Last night the Rochester Rattlers improved to 8-3 on the season with a 10-7 win over the Chesapeake Bayhawks. The Bayhawks remain in the league’s cellar at 3-8.
The first game back from the break saw both teams without several key players. The Bayhawks had defenseman Brian Spallina return from a jaw injury but remained without stars such as Brendan Mundorf and Michael Evans.
Rochester gained a boost with rookie Ty Thompson making his professional lacrosse debut, but they too were without players such as Mark Matthews and Jordan MacIntosh.
Rochester has now won four straight games, and a lot of it is thanks to rookie Mark Cockerton, who opened the game with five straight goals after the Bayhawks scored less than a minute into the contest.
Thompson assisted on the Steven Boyle goal that won the game for the Rattlers, giving Rochester a very impressive showing from their rookies while the Bayhawks struggled with chemistry with a large portion of their lineup out.
Despite four of the top five Rattlers scorers being out of the lineup, the team came together for a win. With a win next week, they can clinch a playoff spot.
Drew Westervelt scored three goals for the Bayhawks and Joe Walters added two. John Galloway made fourteen saves in net to the twelve from Kip Turner.
The Bayhawks aren’t eliminated yet, but they need to start winning some games.
