MLL Weekly

Published on July 8, 2009 under Major League Lacrosse (MLL) News Release

Mile High Record- For their annual July 4 fireworks display and game, the Denver Outlaws drew out a record 21,952 fans to INVESCO field for their contest against Boston, eclipsing their previous record of 20, 116 set last 4th of July.

A Real Ground Hog- Toronto's star defender Brodie Merrill moved into third all-time for groundballs with 371. Merrill is second in the league for groundballs this season and leads all defenders in points with 17.

Sweeney: Demon Defender- One of Boston's star defenders, Kyle Sweeney, recorded his 250th groundball in what was another strong performance from the long pole against Denver. With 6 pickups and a goal, Sweeney leads the Cannons with 38 groundballs.

On the Brink- Denver's Drew Westervelt got his first career 2-pointer in last weekend's game against Boston. He also recorded 5 other goals and an assist, combining for a season-high 8 points. This brings his career total to 99 points.

All Broken In- Denver's rookie face-off man, Shane Walterhoefer, earned his first assist, his first point, first penalty minute, and first power play assist. He also took his 160th faceoff. Walterhoefer was the 7th overall pick in the 2009 Collegiate Draft.

P.T.'s first P.I.M.- Washington rookie P.T. Ricci had his first goal, point & penalty minute in his team's victory over Long Island. P.T. was selected 11th overall in the 2009 Collegiate Draft by the Bayhawks. So far this season, the defenseman has tallied 16 groundballs, leading all rookies from the 2009 class.

On Top, but Still Climbing- Washington's Alex Smith, who is the league's top face-off man, earned his 600 win and the X. Smith lead on the face-offs last season and his continuing his climb to becoming the greatest face-off man of all time. He moved to 6th all-time for career wins, and should easily move into the top five by the end of the season.

Small Playing Big- Nationals' Corey Small, playing in his second career game, recorded his first points with two assists against the Chicago Machine. His first assist went to Colin Doyle in the first quarter, and his second came in the fourth quarter, to Shawn Williams.

The Lead Mean- The league's top scorer, Merrick Thomson, reached 97 career points after his 7-goal performance against the Chicago Machine. In his third season in the MLL, Thomson has recorded 84 goals and 13 assists. So far this season, Thomson has scored at least two goals in all his games this season and has recorded 9 hat tricks.

No Rust on This Machine- Chicago's veteran defender Greg Bice recorded his first 2-point goal of his career. Bice is the only defender in the 2009 season to record a 2-pointer. His goal is the only points thus far, this season.

24: Chicago- Machine rookie Stephen Bauer played his first game as a professional against Toronto. In the victory over the Nationals, Agent Bauer scored his first goal/point in the first quarter of Saturday's contest.

Enter the Cage- Washington's rookie Drew Adams finally made his introduction to the MLL. Entering the game in the fourth quarter, Adams recorded 2 saves and allowed 0 goals. Adams was the 19th selection out of Penn State in the 2009 Collegiate Draft.

Long Island Lows- Fresh off their first bye week, the Long Island Lizards should have been well-rested and ready to take on the Bayhawks. Instead, the Bayhawks lit up the Lizards defense and shut down their offense. The Lizards tallied a league season-low 7 goals.

Player Trades- By the end of the trade period at 4 pm on Tuesday, two transactions were made. Chicago's rookie John Glynn was sent to Long Island for fellow rookie Mark Kovler, who played in his first game this past weekend, and a second-round pick in the upcoming 2010 Supplemental Draft.The second trade happened between Long Island and Denver, with Outlaw midfielder Sean Lindsay and Denver's 2010 third-round draft pick going to the Lizards in exchange for their 2010 second-round draft pick.

Lean, Mean, Record Breakin' Machine- While the Chicago Machine may not have won as many games as they wanted too, they certainly entered the record books with their victory over the Toronto Nationals. It was only their second win of the season, but they certainly made a statement out of it. The Machine offense broke three records: Most points in a game (38), most points in a quarter (15), and most points in a half (22).

The Best in the West- The 2009 Young Guns vs. Old School All-Star game is scheduled for next Thursday at 8 p.m. MT. It will be aired on ESPN2, and features the games top players from around the league. Expect a lot of goals and stunning finishes from guys like Paul Rabil, Brendan Mundorf, Merrick Thomson and many more. Halftime will include the Bud Light Skills Competition.

When Coming Up Short Is A Good Thing- After just 9 games played, the Toronto Nationals have already smashed the record for most short-handed goals scored by a team in a single season, having tallied 7 so far this year. The previous record was 5 held by the Boston Cannons, Baltimore Bayhawks, and Philadelphia Barrage. In 2005, the Cannons scored 5 short-handed goals in the regular season (they also had 1 in the post-season as well). In 2004, both the Baltimore Bayhawks and Philadelphia Barrage had 5 short-handed goals during the regular season.

About Major League Lacrosse Major League Lacrosse (MLL), the premiere professional outdoor lacrosse league, commenced play in June of 2001. The MLL is comprised of six teams located in Boston, Chicago, Denver, Long Island, Toronto, and Washington. The 2009 MLL All-Star Game will take place on Thursday, July 16 in Denver, Colorado at INVESCO Field at Mile High. The season will culminate with the New Balance MLL Championship Weekend, which will take place on Saturday and Sunday, August 22 and 23 at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in Annapolis, Maryland.

Major League Lacrosse was founded by Jake Steinfeld and is headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts. For more information, please visit the Official League website at www.majorleaguelacrosse.com.

Major League Lacrosse Stories from July 8, 2009

• Straight From the Nest: Bayhawks Have Week Off Before Next Home Game - Chesapeake Bayhawks
• Cannons Travel to Long Island Thursday - Boston Cannons
• MLL Weekly - MLL

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