MLL Rookie Report: Law Perfect

Last week saw a number of players begin their MLL careers with others getting another taste of the professional level. Week 7 in the pros featured some notable debuts from guys like Hamilton National’s goalie Dillon Ward and Hounds midfielder Jake Tripucka. As for the rest of the rookies, let’s see how they fared after this past week of action.

Charlotte Hounds

Mike Sawyer A Loyola– Sawyer added a goal and an assist in the Hounds 15-13 loss to the Boston Cannons this past week. He continues to show his ability to be both a shooter and a facilitator for the offense. He now stands fifth on the points list for the Hounds.

Mason Poli D Bryant– Poli continued to be a transition player for the Hounds and recorded a shot against the Cannons during Week 7 of the MLL. He did not record any other major statistics in the game, but will continue to be someone the opposition has to keep an eye on for in the transition game.

Matt White A Virginia– White added two goals to his total in the loss to the Cannons this past week. He now has five points on the season and will continue to provide a goal scoring mentality for Charlotte playing behind the likes of Ryan Young, Matt Danowski and Eric Lusby.

Michael McCormack D Yale– McCormack added two ground balls to his season total  and continues to get a good deal of playing time for the Hounds on the defensive end.

John Haus A Maryland– Haus continues to be scoreless in the MLL, however, it not due to a lack of effort. The former Maryland standout is getting shots off for the Hounds, having recorded four in the losing effort. He also scooped up two ground balls for Charlotte. Look for him to find the net soon.

Jake Tripucka M Duke- Tripucka made his first appearance in an MLL uniform this past week and ended up playing a lot for the Hounds. Although he only attempted one shot for the Hounds he will provide great athleticism for Charlotte and will contribute on both ends of the field for the team.

The rest of the rookie class either has yet to be activated and is currently on the college in-active part of the roster, or is not listed on the roster anymore for the Hounds. Those players include:

No longer in the MLL: None

College Inactive List: Owen Byle A Maryland, Max Van Bourgondien M Cornell, Brian Casey M Georgetown, Kyle Feeney G Penn, Casey Carroll D Duke, Daniel DiMaria A Lehigh.

Ohio Machine

Dominique Alexander M Ohio State– Scooped up one ground ball for the Machine while continuing to contribute on both ends of the field.

Logan Schuss A Ohio State– Schuss continued to rack up the points for the Machine as he added two goals to his season total. He is now second on the team in goals with eight, only trailing Joe Cummings who has 12 goals. He is also fourth on the team in points.

Marcus Holman A North Carolina– Holman continues to be a great midfielder for the Machine as he recorded three points in the Machine’s first win of the season. On top of scoring his third goal of the season, he also handed out two assists on the night. He is second on the team in assists with five, and third in the team in total points (9).

Chase Carraro M Denver– Did not play this past week for the Machine.

Kevin Mack M Ohio State– Like Alexander, Mack also scooped up a ground ball in the win over the Rattlers while continuing to contribute on both ends of the field for the team.

The rest of the rookie class either has yet to be activated and is currently on the college in-active part of the roster, or is not listed on the roster anymore for the Machine. Those players include:

No longer in the MLL: Peter Baum A Colgate (LXM pro tour), Joe Lisicky D Lynchburg, Casey Fleming M UMASS

College Inactive List: None

Rochester Rattlers

David Lawson M Duke– Did not appear in the Rattlers last game.

John Ranagan M Johns Hopkins– After not finding the net in his MLL debut back on June 2, the former Johns Hopkins midfielder has found his goal scoring touch for the Rattlers. He has scored three goals each in the Rattlers 15-13 win over Boston and the Rattlers 13-10 loss to the Machine. Ranagan displayed his ability to beat his man from up top and shoot from long range. He now has six points in three games this season and should only get better as the season rolls along.

Peter Johnson D Yale– Hasn’t played yet this season

The rest of the rookie class either has yet to be activated and is currently on the college in-active part of the roster, or is not listed on the roster anymore for the Rattlers. Those players include:

No longer in the MLL: None

College Inactive List: Ryan Clarke M Salisbury, John Kemp G Notre Dame, Brett Schmidt A Mt. St. Marys, Matt Miller D Notre Dame, Noah Molner M Lehigh, Zach Palmer A Johns Hopkins, Marshall Johnson M Fairfield

Boston Cannons

Cameron Flint M Denver– Flint had more of an impact on the game this past week after getting his feet wet in the MLL. He followed up his one assist effort by scoring a goal and handing out another assist for the Cannons. He also had four shots on the day and looks to be getting some opportunities on offense. With the bulk of the opportunities coming from Paul Rabil, Matt Poskay and Mike Stone, Flint will have to take advantage of any opportunities he gets because they will be scarce in a loaded midfield unit.

Scott Ratliff D Loyola– Ratliff continued his strong play as he scooped up two ground balls this past week and saw more time on defense. He continues to share playing time on defense and will look to play alongside Kyle Sweeney and Brian Farrell.

Will Manny A UMASS– Manny followed up his two goal effort against the Rattlers with another two goal performance. However, his goals helped push the Cannons to a victory over the Hounds this past week. He now has five goals on the season and continues to get his opportunities on offense despite the fact that most of the Cannons offensive production comes from the midfield. However, if he continues to score he will earn more trust from both the coach and his teammates and get more looks on offense.

Brendan Buckley D Army– Buckley scooped up one ground ball for the Cannons this past week. It will be hard for him to find a lot of playing time with Ratliff, Farrell, Sweeney and Ricci in front of him.

The rest of the rookie class either has yet to be activated and is currently on the college in-active part of the roster, or is not listed on the roster anymore for the Cannons. Those players include:

No longer in the MLL: Lee Coppersmith M Johns Hopkins and Quinn Cully M Notre Dame

College Inactive List: Jake Smith D UMASS-college

Chesapeake Bayhawks

Jesse Bernhardt D Maryland-After picking up an impressive five ground balls in his MLL debut, Bernhardt saw the number drop to one this past week. Bernhardt will continue to contribute on the faceoff wing and get his nose dirty for the Bayhawks.  

Dominic Sabastiani M Delaware- Has not played since 6/1/13.

The rest of the rookie class either has yet to be activated and is currently on the college in-active part of the roster, or is not listed on the roster anymore for the Bayhawks. Those players include:

No longer in the MLL: None

College Inactive List: Kevin Cooper M Maryland, Adrian Sorichetti M Hofstra

Hamilton Nationals

Josh Hawkins M Loyola– Did not play this past week against the Lizards.

Reid Acton D Loyola– Acton scooped up two ground balls for in the Nationals 12-10 loss this past week. He continues to get in the rotation with fellow rookie Tucker Durkin and veterans Brodie Merrill and Matt Lovejoy.

Garrett Thul A Army– Did not play this past week for the Nationals.

Mike Poppleton FO Johns Hopkins– After going 11-27 on faceoffs in his MLL debut, Poppleton struggled at the ‘X’ going 9-26 against the Lizards this past week. He is now 20-53 from the ‘X’ and will look to rebound next game. Poppleton did, however, showcase the ability to be a threat off the faceoff as he won the draw and ran down and rifled a shot past Lizards goalie Drew Adams.

Tucker Durkin D Johns Hopkins– Durkin had a strong day in his fourth game of the season for the Nationals. He picked up five ground balls for Hamilton in the losing effort and continues to see a healthy amount of playing time alongside Merrill and Lovejoy.

Dillon Ward G Bellarmine– Ward got his first taste of the MLL and was not victorious in his debut. Although he had 11 saves for the Nationals he did allow four or five shots to be scored from near or beyond the two point line. However, those will be quick adjustments for a goalie who was a third team All-American this past year and had a save percentage of 66.2 in 2013.

Jason Noble D Cornell- Noble made his MLL debut for the Nationals and had two ground balls in the losing effort. Since there is a log jam at close defense for the Nationals, Noble will have to make his impact at the long pole position in order to see playing time for Hamilton.

The rest of the rookie class either has yet to be activated and is currently on the college inactive part of the roster, or is not listed on the roster anymore for the Nationals. Those players include:

No longer in the MLL: Cameron Mann M Jacksonville and Nick Doherty M Villanova

College Inactive List: None

New York Lizards

Rob Pannell A Cornell– Pannell continues to show why he was the winner of the 2013 Tewaaraton Award as he continues to rack up the points for the Lizards. He recorded five more points in the Lizards 12-10 win over Hamilton last week. He scored two goals and handed out three more assists to bump his season point total to 11. He is now third on the team in points after only playing in three games for the Lizards.  

JoJo Marasco M Syracuse– Marasco went scoreless once again for the Lizards in his second week of action. After taking three shots the week before, Marasco took one shot this past week and scooped up one ground ball. With Palasek, Pannell, and Matthews all on the attack line it will be hard for Marasco to crack this lineup and see a lot of playing time.

Jeff Tundo M Stony Brook – Has not appeared since 5/18/13 for the Lizards.

The rest of the rookie class either has yet to be activated and is currently on the college in-active part of the roster, or is not listed on the roster anymore for the Lizards. Those players include:

No longer in the MLL: None

College Inactive List: John Antoniades F/O Hofstra, Mark Mullen D Hofstra, Steve Murphy M Notre Dame

Denver Outlaws

Brian Megill D Syracuse– Megill picked up two more ground balls and had one shot for the Outlaws in their victory. He will continue to provide both great defense and the ability to move the ball in between the lines for the Outlaws, further enhancing their already potent offense.  

Eric Law A Denver– After an impressive MLL debut which saw Law pump in four goals for the Outlaws, it seemed impossible that he could top that output again. However, Law put on another dazzling performance for Denver in their 13-9 win over the Bayhawks as he scored five goals. The thing that is really impressive about his play so far has been his accuracy and efficiency, having gone a perfect 9-for-9 on his shot conversion. He provides yet another finisher for the Outlaws and another weapon on an already high powered offense.  

Roger Ferguson D Brown– Has not played since 5/31/13.

Landon Carr M Maryland– Has not appeared in a game yet for the Outlaws.

The rest of the rookie class either has yet to be activated and is currently on the college in-active part of the roster, or is not listed on the roster anymore for the Cannons. Those players include:

No longer in the MLL: Aaron Prosser M Drexel, Dante Fantoni A Lehigh, Sam Snow M Fairfield, Davis Butts M Loyola

College Inactive List: None