Everything You Need to Know About the 2024 PLL Championship Game
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© 2024 USA Lacrosse. All Rights Reserved.
© 2024 USA Lacrosse. All Rights Reserved.
The stage is set for the 2024 Premier Lacrosse League championship game.
The most recent champion, the Utah Archers, return to Philadelphia to defend their crown. They continue the trend of the defending champion reaching the title game the following season, but only one team has won back-to-back championships: the Maryland Whipsnakes, who won the first two league titles in 2019 and 2020.
Maryland is the hottest team in the league, winning six straight games, including an overtime victory over the top-seeded New York Atlas in what New York head coach Mike Pressler said was one of the greatest lacrosse games he’d ever been in.
Utah enters as winner of three straight, including a 13-9 victory over the Denver Outlaws that sealed the team’s position as Western Conference champion, followed by a 10-1 victory over the Carolina Chaos that was a shutout until the final 56 seconds.
The Archers beat the Whipsnakes in Boston before the All-Star break, but head coach Chris Bates sees a different Maryland team than before.
“They’re clearly playing with a little more confidence. They know themselves that much more,” he said. “They’ve meshed the battle-tested guys with the young energy and skill. That doesn’t happen overnight. They’ve done a good job of everybody getting on the same page, playing to their strengths, and it’s paid off.”
When: Sunday, September 15, 3 p.m. Eastern
Where: Subaru Park in Chester, Pa.
Watch: ABC
Tickets: Here
Players on successful teams often talk about how there’s a positive culture and how leaders set the tone. Maryland and Utah are no exception, and for good reason, as both teams have captains nominated for the PLL’s Brendan Looney Leadership award: Whipsnakes defender Matt Dunn and Archers midfielder Tom Schreiber.
Maryland attackman TJ Malone said the veterans have made it their responsibility to take the younger guys under their wings, and defender Ajax Zappitello gives Dunn a lot of credit for his ability to adapt to the pro game so quickly.
“The personalities of our captains, Dunn and Jake Bernhardt … those guys made the transition so easy, being able to break everything down and flip it basically from a [University of Maryland] vision to now you’re in the pros,” he said. “Those guys have been nothing short of amazing in helping me find my footing in this league and get really comfortable, really fast, with this group.”
Unfortunately for Utah, Schreiber will play in the championship game, as he broke his clavicle in the final week of the regular season. Despite not being able to hit his pinpoint passes or score clutch goals like the game-winner in last year’s title game, Schreiber is still making an impact.
“His effort and the way that he plays, that’s where we turned our attention,” Grant Ament said. It’s playing for that guy. When you watch us substitute on the field, it’s with pace. It’s with purpose. If you watch us celebrate, it’s all six guys because that’s the group, that’s the culture that Tom has created.
“He’s in my ear telling me, ‘Hey, man, these last two years have sucked for you. I’m so proud of the way you’ve battled through it and done it. It’s your time. Go take it.’ When you have Tom Schreiber telling you that, it’s like, ‘I’m invincible.’”
Ament and Malone were teammates at Penn State for a season, and Malone views Ament as a big brother. They will go into the championship game as opponents, leading their respective offenses to what each hopes results in a title.
Both are playing at elite levels. They’re also having a lot of fun along the way.
Ament has had a difficult few years, heading into 2024 coming off injuries, but he finished first among midfielders in points this season and had nine multi-point games during the regular season. He continued that trend in the semifinals, adding a goal and two assists.
“I’m definitely playing with a lot of joy,” he said. “I’m playing with more gratitude than anything, and I’m just thankful I’m in this locker room with this group of guys.”
Malone has been just as impressive. He finished tied for third in the league in points and is considered a favorite to win the Rookie of the Year award.
His praises have been sung around the league, including from teammates like Dunn, but he’s just enjoying every second of the experience.
“It’s been so much fun. A dream of mine ever since the PLL was established in 2019 has been to play professionally,” Malone said. “Going through injuries in college, not knowing whether I could keep playing the game of lacrosse or retire made me want to play professionally even more.”
One year ago, Mike Sisselberger was dominating faceoffs as a rookie for the Archers — finishing second in faceoff win percentage (68.1 percent). That included two games against the Whipsnakes in which he won at least 50 percent. In his first matchup with the Whips, he went 23-for-27 with 16 ground balls.
The Whipsnakes were without Joe Nardella, however, who missed the entire season with a torn ACL.
This year, Sisselberger experienced a slight drop in productivity, finishing fourth with a 58.4 winning percentage thanks to a slow start that saw him win 42 percent or less of his faceoffs in three of his first five games. The lowest winning percentage (39 percent) came against Maryland and a returning Nardella. The veteran won 18 of 29 faceoffs that day with 10 ground balls.
Since coming back, Nardella has returned to his standing as one of the elite faceoff athletes in the league, finishing first with a 67.5 winning percentage. He won fewer than 60 percent only twice in nine games.
Despite Nardella’s success, Bates is confident Sisselberger will improve upon their first meeting.
“We have faith in Siss,” Bates said. “He’s shown that he’s a true professional and will make necessary adjustments. I think he’s gotten better as the year’s gone on. We have faith he’s going to battle. I’d be surprised if this wasn’t a one- or two- or three-faceoff swing. Our goal is to win the three-on-three battle, and that’s part of the equation.”
While Maryland and Utah have several playoff-proven players on the offensive side, they both have 2024 first-round draft picks starting on defense in Zappitello (Whipsnakes) and Mason Woodward (Archers).
Each has played well this season, fully justifying their early selections. Dunn credited Zappitello for adjusting to the pro level so quickly, and while the rookie has shined guarding some of the league’s best players like Michael Sowers and Jeff Teat, he’s also worked hard on other aspects of his game.
“Everybody in the league is so talented,” he said. “Coming from college, I was used to covering the No. 1 guy, and it required a lot of dodging, and it did not require a lot of off-ball defense. That’s something that, quickly, I had to learn and develop.”
For the Archers, Bates praised Woodward’s demeanor, saying he keeps his emotions even-keeled and “the moment never seems too big for him.” For their opponent, Bates also said, “Ajax is an unflappable guy.”
That will be an important quality for both Zappitello and Woodward, who will be guarding players that have won championships before and will have to do so in a situation they have yet to experience in their PLL tenures.
“They both played at a high level,” Bates said, referring to their professional and college experiences, “but the Philly environment is that, plus [more]. The Utah game was exciting and had such a pulse to it. The Philly championship is going to jump more, but I think they’re both equipped to handle that.”
Phil Shore has covered lacrosse for a variety of publications. He played Division III lacrosse at Emerson College and is the current head coach at Osbourn Park High School in Virginia. His first book, Major League Life, was published in June 2020. Shore has contributed to USA Lacrosse Magazine since 2011.
