Professional PLL
06:00 PM
Jul 19
Phi
Den
Good morning. Here’s the latest from around the lacrosse world:
1. The Major League Lacrosse season opened this weekend, and what a weekend it was. All four games ended up as one-goal decisions.
Defending champion Denver scored the first five goals of the game, but Charlotte battled back, taking a 12-11 lead after Ryan Brown intercepted Jack Kelly's clearing pass near midfield, and then buried a two-point empty net goal midway through the fourth quarter. The Outlaws perservered, winning 13-12 as Eric Law tied it and then Michael Bocklet's fourth goal with 4:57 remaining proving to be the game-winner.
New York's Drew Adams made 19 saves, including an amazing stop (see What We're Watching below) with 22 seconds left to keep the game tied, and the Lizards rallied for a 15-14 overtime win at Chesapeake. A two-pointer by Myles Jones gave Chesapeake a 13-11 lead entering the final quarter, but Rob Pannell forced overtime and then Dave Lawson buried the game-winner.
Jake Bernhardt had three goals, including the game-winner with 4:53 to play, as Ohio edged Atlanta 10-9 behind 14 saves from Scott Rodgers.
In the highest-scoring game of the weekend, Boston knocked off Florida, 18-17, on Sunday with Kylor Bellistri scoring the game-winner in overtime. David Emala had four goals for the Cannons and Bellistri had a hat trick.
2. Albany saved the best for last on Saturday. Playing on Saturday night at home, the Danes scored the final five goals of the game to beat Yale 13-12 on freshman Mitch Laffin's goal with 34 seconds remaining. The victory snapped Yale's eight-game winning streak.
That capped a day with plenty of drama, including Ohio State rallying from a five-goal deficit to beat Maryland in overtime. Johnny Pearson picked up a rebound from a shot that hit the post to bury the winning goal.
No. 1 Syracuse continued its tight-rope act, edging Binghamton 9-8 for its eighth one-goal victory of the season.
Defending national champion North Carolina is on the brink of not qualifying for this year's NCAA tournament after a 14-13 loss to Notre Dame. The Tar Heels fell to 6-7 and must win the ACC tournament in order to qualify for the NCAA tournament.
There were also a pair of Top 20 upsets with defensively-minded Fairfield beating No. 11 Towson 9-8, and Air Force knocking off No. 16 Richmond 9-7.
3. Four women's Top 20 teams were upset this weekend, including red-hot Syracuse. The No. 7 Orange, who last weekend beat No. 2 North Carolina and had won five straight games, lost to No. 19 Louisville 9-8. Meghan Silverson had three goals and two assists for the Cardinals. Syracuse maintained the No. 2 seed for the ACC Tournament, which begins on Thursday in Richmond.
No. 12 Notre Dame was handled by Boston College 16-10 on the Eagles Senior Day. Kenzie Kent had five goals and two assists for the Eagles. The Irish won't have to wait long to avenge the loss — the two teams meet in the ACC quarterfinals on Thursday.
Georgetown knocked off No. 15 Denver 9-7 behind four goals from Morgan Ryan. The Hoyas play at Florida this weekend with a chance to win the Big East regular season title.
No. 16 James Madison saw its five-game winning streak come to an end with a 15-12 loss at CAA rival Delaware. Senior Coley Ricci had a career-high five goals for the Blue Hens.
PHOTO BY KEVIN P. TUCKER
Senior Colley Ricci had career-highs of five goals and six points as the Blue Hens downed No. 16 James Madison 15-12 in CAA play on Sunday. The Dukes will still be the No. 1 seed for the CAA tournament.
4. The NLL playoff scenarios are sorting themselves out, and Vancouver is playoff bound for the first time since relocating from Washington state. Neil Stevens checks in with his weekly NLL Notebook.