Yesterday, we said if the USA Developmental Team could stay in the game vs the Iroquois it would be an accomplishment. They lost by 13 goals as the Iroquois Nationals took a 24-11 victory in the fourth annual Bowhunter Cup.This was the first time the game was ever played on Iroquois turf as they played at the Iroquois Lacrosse Arena. They scored seven straight goals to end the first half and went on an 11-3 run in the second quarter.
Johnny Powless of the Rochester Knighthawks scored six points, two goals and four assists. Fellow Knighthawks Cody Jamieson and Craig Point put up three goals each. Roger Vyse of the Toronto Rock led the contest with ten points overall.
Ethan Farrell of the Philadelphia Wings, one of just two NLL players on the American roster, scored three goals to lead his team. Brandon Dube of the Vermont Voyageurs scored twice while former Baltimore Bomber Matt Hickman added two of his own along with Voyageur and former Boston Rockhopper Greg Rogowski. Brandon Miller and Joe Evans played in net for the Americans. Evans plays for the Voyageurs and is also the former starting goalie for the Rhode Island Kingfish.
“I learned just how fast the game really is at the top level, what we as a team can work on in the future and that 5 on 5 the US can run with any other team.” Evans said after the game. “Our talent and athleticism is good enough to beat those guys. Their advantage lyes in their chemistry which is apparent when you watch their passing on offense. We just need this core group of guys to continue to play together at a high level so we can develop better chemistry. We were only down by 2 in the 1st and outscored them in the 3rd. Where we struggled was in transition from the long change in the 2nd and 4th which can be corrected with more practice.”
Top NLL prospect Randy Staats also scored five points for the Iroquois while Kyle Smith scored once for the Americans. NLL goalie prospect Warren Hill saw some time in net split with Buffalo Bandits backup goalie Angus Goodleaf.
