The third game of Premier Lacrosse’s weekend in Denver, CO proved to be the game of the week, and quite possibly the game of the year so far. Waterdogs took on Atlas, and gave everyone their money’s worth and then some. Two of the hottest teams in the league looked to stay hot and jump up the standings with the season winding down.
The “and then some” reference was to this game going into overtime. An insanely back-and-forth contest saw plenty of goals, the final one leading Waterdogs to a 16-15 OT win over Atlas.
Ready or not, here comes the action. Surprisingly, the first goal of the game didn’t come until the 6:02 mark in the first. Chris Gray opened the scoring and the proverbial floodgates for both sides. Ryan Conrad answered right back for Waterdogs.
On the ensuing faceoff, the crowd lit up. Trevor Baptiste won the draw, drove right in, and scored. A big welcome back to the PLL and the city of Denver for #9 for the Atlas. Kieran McArdle’s first and Conrad’s second on the power play, gave Waterdogs a 3-2 lead. Another power play goal, this time by Eric Law, evened it up 3-3 at the end of one.
Eleven total goals were scored in the second quarter. Mikie Schlosser struck first for Waterdogs, only to be answered by a two-point bomb from Koby Smith. You want more? No problem. Connor Kelly rifled a two-point bomb of his own, and Michael Sowers got his first of the game on the power play. The dynamic rookie Jeff Teat notched his first, and was answered by Sowers’ second. Law and Daniel Bucaro rattled off two straight for Atlas, and another power play goal by Kelly closed the second out. 9-8 Waterdogs at halftime.
Waterdogs head coach Andy Copelan spoke at halftime about the first two quarters.
“It’s a good game,” he said. “I think you’ve got two pretty good teams, right now just squaring off. It’s a battle at the face-off X. Both teams have shown glimpses of playing really good ball, and both teams have shot themselves in the foot at times.”
The back and forth didn’t die down at the start of the third quarter. Romar Dennis opened the scoring with a two-point bomb. Waterdogs answered back with two straight to regain the advantage, one from Ethan Walker and the other from McArdle. Gray and Kelly traded goals, and Zach Currier got his first to close the quarter out. 13-11 Waterdogs going into the final frame.
This game took a breather to start the fourth, but don’t let that fool you because it went down to the wire. The first goal scored in the fourth quarter was by Kelly at the 5:40 mark. Thirty seconds later, Gray answered right back for Atlas. These two were playing “anything you can do, I can do better.” We’re here for it.
Law, Bucaro, and Dox Aitken rattled off three straight for Atlas and all of a sudden, they held a one-goal lead with just over three minutes to go. Waterdogs pulled their goalie with 40 seconds left, forced a turnover and drove up the field. Atlas goaltender Jack Concannon made an insane save, but let a juicy rebound loose. Steven DeNapoli received a pass off that rebound and fired a shot that beat Concannon. We’re headed to overtime. Who doesn’t love free lacrosse?
The overtime period began and there was a bit of feeling out. Waterdogs goalie Dillon Ward intercepted a pass and threw an outlet pass. Former Denver Pioneer Jack Hannah got a pass and ripped the game-winning shot. Your final, 16-15 Waterdogs. Who Let the Dogs Out by Baha Men on repeat.
The man of the hour, Jack Hannah, spoke after the game about being in the moment and the game-winner: “I’m not gonna lie, I think they were short one or two guys. Currier came across the top, found me, and I took the shot when it was open.”
Players of the game for Atlas were Gray (3+1), Law (three goals) and Bucaro (2+1). Concannon had a doozy of a game, standing on his head for the majority. He made 13 saves with a 46% save percentage. As for Waterdogs, Kelly (3 goals and a two-pointer), McArdle (2+3) and Conrad (2+2) led the way. Ward had that crucial pass interception that led to the game-winner. Ward made 18 saves with a 58% save percentage.
The ‘Dogs are rolling. They’ve won five straight and look to continue that next week in Salt Lake City. They take on Redwoods August 12th at 10:30 p.m. As for Atlas, they still sit pretty towards the top of the standings and try to right the ship August 12th at 8 p.m. against Whipsnakes.
