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Outlaws pound Nationals 15-8, sit alone atop MLL
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The Denver Outlaws warm up in a light rain prior to their game against the Toronto Nationals
on Saturday night. The Outlaws turned in a dominating performance to take over sole
possession of first place in Major League Lacrosse.
There were story lines abound when the Denver Outlaws hosted the Toronto Nationals at Invesco Field on Saturday night. Both teams were vying for sole possession of first place in the MLL and looking to separate themselves from the rest of the pack. The Nationals have enjoyed their new home in Canada, equaling the 4-1 record of the Outlaws, while leading the league in scoring. Denver was looking for revenge from last year’s championship game against Rochester — the Nationals’ roster is mainly comprised of last year’s Rattlers team — and keep their defensive momentum against the high powered offense of Toronto. This game also marked the return of former Denver stalwart Geoff Snider facing off against the man who replaced him, rookie Shane Walterhoefer. Needless to say, a lot was riding on this high profile mid-season match-up.
Both teams came out sloppy in the first quarter, a light rain and wet turf effecting play. Denver cleaned up their play relatively quickly; Toronto, however, was not so lucky. Dan Hardy (1G) got the scoring started with an unassisted goal three minutes in using his size to bull his way to the net. Jeff Sonke (2G, 2A) and Brendan Mundorf (3G, 1A) both added individual scores to take an early 3-0 lead with with 3:05 left in the quarter. Toronto got on the board with a Colin Doyle (1G, 2A) goal, but Nate Watkins (1G) responded with a great individual effort on what has become his signature, a righty curl on an invert. Denver went into the first quarter break with a commanding 4-1 lead.
As the Outlaws heated up, the Nationals fell even more out of sync in the second quarter. Denver reeled off eight of the next nine goals, all assisted, to extend the lead to 11-2 going into halftime. The Outlaws fed the hot hand of Matt Brown (4G) who was able to elude the crease defense and slip free for four goals in the quarter, most coming off easy slam dunk opportunities. Drew Westervelt (2G, 4A) also tallied four points in the quarter, scoring once and assisting on three others. The Nationals could not put it together in the first half and paid the price as Denver took advantage of numerous turnovers, scoring multiple easy buckets in transition. The Outlaws entered the halftime break leading 11-2.
The game slowed significantly in the third quarter as both teams attempted to control the pace of the game. Both teams scored twice in the period, highlighted by Brian Langtry (1G,1A) slipping one past Nationals keeper Brett Queener with one second remaining in the quarter to give the Outlaws a 13-4 lead. Westervelt also added to his point total with another goal off an assist from a resurgent Sonke.
Toronto began the fourth quarter on the comeback trail with an early strike from Merrick Thompson (3G) assisted from Joe Walters (1A) 1:40 into the period. The Nationals’ momentum was short lived, however, as Denver refused to give them a foothold on the offensive end. Jesse Schwartzman ( continued his hot streak by coming up with impressive saves at just the right time, including a flurry of point blank saves to squash any hope of a Nationals comeback. Although the Nationals did lead the scoring in the quarter 4-2, they did not come within seven goals, and never really threatened the lead especially after a 5-minute game misconduct penalty to finish the game man down. Another mini-scrum ensued with 40 seconds remaining after Westervelt dropped Queener after the keeper left the shelter of his crease resulting in a 5-minute game misconduct penalty of dubious validity. Schwartzman garnered Bud Light MVP honors.
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