Bayhawks, Lizards, Rattlers Get One-Goal Wins
ANNAPOLIS, MD – Goalie Brian Phipps put forth his third straight strong performance in goal as the Chesapeake Bayhawks came from behind to beat the Hamilton Nationals, 12-11 in overtime, at Ron Joyce Stadium in Canada. Phipps, a rookie out of Maryland, continued to yield a hot stick by making 14 saves. He has now stopped a total of 51 shots in the past three games since taking over as the team's starting net minder.

Midfielder Steven Brooks was the hero, taking a feed from line mate Justin Smith and firing in the game-winning goal with 2:10 elapsed in the extra session as the Bayhawks captured a showdown of teams that were tied for third place in Major League Lacrosse (MLL).

"This is a huge win because it puts us in sole possession of third place and gives us the tiebreaker against Hamilton should it come down to that for the playoffs," Chesapeake owner and head coach Brendan Kelly said. "I am so proud of the entire team. We showed tremendous poise and a ton of courage tonight."

Attackman Danny Glading led the way offensively with two goals and two assists for Chesapeake (5-3), which rallied from a pair of three-goal deficits during the game. Smith finished with a goal and two assists while Brooks and attackman Ben Rubeor scored two goals apiece.

"Brian Phipps was phenomenal again tonight. He made some outstanding saves down the stretch to really give us a chance," Kelly said.

Goalie Scott Rodgers was tremendous between the pipes for Hamilton (4-4), making 19 saves to keep the score close throughout. Attackman Kevin Crowley scored three goals for the Nationals, who were outshot 57 to 31.

Rookie attackman Stephen Keogh scored two goals as host Hamilton jumped out to an early 5-2 lead. Midfielder Kyle Dixon fired in a 2-pointer to pull Chesapeake to within 5-4 at the end of the first quarter. The Nationals regained the three-goal lead, but Brooks and Rubeor closed the second period with back-to-back goals to make it 7-6 at halftime.

Chesapeake came out on fire in the third quarter, scoring two goals in the opening four minutes to take a 9-7 lead. Smith sparked the run with a goal and an assist while Phipps helped turn the tide toward the visitors by making five saves in the stanza, which ended with the Bayhawks leading 10-8.

It remained that way for the initial five minutes of the fourth quarter before Hamilton scored three goals in the span of 3 ½ minutes to regain the lead. Rookie midfielder David Earl tied the game at 10 with an unassisted goal at the 8:46 mark while Geoff Snider won the ensuing faceoff and scored just 27 seconds later to make it 11-10.

Neither team managed a goal for a stretch of nearly seven minutes before Chesapeake attackman Brian Carroll came through in the clutch. Carroll took a feed from midfielder Michael Kimmel and fired in a rocket shot that tied the score 11-11 with just 27 seconds left in regulation.

"Brian Carroll really came up huge. Time was winding down and he stepped up to make a big-time play," Kelly said. Brooks then came through in overtime to give the Bayhawks their second straight victory. Smith set up the winner by dodging and drawing a slide from the long stick midfielder defending Brooks. Smith quickly dished off to Brooks, who scored on a sidearm, left-handed crank shot.

Alex Smith won 14 of 25 face-offs for Chesapeake, which held Hamilton scoreless on three power play attempts. Long sticks Michael Evans, Steve Whittenberg, Kyle Hartzell and Barney Ehrmann anchored a defense that allowed just four goals after intermission.

The Bayhawks return home this Saturday, July 23rd to battle the Long Island Lizards at 7:00 pm. The Bayhawks will be wearing pink helmets in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Night and they will be autographed and auctioned off after the game. Proceeds will benefit Save the Coconuts Foundation. The game will be live on Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic.

* * * *

July 16, 2011 - Hempstead, NY - The Boston Cannons (6-2) were held to just one goal in the second half to lose 12-11 to the Long Island Lizards (3-5) in the last in a four game road trip. The Cannons failed to clinch a playoff spot, still needing a win or a Lizards loss to secure a trip to Championship Weekend.

The Cannons took control from the first face-off, taking a decisive 5-0 lead in the first quarter on goals from Max Quinzani, Kevin Buchanan, Pat Heim and two from Matt Poskay, who also had an assist during the run. The Lizards took over the end of the quarter with a two-point goal from Stephen Peyser and two goals from Tim Goettelmann to end the first in a 5-4 Cannons lead.

Although the Lizards struck first in the second quarter, Rabil re-started the Cannons' offense with the 20th two-point goal of his career. Poskay scored again, Brian Farrell notched his third career goal in three games and Rabil scored the 20th (one-point) goal of the season. John Grant Jr. scored behind the back to keep the Lizards alive, but the Cannons took a 10-6 lead into halftime.

Long Island controlled the scoreboard in the third, with goals from rookie Jay Card, Dan Cocchi and Peyser to bring the Lizards within one, then Card scored five minutes into the fourth quarter to tie the score at 10. The Lizards took their first lead of the night on a two-point goal from Matt Danowski and, despite an unassisted goal from Brad Ross, held on for the 12-11 win.

The Cannons return home to face the Hamilton Nationals at Harvard Stadium on Saturday, July 23 at 7:00 PM EST.

* * * *

DENVER – The Denver Outlaws (5-3) could not complete a comeback late in the game, falling to the Rochester Rattlers (1-7) 9-8 at INVESCO Field at Mile High on Saturday night.

Trailing 8-5 entering the fourth quarter, the Outlaws roared back into the game with goals from Peet Poillon, Steve Holmes and Bill McGlone to knot the game at eight. However, with 2:25 left in the game, Rattlers midfielder Jordan Levine broke the tie with the eventual game-winning goal. A last-second shot by the Outlaws that would have won the game was deflected.

Rattlers attacker Ned Crotty led his team to victory with four points (2 goals, 2 assists), while Billy Bitter was the standout of the night for the Outlaws. Bitter tallied two goals on the night for his third multi-goal game of the season.

The Outlaws began the game with an early 2-0 lead, including goals from Nate Watkins and Connor Martin (1:36 and 2:48 into the first quarter, respectively), but their sticks fell silent after that as they managed just one more tally in the first half. Though the Rattlers didn't respond until the 9:05 mark with their first goal from Jordan McBride, it sparked a 3-0 run against the Outlaws, as Matt Striebel and Grant Catalino scored as well.

With 6:55 left in the second quarter, what would have been Crotty's first goal for the Rattlers was waved off due to a crease violation. Less than a minute later, the Outlaws' Bitter answered with a goal to tie the score at three. But with just a minute until halftime, Levine scored an unassisted goal to put the Rattlers in the lead, 4-3.

Immediately at the start of the third quarter, Crotty netted his first goal for the night. Three minutes later, Bitter beat out Rochester defensemen Andrew Spack and scored to end Denver's thirteen minute drought. Attacker Brendan Murdorf proceeded to tie the game at five with a short-handed goal, but the Rattlers responded with goals from Crotty and a two-point goal from Anthony Kelly.