By Craig Rybczynski -
Jarrett Davis ranks among the top point producers in the Western Lacrosse Association this summer. The Rochester Knighthawks forward not only leads the Maple Ridge Burrards in points, but ranks ninth overall in the league. After an impressive run in the National Lacrosse League Playoffs, he has 18 goals and 35 assists for 53 total points.

“A lot of the credit has to go to my teammates. They are the ones who are helping me get open or they are the ones finishing the play,” said Davis, who hails from Port Moody, BC.

Davis entered the summer season after an impressive sophomore season. With his season in Rochester, he recorded a career-high 21 assists and 28 points in 13 games. He played an even bigger role in the 2012 Champion’s Cup Playoffs, recording a team-high nine assists and tying for fourth on the team with 10 points. He opened the playoffs with back-to-back four point games. The former first-round pick concluded the postseason with two assists in the win over Edmonton in the NLL Finals. He credited the Knighthawks’ “team-first” mentality with the three-game run to the Champion’s Cup.

“I think everyone from management, to coaches, to players elevated their game in the playoffs, and it’s just a contagious feeling. You see a guy going harder in practice, or the coach spending more time on film, it just motivates you to work harder for the next guy,” he said. “There was this weird sense of having to win rather than wanting to win. Everyone felt it and it showed how badly we wanted it, especially in that second half of the final game.”

Rochester rallied from a four-goal first-half deficit to clinch their third NLL Championship. After getting the taste of an NLL title, Davis has even more motivation to win a second.

“It’s a feeling that not everyone gets to experience. Winning at home in front of our fans and family was unreal. I still get flashbacks of the game and it still feels great,” said Davis. “I thought that once I got a Championship I would feel accomplished, but winning is such an addictive feeling. I can't wait for the first day of training camp so we can start defending our trophy.”

Just a week after raising the Champion’s Cup at The Blue Cross Arena, Davis was back in the Western Lacrosse Association, where he played in 2010 and was a Second Team All-Pro with Maple Ridge. He notched four goals and 14 assists in his first five games back with the Burrards, but that was just a sign of more points to come. In the past four games, he has 24 points on nine goals and 15 assists. In his last game, he collected a season-high eight-point effort in a 15-11 victory over the Victoria Shamrocks on July 20th.

“That was the best game our team played all season,” he said. “Winning on the Island is always tough so it was nice to get one in their arena, especially after they took a win from us in our home building a few weeks ago.”

With the WLA Playoffs set for August, Davis remains focused on helping Maple Ridge make a run in the postseason. But Davis admitted it’s hard not to think ahead to the upcoming season and the Knighthawks’ chance to defend their 2012 Champion’s Cup.

“I haven't really thought that much about it. I’m playing with Maple Ridge right now, and I’m just focused on finishing this season with a couple of wins. From there, I’m going to take a little break from lacrosse and rest some nagging injuries,” said Davis. “Just doing this interview, I start to get excited about next year. We have such a good, young team that it's going to be hard to knock us off this year.”