Cannons’ slide continues
MLL-best Outlaws add to recent woes
The Cannons are at risk of letting their season slip away before the All-Star break.
They closed out a disappointing four-game homestand with a 19-13 loss to the reigning Major League Lacrosse champion Denver Outlaws last night at Harvard Stadium.
The Cannons dropped three of the four games at home as their record fell to 2-4. The Outlaws improved to 5-1 and remain alone atop the MLL standings.
The Cannons play the next two on the road against the top teams in MLL, facing the Ohio Machine (4-2) next Saturday at Obetz Fortress Field in Obetz, Ohio, and then visit these same Outlaws on June 17 in Denver.
“We have to regroup and refocus and get back to what we do well and that’s playing as a team,” said Cannons coach Sean Quirk. “When we get away from that, we are not that good.
“So we have to continue to play as a team and be strong on the offensive and defensive sides of the ball.”
The Cannons tied the game 12-12 on Max Seibald’s second 2-pointer of the game and fourth of the season just 2:02 into the fourth quarter. The Cannons revival was over in less than three minutes.
The Outlaws binged on Cannons goalie Tyler Fiorito for three goals on three possessions to take a 1612 lead with 10 minutes to play. Wes Berg led the Outlaws with four goals, three in the fourth quarter.
“When we tied it up 12-12 I thought we were in a good spot, and they went on that run and closed it out,” said Quirk. “Our defense was getting great stops and our offense was playing well, and when Max hit the twobomb it sort of gave us more momentum.
“We were going in the right direction and to their credit Wes Berg took over and had a lot of good goals toward the end of that game.”
Matt Bocklet scored 14 seconds into the third quarter to put the Outlaws ahead, 11-8. Boston got within a goal with 7:40 to play on power-play tallies by Justin Turri and Will Manny. Midfielder Zach Currier scored at 11:59 to put the Outlaws up 12-10 after three quarters.
“We came out strong and we’ve come out strong in nearly every game,” said Quirk. “Then we slow down and it might be our conditioning and we just have to grind away at it.”
The Cannons scored on their opening two possessions. David Emala attacked the Outlaws cage for the opener and before Manny set up Turri for a bounce shot that made it 2-0 at 2:40.
The Outlaws retaliated with quick goals by Eric Law and Drew Snider to tie the game. Emala’s shorthanded goal with 42 seconds remaining tied the game 4-4 at the end of one.