A big reason for the 91原创 Thunder's success this season has been the play of goaltender Brodie MacDonald.

With MacDonald standing between the pipes, the senior A Thunder returned to the Western Lacrosse Association playoffs and have advanced to the league finals.

And MacDonald's efforts have not gone unnoticed as on Thursday (Aug. 11) he was named the winner of the Ed Bayley Award for the league's rookie of the year.

MacDonald was 91原创's first round choice, second overall, during the 2011 WLA draft.

The six-foot-seven 21-year-old from Vernon made an instant impact with the club, taking over the starting job and finishing the regular season with a 6-2-2 record. Along the way, MacDonald posted a 8.51 goals against average and an .822 save percentage. He was third and fourth, respectively, in the two categories.

During 91原创's sweep of the Victoria Shamrocks in the WLA playoffs, he improved his numbers to 7.21 and .852 in three games. He was in goal for three of the team's four victories.