Long Island Lizards Week 6 Preview

6/16/10 2:30 PM

Long Island Lizards Week 6 Preview

By Derek McLean

The Long Island Lizards return home Saturday night, as they face-off against the defending Major League Lacrosse Champions, the Toronto Nationals. The Lizards are coming off a big come from behind victory against the Chicago Machine last Saturday in Albany, NY. Long Island won 13-12 in overtime.

Tim Goettelmann tied the game with 11 seconds remaining in regulation, and then scored the game winning goal in overtime. “It was really exciting,” says Geottelmann. “It was definitely a much needed win. Hopefully it will turn our season around.” Matt Danowski was the Bud Light MVP of the game scoring 5 goals and an assist. His first four goals were the only goals the Lizards scored in the first half. “He is our true leader on offense,” says Geottelmann. “He was our whole offense at one point. He really got us going.”

The game featured the debut of Lizards first round pick, long stick midfielder, Parker McKee who tallied 2 assists, both of them coming on goals by Matt Danowski who was his former teammate at Duke. “I hit Dino on 2 fast breaks and he put the ball in the back of the net. It felt like old times.” McKee also finished with 5 groundballs in the contest.

The Toronto Nationals enter Saturday’s game winless, coming off a heartbreaking 10-9 loss to the first place Chesapeake Bayhawks. The 0-5 Nationals are playing for their Championship Weekend lives. The 2-3 Long Island Lizards have a chance to get back in contention for Championship Weekend, with a victory over the Nationals. “They are going to want their first win,” says Goettelmann. “They lost their last 2 games by only a goal, so they are going to be tough.”

The Nationals are led offensively by attack John Grant Jr. who has scored 15 points on the season and has over 240 points in his career, and midfielder Jordan Hall, who had scored 7 goals in 2010 himself. The Nationals with, 82 points on the season, are the second lowest scoring team in the MLL only ahead of the Lizards who have 74 total points. Toronto only has 4 active players, who have 4 or more goals, which is the lowest amount in the league. In comparison the Lizards have 7 players with 4 or more goals.

Long Island has only allowed 60 goals against, this year. Only Denver, 59 goals allowed, and Chesapeake 58 goals allowed, have been better. The Lizards are led by a veteran defensemen Nicky Polanco and Brain Spallina. “It was really cool to play with those guys,” says McKee. “They are big figures and legends of the game. They’re the poster men of lacrosse.” The unit is considered one of the best and most physical in the league. Last week the Lizards shut down 2 of Chicago’s best scorers Kevin and Mike Leveille, holding the brothers to zero goals in the second half. Long Island has also been relying on first year starter Drew Adams in goal. He has been outstanding in his first season. On average, he has allowed less than 12 goals a game and has a save percentage of .524.

With the addition of McKee the Lizards now have a top tier long stick midfielder, who can clear the ball and scoop up groundballs. Already after one game he has shown how valuable of an asset he can be. “I felt very comfortable playing on the field, playing at that high pace of the game,” says McKee. “I didn’t feel uncomfortable at all.” McKee’s 5 groundballs last Saturday was the second highest total on the team.

So far this year, Toronto has struggled defensively. They have allowed on average 14.60 goals per game. That is the highest average for any team this year. The defense is led by veteran Brodie Merrill. He however is surrounded by young and inexperienced teammates on the unit including first year starter Mac Allen and second year defender Jonathan Sullivan.

The Lizards will try to take advantage of the inexperienced defense, by using good ball movement and by spreading out their offense. By doing this, the Lizards are able to control the game, on both sides of the ball. “When our offense is playing well, our defense responds, says Geottelmann. “Our defense shutdown the Leveille’s because our offense was scoring and playing well.” While the Lizards have struggled this year in the scoring department, they displayed dominance in the second half against Chicago last week. They were able to score at will, while incorporating multiple players in the offense. 6 different players scored for the Lizards in the second half.

The Nationals biggest question mark this week is who will be starting at goalie. Toronto had been starting Brett Queener in net. However he has tallied an average of 13.52 goals against per game, on the season. In the 2010 MLL draft the Nationals traded up to select Scott Rogers from Notre Dame with the seventh overall pick. Both goalies split time in last week’s game against the Bayhawks. However Rodgers was the official starter allowing just 6 goals in the half while making 19 saves. Expect Rodgers to be given another chance, this week.

The two teams will face-off at 7 pm on Saturday June 19^th at James M. Shuart Stadium in Hempstead, NY. The Game can be seen live on ESPN 3. You can also follow the game live with our live blog and chat beginning at 6:45 at www.majorleaguelacrosse.com

2010 Major League Lacrosse Championship Weekend presented by Warrior

August 21-22, Annapolis, MD

For information and tickets go to www.majorleaguelacrosse.com