by Tom Hoffman
After an awful opener last week, the Philadelphia Wings tightened up on defense, played solid transitional lacrosse and got another big production night from top draft pick Kevin Crowley as they defeated the Washington Stealth 10-9 in overtime Saturday at the Wells Fargo Center. Crowley tallied five goals including the OT winner 3:27 into the extra session.
"It was a great character win for our team," Crowley said. "We could've just deflated and gave up but the team brought it together. It was a good all around team win."
Crowley got the evening off to a good start with a first quarter hat trick that gave the Wings a 3-0 lead after the opening 15. The second quarter went the opposite way as the Stealth would score three goals to take the game to halftime even. Goals by the Stealth's Cam Sedgwick and Curtis Hodgson gave Washington a 5-3 lead in the third before the Wings ended an almost 35 minute scoreless drought on Drew Westervelt's first goal of the night. Paul Rabil would give the Stealth their two goal lead back but Westervelt's second of the night would take the Wings into the fourth trailing by only one goal.
The scoring would continue for the Wings as Brendan Mundorf's first two scores of the season were followed by Westervelt's third goal of the night to give the Wings an 8-6 lead. Sedgwick's second of the night brought the Stealth to within one but the Wings looked to have the game in hand when Crowley tallied his fourth of the night to give the Wings a 9-7 advantage with 7:35 to play. The Stealth did not quit though and would force the game into overtime on goals by Lewis Ratcliff and Matt Beers, Beers tying the game with 3:05 left in regulation. The end of regulation and the overtime then became the Brandon Miller show as Miller made a number of his 49 saves during that period to keep the Wings alive and set up the final heroics from the National Lacrosse League's top draft pick in the 2011 entry draft.
"When B. Miller plays like that, he gives us an opportunity to win," Wings Coach/GM Johnny Mouradian said.
Mouradian also had high praise for Crowley.
"He's a big game player," Mouradian said. "He's a rookie in the NLL but he's not a rookie as far as being a game breaker and a game changer."
And if Crowley can somehow maintain his two game pace (8 goals, 6 assists)over the full 16 game schedule, he could be well on his way to some post season hardware from the league. As far as overall play, Mouradian definitely was happy with the effort from his club.
"Our man down was superb. I thought we ran the floor really well. I thought we made some good decisions on transition," Mouradian said.
It was a huge lift for the Wings after the crushing loss last week to Rochester and the Wings will look to feed off of this win as they travel to Buffalo on Friday to face the Bandits.
Saturday, January 21, 2012
Thursday, January 19, 2012
2012 Wings Lacrosse (1-21-12 vs. Washington)
By Tom Hoffman
The Philadelphia Wings look to rebound from a disappointing season opener when they host the Washington Stealth Saturday night at the Wells Fargo Center. Game time is at 7 PM, the game can be seen on the NLL Network at NLL.com and will also be broadcast on Z88.9 (Burlington County College) and online at www.z889.org.
History
The Wings are 8-3 all time against the franchise that has spent time in Albany, NY (2000-2003) and San Jose, CA (2004-2009) before moving to Everett, WA for the 2010 season. All time at home the Wings are 5-0 vs. the Attack/Stealth. The last meeting between the two teams occurred on March 14, 2008 when the Wings defeated San Jose 16-13 at the Wachovia Center. Current Wings who were on the game night rosters that evening were Pat Heim, Thomas Hajek and Brandon Miller (Philadelphia) and Paul Dawson and Steve Holmes (San Jose). Holmes scored two goals that night for the Stealth.
Last Game
After tying the game at six apiece early in the second quarter, the Wings were outscored 16-6 the rest of the game as they fell 22-12 to the Rochester Knighthawks in the 2012 season opener. Top draft pick Kevin Crowley had a solid debut with three goals and five assists while Dan Dawson chipped in a goal and added six helpers. Drew Westervelt also added a hat trick for the Wings.
The Opponent
The Stealth feature several players who helped the franchise to back to back Finals appearances and their first Champion’s Cup title in 2010. Anchoring the offense for Washington is 2010 Champion’s Cup MVP Lewis Ratcliff, 2009 Rookie of the Year Rhys Duch and Jeff Zywicki. Defensively the Stealth is led by Jeff Moleski and Matt Beers while Tyler Richards mans the net. Leading the Washington transition game is Paul Rabil.
Familiar Faces
Five members of the Wings have spent time in the Attack/Stealth organization. Brandon Miller played for Albany from 2000- to 2003 and in San Jose from 2004 to 2006. Playing for the team in San Jose were Matt Alrich (2005-2006), Paul Dawson (2007-2008) and Steve Holmes (2007-2009). Brett Manney spent the 2009 season with the Stealth in San Jose and played in the team’s inaugural season in Washington in 2010. The lone former Wing on the Washington roster is Bob Snider, who played for the Wings in 2010 after being chosen 16th overall in the 2009 Entry Draft.
On this date
The Wings are 2-0 on January 21. In 1989 the Wings defeated the Baltimore Thunder 14-13 in Baltimore and in 2006 defeated the San Jose Stealth 10-7 in San Jose.
Next Game
The Wings will be on the road for the first time in 2012 when they face the Buffalo Bandits on January 27.
The Philadelphia Wings look to rebound from a disappointing season opener when they host the Washington Stealth Saturday night at the Wells Fargo Center. Game time is at 7 PM, the game can be seen on the NLL Network at NLL.com and will also be broadcast on Z88.9 (Burlington County College) and online at www.z889.org.
History
The Wings are 8-3 all time against the franchise that has spent time in Albany, NY (2000-2003) and San Jose, CA (2004-2009) before moving to Everett, WA for the 2010 season. All time at home the Wings are 5-0 vs. the Attack/Stealth. The last meeting between the two teams occurred on March 14, 2008 when the Wings defeated San Jose 16-13 at the Wachovia Center. Current Wings who were on the game night rosters that evening were Pat Heim, Thomas Hajek and Brandon Miller (Philadelphia) and Paul Dawson and Steve Holmes (San Jose). Holmes scored two goals that night for the Stealth.
Last Game
After tying the game at six apiece early in the second quarter, the Wings were outscored 16-6 the rest of the game as they fell 22-12 to the Rochester Knighthawks in the 2012 season opener. Top draft pick Kevin Crowley had a solid debut with three goals and five assists while Dan Dawson chipped in a goal and added six helpers. Drew Westervelt also added a hat trick for the Wings.
The Opponent
The Stealth feature several players who helped the franchise to back to back Finals appearances and their first Champion’s Cup title in 2010. Anchoring the offense for Washington is 2010 Champion’s Cup MVP Lewis Ratcliff, 2009 Rookie of the Year Rhys Duch and Jeff Zywicki. Defensively the Stealth is led by Jeff Moleski and Matt Beers while Tyler Richards mans the net. Leading the Washington transition game is Paul Rabil.
Familiar Faces
Five members of the Wings have spent time in the Attack/Stealth organization. Brandon Miller played for Albany from 2000- to 2003 and in San Jose from 2004 to 2006. Playing for the team in San Jose were Matt Alrich (2005-2006), Paul Dawson (2007-2008) and Steve Holmes (2007-2009). Brett Manney spent the 2009 season with the Stealth in San Jose and played in the team’s inaugural season in Washington in 2010. The lone former Wing on the Washington roster is Bob Snider, who played for the Wings in 2010 after being chosen 16th overall in the 2009 Entry Draft.
On this date
The Wings are 2-0 on January 21. In 1989 the Wings defeated the Baltimore Thunder 14-13 in Baltimore and in 2006 defeated the San Jose Stealth 10-7 in San Jose.
Next Game
The Wings will be on the road for the first time in 2012 when they face the Buffalo Bandits on January 27.
Sunday, January 15, 2012
For Wings, another makeover, another opening game loss
By Tom Hoffman
Much like last season the Philadelphia Wings entered their Natioanl Lacrosse League season opener following a massive roster overhaul that again included a trade of a fan favorite. And once again the Wings gave their remaining faithful a sign that change doesn't grant immediate success. Except for a five minute flurry in the 2nd quarter and a Broad Street Bully-like final 26 seconds of play, the Wings looked lost in their 22-12 defeat to the Rochester Knighthawks before 8,813 at the Wells Fargo Center on Saturday night.
There were very few bright spots in a game in which the Wings never led. After Max Seibald brought the Wings within a goal just under six minutes into the first stanza, the Wings were lit up for four consecutive scores to trail 6-1 after the opening 15. Philly then had its first highlight moment of the evening when they ripped off five goals in a stretch of 4:28 to tie the game at six. Included in this run were the first Wings goals for Kevin Crowley, Mike Hominuck and Dan Dawson. Crowley's first NLL goal came 2:15 after his first NLL point, an assist on a Drew Westervelt goal. The good vibes on offense would end there as the Knighthawks would counter with three goals to take a 9-6 halftime lead and then add four more to start the third and turn the game into a rout and chase Wings goalkeeper Brandon Miller.
The remainder of the second half belonged to Rochester on the scoreboard and to the Wings on the penalty sheet. With 26 seconds to play in a game that was already settled the Wings decided to take a page from the Flyers old playbook and goon it up with the Knighthawks. In round one the Wings David Brock and Rochester's Kyle Laverty went at it twice while Thomas Hajek, in his return to the Wings, and Tyler Burton of Rocheste also squared off. Just nine seconds after that a second donnybrook took place, one which ended in a ridiculous goalie fight between the Wings Kurtis Wagar and the Knighthawks Jake Henhawk. When the dust cleared the two teams combined for over 210 penalty minutes and some likely suspensions.
Crowley tallied three goals and five assists in his NLL debut to highlight the game for the Wings. For the Wings it was the first time giving up 20+ goals in agame since the Knighthawks did it to them on March 29, in a 20-12 final. It was also the second most goals the Wings have given up in a game, the worst being a 26 goal pounding in 2001 at Buffalo. The Wings will need to tighten up on defense and look for more consistency next week as the Washington Stealth will be coming into town on Saturday.
Much like last season the Philadelphia Wings entered their Natioanl Lacrosse League season opener following a massive roster overhaul that again included a trade of a fan favorite. And once again the Wings gave their remaining faithful a sign that change doesn't grant immediate success. Except for a five minute flurry in the 2nd quarter and a Broad Street Bully-like final 26 seconds of play, the Wings looked lost in their 22-12 defeat to the Rochester Knighthawks before 8,813 at the Wells Fargo Center on Saturday night.
There were very few bright spots in a game in which the Wings never led. After Max Seibald brought the Wings within a goal just under six minutes into the first stanza, the Wings were lit up for four consecutive scores to trail 6-1 after the opening 15. Philly then had its first highlight moment of the evening when they ripped off five goals in a stretch of 4:28 to tie the game at six. Included in this run were the first Wings goals for Kevin Crowley, Mike Hominuck and Dan Dawson. Crowley's first NLL goal came 2:15 after his first NLL point, an assist on a Drew Westervelt goal. The good vibes on offense would end there as the Knighthawks would counter with three goals to take a 9-6 halftime lead and then add four more to start the third and turn the game into a rout and chase Wings goalkeeper Brandon Miller.
The remainder of the second half belonged to Rochester on the scoreboard and to the Wings on the penalty sheet. With 26 seconds to play in a game that was already settled the Wings decided to take a page from the Flyers old playbook and goon it up with the Knighthawks. In round one the Wings David Brock and Rochester's Kyle Laverty went at it twice while Thomas Hajek, in his return to the Wings, and Tyler Burton of Rocheste also squared off. Just nine seconds after that a second donnybrook took place, one which ended in a ridiculous goalie fight between the Wings Kurtis Wagar and the Knighthawks Jake Henhawk. When the dust cleared the two teams combined for over 210 penalty minutes and some likely suspensions.
Crowley tallied three goals and five assists in his NLL debut to highlight the game for the Wings. For the Wings it was the first time giving up 20+ goals in agame since the Knighthawks did it to them on March 29, in a 20-12 final. It was also the second most goals the Wings have given up in a game, the worst being a 26 goal pounding in 2001 at Buffalo. The Wings will need to tighten up on defense and look for more consistency next week as the Washington Stealth will be coming into town on Saturday.
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