Atlas Cruise in Baltimore, Pannell Sets All-Time Assist Record in Whipsnakes Loss

BALTIMORE — The New York Atlas (2-2) faced what felt like an early must-win Eastern Conference game and came out of the gate like it at Johns Hopkins’ Homewood Field.

The Atlas jumped to a 3-0 lead in the first quarter and did not look back — neutralizing the Philadelphia Waterdogs’ (2-2) offense in a crushing 17-9 victory.

Defenseman Gavin Adler held the Premier Lacrosse League’s leading scorer, Michael Sowers, to just a point in the first half, while the Waterdogs shot 17 percent on 23 shots. On the other end of the field, the Atlas shot 39 percent on 18 shots. However, the main culprit to that drastic statistic was Liam Entenmann’s 14 first-half saves.

He finished with a career-high 22 saves, which led the Atlas to their crucial win. Entenmann’s red-hot day was also felt offensively, and not just with his lead passes. After the game, attackman Jeff Teat said Entenmann’s confidence in the cage was felt on the other side of the field, leading to New York’s highest point total this season.

“I think he continuously bails us out when we need it,” Teat said. “He makes the easy saves, he makes the saves that he probably shouldn’t. I think every time we’re having a blip in the game or maybe something we’re struggling with, he always seems to stay confident. I think a lot of our energy not just defensively, but offensively, feeds off of him.”

It’s not often you see a goalie have a career-best day while the opposing goalie has his career worst, but that’s what happened Saturday. Matt DeLuca saved only three shots on a 30-percent save efficiency in the first half and finished the game stopping just 32 percent of his shots faced.

Head coach Bill Tierney left Dillon Ward on the bench for the whole game. He defended DeLuca by praising his performance in Philadelphia’s previous 9-7 loss to Denver, when he saved 14 shots, and said the Waterdogs defense wasn't aggressive enough.

“When it crosses your mind to replace a goalie, there’s nothing you can do about the goals that already went in,” he said.

One bright spot for Philadelphia’s defense was long-stick midfielder Marcus Hudgins, who played in his second game after transitioning from close defense. Hudgins led the game with four caused turnovers and led the Waterdogs’ non-faceoff specialists with five ground balls. His transition hasn’t come without some growing pains, though, as Tierney pointed out that he allowed one of midfielder Bryan Costabile’s two two-pointers.

Costabile scored four points with just three shots during the first half, and he finished with six. Teat led the game with eight points, and rookie midfielder Matt Traynor notched three assists.

The Atlas defense kept midfielders Connor Kelly and Thomas McConvey scoreless, while Jack Hannah scored just one goal. 

PANNELL SETS ASSISTS MARK IN LOSS

It was a bittersweet night for the Maryland Whipsnakesk, as veteran attackman Rob Pannell surpassed Ryan Boyle to move into first place on the all-time outdoor pro lacrosse assist leaderboard, but the Whipsnakes’ late comeback fell short.

Maryland scored four consecutive goals from the 8:36 of the fourth quarter on, but it wasn’t enough to overcome the five-goal deficit it faced earlier in the quarter. The Whipsnakes fell to the Boston Cannons 13-12.

“I’m just glad we don’t have to talk about it anymore,” Pannell said. “I’m more concerned with my shooting right now, I’m more concerned with us winning games and what I can be doing to help the team.”

Pannell added that he’s “very proud” about his achievement and reminisced on his first career assist, which was against his current-head coach Jim Stagnitta when he was coaching the Charlotte Hounds. But he’s much more focused on his shooting slump. The veteran has scored just one goal this season after another goalless outing.

Three of those four goals, including Pannell’s record-breaking assist, were by second-year midfielder Matt Brandau — doubling his career high. He scored his last goal with 28 seconds left in the game to bring the score within one after he was left wide open in front of the crease.

Midfielder Brad Smith, a major threat from beyond the arc, swept across the two-point arc before drawing an early slide from defenseman Garret Epple and flipping the ball to midfielder Colin Heacock. After Epple’s slide, Pannell and TJ Malone exchanged spots behind the net, which manipulated the second slide and got Brandau’s hands free.

“There’s parts of it that are frustrating, but the frustrating parts are also the positive parts at times,” Stagnitta said. “Like we’re very capable and we show that in stretches, but we’ve got to play four quarters. The margin for error … in this league, it’s a fine line.”

The final seconds of the game didn’t burn without any drama.

Cannons defensive midfielder Ben Ramsey scooped a ground ball from Joe Nardella on the faceoff, and Boston called a timeout with just over 24 seconds remaining. Marcus Holman hurled the ball directly toward goalie Brendan Krebs in the air with 18 seconds left in the game, but he wasn’t able to corral it.

TJ Malone led the Whipsnakes with seven points, but his effort, combined with Brandau’s late spurt of goals, wasn’t quite enough to keep up with Boston’s balanced attack. The Cannons had seven players find the back of the net compared to the Whipsnakes four, despite Holman failing to register a point.

Attackman Asher Nolting drew a tough matchup in 2024 Defensive Player of the Year Matt Dunn, but he relied on his feeding ability to lead the game with six points and five assists — both season highs.

Midfielder Matt Campbell only shot three times, but he scored the game’s first two goals, one of which was a two-pointer. Five-time all-star Ryan Drenner also finished with a hat trick on just six shots. Saturday’s output has him at nine one-point goals this season, which already surpasses his eight from last year.

“I don’t think there’s anyone who embodied Cannon culture more than Ryan,” Nolting said. “Dren brings such professionalism every week, and he can do it all. That’s the joke. He’s your favorite player’s favorite player. It’s true.”