MLL Week 9: Inside the Numbers

Published on August 9, 2019 under Major League Lacrosse (MLL) News Release

We take a closer look at the numbers from Week 9 of the 2019 MLL Season.

This week the Boston Cannons beat the Denver Outlaws 16-13, The Dallas Rattlers beat the Atlanta Blaze 16-14, The Chesapeake Bayhawks beat the New York Lizards 11-9, and The Chesapeake Bayhawks beat The New York Lizards 24-7.

 

Goals Per Game Assists Per Game Ground Balls Per Game Face off Wins Per Game Shots on Goal Per Game Turnovers Per Game

Blaze - 14.9 Blaze - 10.4 Outlaws - 43.11 Outlaws - 17.67 Bayhawks - 27.56 Bayhawks - 15

Cannons - 14.89 Outlaws - 7.67 Cannons - 40.44 Blaze - 16.8 Outlaws - 27.44 Rattlers - 15.78

Bayhawks - 13.89 Cannons - 6.56 Blaze - 39.8 Bayhawks - 15.44 Cannons - 27.22 Outlaws - 16.44

Outlaws - 13.56 Bayhawks - 6.11 Lizards - 36.1 Cannons - 15 Blaze - 26.8 Cannons - 17

Lizards - 11.5 Lizards - 5.4 Bayhawks - 35.44 Lizards - 13.9 Lizards - 24.5 Lizards - 17.2

Rattlers - 10.78 Rattlers - 3.78 Rattlers - 32.89 Rattlers - 10.67 Rattlers - 23.67 Blaze - 18.1

Caused Turnovers Per Game Ground Balls Against Per Game Shots on Goal Against Per Game Face off Losses Per Game

Rattlers - 7.89 Outlaws - 31.78 Bayhawks - 24.33 Outlaws - 12.67

Bayhawks - 7.78 Bayhawks - 35.67 Rattlers - 25.78 Bayhawks - 14.33

Cannons - 6.44 Blaze - 38.8 Outlaws - 25.89 Lizards - 14.5

Outlaws - 6.22 Lizards - 39.2 Lizards - 26.6 Blaze - 15

Lizards - 5.3 Cannons - 40.67 Cannons - 26.67 Rattlers - 16.56

Blaze - 5.3 Rattlers - 42.11 Blaze - 27.7 Cannons - 16.56

Best Passing Teams

Atlanta Blaze - 69.8% GWA (104 Assists & 149 Goals)

Denver Outlaws - 56.6% GWA (69 Assists & 122 Goals)

New York Lizards - 47.0% GWA (54 Assists & 115 Goals)

Boston Cannons - 44.03% GWA (59 Assists & 134 Goals)

Chesapeake Bayhawks - 44.0% GWA (55 Assists & 125 Goals)

Dallas Rattlers - 35.1% GWA (34 Assists & 97 Goals)

These rankings are based on the percent of a team's goals that are assisted. The acronym GWA stands for Goals With an Assist.

Ground Ball Percent's Rankings

Denver Outlaws - 57.6% 

Atlanta Blaze - 50.6%

Boston Cannons - 49.9%

Chesapeake Bayhawks - 49.8%

New York Lizards - 47.9%

Dallas Rattlers - 43.9% 

These rankings are based on the percent of all available ground balls in a game that a certain team scoops up.

Caused Turnovers - Turnovers Ratio Rankings

Chesapeake Bayhawks - 1.93 CTTR

Dallas Rattlers - 2 CTTR

Denver Outlaws - 2.64 CTTR

Boston Cannons - 2.64 CTTR

New York Lizards - 3.25 CTTR

Atlanta Blaze - 3.42 CTTR

These rankings are based on which teams have the best ratio of caused turnover to turnovers. For example, if a team has a 3 CTTR (Caused Turnover-Turnover Ratio) then for every Caused Turnover they force they give up 3 Turnovers.

Team Stats Trends for Week 9

Teams with more Shots on Goal were 2-2 this week

Teams with more Ground Balls were 2-2 this week

Teams with more Face off Wins were 2-2 this week

Teams with less Turnovers were 3-0-1 this week

Teams winning at Half were 3-1 this week

Teams winning going into the 4th Quarter were 4-0 this week

(Note: the 3-0-1 means that in certain games the teams tied in certain statistics, like face off wins, or that games were tied at half or going into the 4th quarter)

For the first time this season the teams with less turnovers were actual able to pull off a winning record. Only 5 teams with less turnovers have been able to win their games before this week. The Face-off wins, Ground Balls, and Shots on Goal were all perfectly average this week, going 2-2. All season having a lead going into the 4th quarter has been pretty much a guarantee, and this week was no different with all four teams being able to hold onto their 4th quarter leads.

Team Stats Trends for the Whole Season

Teams with more Shots on Goal are 15-11-2

Teams with more Ground Balls are 18-9-1

Teams with more Face off Wins are 15-12-1

Teams with less Turnovers are 8-14-6

Teams winning at Half are 15-8-5

Teams winning going into the 4th Quarter 23-2-3 

(Note: Any record with a third number, like 18-9-1, indicates that there have been games that tied in these statistical categories, or indicates that a game was tied at halftime or going into the 4th quarter)

The stat that has been the most consistent and led to the most victories is not very surprising, teams with a lead going into the 4th quarter have won 23 games this season. Only twice this year a team has been able to make a 4th quarter comeback. Having a lead going into halftime has also proven to lead to success with 65% of teams leading at half going on to win their game. Ground Balls are still leading the statistics with 67% of teams with more ground balls going on to win, and on the opposite side only about 33% of teams with less turnovers have gone on to record a win in their respective games. Meanwhile Shots on Goal and Face off wins have both been slightly above 500.

Zach Wright's Teammate of the Week Award

Tommy Palasek had an outstanding game this week at home against the Dallas Rattlers. The Blaze were unable to secure a win against the slightly surging Dallas Rattlers, who have won two games in a row after dropping their first seven, but that does not reflect Palasek's efforts in the contest. Palasek contributed in more than just assisting, he also was able to grab 2 ground balls throughout the game. However, his biggest contribution to the game and how he earned this award was his 4 assists on Saturday. Tommy Palasek wins Zach Wright's Teammate of the Week Award for Week 9 of the 2019 MLL season. This is Palasek's first time winning the award, but it is the third week in a row an Atlanta Blaze player takes home the prestigious honor, Randy Staats won the award in weeks 7 & 8.

Week 9 Team Shots on Goal Efficiency (SOGE) Rankings

Boston Cannons - 69.6% SOGE (16 Goals & 23 SOG)

Dallas Rattlers - 66.7% SOGE (16 Goals & 24 SOG)

Chesapeake Bayhawks - 54.7% SOGE (35 Goals & 64 SOG)

Atlanta Blaze - 53.9% SOGE (14 Goals & 26 SOG)

Denver Outlaws - 44.8% SOGE (13 Goals & 29 SOG)

New York Lizards - 44.4% SOGE (16 Goals & 36 SOG) 

Team SOGE Season Rankings

Atlanta Blaze - 55.6% SOGE (149 Goals & 268 SOG)

Boston Cannons - 54.7% SOGE (134 Goals & 245 SOG)

Chesapeake Bayhawks - 50.4% SOGE (125 Goals & 248 SOG)

Denver Outlaws - 49.4% SOGE (122 Goals & 247 SOG)

New York Lizards - 46.9% SOGE (115 Goals & 245 SOG)

Dallas Rattlers - 45.5% SOGE (97 Goals & 213 SOG)

Home Teams Struggles Continue

Week 9 was not the best week for home teams, they went a tough 1-3 with the only win coming from the Chesapeake Bayhawks on Saturday against the New York Lizards. The Home and Away record is now 12-16, which is the largest lead the away teams have had. With only 20 games left in the season the home teams will have to win 15 of those remaining games in order to finish the season with a winning home record. In week 10 Boston, Chesapeake, & Dallas all have home games, they will have to be successful in order to get the ball rolling for the home teams as we head toward the final stretches of the season.

2019 Season: Home & Away Record is 12-16

Every Teams Home & Away Records so far this season

Atlanta Blaze

Home Record: 3-3

Away Record: 2-2

Boston Cannons

Home Record: 2-2

Away Record: 4-1

Chesapeake Bayhawks

Home Record: 2-2

Away Record: 4-1

Dallas Rattlers

Home Record: 0-4

Away Record: 2-3

Denver Outlaws

Home Record: 3-2

Away Record: 3-1

New York Lizards

Home Record: 2-3

Away Record: 1-4

Best Week 9 Performances

Colin Heacock* - Chesapeake Bayhawks - 10 points (10 Goals), 4 Ground Balls, & 1 Caused Turnover 

Lyle Thompson* - Chesapeake Bayhawks - 7 points (5 Goals & 2 Assists) & 6 Ground Balls 

Steele Stanwick* - Chesapeake Bayhawks - 7 points (3 Goals & 4 Assists) & 4 Ground Balls

Bryce Wasserman - Dallas Rattlers - 7 points (5 Goals & 2 Assists) & 3 Ground Balls

Rob Pannell* - New York Lizards - 6 points (1 2pt Goal, 2 Goals, & 2 Assists) & 3 Ground Balls

Will Sands - Boston Cannons - 6 points (3 Goals & 3 Assists) & 4 Ground Balls

Ryan Lee - Denver Outlaws - 6 points (5 Goals & 1 Assist), 3 Ground Balls, & 1 Caused Turnover  

* - indicates that the player played in 2 games this week

Major League Lacrosse Stories from August 9, 2019

• Chesapeake Prepares for Battle against Denver on Native American Celebration Night - Chesapeake Bayhawks
• MLL Week 10 Preview - MLL
• Denver Outlaws Look to End Two-Game Slide on Saturday vs. Chesapeake BayHawks - Denver Outlaws
• MLL Week 9: Inside the Numbers - MLL

The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.