Boston Wins First MLL Championship Since 2011
Boston Wins First MLL Championship Since 2011 | USA Lacrosse Magazine
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Boston Wins First MLL Championship Since 2011
Sun Jul 26 2020 | Brian Logue | Pro
MLL
PHOTO BY MAJOR LEAGUE LACROSSE
Bryce Wasserman was named the 2020 Major League Lacrosse Most Valuable Player after helping Boston win its first league title since 2011.
The most bizarre season in Major League Lacrosse’s 20-year history ended with one of the league’s original franchises claiming just its second overall title. Boston beat Denver 13-10 on Sunday afternoon to hoist the championship trophy for the first time since 2011.
The league’s 20th anniversary 10-week season was truncated to a nine-day, fanless tournament in Annapolis, Md., due to the COVID-19 pandemic. After seven days of highly-competitive lacrosse in searing heat set the stage for a much-anticipated championship weekend, the league was dealt another curveball.
Ahead of Saturday’s semifinals, a player tested positive for COVID-19. The league first delayed and then ultimately cancelled the semifinal round. According to the ESPN broadcast on Sunday, three Chesapeake Bayhawks players tested positive. Chesapeake and Connecticut both withdrew from the tournament, leaving Boston and Denver to compete for the championship.
The Cannons, playing without five players who elected not to play in the championship due to health concerns, rode on the back of attackman John Uppgren and a standout defensive effort. Uppgren, a fifth-year pro who poured in over 400 points while leading Tufts to the NCAA Division III finals three straight years, had a career-best five goals.
5 goals today, 5 goals all this week
Have yourself a day @TheRealUppy pic.twitter.com/LE3HhMVeg2
— Major League Lacrosse (@MLL_Lacrosse) July 26, 2020
Boston’s defense held Denver scoreless in the fourth quarter and the Outlaws’ Ryan Lee, who led the MLL in the five-game regular season with 18 goals, was held without a point in the championship game.
Boston goalie Nick Marrocco made 10 saves in the victory, twice denying the legendary John Grant Jr., in tight in the second half. The 45-year-old Grant, had a goal and an assist in the final game of his career, which end with him as the leading scorer in the league’s history.
.@OnThaRoccs, @BostonCannons are pic.twitter.com/Mx4ZINAwSc
— Major League Lacrosse (@MLL_Lacrosse) July 26, 2020
Denver’s offense never seemed to get in sync, finishing the game with 24 turnovers, none more emblematic than a miscommunication after calling a timeout with just over a minute to play. Trailing just 13-10, Denver was trying to set up a final comeback push, but a pass sailed back near the midline and Boston ran out most of the rest of the clock.
The championship was an emotional one for the Cannons’ Bryce Wasserman, who was named the league’s 2020 Most Valuable Player. Wasserman, a Texas native who played collegiately at Monmouth, had a goal and an assist for the Cannons after scoring 14 goals during the regular season.
“2011 I came up here to Maryland in my first recruiting tournament,” Wasserman told Courtney Fallon in a postgame interview on ESPN. “Zero goals, zero assists. I remember sitting with my dad at the BWI Airport, crying my eyes out because I didn’t think I was going to be good enough to play at the highest level in college and the pros. From that day on, no one in this sport has outworked me. This is the culmination, right? I can’t wait to go back to that airport covered in champagne.”
Wasserman wasn’t the only one to appreciate the opportunity the MLL provides.
Boston’s Justin Pugal played a huge role in the championship.
Initially undrafted coming out of Stony Brook last year, Pugal later eared a tryout with the Cannons and parlayed that into a season in which he was ultimately selected to play in the MLL All-Star game.
On Sunday, he buried a two-pointer with 0.3 seconds remaining in the first half, his first professional goal, to give Boston momentum and an 8-6 lead heading into halftime.
BUZZER BEATER by @JustinPugal_15 pic.twitter.com/teBbQ1uoA0
— Major League Lacrosse (@MLL_Lacrosse) July 26, 2020
The Cannons stretched the lead to 11-6 in the second half with Pugal doing more damage. On one possession early in the third quarter, he blocked a shot from Lee with his knee and then later stripped Grant of the ball to give the ball back to Boston.
Trailing by five, Denver mounted a charge midway through the third quarter. Chris Aslanian scored back-to-back goals and Max Adler won the faceoff and scored after Aslanian’s second to cut the lead to 11-9. The three Outlaw goals occurred in a span of just 43 seconds.
Uppgren had the answer for Boston, scoring his fifth of the game with 6:29 to play and Challen Roger added another with 3:42 to play.
Aslanian scored his third goal of the third quarter with 1:48 to play to make it 13-10, but Denver went scoreless over the game’s final 16:48.
Denver, which has won three MLL championships, lost in the final for the second straight year and the seventh time in franchise history.
Aslanian and rookie Daniel Bucaro each had three goals to lead the Outlaws and Adler won 14 of 25 faceoffs. Christian Knight made 13 saves while allowing nine goals.
Uppgren’s five goals led Boston and Mark Cockerton added a hat trick. The Cannons had nine forced turnovers, led by Zach Goodrich with three.
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MLL Championship History – OurSports Central
October 5, 2019 – Major League Lacrosse (MLL) News Release
Since its founding in 2001, Major League Lacrosse has awarded the Steinfeld Trophy to that year’s MLL Champion. Each year, the game is played at a predetermined neutral location. The Championship Game has taken place in ten different states with Colorado set to be the eleventh.
Boston, MA has hosted four MLL Championships (2004, 2005, 2008, 2012), the most all-time. Eight different MLL teams have won championships. The Chesapeake Bayhawks are tied for the most titles with five (2002, 2005, 2010, 2012, 2013.)
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Team History
The following identifies each teams appearances and records in the MLL Championship Games.
Year-By-Year History
2001
Champion: Long Island Lizards
Runner-Up: Baltimore Bayhawks
Score: 15-11
Location: Kennedy Stadium, Bridgeport, CT
MVP: Paul Gait (7G, 0A, 7PTS)
Attendance: 6,745
2002
Champion: Baltimore Bayhawks
Runner-Up: Long Island Lizards
Score: 21-13
Location: Columbus Crew Stadium, Columbus, Ohio
MVP: Mark Millon (5G, 2A, 7PTS)
Attendance: 5,596
2003
Champion: Long Island Lizards
Runner-Up: Baltimore Bayhawks
Score: 15-14 (OT)
Location: Villanova Stadium, Villanova, PA
MVP: Kevin Lowe (Game Winning Goal in Overtime)
Attendance: 6,593
2004
Champion: Philadelphia Barrage
Runner-Up: Boston Cannons
Score: 13-1
Location: Nickerson Field, Boston, MA
MVP: Greg Cattrano
Attendance: 8,279
2005
Champion: Baltimore Bayhawks
Runner-Up: Long Island Lizards
Score: 15-9
Location: Nickerson Field, Boston, MA
MVP: Gary Gait (6G, 0A, 6PTS)
Attendance: 6,829
2006
Champion: Philadelphia Barrage
Runner-Up: Denver Outlaws
Score: 23-12
Location: The Home Depot Center, Carson, CA
MVP: Roy Colsey (4G, 2 2-PT G, 8PTS)
Attendance: 5,374
2007
Champion: Philadelphia Barrage
Runner-Up: Los Angeles Riptide
Score: 16-13
Location: Paetec Park, Rochester, NY
MVP: Matt Striebel (3G, 3A, 6PTS)
Attendance: 5,288
2008
Champion: Rochester Rattlers
Runner-Up: Denver Outlaws
Score: 16-6
Location: Harvard Stadium, Boston, MA
MVP: Joe Walters (2G, 2A, 4PTS)
Attendance: 8,481
2009
Champion: Toronto Nationals
Runner-Up: Denver Outlaws
Score: 10-9
Location: Navy Marine Corps Memorial Stadium, Annapolis, MD
MVP: Merrick Thomson (2G, 3GB, 2PTS)
Attendance: 7,003
2010
Champion: Chesapeake Bayhawks
Runner-Up: Long Island Lizards
Score: 13-9
Location: Navy Marine Corps Memorial Stadium, Annapolis, MD
MVP: Kyle Hartzell (First Defenseman to Win Championship MVP)
Attendance: 6,445
2011
Champion: Boston Cannons
Runner-Up: Hamilton Nationals
Score: 10-9
Location: Navy Marine Corps Memorial Stadium, Annapolis, MD
MVP: Jordan Burke (9GB)
Attendance: 5,027
2012
Champion: Chesapeake Bayhawks
Runner-Up: Denver Outlaws
Score: 16-6
Location: Harvard Stadium, Cambridge, MA
MVP: Ben Rubeor (2G, 0A, 2PTS)
ttendance: 7,384
2013
Champion: Chesapeake Bayhawks
Runner-Up: Charlotte Hounds
Score: 10-9
Location: PPL Park, Chester, PA
MVP: John Grant Jr.
(4G, 0A, 4PTS)
Attendance: 3,892
2014
Champion: Denver Outlaws
Runner-Up: Rochester Rattlers
Score: 12-11
Location: Fifth Third Bank Stadium, Kennesaw, GA
MVP: John Grant Jr. (3G, 1A, 4PTS)
Attendance: 8,149
2015
Champion: New York Lizards
Runner-Up: Rochester Rattlers
Score: 15-12
Location: Fifth Third Bank Stadium, Kennesaw, GA
MVP: Paul Rabil (3G, 3A, 6PTS)
Attendance: 8,674
2016
Champion: Denver Outlaws
Runner-Up: Ohio Machine
Score: 19-18
Location: Fifth Third Bank Stadium, Kennesaw, GA
MVP: Eric Law (5G, 3A, 8PTS)
Attendance: 5,522
2017
Champion: Ohio Machine
Runner-Up: Denver Outlaws
Score: 17-12
Location: Ford Center at The Star, Frisco, TX
MVP: Marcus Holman (4G, 2A, 6PTS)
Attendance: 7,542
2018
Champion: Denver Outlaws
Runner-Up: Dallas Rattlers
Score: 16-12
Location: MUSC Health Stadium, Charleston, SC
MVP: Matt Kavanagh (4G, 5A, 9PTS)
Attendance: 4,086
2019
Champion: N/A
Runner-Up: N/A
Score: N/A
Location: Dick’s Sporting Goods Park, Denver, CO
MVP: N/A
Attendance: NA
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- Denver Outlaws Head Coach Tony Seaman Named MLL Coach of the Year – Denver Outlaws
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- Denver Outlaws to Face Chesapeake BayHawks in MLL Championship Game on Sunday – Denver Outlaws
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The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
Trophies of the Russian Premier League
As part of the rebranding of the RPL, launched in 2018, the Premier League is introducing a new line of awards.
The entire group of awards can be imagined as a piece of jewelry, in which the goblet, as a unique and most valuable item, is made in the most complex and meaningful way, like a diamond in our collection.
CUP
The upper part of the goblet, like the classic soccer ball, is based on a truncated icosahedron, the so-called “Platonic solid”, a regular polyhedron. In the trophy, this polyhedron is built from intertwined ribbons. The peculiarity of such structures is that, despite the visual lightness and airiness, they are very durable. Examples in architecture are proof of this – Geodesic domes, Shukhov tower. This has a deep meaning – only a truly united and well-played team can become a champion.
The teamwork and cohesion of the team cannot be “touched” or seen in reality, one can only see the result of the presence of this strength in the team.
So in the goblet, the form, which seems light and openwork, is actually a very solid structure, which personifies strength, without which victory is impossible. A strength that only comes from the perfect interaction and strong bonding of the entire team.
The next meaning is connection and interweaving, which are born out of chaos and line up in an indestructible structure. At the base of the goblet, individual ribbons, like sprouts, stretch from a common base in order to gather into a single whole in the future. This metaphor can be described as follows: all the team players were once children and played football in the yards, everyone was still on their own, and no one could know that in ten years these guys would form a champion team, a winning team. After all, only a few out of thousands of boys playing street football become professional football players. Ribbons are pulled from the base, from the Russian football school, founded in the post-war years, when the Soviet team showed the best results in world and European competitions.
The third meaning, which cannot be dispensed with, is that Russian football has a past, and it is rooted in Soviet football. There is an image that is inextricably linked with the Soviet period of our country – a star. The regular soccer ball has pentagons, but no stars. In the presented trophy, both are present, but both images are not straightforward, there is a hint of the ball, but not a reliable image. In most football cups, the main attribute of the game of football, the ball itself, is corny. In this goblet, however, there is no direct use of this image, it is shown more subtly and elegantly. The Soviet star is also not depicted directly.
In conclusion, we can say about the main thing, about the main visual metaphor of the cup – this is a ball flying into the goal net at breakneck speed.