Hello, In Lacrosse We Trust!
My name is Noah Molnar and I am a midfielder for the Denver Outlaws. I played at Lehigh University from 2009-2013 and this is my second year with the Outlaws. I am very excited to be blogging for In Lacrosse We Trust this season and can’t wait to give all of you a behind the scenes look into life in the MLL.
For a player like myself, who is trying to break into the league and earn a weekly role, training camp means everything. It is called training camp but it may as well be called a tryout. Each team is allowed to have a maximum of 40 players at training camp and over the course of two weekends, 40 is whittled down to a 25 man active roster. Needless to say, I had been working my butt off to get into the best physical shape possible for camp and couldn’t wait to start getting after it on the field.
Weekend 1
Our first weekend of camp was held in Denver, Colorado at the incredible, brand new, Denver Broncos indoor field house. The Outlaw’s facilities, management, staff, coaches, and players are second to none. Everything with the Denver Outlaws is first class all the way.
After the mandatory pre-participation physical, concussion testing, orthopedic screening, headshots, and media responsibilities, the fun stuff finally got under way. Right out of the gate, everyone was fired up to hit the field. The energy was high from the very first whistle. The speed that the MLL game is played at is incredible. It always takes a little bit to get used to the speed after the off-season. No matter how hard you train or how good of shape you come into camp, there is no way to replicate the speed of the game and therefore it always takes a little bit to settle in.
As a whole, it was a great first weekend of camp. We had two sessions on Saturday and a third session on Sunday. We got three really good runs in and it was a great first step on the road to a repeat championship in 2015.
Weekend 2
Here is where the fun really starts. Weekend 2 we headed out to New York for a scrimmage with the New York Lizards. No easy task, considering the offensive line up that the Lizards bring to the table. Last year they had one of the most prolific offenses in the league led by Rob Panel, Ned Crotty, Tommy Palasek, and JoJo Marasco, throw the best lacrosse player in the world in there in Paul Rabil and they are an absolute handful at the offensive end.
Right out of the gate, you could tell both teams were excited about the prospect of banging into another color. The game was back and forth, fast paced, and physical. Lacrosse is known as a game of runs. We made a run in the 3rd quarter to open up a 10-6 lead only to have the Lizards make a run of their own in 4th to tie the game up at 13. I am a defensive midfielder, so I make my money on the defensive end. But, with 1:30 left in the game, and with offensive players audibly yelling “NO NO NO” I found myself open with the ball at about 15 yards. Ignoring the screaming offensive players, I decided let one fly and just so happen to stick the game winner top left. Even though it was just a scrimmage, it was still great to get the W. When it came down to it, both teams had their competitive juices flowing and both teams wanted to walk away from the field with a win heading into week 1. It was great to get the W and get some momentum going heading into Boston Week 1.
Thank you for stopping by and be sure to tune in to ESPN 3 at 5:00 pm Eastern on Sunday to watch the Outlaws take on the Boston Cannons in the season opener. And, be sure to cheer extra hard for #12.
Noah Molnar
Denver Outlaws #12
Instagram: Noahm12
Twitter: Noah12Molnar
