Boston Cannons Dominate the Atlanta Blaze
Published on June 5, 2016 under Major League Lacrosse (MLL)
Boston Cannons News Release
Boston Cannons Celebrate a Goal vs. the Atlanta Blaze
(Boston Cannons)
The Boston Cannons snapped their two-game skid in a full team effort defeating the Atlanta Blaze 21-12 at Fifth Third Bank Stadium on Saturday, June 4.
12 Cannons scored including six tallying at least two goals in the win to fuel the offense. Mike Begley had his first career hat trick and Max Seibald returned from the injured reserve in a big way with two two-point goals to pace the offense.
"It was a great team win on the road against a very talented Atlanta squad. The team played a complete game and competed. We have a lot to continue to work on but the team is starting to gel really well and get better from our previous six games," said Head Coach Sean Quirk following the win.
A huge part of the triumph was the effectiveness of the Cannons defense to limit a Blaze team that scored 45 combined goals in their last two games. Cannons first round draftee, Brandon Mullins (Syracuse '16) covered Atlanta's Kevin Rice (Syracuse '15) who ranks second in the league to Will Manny in points, and first in scoring. After years of covering Rice in practice, Mullins knew what to expect and held the attackman in check.
In the first quarter, the Cannons and Blaze traded the lead several times. Boston jumped out to a 1-0 advantage following a face-off win by Joe Nardella, 38 seconds into the contest. Kevin Buchanan scooped up a rebound and fired a shot past Atlanta net minder, Adam Ghitelman.
Less than a minute later, the Blaze made it 2-1 as former Cannon, Ryan Tucker netted a two-point goal. Deemer Class would add his first goal of his MLL career and suddenly it was 3-1 Atlanta.
The Cannons were not about to give up. Max Seibald responded in his return to the lineup, blasting a shot from outside of the arc to knot the score at 3-3. Michael Pellegrino netted his first career goal and Justin Turri also scored before the buzzer sounded signaling the end of the first quarter.
Entering the second quarter, it was 5-5. The Cannons jumped ahead 6-5 thanks to another goal by Turri and they did not look back.
It was time for Greg Melaugh, the newest addition to the Cannons, to make his mark. Melaugh contributed with his first goal in a Cannons uniform before Mike Begley followed in the scoring act. It was 8-5 Cannons.
Two quick goals from Atlanta made it 8-7 but it didn't take long for the Cannons to regain their composure. Wells Stanwick added an insurance goal and 9-7 leading into half time.
The Cannons opened the third quarter with an extra step in their stride. Six different players scored for Boston in the third compared to the lone Blaze goal. Will Manny, Max Seibald, Brent Adams, Kevin Buchanan, Michael Begley, and Davey Emala helped extend the lead. Heading into the final quarter, the Cannons had a 16-9 advantage.
The fourth quarter saw another explosive fifteen minutes of offense for Boston. Joe Nardella, Brent Adams, James Fahey, Michael Pellegrino, and Mike Begley struck for goals.
The Blaze scored four times in the final quarter, but it wasn't enough as the Cannons held their ground to prove victorious.
Joe Nardella was 21-33 at the face-off X and Tyler Fiorito made 12 saves in between the pipes to secure the win for Boston.
Mullins was awarded the Coca-Cola player of the Game honors in what marked the first MLL game of his career. He had five ground balls in the win.
The Cannons will be back in action at Harvard Stadium on Saturday, June 11. Tickets are still available and can be purchased at BostonCannons.com/tickets or by calling our front office.
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 Boston Cannons Celebrate a Goal vs. the Atlanta Blaze |
Major League Lacrosse Stories from June 5, 2016
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