Ground Control- Lizards' defender Dan Cocchi scooped up his 200th ground ball this past Saturday, against the Machine. The 7-year veteran led all Long Island defenders with 6 GBs en route to the teams 4th win this season. The Green Monster- Lizards' veteran attackman Tim Goettelmann scored three goals against the Bayhawks to reach his 300th point this past Saturday. Nicknamed "The Monster," Goettelmann is also the current leader in career regular season games played with 104. He is currently 6th in career regular season points, but is first amongst current, active players.
Brownin' Around- Denver veteran Matt Brown shot for the 200th time this past weekend against Toronto. On his way to 200 this past weekend, Brown put in 4 goals past the Toronto goaltenders off of 6 shots.
Long Island's Best Berger-Lizards' 5-year midfielder Stephen Berger scored his 100th goal during last week's game against Chicago. The midfielder scored twice during the game, once in the second quarter and once again in the fourth quarter. So far this season, Berger has scored 11 times and added 3 assists for Long Island.
Zebra's Favorite Target- Long Island defender Brian Spallina earned his 75th regular season penalty minute after being called for a 1 minute illegal body check in the first quarter of Saturday's game versus Chicago. Spallina leads all players in career regular season penalty minutes.
The Duke of Long Island- The Lizards' Matt Danowski reached his 55th career point this weekend, after a 4-goal, 1-assist performance against the Machine. The Duke alum has collected 55 points in just 16 career games, averaging 3.437 points per game.
Heating Up- BostonCannons' midfielder Paul Rabil has scored 13 points in the last two games. In the previous three, Rabil had only accounted for 9 points. However, after his 9-point performance against Washington on Friday night, Rabil reached his 50th point milestone. This is his second season as a pro, and he should surpass last season's points' mark (32).
A first Time for Everything- Mike Ward of the Outlaws finally recorded his 1st career assist. In seven games for Denver last year, Ward recorded a single goal. In the games this past weekend versus Toronto, Ward assisted on a Matt Brown goal early in the second quarter. Another first that occurred this past weekend was for Chicago's Mike Leveille, who notched the first shorthanded goal of his two-year career. A man-down, Mike scored, unassisted, at the beginning of the fourth quarter. Unfortunately, it wasn't enough to beat Long island.
Game Breaker - Stephen Peyser (LI) scored his 1st power play goal and game winning goal against Chicago. Unassisted, Peyser fired a laser shot to the top corner to give Long Island its 4th win of the season. Peyser finished with a hat trick for the evening.
The Golden Arch- Two players scored their first goal from behind the 2-point arch this weekend. Brendan Cannon (CHI) netted his first 2-pointer against Long Island. Kevin Huntley (WAS) also tallied his first 2-pointer, which also allowed him to reach his 50th career point. This is Huntley's second season in the MLL, playing for the L.A. Riptide last season. This is Cannon's second season in the league and the Machine.
Rising Star- Machine attackman Kenny Nims made his first power play assist of his career. In the first quarter, Nims hit Mike Leveille for a beautiful power play goal. Nims, who started very slow a few games ago, has been improving each game, despite the amount of points.
Wait, There's More...Rookies- This season has brought many of college's top players to the professional level and are continuing to produce. Last weekend featured Jeff Reynolds (WAS) playing in his 1st gameas well as Matt Abbott (WAS) and John Glynn (CHI) tallying their 1st points. Abbott recorded his first goal in the first quarter of the Washington/Boston match, and Glynn received credit for his first assist to teammate Chris Rotelli in their battle against Long Island.
King of the Cage- Legendary Lizards goalie Brian Dougherty played in his 100th game against Chicago this past Saturday. Dougherty is in first place for many of the career records, including games and minutes played, saves, and wins.
Movin' On Up- The Washington Bayhawks have moved up the start time for their July 4th game against the Long Island Lizards in Annapolis. The game will now start at 6:15 PM ET in order to accommodate fans wishing to view the Annapolis 4th of July fireworks display.
Chi-town Changes- Chicago's July 4th game versus the Toronto Nationals, which was originally scheduled to be played at Toyota Park, has been moved to Glenbrook South HS in Glenview, IL. Game time is at 4 PM CT. Fans should also note that Saturday's (6/27) Machine game will be played at Uihlein Field, in Milwaukee, WI.
Double Trouble-The Toronto Nationals will play two games during Week Seven. On Thursday, they travel to Boston to face the Cannons. Then, on Saturday, they host the Denver Outlaws. The last time that a team played twice in the same weekend was back in 2006 and it involved two teams. The Los Angeles Riptide and San Francisco Dragons played in back-to-back games on July 22nd and July 23rd. San Francisco traveled to Los Angeles on the 22nd and lost to the Riptide by a score of 17-10. The very next day, LA traveled to San Francisco and once again defeated the Dragons, this time by a score of 15-11.
Hey Now, You're An All-Star- The MLL announced the 2009 All-Star roster. The game will return the Old-School vs. Young Guns format from the 2005 game, which also took place in Denver. The Old School will feature players from classes prior to and including 2006, while the Young Guns will include players from 2007 to 2009.
OLD SCHOOL ROSTER YOUNG GUNS ROSTER
Attack
Ryan Boyle (Boston Cannons)
Kevin Leveille (Chicago Machine)
Brendan Mundorf (Denver Outlaws)
Spencer Ford (Washington Bayhawks)
Midfield
Matt Striebel (Chicago Machine)
Brian Langtry (Denver Outlaws)
Kyle Harrison (Denver Outlaws)
Stephen Berger (Long Island Lizards)
Chris Fiore (Long Island Lizards
Joe Walters (Toronto Nationals)
Kyle Dixon (Washington Bayhawks)
Face-Off
Anthony Kelly (Chicago Machine)
Defense
Kyle Sweeney (Boston Cannons)
DJ Driscoll (Chicago Machine)
Lee Zink (Denver Outlaws)
Nicholas Polanco (Long Island Lizards)
Brodie Merrill (Toronto Nationals)
Goalies
Michael Levin (Boston Cannons)
Mike Gable (Chicago Machine)
Coaches
Brian Reese (Denver Outlaws)
Denver Outlaws Assistant Coaching Staff Attack
Kenny Nims (Chicago Machine
Drew Westervelt (Denver Outlaws)
Matt Danowski (Long Island Lizards)
Zack Greer (Long Island Lizards)
Merrick Thomson (Toronto Nationals)
Kevin Huntley (Washington Bayhawks)
Midfield
Greg Downing (Boston Cannons)
Paul Rabil (Boston Cannons)
Max Seibald (Denver Outlaws)
Jordan Levine (Toronto Nationals)
Jordan Hall (Toronto Nationals)
Face-Off
Alex Smith (Washington Bayhawks)
Defense
Ray Megill (Boston Cannons)
Matthew Bocklet (Denver Outlaws)
Ricky Pages (Long Island Lizards)
Joe Cinosky (Toronto Nationals)
Sid Smith (Toronto Nationals)
Goalies
Jesse Schwartzman (Denver Outlaws)
Brett Queener (Toronto Nationals)
Coaches
Kevin Huntley (Toronto Nationals)
John Combs (Chicago Machine
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