Photo Credit: Di Miller
The Chesapeake Bayhawks will open the 2016 campaign on the road against the expansion Atlanta Blaze with a new head coach and a revamped roster.
Brian Reese takes over as head coach after serving the past two years as an assistant to Dave Cottle, who remains team president. Reese played for the Bayhawks and was a starting defenseman on the 2002 team that captured the Major League Lacrosse championship. The Ellicott City resident served as general manager of the 2012 Bayhawks squad that also hoisted the Steinfeld Trophy.
“I’m excited about the opportunity to lead one of the most successful franchises in Major League Lacrosse and look forward to building a championship caliber club,” Reese said. “I like the pieces we have in place this season and can’t wait to begin the process of developing a team that plays a fast-paced, high-energy brand of lacrosse.”
Reese has worked in conjunction with Cottle to revamp the roster and create the type of team he prefers to coach. Reese, who led the Denver Outlaws to a pair of championship game appearances during a four-year tenure as head coach, said the focus during the offseason was to improve Chesapeake’s athleticism and team speed.
Among the notable acquisitions was midfielder Nick Ossello, a former first-round pick of the Denver Outlaws in the 2015 MLL Collegiate Draft. Ossello declined to pursue professional lacrosse last season, choosing instead to return to Notre Dame University as a fifth-year senior and play football. Chesapeake selected Ossello, an honorable mention All-American after scoring 23 goals as a senior for the Fighting Irish, with its first-round pick in the MLL Supplemental Draft.
“Nick Ossello is a do-it-all type of midfielder – he plays offense, defense and can faceoff,” Reese said. “Nick is a phenomenal athlete, one of the finest available in the player pool, and we feel he can help the Bayhawks.”
Reese believes the Bayhawks found a midfielder of similar talents in Tyler German, one of three players acquired from the Boston Cannons in exchange for goalie Tyler Fiorito. German, a Centreville native who starred at Queen Anne’s High and the University of Virginia, was originally drafted by the Charlotte Hounds. He is currently an assistant coach at Washington College.
Replacing Fiorito between the pipes will be Brian Phipps, who the Bayhawks got in a trade with the Ohio Machine. Phipps played in 13 games for the Machine last season and posted a 9-4 record with a 12.2 goals-against average and 56.4 save percentage. Phipps, a Severn School graduate who starred at the University of Maryland, is head coach of boys’ lacrosse at Archbishop Spalding. “Brian has been a starter in Major League Lacrosse and a playoff goalie. He’s a great leader and a winner,” Reese said.
Chesapeake figures to have plenty of firepower on attack with the dynamic duo of Brendan Mundorf and Drew Westervelt leading the way. Mundorf rejoins the Bayhawks after missing the entire 2015 season after undergoing microfracture surgery. The Mount St. Joseph graduate is a former MLL Most Valuable Player and leading scorer for Team USA at the 2010 world championships. “Brendan has looked great in practice. He’s not where he wants to be just yet, but is not far off,” Reese said of Mundorf, who amassed 347 points on 229 goals and 118 assists in eight seasons with Denver.
Westervelt has scored 213 goals during his nine-year MLL career, last four of which have come with Chesapeake. The Bel Air native played alongside Mundorf at UMBC and for five years in Denver. “Brendan and Drew have such great chemistry together. They just know what the other is going to be and what they are going to do. It’s as though they read each other’s mind,” Reese said.
Michael Evans, an eight-year veteran and six-time All-Star, is back to anchor the close defense. A starter for Team USA at the 2014 world games, Evans remains one of the top shutdown defenders in MLL.
Jesse Bernhardt has developed into one of the league’s top defenders since being drafted by the Bayhawks out of the University of Maryland in 2013. Bernhardt possesses a slick stick and is one of the best in the game at getting the ball off the ground and clearing it ahead.
The Bayhawks boast one of the greatest long stick midfielders in MLL history in Kyle Sweeney, who has gobbled up 451 ground balls over the course of a 15-year career. C.J. Costabile, like Sweeney, is versatile enough to play either long pole or close defense.
Chesapeake will once again field one of the league’s finest short stick defensive midfield units with 2014 Team USA member Dan Burns teaming with eight-year veteran Jeff Reynolds. Burns sat out the majority of games a year ago due to the lingering effects of a concussion.
Matt Abbott, another member of the 2014 United States National Team, gives the Bayhawks arguably the premier two-way midfielder in MLL. Abbott transitioned into more of an offensive role last season and totaled 24 points (17 goals, 7 assists), but remains a dominant short stick defender. “I’m going to line up Matt Abbott and let him go all game. I haven’t seen too many athletes of Matt’s caliber and we want him on the field as much as possible,” Reese said.
Mundorf’s return allows Chesapeake to employ Matt Danowski in a midfield role. Danowski has played both midfield and attack during a nine-year MLL career that has produced 334 points.
Chesapeake will be without its top offensive midfielder for at least two games as Joe Walters is playing indoors for the Rochester Knighthawks of the National Lacrosse League. Walters led the Bayhawks in scoring last season with 37 points (19 goals, 18 assists).
On the bright side, the Bayhawks welcome back a potent midfielder scorer in Matt Mackrides, who missed most of last season with a concussion. Mackrides, who put up big numbers in 2013 and 2014, was the team’s leading scorer through six games in 2015. “Matt possesses great speed and quickness, which gives him the ability to create his own shot. He also has great vision and is a real playmaker from the midfield,” Reese said.
Chesapeake figures to be vastly improved at the faceoff stripe with second-year pro Charlie Raffa teaming with proven veteran Anthony Kelly in that role. Raffa was a dominant force on the draws at the University of Maryland while Kelly is among the most successful faceoff specialists in MLL history with more than 1,400 career wins.
This is the inaugural season for the Atlanta Blaze, who are directed by general manager and head coach John Tucker. A free postgame concert featuring country music recording artists Eric Paslay and Clare Dunn will highlight the season opener at Kennesaw State University Stadium.
“Our players are excited to be part of history and helping a new franchise kick off,” Reese said. “There are some unknowns since Atlanta is a new team that has never played a game. That being said, Coach Tucker has been in the league a long time and has a style and system he’s used in the past.”