Walters totals seven points, but Bayhawks drop heartbreaker
Published on July 3, 2015 under Major League Lacrosse (MLL)
Chesapeake Bayhawks News Release
ANNAPOLIS, MARYLAND - Midfielder Joe Walters reached a season-high for points with seven, but his offensive exploits were not enough as the Chesapeake Bayhawks suffered a tough 15-13 loss to the New York Lizards on Thursday night.
Walters scored three goals and added four assists for Chesapeake, which came up just short despite drawing the largest audience in franchise history with 11,882 fans cramming into Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium.
Attackman Ben Rubeor also had a big game with three goals and two assists for Chesapeake (5-6), which suffered its second straight loss. Attackman Matt Danowski contributed two goals and three assists for the Bayhawks, who could not hang onto a five-goal lead.
Midfielder Kevin Crowley chipped in two goals and an assist for the Bayhawks, who led most of the way despite being beaten badly on faceoffs (24-6). Midfielder Paul Rabil had six points to lead the first-place Lizards (9-2), who held the home team to two goals in the second half.
"We stopped doing the good things we were doing in the first half and got a little stagnant," Walters said of Chesapeake's offensive struggles in the second half. "Credit the goalie... I thought he made a lot of great saves, but we also didn't shoot the ball as well. Lacrosse is a game of momentum. We had it early and they took it away."
Chesapeake head coach Dave Cottle was not happy about how the go-ahead goal was scored. New York long stick midfielder Kyle Hartzell dropped Crowley with a cheap shot as they were running downfield together and that gave the visitors a numbers advantage.
Hartzell clearly jammed his stick into the groin area of Crowley, who was laying on the field writhing in pain while Jo-Jo Marasco scored the goal that broke a 13-13 tie with just over two minutes remaining in the game. Coach Cottle was very upset that officials did not blow the whistle while Crowley laid helpless on the turf.
"I think the play of the game is the Lizards defenseman short-sticking Kevin Crowley in the gonads. Kevin goes down on the field and they score a goal," Cottle told the media afrerward. "The referee, missed it. That was a dirty play and they should have stopped play."
Chesapeake gained possession with just over a minute left and ran a nice play that saw Crowley find Rubeor open on the crease. Rubeor shot offside-high, but New York keeper Drew Adams anticipated well and snuffed the one-on-one attempt.
"I had a chance there at the end to put the ball away and didn't do it. I feel like I let the team down. You have to finish in those key situations," Rubeor said.
Rubeor notched a hat trick while Walters totaled four points as Chesapeake raced to a 7-3 lead after one quarter. The Bayhawks displayed some of their finest offensive chemistry of the season with rapid ball movement and pinpoint passing creating numerous open looks.
Danowski got things started by finding an opening in the middle and firing an underhanded shot that skipped past New York keeper Drew Adams. Rubeor got open on the left wing for a goal while attackman Matt Donovan cut into the heart of the defense and canned a jump shot from about 12 yards out.
Midfielder Matt Abbott scored on a determined drive to the goal, drawing two penalties on short stick defender Steve DeNapoli before flipping the ball into the net while diving across the goal line. Rubeor then notched consecutive goals, getting credited with one when a pass from Danowski skipped off his stick and into the net then coming wide-open with a well-timed cut to the crease.
Chesapeake closed the high-scoring period with Walters waltzing right down the middle as the defense parted like the Red Sea.
The Bayhawks continued to build the lead at the beginning of the second quarter. A New York turnover at midfield led to an easy goal by Westervelt, who fired in a sidearm shot while on the run. Rubeor then found Crowley open just inside the 2-point arc for a cannon blast that gave the home team a comfortable 9-4 advantage.
Unfortunately, New York outscored Chesapeake 6-2 the rest of the way with a 2-pointer by Rabil off a power play sparking the comeback. The Bayhawks failed to capitalize on a two-man advantage at the end of the half and took a narrow 11-10 lead into intermission.
"I thought that period of time was the difference in the game. We're two men up and could have gotten on a little run and instead they wind up scoring with two seconds left. That sequence started their comeback," Cottle said. "Drew Adams played very well for New York. At 11-8, we had an extra man opportunity and he made three saves in a row."
The pace slowed considerably in the third quarter with the Bayhawks managing just one goal and giving up two. Walters opened the second half with a power play goal off a beautiful sidearm crank shot, but Chesapeake was held scoreless the rest of the way and that allowed New York to tie the score at 12.
Chesapeake currently sits in sixth place in Major League Lacrosse with three games remaining in the regular season. "Our backs were against the wall going into this game and now that is even more the case," Cottle said. "We've got to play 60 minutes. We played about 44 tonight."
Major League Lacrosse Stories from July 3, 2015
- Walters totals seven points, but Bayhawks drop heartbreaker - Chesapeake Bayhawks
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