Three weeks into the PLL summer and every team has absorbed a loss. Margins are tight. Four teams are 2-1, and four are 1-2. Winning a game isn’t easy. At this stage, the race is wide open. The PLL visits Baltimore on June 21 and 22, with four games from historic Homewood Field on the campus of Johns Hopkins. Saturday’s games can be seen on ESPN and ESPN2. Sunday’s noon face-off will be televised by ABC. The Sunday Funday finale will air on ESPN+.
Utah Archers
Harvard rookie Sam King scored a critical two-pointer in a one-goal win over California on Friday night. King has a snappy release, the clocking hot at 91 mph, and appeared to catch goalie Chayse Ierlan off guard. The Redwoods hung around and, to their credit, took the two-time champs into deep water. Last week, Utah committed 23 turnovers against Boston while shooting 0-6 from two-point range. Brett Dobson was 66% in the loss, fighting an ankle injury.
Utah isn’t humming like they did in 2024. They miss Tre LeClaire in the pick game. The offensive ball movement is stagnant. Skip lanes are being clogged. Utah is trying to hit home runs instead of singles. They squandered a 5-0 lead.
The defense remains formidable. Mike Sisselberger and Tom Schreiber scored clutch goals, breaking open a 10-10 tie game midway through the final quarter. California was held to one goal over the final 7:46. Utah and Denver can be seen on ABC, Sunday at noon. If you live within driving distance of Baltimore, I highly recommend you check the PLL product out in person. To see these players operate in person is truly unbelievable.
Philadelphia Waterdogs
2-8 in 2024 but now in the upper echelon after handling Boston on Friday night. Home court rules dictate a tight turnaround for a Saturday night PLL sequel against Denver. The Dogs ran out of gas, suffering a 9-7 setback. Home teams are at a competitive disadvantage in game two of their exhausting weekend.
Shooting 7 of 34 against the Outlaws was a primary issue. Hitting 4 of 8 in the first quarter is the good news. Going 3 of 26 the rest of the way versus rookie Logan McNaney became the headline.
Philly’s offense is scary with Michael Sowers, Jake Taylor, and Kieran McArdle on attack. Add in midfield dodgers Jack Hannah and Thomas McConvey and teams have slide decisions to make. Throw in playmaker Connor Kelly, now being covered by a shorty, and you get a feeling as to why I think the Waterdogs have the best offense in the league. Tewaaraton winner CJ Kirst was at Nova, in a sling, post-surgery, masquerading as a water boy. I would expect him back after the July 4 All-Star weekend in Kansas City. Coach Bill Tierney will have lineup decisions to make.
Boston Cannons
Cannons (2-1) came up short against Philadelphia after scoring a mere one goal in the third quarter. An 8-7 nail-biter quickly escalated into a 13-8 Philly lead.
Kingpins Asher Nolting and Marcus Holman had just two points apiece. LSM Owen Grant converted once in transition. Cannons defense had no answers for Michael Sowers (2,5) and Thomas McConvey (4,0). FOGO Zac Tucci continues to live on the edge, puking into a bucket between face-off reps, and playing to the echo of the whistle.
Maryland Whipsnakes
Gutsy comeback for the Whips, diverting the trajectory of their season with the late rally. They executed an 8-0 run to finish the game and iced the Atlas on ABC. Maryland trailed 6-0 early and 12-8 with 9:56 to play. They shot 0-10 in the first quarter. A Brad Smith two-pointer cut the deficit to 12-10. Adam Poitras made it 12-11. Aidan Carroll fired a right-hander to tie the game at 12-12. Smith, TJ Malone, and Poitras piled on. 16-12 final was an unpredictable outcome until it happened. This game spun on its axis.
D-man Tim Muller blanketed Xander Dickson and Matt Dunn held Jeff Teat to one point. Matt Rambo ran out of the box with Matt Brandeau starting on attack. Penalty kill unit has killed off 14 straight power plays over the 2024 and 2025 calendar. Life without midfielders Ryan Conrad, Tucker Dordevic, and Mike Chanenchuk has been a struggle. Colin Heacock scored three times for Maryland, playing smart in settled sets and cutting well. Goalie Brendan Krebs, playing against his high school teammate Liam Entenmann, saved his best for the fourth quarter with a couple of timely stops to squash New York’s hopes.
California Redwoods
Lost a hard-fought, one-goal game to Utah on Friday night. Started slowly and climbed back, which has been a trend, only to fall short with an L to an upper-tier team. For some, the loss will feel like validation. But a loss is a loss. Winning games is difficult in the PLL. Turn the page and move on. California (2-1) has a bye week prior to hosting on June 27 and 28 in San Diego. Without question, you have to respect the effort that this team is putting on the field each game. They’re flying around, trying super hard, making all the hustle plays—I have huge respect for them for their attitude and demeanor.
The Chris Merle (SSDM) injury did not look good. Merle was playing at an All-Star level and GM Joe Spallina will have to tinker with the lineup. SSDMs Brian Tevlin and Carter Rice, who are doing great work, will need assistance. They can’t run every shift. ‘Trader Joe’ is probably on the phone as you’re reading this.
Dylan Molloy played in seven games during the last two seasons and accumulated nine points. Going into action in Philadelphia, he led the PLL with ten points after two games. Molloy’s body dodges create separation. He’s incredibly productive given his lack of speed and a left hand. What he does with the tools he has is downright amazing. He is very much in tune with his own skill set, toolbox, and picks his spots to employ them. I’m constantly in awe of the subtleties and nuances that pro players bring to the dance, and Molloy is a case study and a reminder that it’s not about what skills you don’t have—it’s about how you can maximize the ones that you do possess.
The new-look Redwoods welcome the league to San Diego on June 27 and 28. Hope to see you there. You can find me at Windansea Beach in La Jolla, or the Saturday morning farmers market in Little Italy.
New York Atlas
Atlas blew a 6-0 lead, an 8-1 advantage, and a 12-8 margin with 9:56 to play in the fourth quarter. They got tired. Coming off a bye week, it appeared as if their legs went rubbery. Like they were breathing fire. Not sure if dressing fewer true SSDMs came back to haunt them, but they fell apart during the last ten minutes. Unable to win face-offs, ground balls, or make stops—it was an epic and improbable collapse to the Whipsnakes and shines a light on NY’s defensive deficiencies. Over-reliance on goalie Liam Entenmann has to end. Defense has been sold separately. And without ace shorty Danny Logan, the unit was exposed.
Midfielder Myles Jones now has 98 career assists. At 100 career assists, he joins Paul Rabil, Tom Schreiber, and Matt Striebel. Jones was unusually quiet in the loss to Maryland.
Denver Outlaws
A PLL 9-7 Saturday nightcap win, the first for rookie goalie Logan McNaney, puts the Outlaws in the winning column. 14 saves and seven goals against, combined with flawless passing and some instinctual grounders around the crease, indicate that the likable McNaney has arrived. He is comfortable in big games with a 13-3 NCAA tournament record, the most postseason wins all-time for a goaltender. Logan played in four national championship games.
Pat Kavanagh scored a hat trick and the transition offense had some bite with Jake Piseno, Nick Grill, and Ryan Terefenko running hard from defense to the offensive arc. A win, however unimpressive, is a giant step in the right direction.
Jared Bernhardt scored his first career PLL goal, a question mark up the left hash. His agility, cutting, and movement skills are next level, freakishly efficient, and visually obvious—even to the most novice lacrosse viewers. He just moves differently.
Outlaws haven’t shared the biscuit. Graham Bundy and Justin Anderson have to make more of an impact. Prior to the win, only 23.4% of Denver’s shots had been assisted. That’s down from 38.1% last summer, and last in the league by a wide margin.
So the focus in Philly was on upgrading the passing. Coach Tim Soudan utilized Dave Urick’s “Hippo” drill in practice on Friday night. Play half-field with a 3-second time clock on every ball carrier. Offensive players must move the ball, shoot, or go to the goal within 3 seconds of receiving possession. Playing faster has virtues. Avoiding black hole (ball hog) moments is critical to unit success. Expect to see veteran Eric Law in the lineup sooner than later. Law makes others better. Denver and Utah square off on Sunday at noon on ABC.
Carolina Chaos
Last in the league in possession time. Troy Reh has 15 ground balls, which leads the league for non-FOGOs. Carolina had a bye weekend and plays Maryland on Sunday at 2:30 PM.
Quint Kessenich covers lacrosse for the ESPN family of networks and writes for LaxAllStars. Listen to his podcast in our media section. Anthony Kelly, the head coach of the California Redwoods, joined Quint this week.
