NLL Sportsmanship Nomination: Brad Gillies, Ryan Benesch, Clarke Petterson
Jun 19, 2020
The National Lacrosse League Sportsmanship Award is annually awarded to a player that exhibits a combination of character and performance, both on and off the floor. The Halifax Thunderbirds are proud to nominate Ryan Benesch, Brad Gillies and Clarke Petterson for the award for the 2019-20 season.
As one of the most well-respected players in the game, Ryan Benesch has proven to be a great leader on and off the floor, mentoring a young Thunderbirds roster in it’s first season.
Benesch, who leads his team on the offensive side of the ball, also understands that it’s not just what happens on the floor that matters. For Benesch, it is about heading to the arena and ensuring his teammates and everyone around him is in the best position to compete, but also having fun while doing so.
“It’s an honor to be nominated for this award along with Brad and Clarke,” Benesch said. “There are a lot of great players who could also be nominated so to be recognized for this award is pretty special to me.”
In the course of a year the skilled lefty forward became only the 10th player in NLL history to reach 1,000 points and played in his 200th game as a pro on 3/16/19. Benesch is one of the most prolific scorers in the history of the game ranking 10th all-time in assists (577) and points (1,010) and 11th in goals (433).
Benesch is a two-time First Team All-Pro (2011 and 2015) earning NLL Rookie of the Year honours in 2007.
For Brad Gillies who is now in his fifth-season in the NLL, lacrosse is a full-time job. He has dedicated thousands of hours giving back to the lacrosse community as both a coach and ambassador of the game.
A product of the Rochester Institute of Technology, Gillies has spent time coaching at his alma mater, while also coaching at the high school, youth, and beginner levels. As a club director in the US, Gillies has dedicated his life to the sport, understanding that his actions on the floor speak just as loud as his words in the huddle.
As Gillies continues to grow the game at the youth level, he is also expanding his role at the professional level, as another veteran voice in the locker room to the young Thunderbirds roster. In addition, Gillies is a 2015 USILA Scholar All-American, a Liberty League All-Academic selection and has won the team’s Community Award his past 3 seasons in the NLL.
“I’m very happy to be nominated, I always try to play good solid defense while staying out of the penalty box and felt like I did that well this year,” said Gillies.
In 11 games with the Thunderbirds this season, Gillies has collected 34 loose balls forcing 7 caused turnovers and posting five points in transition.
For Clarke Petterson, the impact the young rookie had to the Thunderbirds roster was felt almost immediately as the righty forward posted five points in his professional debut. He earned NLL Rookie of the Week honours for his 3+2 performance, and helped solidify his status as the league’s fifth overall selection in the entry draft.
In 11 games, Petterson tallied 16 goals and 22 assists for 38 points, and finished second amongst forwards with 60 loose balls. As the season progressed, Petterson’s role on offense expanded, and like a sponge the rookie absorbed as much of the game as he could from his veteran teammates.
As the last player to come off the floor for shootaround each week, the soft spoken righty took the time to pick up every ball before heading to the locker room.
“It feels great to be nominated for this award. I’ve always been taught that being a good person is more important than being a good lacrosse player and I feel like this award speaks to that.”
-
Fans can check in the with @NLL on all social platforms next week for the finalists in each category of the 2019-20 league awards. To learn more about the Thunderbirds nominations, check in daily @HFXthunderbirds, and at HalifaxThunderbirds.com.