I played my first lacrosse game in 1952. I have written extensively about the sport since hanging up the stick in 1972. Yet, I had never seen a wackier end to a fourth quarter than what unfolded in Saskatoon on Saturday night.

In Game 2 of the NLL Champion’s Cup finals, the Saskatchewan Rush led 14-13. The Georgia Swarm pulled goalie Mike Poulin with 42 seconds left and sent out an extra attacker. Their plans went awry. Rush defenseman Kyle Rubisch gathered a loose ball in his own end and, with two checkers converging on him, called time out. Nine seconds remained.

Nine seconds. Saskatchewan had the lead. Saskatchewan had the ball. Mental wheels turned on the bench. The decision was made: The Rush would pull goalie Aaron Bold to equalize the number of runners on the floor so that, when the Swarm double-teamed the Rush player who had the ball when play resumed, a pass could be made to an open Rush player to run off the final seconds of the game.

It was a daring plan that did not work. A bounce pass went toward Chris Corbeil, who was unable to pull in the ball. It bounced to a Swarm player. Rush defenseman Jeremy Thompson scrambled into the crease to try and stop a Swarm shot. The ball struck his helmet. It could have caromed in any direction that would allow Saskatchewan to hold on and tie the series. Instead, it caromed right into the stick of the Swarm’s Joel White, who fired it in with two seconds remaining to tie the game at 14.

WHAT! @georgiaswarmlax's White scores with 3 seconds left to tie it up!!! Watch at https://t.co/nhZDDiytfp! #NLL #ChampionsCup pic.twitter.com/dhA3tmIKr2

— NLL (@NLL) June 11, 2017

(Backtrack. If I had the ball with eight seconds left, I would lob it high into the air and let it bounce into a far corner of the Swarm end. By the time they would get it, it’s unlikely they would have enough time to get off a good shot on net before the clock struck zero. I would not attempt a bounce pass to a defenseman who is on the run in my own end.)

The rest is history. Miles Thompson pulled in a pass from his brother Lyle Thompson and scored 1:17 into overtime, as the Swarm dethroned the two-time defending NLL champion rush and clinched their first Champion’s Cup title with a 15-14 victory.

The goal that won the #NLL Champion's Cup for the @georgiaswarmlax courtesy of @miles2thompson! #ChampionsCup #Swarming pic.twitter.com/P072DaBARk

— NLL (@NLL) June 11, 2017

“It was the craziest game I’ve ever been a part of,” Swarm captain Jordan MacIntosh said.

The 14,262 spectators packed into SaskTel Centre were stunned. Assistant coach Jeff McComb tried to explain the reasoning behind pulling Bold when the Rush had the lead and the ball and only eight seconds remaining.

“We go six-on-six, we get the double-team and have a guy open,” he said. “If Corbeil catches that pass, the game is over. He’s upset with the way it turned out and is devastated. It’s the way we always play it, and it’s the first time it’s come back to bite us.”

And what a big bite it was.

Truth is, there are more reasons than that one to explain why the Swarm won.

1. Poulin was better than Bold. Saskatchewan outshot Georgia 62-53.

2. Rush star Mark Matthews was checked so thoroughly that he was unable to score a goal.

3. The Swarm offense was too diverse and too talented for the Rush defense to stop.

So while the debate over what transpired at the end of the fourth quarter will go on forever, the bottom line is this: The Georgia Swarm are the best team in the NLL and they proved it in taking the best-of-three championship series 2-0.

“Our effort reflects how hard we worked to win and how hard we worked from the first game of the season,” said Swarm coach Ed Comeau, who won his first NLL title as a head coach since 2007 with Rochester. “Everyone in the league starts the season for this reason. We got it done, and it’s a great feeling. We’re excited and thankful.”

Comeau and assistants Dan Ladouceur and Sean Ferris are an awesome coaching threesome.

“A lot of cedit has to go to our coaches for preparing us for this moment,” Lyle Thompson said after being named series MVP.

It was fitting that MacIntosh handed the Champion’s Cup to Poulin first. It was the signing of the 31-year-old goalie and a trade for 32-year-old forward Jordan Hall last summer that transformed the Swarm from a good to a great team. The signing last December of defenseman John Ranagan helped beef up the back end, and inserting rookie defenders Bryan Cole, Connor Sellars and Leo Stouros provided youthful bursts of energy.

The changes, made in close consultation with Comeau, were the work of owner and general manager John Arlotta, who along with his son, Andy Arlotta, pushed doggedly ahead in the team’s second year in the Atlanta suburbs despite a lot of empty seats, but with a dedication to success that was full to the brim. The Arlottas worked tirelessly after purchasing the franchise in 2008 to put together a winner. Shrewd trades and wise drafting led them to where they are today.

An example: On July 26, 2012, forward Kevin Ross was traded to Philadelphia for a first-round 2015 draft pick, and the Swarm selected Lyle Thompson first overall in September 2015.

Another example: Recent first-round draft picks Randy Staats, who scored four goals Saturday, Shayne Jackson, Jason Noble, Kiel Matisz, Chad Tutton, Jesse King and the Thompson brothers.

Poulin, Hall, and defenseman Mitch Belisle, 31, are the only Swarm players older than 30. The Swarm moved from Minnesota to Georgia in May 2015.

For long-time franchise vets such as MacIntosh, Belisle and Alex Crepinsek, hoisting the trophy was especially sweet. MacIntosh and Crepinsek were minor lacrosse teammates in Oakville, Ontario, 17 years ago and now they’ve won an NLL title together.

NCAA schools at which the new champions played: Albany, RIT, Syracuse, Belmont Abbey, Delaware, Colgate, Johns Hopkins, Limestone, Hobart, Cornell, Robert Morris and Maryland. Arlotta, a South Carolina resident who is a rich man after 40 years in the U.S. healthcare industry, was the lead donor for Arlotta Stadium, the impressive lacrosse facility at Notre Dame.

The Georgia Swarm are the best team in indoor pro lacrosse. Nobody can dispute that, regardless of how Game 2 ended.