Queener Wins Freestyle; Backstops All-Star Victory
July 1, 2012 - Major League Lacrosse (MLL)
Hamilton Nationals News Release
Brett Queener summoned his inner Ninja Turtle to capture the Freestyle Event at the 2012 Major League Lacrosse All-Star Game Saturday. Sporting a T-shirt with his cartoon inspiration, the Hamilton Nationals' goalie completed his demonstration with karate-kicking his stick on goal, which hit the far post and dropped the ball into the cage.
Queener went "Old School" to win the second Freestyle Event of his career. Then after the halftime festivities, he took his place in goal to backstop the Old School All-Stars to an 18-17 victory over the Young Guns at FAU Stadium in Palm Beach County, Fla.
Queener was one of five Nationals in the MLL All-Star Weekend, joining Stephen Keogh, Joe Walters, Casey Powell and Matt Dolente. He made six second-half stops in the win. Dolente won 17 faceoffs in his MLL All-Star Game debut and was accompanied on the Young Guns team by Keogh.
Keogh was also making his All-Star debut and scored one goal. His marker at 2:11 of the second quarter sparked a 3-0 Young Guns' rally to tie the game at seven. He nearly notched his second of the contest, but was robbed by a stick save by Queener.
Powell led the Old School side with two goals and one assist to tie for the team-lead in points. That was not surprising for the MLL's all-time leading scorer, who is one point away from 400 in his pro career. Powell was playing in his fifth MLL All-Star Game. This season, he has four goals and two assists in three games for the Nationals.
Walters, who was also playing in his fifth All-Star Game, recorded two points. His goal at 2:28 of the third quarter gave the Old School side an 11-10 advantage. He also assisted on Steven Brooks' power-play goal at 9:54 of the fourth, as the Old School team regained a 16-15 lead following a two-point goal by Max Seibald of the Young Guns. Walters nearly missed his second of the night as the ball was tipped by goalie Drew Adams and landed on the goal line. The Old School team would get the goal it needed with 56 seconds to play on another goal by Brooks. It capped off a memorable weekend for Walters.
"The MLL All-Star Weekend was a great event. Lacrosse is really taking off, and that was clear, with a 100-team tournament in conjunction with the All-Star Game," he said. "I didn't really get a ton of runs, but it was fun watching some of the best players competing in a back and forth game."
After the All-Star victory, Walters and the Hamilton Nationals will focus on mounting a second-half surge similar to last season to try to earn one of the four MLL Playoff spots. Hamilton, who advanced to the 2011 MLL Finals, currently sits in sixth place with a 2-5 record with a home showdown with the Boston Cannons Saturday, July 7 th .
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Major League Lacrosse Stories from July 1, 2012
- Queener Wins Freestyle; Backstops All-Star Victory - Hamilton Nationals
- Old School All-Stars Top Young Guns in All-Star Game - MLL
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