Cannons come up short of MLL champs
July 3, 2008 - Major League Lacrosse (MLL)
Boston Cannons News Release
BOSTON, MA - Thursday, July 3, 2008 - The Boston Cannons of Major League Lacrosse (MLL) were defeated by a score of 16-14 in a close battle with the reigning MLL Champion Philadelphia Barrage, in front of 5,883 fans at Harvard Stadium on Thursday night.
With the loss, the Cannons fell to a 4-3 record this season and snapped a three-game winning streak. With the win, the Barrage increased their season record to 5-3.
After a 10-minute weather delay due to an aggressive thunderstorm that crashed down on Harvard Stadium, the Barrage didn't waste any time jumping out to an early three goal lead thanks in part to their two-point tally to open the contest. Midfielder Paul Rabil (Johns Hopkins '08) got the Cannons on the scoreboard with his marker at 3:31, but the Barrage answered back with a power play tally to regain their three goal lead, until attackman Matt Alrich (Delaware '04) collected a power play goal of his own at 6:16. Attackman John Christmas (Virginia '05) assisted on the goal by Alrich. From there, the Barrage scored three consecutive goals to pull out to a 7-2 lead, but the Cannons ended the quarter with tallies from attackman Mikey Powell (Syracuse '04) and Rabil, at 12:47 and 13:20 respectively, to close the gap to 7-4 after 15-minutes of play. Rabil's marker was his second of the contest.
Powell opened the second quarter with his second goal of the game, assisted by Alrich, at 1:40, but the Barrage took over from there, scoring five unanswered goals to take a 12-5 lead. Alrich finally broke the scoring drought for the Cannons as he dove to score his second goal of the game at 14:34, sending the game into halftime with the Barrage holding a 12-6 advantage.
The Cannons finally settled in and built up some momentum in the third frame, allowing the Barrage to score only once, while they battled back to within one goal. Powell collected his third goal of the game, just 44 seconds into the quarter, and attackman Sean Morris (UMass '06), a native of Marshfield, Massachusetts, found the back of the net on the power play at 2:16, to tighten the scoring gap to 12-8. Alrich assisted on both goals, earning his second and third helpers of the contest. Soon after, Rabil brought the Cannons back to within two goals with his two-point tally, assisted by Powell, at 7:16, and Alrich netted his third goal of the match-up at 11:13 to close the Barrage lead to 12-11. After being held scoreless for 15 minutes and 46 seconds, the Barrage managed their only goal of the quarter to take a 13-11 lead, but Christmas got it back for the home team, scoring at 13:41 to close the segment with the Cannons trailing by only one goal at 13-12. Powell earned his second assist of the game on the tally by Christmas.
The Barrage struck early in the final quarter, scoring two goals to push their lead to 15-12, until the Cannons countered with a goal by Christmas, his second of the contest, at 7:53 to stay within striking range of the Barrage. Each team scored once more, with the Cannons ultimately coming up short by a score of 16-14 against the defending MLL Champion Barrage. Rabil netted the final goal in the contest, his fourth, at 12:25.
Cannons goalie Kip Turner (Virginia '07) took the loss with eight saves on the 23 shots he faced in the contest. Barrage goalie Brian Dougherty (Maryland '97) earned the Bud Light MVP award with the win, stopping 28 saves on 41 shots.
FINAL BOX SCORE: http://www.pointstreak.com/prostats/boxscore.html?gameid=675207
The Cannons will return home to Harvard Stadium for their next game as they host the Long Island Lizards on Saturday, July 12 at 7:00 PM. The game will air live on both Comcast SportsNet New England and Cox in Rhode Island.
Cannons Flex Packs and individual game tickets are on sale now. The Cannons offer outstanding games and entertainment perfect for families, corporate outings and groups of friends.
Major League Lacrosse Stories from July 3, 2008
- Cannons come up short of MLL champs - Boston Cannons
- Division 3 Standout Makes His Mark in Major League Lacrosse - New Jersey Pride
- Chicago Machine vs. LA Riptide Game Preview - Chicago Machine
- Byrne And Martin Receive MLL All Star Honors - San Francisco Dragons
- Three Rattlers Named To MLL All-Star Roster - Dallas Rattlers
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