Pride Fall to Barrage in Front of Record Crowd at Mercer County Park
July 8, 2006 - Major League Lacrosse (MLL)
New Jersey Pride News Release
WEST WINDSOR - For the New Jersey Pride, there were several things that went their way in the team's game against Philadelphia at Mercer County Park in West Windsor. A team record 6,103 fans watched as face-off man Andy Corno returned from a groin injury to win 18-of-24 draws against arguably the best player at that position in league history, Paul Cantabene. The downside was that most left disappointed as the Pride were plagued by offensive woes in a 17-7 loss to the Eastern Conference rival Barrage.
"I don't think we played to our potential on any side of the ball,'' said Pride head coach Peter Jacobs. "It's a disappointing day for everyone in the organization.''
The crowd of 6,103 for the Pride bested the 4,812 fans who attended the game at Mercer County Park last season when the Pride hosted Boston.
The Pride needed a win against the Barrage to keep pace in the playoff chase in the Eastern Conference, but instead fall three full games back of the Barrage for second place in the East with four games to play. The magic number for Philadelphia to leave the Pride officially in its wake this season is down to one.
"We have to win out and they have to lose out,'' said Pride General Manager Trey Reeder. "It's a tough position to be in.''
With the Pride down 9-7 with the final seconds of the third quarter ticking away, Adam Doneger took a pass on an odd-man rush a fired a 2-pointer that drilled the right post, one of six irons the team hit on the day. The ball ricocheted out to midfield where the Barrage went the other way to make the score 10-7 on a Greg Peyser goal.
The Pride would not score again.
"That was a huge turning point for us,'' said Jacobs. "That ball goes in and we're tied at nine and it's a different ballgame.''
Corno was one of the bright spots for the Pride, who in addition to winning 75% of the face-offs, also picked up nine ground balls. Corno was absent from the game last week in which the Pride lost 25-of-35 face-offs in a loss at San Francisco due to a nagging groin injury.
A newcomer for New Jersey, midfielder Kevin Boland, also made his presence known in his first game with the team after being acquired in a trade with Chicago, scoring his first two goals as a member of the Pride. His second tally was an acrobatic backhanded tally in which he sent himself airborne and scored before diving through the crease.
Along with Boland, Scott Urick scored twice, to lead the Pride. Liam Banks, Dan Chemotti and Jesse Hubbard also tallied for New Jersey.
Philadelphia was led by Bud Light Game MVP Roy Colsey who ended the game with a pair of two-point goals and three assists for seven points.
About Major League Lacrosse
Major League Lacrosse, a ten-team professional outdoor lacrosse league, was founded in 1999 by fitness entrepreneur Jake Steinfeld, CEO of Body by Jake Global L.L.C., and founding partners Dave Morrow, a former champion lacrosse player and now CEO of Warrior Lacrosse, a leading global provider of innovative and high performance lacrosse equipment; and Timothy B. Robertson, former CEO of The Family Channel and the current chairman of Bay Shore Enterprises, L.L.C., an investment holding company with activities in international media and Internet technology ventures. The MLL commenced play in June of 2001. The MLL is comprised of two conferences. The Eastern Conference contains the original six teams, Baltimore, Boston, Long Island, New Jersey, Philadelphia and Rochester. The Western Conference debuts in the 2006 season with MLL expansion franchises Chicago, Denver, Los Angeles and San Francisco. Additional league information can be found at www.majorleaguelacrosse.com.
Major League Lacrosse Stories from July 8, 2006
- Bayhawks Handle Cannons 19-12 - Boston Cannons
- Matt Ward Leads Defending MLL Champion Bayhawks to 19-12 Win Over Boston - Chesapeake Bayhawks
- Lizards Slaughter Rattlers, 19-7 - New York Lizards
- Barrage Bounce Back From Two-Game Losing Streak With 17-7 Victory - Philadelphia Barrage
- San Francisco Dragons Dominate the Chicago Machine, 22-10 - San Francisco Dragons
- Riptide fall to Outlaws, 17-7 - Los Angeles Riptide
- Three Team Trade Sends Cantabene To Philadelphia - Philadelphia Barrage
- Outlaws rip Riptide, 17-7 - Denver Outlaws
- Pride Fall to Barrage in Front of Record Crowd at Mercer County Park - New Jersey Pride
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