Hello, ILWT!
Week 4 of the Major League Lacrosse season brought the very talented Rochester Rattlers to the Mile High City. After a disappointing 6-8 season in 2013, the Rattlers were off to a hot 2-1 start in 2014. The Rattlers are a young, explosive, and versatile team and we knew we would need a full 60-minute effort to come out on top. On a personal note, I badly wanted this victory. After being drafted in the 2013 MLL draft by the Rattlers, and never receiving an opportunity to play for them, this one meant a little more for me.
The Outlaws’ weekend began with a late practice Friday evening at Denver University. DU has an incredible athletic facility and we are lucky enough to get to practice there before every home game. When we arrived at DU there was a youth lacrosse tournament taking place, and even at 9:30 pm on a Friday night, “Go Outlaws” chants could be heard throughout the entirety of our practice. We truly have a special fan base out in Denver, the best in the league in my opinion! (I’m clearly not biased at all)
Throughout the whole weekend, we had a very special guest accompany the Outlaws family. Kyle, from the Make A Wish Foundation, was our teammate and brother Friday night and Saturday night. He was at our practice Friday night, in the locker room pre-game Saturday, on the sideline with us during the game, was the first to run out onto the field and hug his idol Jesse Schwartzman post game, and then broke us down in the locker room after Kyle received our player of the game award. Kyle is a true warrior and inspiration, and I speak on behalf of the entire Outlaws family when I say it was an honor and a privilege to have him join us all weekend.
Saturday morning began with a walk through at Sports Authority field, and from the moment we arrived at the stadium it was all business. This team loves to joke around and we definitely enjoy each other’s company, but as soon as we strap it on, everyone knows it is go time. Whether it is a practice, a walk through, or a game, as soon as the helmets are on, we leave everything else aside and are ready to battle.
Our game on Saturday was a 7 pm start, so we had plenty of time to kill after our walk through. Luckily, there was plenty to keep us busy and this came in the form of all three Thompsons. My roommate, Jeremy Sieverts and I, watched every second of NCAA quarterfinal game between Albany and Notre Dane. I have seen a lot of lacrosse in my days, and this was one of the most exciting games I have ever witnessed. I congratulate Notre Dame on gutting out the victory, but I have never seen anything like the Thompson trio before and was definitely saddened that I would not get to see them play during championship weekend.
We arrived at the stadium a little after 5 pm and once again it was all business. We knew if we wanted to extend our record to 4-0 and make it 24 straight regular season victories, we would need to battle it out for a full 60 minutes. In my opinion, this was our most complete game of the season. We played hard and well from start to finish. Our first seven goals of the game came from seven different goal scorers and at one point our defense held the Rattlers scoreless for over 25 minutes! We had huge offensive performances from John Grant Jr. (1 goal, 5 assists), Eric Law (2 goals, 3 assists), and Drew Snider (3 goals). Jesse Schwartzman was stellar in the cage once again, building on his league-best goals against average. We ended up winning the game 14-8 and it was an awesome victory to be a part of.
The Outlaws are off next weekend and then we welcome the always dangerous Charlotte Hounds to Denver on May 30 (which also happens to be my birthday). Thanks for stopping by loyal ILWT readers and I hope everyone has a fun and safe Memorial Day Weekend!
Noah Molnar
