The London Lightning were back in action Saturday night after almost a week off. After a slow first half, the Lightning trailed 45-41 against The Island Storm. The Lightning put together a strong second half out scoring the team from Charlottetown, PEI by a score of 64-48, on route to a 105-93 victory.
Coach Etherington said the big difference was that team played some defense and rebounded in the second half. Coach felt the team was doing a good job getting to the rim in the first half but they just weren’t finishing the job.
London was led by The Player of the Game, Garrett Williamson. Williamson dropped a double-double that included 18 points and 10 rebounds, 7 of which were offensive rebounds.
Lightning fans Shine the Light in support of women abuse
Despite the great performance by The Lightning there was something much bigger going on at Budweiser Gardens last night. Shine The Light. Hosted by the London Abused Women’s Centre, Shine The Light is an event where they raise awareness around male violence against women. The Shine the Light campaign normally runs throughout November but the organization has several Shine the Light events throughout the year to raise money and awareness. Executive Director for The London Women’s Abused Centre, Megan Walker says “We use the color purple to represent courage, bravery and strength.”
If you or someone you know is in immediate danger Walker suggests calling The London Women’s Abused Centre at 519-432-2204. Crisis victims can also contact Anova’s 24 hour lines at 519-642-3003. Anova is a 24 hour women’s shelter with two locations in London. One located at 101 Wellington Road and another at 450 Clarke Road.
Walker say The Shine the Light campaign has raised nearly $75, 000. If people want to get involved or help out on the cause they can contact the organization to donate.
Owner of The London Lightning Vito Frijia was presented with an award by Walker on behalf of the Shine the Light organization for his generous donations and impact to making a difference for women in need.
Megan Walker of Shine the Light present Lightning Owner, Vito Frijia with an award
Lightning players also helped out the cause by donating their own game-worn, custom, purple jerseys that were up for donation to fans.
London is back in action Sunday afternoon at 2pm against The Sudbury Five. In the previous 5 meetings this year, The Lightning have taken 3 of the games against Sudbury.
Etherington says ” It’s a quick turnaround tomorrow. We can’t feel too good about ourselves. We play a tough team that scores a lot of points. We gotta be ready to play tomorrow and we can’t be happy with this. We can’t settle. We have to lock in and do an even better job tomorrow.”
London will be without forwards Kirk Williams Jr and Marvell Waithe. Williams Jr went down with about 4 mins left in the opening quarter and did not return, so expect him to be sidelined for the game. While, Marvell Waithe is still away from the team.
Today’s game is another special one as 9 year-old, Joey Murray, will be honored as The 2019 Champion Child presented by Children’s Miracle Network. Joey is a cancer survivor who has been working as a London Lightning mascot for the past 3 years.
