Justin Ivey, MLL Correspondent
Lacrosse is Awesome
It was another beautiful day in Quincy, MA as the Boston Cannons (3-0) hosted the Long Island Lizards (0-4) for the second time this season. The Lizards kept the score close in the first half, but a strong second half for the Cannons, including four goals from Mark Cockerton, secured their third straight win to open the year. The 3-0 record is the best start in franchise history and has the Cannons in first place. The Lizards are still searching for the elusive first win. With a roster as talented as any on the offensive end, they have yet to string together a complete game and find themselves looking up at the rest of the league. Final Score: New York-11, Boston-18.
The Cannons and Lizards played a tight first half. Boston took nine shots on cage in the first 15 minutes, connecting on five of them. Connor O’Hara (4G) scored two goals and was joined on the stat sheet by Shawn Evans (1G, 1A), Will Sands (2G, 1A), and long pole Ryland Rees (1G). Evans’s goal was his first of the season after taking some rest after his late NLL season, and Rees’s goal was his first in the MLL. The Lizards Rob Pannell (2G, 3A) scored first in the second quarter to get New York within one, but Zed Williams (2G, 1A) put Boston back up two. Justin Reh (2G, 1A) answered with two straight goals to tie the game 6-6, but the Cannons cleaned up for the final minutes and regained the two-goal lead on goals from Kyle Jackson (2G, 1A) and Sands. The goal from Sands was scored with just 20 seconds left on the clock and the assist went to Challen Rogers (3A) whose dodge from the top drew numerous defenders to get Sands open. At halftime, Boston led New York 8-6.
Boston came out in the third quarter on fire. They outscored the Lizards 6-2 in the pivotal quarter, scoring on over 50% of their shots. O’Hara completed his hat trick to put the Cannons up 11-7 and on the ensuing possession, Williams ran along the two-point arc, stepped under his defender and scored for the five-goal lead. A two-pointer was waved off because of a flag, but the Cannons got two the old fashion way. With the flag down, Mark Cockerton (4G) scored one of his four goals in the second half. The goal incited a small scrap between the players on the field, but it didn’t kill the momentum. Kyle Denhoff (1G) dodged from the top and buried the ball with 47 seconds remaining. On the wrong side of a 6-1 run, Pannell finally broke through in the final seconds. Cockerton opened the fourth quarter with two straight goals, the second on the assist from Evans with 8:14 left in the game. Suddenly, the Cannons were ahead 16-8. The Lizards made things a bit tense and rallied for their own three-goal run. The third goal was scored by Dylan Molloy (3G) with 2:35 on the clock. The good fortune ended there. Jackson scored from inside with 1:17 left, and face off specialist Kevin Reisman (1G) scored his first goal of the season after winning the following draw. Final Score: New York-11, Boston-18.
Up Next:
The Boston Cannons (3-0) host the Denver Outlaws (2-1) on Saturday, June 29 at 5:00 PM EST.
The New York Lizards (0-4) host the Dallas Rattlers (0-3) on Saturday, June 29 at 7:30 PM EST.