When Tim and Pat Welsh joined the Thunder in 1989, Pat, who is a year younger than his brother, immediately went to work on a couple of the Thunder's most undesirable career records.
By the time Pat retired in 1993, he had become the Thunder's all-time leader in penalties (43) and penalty minutes (102).
To help keep his team at full strength, Tim tried to leave his brother's records alone and he started going after some others.
Four games into his seventh Major Indoor Lacrosse League season, the two-time All-American from the University of North Carolina broke Jeff Jackson's career record of 80 goals to become the Thunder's all-time leading goal scorer with 81.
Tim Welsh, 29, also leads the franchise in games played (54) and shots on goal (306) heading into Saturday's 2 p.m. game against Rochester at the Baltimore Arena. The game will be televised live on ESPN.
Welsh said he relishes the attention that goes with setting records, but he tries not to get too caught up in the numbers.
"Records are a part of the game, but again, they're only part of the game," said Welsh, a second-team All-Pro selection in 1990. "I haven't intentionally tried to break any records. I just enjoy the sport and like to be a part of it."
Welsh, who scored his record-breaking goal with three seconds remaining in a 9-7 victory over the New York Saints, also is closing in on several other Thunder records. The 6-foot, 160-pound forward ranks second on the team's career list in assists, points and loose balls and is third in hat tricks with seven.
Nothing Welsh accomplishes surprises Skip Lichtfuss. The second-year Thunder coach has been following Welsh's athletic career since his playing days at Loyola High and North Carolina and knows what he can do.
"Tim Welsh is an outstanding athlete going back to his high school days at Loyola, where he was a star in football and lacrosse," said Lichtfuss. "He's a gifted athlete with a strong desire to excel and he's very durable."
Welsh's durability has enabled him to rewrite the Thunder's record books, but it's his winning attitude in the face of a 22-31 career team record and a 3-13 mark over the past two seasons that Lichtfuss finds most appealing.
"As the veteran, we need him to be a leader by example in every area, and he's accepting that role and we want for him to continue that way," said Lichtfuss, whose team is 2-2.
"The younger guys on the team look at the older guys and see how they act and how they carry themselves, and they repeat that behavior and Tim has set a good example."