolina has ever produced. Dominant. Legendary, even. His beer pong game, well... not great, subjectively of course! We can't confirm, but we won't deny. Rumors only.
See y'all next week. Bring your backup sticks. 🍻
