Cannons Hold Off Lizards 13-12 to Earn First Victory of 2019
Published on June 1, 2019 under Major League Lacrosse (MLL)
Boston Cannons News Release
QUINCY, MA - The Boston Cannons defeated the New York Lizards in the 2019 home opener at Veterans Memorial Stadium on Saturday. The game went down to the wire, but the Cannons held on to a 13-12 victory to earn their first season-opening win since 2015.
"It was just an all-around great effort throughout the night," said Cannons Head Coach Sean Quirk. "We went up early, New York managed to punch back a bit, but our guys just responded. They were so even keeled throughout the sixty minutes. They were never too high. They were never too low. They persevered through that last few minutes when New York was putting the pressure on offensively."
Mark Cockerton scored four goals in the first half alone, including Boston's first goal of the season with 9:35 remaining in the first quarter. Zed Williams (two) and Connor O'Hara scored the other goals for the Cannons in the first half.
Goaltender Nick Marrocco was tested early, making two separate point blank saves early in the first quarter. In the first half, he made 12 saves on 17 shots, but credited the defense for its solid coverage throughout the night.
"I think our defense played tremendous," Marrocco said, following his 18-save performance. "When we were six-on-six, I think we really shut them down. I think that shows a lot about our defense as a whole."
The Cannons carried a 7-5 lead into the third quarter, where the Lizards started to claw their way back into the game a bit, outscoring Boston 3-2 in the frame.
With a 9-8 lead at the beginning of the fourth, the Cannons scored four of the first five goals in the final period to take a 13-9 lead. Boston's 13th goal came from Zach Goodrich, who was suiting up in his first MLL game. Coach Quirk said his goal came at a "big time" and credited Goodrich with a strong showing against some tough competition.
"It was awesome to finally get out here. It was a long time coming," said Goodrich. "I want to come in each game and keep doing what I have to do to help the team win. I think at the end of the day, the ultimate goal is to win each week."
After Goodrich put the Cannons up 13-9 with 7:20 left, the Lizards went on a three-goal run to pull within one with 59 seconds remaining. On the ensuing faceoff, Noah Rak beat Kevin Reisman clean and nearly scored on a breakaway, but the Cannons scurried to get back in position to keep the ball out of the cage.
On the next play, the Cannons rushed the ball up field but turned it over near the midfield line. The Lizards ran the ball back into the Cannons' zone but fired it out of bounds to run out the clock. It was a nerve-racking final minute for the Cannons, but they hung on tight to pick up the victory.
"I like the way this team is starting to gel," said Quirk. "You can see some things early on, that when you're up, they can protect that lead. When it's a close game, they respond. We'll just keep fighting as we're off to Dallas now."
The Cannons play in Dallas next Sunday at 4pm ET.
Major League Lacrosse Stories from June 1, 2019
- Cannons Hold Off Lizards 13-12 to Earn First Victory of 2019 - Boston Cannons
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