Top takeaways from PLL’s Salt Lake City weekend

Utah Archers 13, California Redwoods 12 (OT)

Zach Carey: Jack VanOverbeke wins it for the Archers in his PLL debut

With Matt Moore on injured reserve and Tom Schreiber leaving the game with an upper body injury in the first quarter, the Archers offense was without two of its biggest threats on Friday night against the Redwoods.

In their stead, rookie Jack VanOverbeke was the headliner in his professional debut.

After dishing an assist to Dyson Williams and notching his first career goal on a behind-the-back score minutes later, the High Point product scored the overtime game-winner with a diving back-handed goal to clinch Utah’s spot in the Cash App Playoffs.

“How about the kid?” head coach Chris Bates remarked postgame. “At the end, making that play. He had two goals and an assist in his first pro game ever. That kind of game-winner was exciting. A memorable game.”

Grant Ament (2G, 3A) was similarly clutch in Schreiber’s absence as the offense’s primary initiator. He consistently won his matchup and kept the Woods rotating off-ball. That was critical for Utah with a number of the guys surrounding him typically being complementary off-ball threats.

The Archers used a 5-1 third quarter to pull ahead of the Woods in the second half. Ryan Ambler’s diving goal was a major momentum boost as Utah built a firm lead heading into the fourth quarter.

Despite California’s late run to force overtime, VanOverbeke’s leaping heroics proved to be the difference. After a summer of calling Bates each week asking to be put in the lineup, the Minnesota native took full advantage when he got the opportunity.

“This guy has been waiting for two and a half months to get the call,” Ament said. “He gets the call, he’s ready. He has three points and scores the game-winning goal. That’s what Archers lacrosse is, and that’s why we’re all so proud to wear that seal on our chest.”

Jerome Taylor: Redwoods’ season reaches its end in overtime

The Redwoods needed a miracle to keep their playoff hopes alive, and while it seemed unlikely all game, they managed to give themselves a shot for a win, at least, when Charlie Bertrand (4G, 1T) hit an off-hand, game-tying two-pointer to send the contest into overtime.

The Woods nearly seized victory when Ryder Garnsey (2G) appeared to score, but a review revealed that the ball was still in his stick as the shot clock expired, nullifying the goal and paving the way for VanOverbeke's heroics.

Despite a strong defensive effort in the first half, highlighted by another stellar performance from Jack Kelly (13 saves, 50%), the Woods’ season-long offensive inconsistencies resurfaced.

After taking a 6-5 lead into halftime, their offense faltered in the third quarter, shooting just 1-for-11 and committing six turnovers. This allowed the Archers to claw back and build a three-goal lead heading into the fourth quarter, which nearly proved insurmountable.

Part of the Woods' struggle stemmed from a lack of possession, as Mike Sisselberger beat TD Ierlan at the stripe (10-for-16). However, even when they had the ball, the Woods' offense couldn’t produce at the level required.

Bertrand’s four-goal performance and Rob Pannell's command of the offense (1G, 3A) were standout efforts, but they weren’t enough to overcome the offensive lulls that have plagued the Woods all season.

Ironically, the Archers secured their victory despite losing their veteran leader, Schreiber, early in the game. Ament, Mac O’Keefe, and VanOverbeke stepped up, showcasing the Archers' offensive depth. That depth raises a fair question: Do the Woods have the personnel to mount a similar performance if they had lost a catalyst of Schreiber's caliber?

This is a critical question the Redwoods' coaching staff and players will need to address as they head into the offseason. And it’s a question that they have to be prepared to answer, because once again the Woods are heading into an offseason where questions about Pannell’s lacrosse future loom.

“I'm going to take some time to think about [playing next year] this offseason,” Pannell said. “If I do come back, it's not about the milestones. I want to win a championship.”

Boston Cannons 11, Carolina Chaos 10 (OT)

Sarah Griffin: Ryan Drenner calls game in heart-stopping overtime win

It doesn’t need to be pretty, you just need one more than the other guys.

With ice in his veins, Ryan Drenner called ballgame in a heart-racing back-and-forth battle between the Cannons and Chaos.

Five ties and eleven shots off the pipes by Boston in regulation led the late-night match into overtime at 10-10.

On his first shot of the night, Drenner’s hockey goal from the ground gave the Cannons a hard-fought victory a little over three minutes into OT.  The goal marked the veteran’s 150th career point.

“A lot of people comment that we maybe don’t look as good and crisp as we did last year,” Cannons head coach Brian Holman said after the win. “But we were 7-3 last year, and now we’re 7-3 this year. ... I’m proud of the resiliency that we show.”

The one-two punch of Asher Nolting and Marcus Holman combined for 10 points, with Nolting accounting for four assists and Holman four goals. In their two seasons together, the attackmen have quickly risen to become arguably the most dangerous duo in the league. With Nolting as the quarterback, Holman’s prowess as a shooter has reached a new level.

Holman passed Ryan Boyle as the sixth all-time leading scorer in professional lacrosse, now with 491 career points.

“Is 400-something points good?” Nolting joked. “He’s the best shooter of all time. We dance around it, but he’s the best shooter of all time.”

Along with Holman and Nolting, we also saw a new face on attack for Boston.

Matt Campbell swapped places with Pat Kavanagh, as Campbell played attack and Kavanagh ran out of the box.

“A little trial and error,” Brian Holman responded when asked about the change. “We just want to see what it looks like.”

Coach Holman noted Kavanagh seemed to play with a lot more confidence Friday night coming out of the box. While he and his staff still have to look at the film in these upcoming weeks before making any decisions as to where the rookie will play in the quarterfinals, he liked what he saw from Kavanagh as a middie.

Certainly, there will be some interesting film sessions coming up for the Boom Squad ahead of playoffs. The Cannons will very likely see the Chaos once again at Gillette Stadium on Sept. 2. They hope to have a bit of a boost from the crowd in what’s sure to be another tight game.

“Playing the Chaos again, we’ll take every possible advantage,” Coach Holman said.

Hayden Lewis: Carolina loses an overtime heartbreaker but still clinches the playoffs

When the Redwoods fell in overtime to the Archers in the first game of the evening, Carolina officially clinched its spot in the Cash App Playoffs.

Despite an excellent start to the night, things went downhill quickly for the Chaos.

In the second quarter against the Cannons, All-Stars Jack Rowlett and Blaze Riorden both went down with injuries and never returned to the game. Their absences left the Chaos defense short-staffed for over half the game.

Despite those losses, Austin Kaut was able to step up and perform in Riorden’s absence, and the rest of the defense held the Cannons' high-powered offense to five scores in the second half.

“It doesn’t surprise me at all that guys stepped up in their places,” head coach and general manager Andy Towers said. “Kauter doesn’t surprise me at all. I mean, he’d be a starter on any other team. We all feel that way, and he certainly proved it again tonight.”

While the shorthanded defense did its job, the offense again was unable to find its footing.

Josh Byrne only had 28 touches (second-most on the team) and still left his mark with four points (2G, 2A). For the Chaos to improve offensively, Byrne needs to have the most touches.

“We’re lucky to be coming out of the weekend in the playoffs,” Towers said. “We’ve got a lot of things to be excited about.”

Carolina's defense is exciting because it can win games in September, but the offense needs to find a solution because it can’t rely opponents to hit 11 posts in a game like the Cannons did Friday night.

The Chaos will likely face the Cannons in the first round of the Cash App Playoffs. barring a large loss from the New York Atlas on Saturday.

“It’s going to be a dogfight,” Kaut said with a smile. “It’s good to see them. We played well, we just didn’t get the final result that we wanted.”

Philadelphia Waterdogs 13, New York Atlas 12

Paul Lamonaca: Lopsided turnover margin propels Waterdogs to upset top-ranked Atlas

Philadelphia played in six one-goal games this season and lost in five of them. Their first one-goal victory came in their last game of the season, defeating the league’s top team in the Atlas on Saturday in Salt Lake City.

Despite losing both the faceoff and ground ball battles, Philadelphia was able to capitalize on New York’s 29 turnovers. Goalie Matt DeLuca’s 16 saves helped the last-place team secure its second win on the season.

On the offensive end for Philadelphia, Kieran McArdle (3G, 1A) and Jake Carraway (2G, 2A)  scored four points each. Michael Sowers (2G, 1A) and Jack Hannah (3G) both finished with three points.

Despite the win, Philadelphia still finishes in last place for the 2024 season. The Waterdogs hold the No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 College Draft.

Head coach Bill Tierney will head into this offseason needing to address several issues within his team, most importantly their faceoff unit, which finished last in win percentage this year.

Lauren Merola: Atlas bypass quarterfinals despite lackluster regular-season finish

The Atlas fell to the Waterdogs but still emerged with a bye to the semifinals. Tied with the Boston Cannons for first place in the Eastern Conference at 7-3, the Atlas get the week off for having a higher score differential. They’ll play their first playoff game on Sept. 7.

Payton Cormier scored six points (5G, 1A) in his second professional game. Dox Aitken stood in on attack last week after Connor Shellenberger exited with a left foot injury, and Cormier showed Saturday not only the depth of the Atlas attack, but the worth of the Cavalier connection.

Cormier, Aitken, Shellenberger and Xander Dickson are all Virginia alums.

New York’s quarterback, Jeff Teat, had another six-point day (3G, 3A), bringing his historic season point total to 64.

But ultimately, it was a lackluster game for the Atlas, who were guaranteed the first-round bye as long as they didn’t let up an absurd number of goals. And they didn’t, even while looking like they were giving less than 100%.

Utah Archers 13, Denver Outlaws 9

Zach Carey: Resilient Archers clinch West without Tom Schreiber

It’s pretty hard to win two games in two days. It’s even tougher to do so at the conclusion of a grueling regular season characterized by untimely injuries. It should’ve been darn near impossible for the Archers to do without their three-time MVP and sole captain Tom Schreiber.

But that’s what Utah did on Friday and Saturday night in a pair of clutch, resilient victories against the California Redwoods and Outlaws to win the Western Conference.

Despite a 6-4 halftime deficit against Denver, the Archers rallied in the third quarter with a seven-point run to go up 11-6. Tre Leclaire (4G, 1T, 1A), Connor Fields (3G, 2A) and Jack VanOverbeke (2G, 1A) led the way offensively as Utah thrived on 32-second possessions after Mike Sisselberger faceoff wins.

The Archers also got huge contributions from their rookies with VanOverbeke, Dyson Williams (1G), Beau Pederson (1G) and Mason Woodward (1G) all coming up with their own clutch moments in the second half.

Defensively, Brett Dobson was a brick wall in the cage with 16 saves and just nine scores allowed on a 66.7% save rate. Graeme Hossack was similarly spectacular after he missed Utah’s loss to Denver back in Charlotte.

After Brennan O’Neill had an all-time nine-point performance against the Archers in that game, Hossack entirely nullified the Denver rookie on Saturday night. O’Neill shot 0-for-13 and finished with zero points despite registering a career high in touches and the second-most shots he’s taken as a pro.

“Hoss is Hoss, man,” Archers head coach Chris Bates said postgame. “Hoss is the best in the business. I don’t care what you say, we’ll take that dude any day, every day. If I’m in a street fight, I get tougher and stronger because I know I got him behind me.”

By clinching first place in the West, Utah locks in a bye straight to the semifinals on Sept. 7, when it'll face the winner of the quarterfinal contest between the Boston Cannons and Carolina Chaos. With Matt Moore on the mend from his AC joint sprain suffered in Baltimore, the extra week off could be hugely beneficial for the Archers.

Despite an up-and-down regular season, Utah is two wins away from going back-to-back because of this stellar weekend of lacrosse.

Topher Adams: Another slow second half spoils bid for conference crown

We’ve seen this movie before. For two quarters, the Outlaws looked like a championship contender. Even with a shorthanded defense and their offensive stars held in check, the Outlaws found ways to play winning lacrosse and led by two at the break.

Then the third quarter happened.

Utah exploded with a 7-1 run in the third quarter to blow the game wide open. This was not the first time Denver squandered a promising opportunity with a nightmare third period. And it happened once again in the biggest game of the year.

The offense had chances, but the finishing wasn’t there. Denver shot 14%, including an 0-for-13 night for Brennan O’Neill. Graham Bundy Jr. scored a two-pointer in the third to give the Outlaws a bit of life, but it was too little too late.

Once again, Denver was close to looking like a championship team. In moments, the Outlaws were in control or able to push. But over the course of four quarters, Denver hasn’t consistently battled the best teams in the league.

When the Outlaws face the Maryland Whipsnakes in the first round of the playoffs, will they finally be able to flip the script?