Annapolis, MD. – The Chesapeake Bayhawks of Major League Lacrosse (MLL) hosted the Denver Outlaws in a tightly contested pre-season game Saturday evening at Anne Arundel Community College in Arnold, MD. After trailing the entire game, the Bayhawks scored two goals in the final minute to complete the come back and win 14-13. The Bayhawks were led by Blake Miller’s three goal effort which included the game tying goal.“It was a great team effort tonight,” said Bayhawks Head Coach Brendan Kelly following the victory. “I was happy to see how we came out in the second half. Everybody really came together and we jelled as a team. Just a really great effort.”
The Outlaws opened the game drawing first blood in the early minutes. The Bayhawks responded with their first goal from Midfielder Michael Kimmel, but Denver countered with three straight goals to take a 4-1 lead. Chesapeake cut the lead in half with the first of Miller’s three goals to close out the first quarter trailing 4-2.
Miller continued to keep the Bayhawks in the game with his second goal early in the second frame. Miller is one of the Bayhawks newest arrivals as the Bayhawks selected him from the player pool in April. The second quarter was back and forth as both teams found their scoring touch. The half closed with a goal from Kimmel in the final five seconds to bring the game to 8-5.
Chesapeake continued to chip away in the third quarter, closing the score to 10-9. Kyle Dixon scored his only goal of the game early in the third quarter to help lead the Bayhawks back. Ben Hunt, who had two goals on the night, converted a feed from Ben Rubeor just off the top of the crease as he was hit to continue the Bayhawks surge. Rubeor contributed two goals of his own in the outing as well.
The Outlaws opened the final quarter with two quick goals, but the Bayhawks fought back with two goals from Brendan Cannon and one from Ryan Hurley. Cannon’s second goal knotted the score at 12-12 with eight minutes to play. After strong defense on both sides, the Outlaws took the edge at 13-12. As the game entered the final minute of play, Miller recorded the hat trick with his third goal to tie the game. Less than 15 seconds later, Justin Smith gave the Bayhawks their first lead of the night at 14-13. After a key face-off win by Bayhawks specialist Alex Smith, Chesapeake was able to run out the final seconds and secure the victory.
Special teams played a key role in the Bayhawks’ victory. The team went 2 for 3 on extra-man opportunities with goals from Hunt and Brian Carroll. Alex Smith was strong all game at the face-off X winning 14 of his 20 face-off attempts. In net, Brian Phipps led the Bayhawks with five saves on eight shots faced and recorded the win.
