With two games left in the regular season, Major League Lacrosse is heading down the stretch run with plenty of intrigue. Much of that intrigue is due to a change in the playoff format. Rather than have one “championship weekend,” with the semifinals and championship the same weekend, this will mark the first summer of semifinals a week before the championship and at the higher-seed team. The semifinals are set…
The path for the Rochester Rattlers organization has not been typical. One of Major League Lacrosse’s original franchises, the team has enjoyed its fair of good seasons and its fair share of bad seasons. Rochester has not made the playoffs since 2008 when the Rattlers won their only MLL Championship. The Rochester franchise even moved north of the border for the 2009 and 2010 seasons until the old Chicago Machine…
One of the best stories from the 2014 World Lacrosse Championships was the emergence of countries, nations earning more success than what was expected. When thinking about this, three teams stand out the most to me. Israel Turmoil and unsettled conditions in Israel led to high security surrounding the team in Denver. Rather than be a distraction, the team rallied together and took playing for its country to a new…
Photo Credit: Di Miller The 2014 World Lacrosse Championships wrapped up on Saturday night with Canada defeating the United States. It wasn’t a historic or monumental upset, but is certainly an upset. Perhaps it’s fitting that in an era of growth and parity in the sport that the tournament ended the way it did. Here are some of my takeaways from Saturday’s title game along with the tournament as a…
Photo Credit: Di Miller The closing day of the World Lacrosse Games saw a lot of talent and games played. England and Scotland provided a highlight reel of goals for the fans, as these two teams played a shootout for 4 quarters of play, England coming away the victor. The 5th place finish was a great way to end the games, after a slow start against the World’s best. The…
The United States looks to continue its impressive run in the FIL World Lacrosse Championships when it faces Australia on Thursday at 6:30 p.m. ET. The U.S. has been dominant, especially over its last three games, outscoring opponents by a combined 59-9 highlighted by its most recent 18-5 win over the high-powered Iroquois Nationals. Australia gave the United States one of its tougher games, falling 16-7 in each team’s second…
With the attention of the lacrosse world on the World Lacrosse Championships in Denver (rightfully so), it’s easy to forget that Major League Lacrosse returns to action this weekend. Rochester travels to Chesapeake on Thursday night for the first MLL game in 12 days. Two games are set for Saturday while Florida travels to Denver on Sunday. Many wonder why games are scheduled during the world championships. I don’t know…
Fans had to wait for one of the World Lacrosse Championship’s most highly-anticipated games until the final day of pool play. That day is here. Undefeated United States faces the Iroquois Nationals at 7 p.m. ET (5 p.m. local time) on ESPNU. The game will prove critical in seeding; there’s still a lot on the line. At 4-0, Team USA would clinch the all-important #1 seed with a win. The…
Photo Credit: Di Miller The United States used an 8-0 run to turn a 3-0 deficit into an eventual 10-7 win over Canada to open the FIL World Lacrosse Championships on Thursday evening. That victory could prove large moving forward. Here are six takeaways from the game, including the significance of Team USA’s win to the U.S. – Canada rivalry, Paul Rabil, Rob Pannell and more. 1) The United States…
The World Lacrosse Championships begin tonight as the United States faces Canada at 9 p.m. ET on ESPN2. Fans will not only get to watch the best players compete, but they’ll also witness how the sport of lacrosse is growing. These championships will feature a record 38 nations including Belgium, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Israel, Russia, Thailand, Turkey and Uganda who will compete for the first time. The differences and…