It’s round two for 5-4 Rochester and 7-2 Chesapeake. The Rattlers took home a 12-8 win against the Bayhawks in their first meeting this season. Dave Cottle and the Bayhawks are looking to get back on the winning side after their one goal loss to the Charlotte Hounds last Saturday. John Galloway and the Rattlers will try to take a 2-0 record over Chesapeake and continue their win streak after taking down the Long Island Lizards twice in a row.
Goalie
Rochester
John Galloway will need to play like he did in his two games against Long Island this past weekend. However, this time, he will need to make more than 21 saves, especially shots from beyond the two-point arc. Going against this Bayhawk offense will be tougher this time around as they didn’t have John Grant Jr. the first time. Galloway will have to be on his toes the entire game.
Chesapeake
For Chesapeake, the goalie spot may be open again. Kip Turner had a good game against Charlotte, but allowing two goals, one being a two-point goal from way outside the arc with under a 1:30 to go would upset any coach. Turner has been very consistent for Chesapeake, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see him in cage this weekend, but with Dave Cottle at the helm, you never know what will happen in net. Coach Cottle one time mentioned that the goalie that deserves to play, will play.
An interesting note is that when these two teams first met this season, Mike Gabel was in net for Rochester. He stood on his head to get that win. Now he is on the other side of the ball with Chesapeake, so it will be interesting to see if he is on the sidelines for the Bayhawks and see what kind of “homecoming†welcome he gets if he goes in.
Defense
Rochester
There was a scary moment in last weekend’s match up against the Lizards when Chris Passavia fell on Joel White’s leg. Fortunately, White was not injured on the play, but if I were Coach Soudan, I’d be watching White very closely. Joel has played very well this season, making plays on both ends of the field. The close defense of Montelli, Manley and Lade has become very well as a unit. Lade has found his stride and Manley found his this weekend shutting down Matt Gibson. Montelli plays more of a team defense than a shut down defender, which every defense needs. Short stick d-mids Kevin Drew and Roy Lang have been stellar. They will be busy this weekend taking on the midfielders of Chesapeake, who are some of the best in the MLL. Lang has been a transition workhorse for Rochester, using his speed and agility to get down the field. Not to mention going to the cage sometimes.
Chesapeake
This close defensive unit has been a key to Chesapeake’s success. With veterans Brian Spallina, Nicky Polanco and Michael Evans, it’s no surprise that they have been this good. They are tough and mean and will play as hard as they can to shut down their man. Barney Ehrmann, Dan Hostetler and John Orsen have been doing very well at the Long Stick Midfield position and can run and gun with the best of them. Hostetler will easily go coast to coast. That will be a battle to see between him and Joel White. One thing Coach Cottle is not afraid of is using lots of short stick defenders. Every midfielder on this team is capable of playing two way lacrosse, and Cottle is not scared of exploiting that.
Midfield
Rochester
Their midfield has been their core to their success with veteran Matt Striebel leading the way. Jordan MacIntosh has come out of nowhere, becoming one of the biggest threats on the offensive side of the field for Rochester. Rob Rotanz is having a good but somewhat quiet rookie season after playing in Ohio and being traded to Rochester. Colburn is the big midfielder that will crash the net. Brad Ross is more of a team player than he is a standout and will do what’s best for the team and at times be a little selfish and score a goal, along with Steve DeNapoli, who plays great defense. They will need to keep on playing the way they have this season and work hard in transition if they want to go 2-0 this season versus Chesapeake.
Chesapeake
The Bayhawks midfielders are like their attack, versatile. Matt Abbott plays both ways and is a monster in the transition game. Steven Brooks has no problem going to net and scoring, while Michael Kimmel works hard off ball to get open in case Brooks needs an outlet and can shoot the ball. Kyle Dixon will shoot from anywhere and score. He has 10 two-point goals this season alone and will keep racking them up if defenders keep leaving him open.
Attack
Rochester
This attack unit has clicked and will be tough to beat. One big help this past weekend for the Rattlers was that Ned Crotty came back from injury. When he was out, the team had to make adjustments and had players step up. Now that he’s back, the players that stepped up will need to continue playing the way they have been and not slump. They’re going against a veteran Chesapeake defense, which they know, and will have to move the ball quickly and shoot repeatedly to make them tired and score goals.
Steven Boyle was one of the players who stepped up when Crotty went down. Boyle has been standing out above the rest, scoring goals left and right and producing offense. Kevin Leveille makes his return this weekend. His play has not been all that well or consistent this season. However, he still is a part of that offense and has helped as much as he can. Dan Hardy has been quiet as well, replacing Jay Card and Leveille, scoring here and there. He has also been inverted into a midfielder at times to give the Rattlers another shooter on offense.
Chesapeake
Probably one of the most versatile groups of attackmen in the league. They can dodge and shoot from anywhere on the field.
John Grant Jr. takes his defender to cage all the time. Although he is a little slow of foot, his stick skills mask that and do wonders for his goal scoring. His stick skills make it near impossible for a defender to strip the ball from him. Drew Westervelt has been a huge welcome for the Bayhawks organization. He scores on demand and plays hard throughout the game. Not to mention, he too can dodge. Ben Rubeor and Danny Glading will play the role of the third attackman, giving their defenseman difficulty in trying to play two different attackmen and two different styles of playing.
Faceoff
Rochester
Tim Fallon will have to win faceoff’s to keep the ball out of the Bayhawks sticks. Fallon went 22-56 at the X against Long Island this weekend. Jordan Macintosh also took a face and won.
Chesapeake
Adam Rand has been a big help since veteran Alex Smith has been out for the majority of the season. Just this season he is 135-245. He won 16-20 in the first meeting and should do fairly well again come this Saturday.
Predicted Matchups:
Attack/Defense
Rochester: Crotty vs. Polanco, Boyle vs. Spallina and Leveille/Hardy vs. Evans
Chesapeake: Grant Jr. vs. Manley, Westervelt vs. Lade and Rubeor/Glading vs. Montelli
Midfield
Rochester: Striebel vs. Ehrmann/Hostetler/Orsen, MacIntosh/Ross/Rotanz vs. Abbott/Reynolds, Rotanz/Ross/Denapoli vs. Reynolds/Brooks
Chesapeake: Dixon vs. White, Brooks vs. Lang and Kimmel/Abbott vs. Drew
