(Rochester, NY)… The Rochester Knighthawks have been showing out this summer and last week was no different. There are 18 Knighthawks playing in the following leagues: the Premier Lacrosse League (PLL), Major Series Lacrosse (MSL), the Can-Am Lacrosse League (CALL), and the Rocky Mountain Lacrosse League (RMLL).
Cam MacLeod played for England in the European Box Lacrosse Championship (EBLC) from June 25-July 4. His squad finished the tournament fourth overall, falling in the third-place game to Germany. MacLeod played four full games and one half of the tournament opener. He totaled 177 saves and averaged 10.4 goals against per game.
He opened the tournament against the Netherlands with one goal against while only playing in the first half. His best performances came in the quarterfinal over Israel, where he was 80 percent stopping shots with 40 saves, and in the team’s final game against Germany. MacLeod’s 73 percent and 47 saves don’t do his performance justice; almost every one of Germany’s goals was scored on the doorstep of the crease, and MacLeod never had a chance on those shots.
England following their win over Israel. (Credit/Lauren Noble)
MSL:
The Chiefs are still undefeated at the top of the MSL through 10 games. Tyler Biles has played in seven of those games. Ryan Smith scored a goal and an assist in their last game against Brampton; he’s played in eight games so far this summer and has totaled 12 goals and 14 assists.
The Peterborough Lakers went 1-1 last week with a win over Cobourg and a loss to Oakville. Ryan Lanchbury notched five assists in each game and scored two goals against the Kodiaks. He has 22 points in only four games; his 5.5 points per game is second in the league, only behind Dhane Smith. Brad McCulley had a strong day against the Kodiaks as well, notching five points off two goals and three assists. Brad McCulley spoke after the game.
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The Brampton Excelsiors had a tough week of losses, but in their final game of the week, Riley Hutchcraft put up a 53-save performance to keep his team within two. Unfortunately, he couldn’t help deliver the win.
This week is full of Knighthawk vs. Knighthawk matchups. The Lakers and the Chiefs will face off on July 7. The game will feature six Knighthawks, with Matt Gilray and Adam Thistlethwaite also playing.
On Thursday, July 9, the Excelsiors will host the Chiefs. It will be a matchup with five Knighthawks in the game. Thomas McConvey recently joined Hutchcraft and Josh Medeiros on the Excelsiors’ roster.
PLL:
The All-Star game was on Sunday in Annapolis, Md., for the PLL. All three Knighthawks playing were on the Western team. Blaze Riorden started the game in goal and played the entire first half. Mitchell Dunham played the whole game at close defense, and Jake Piseno played the second most LSM minutes in the first half and started minutes at the position in the second half.
Watch the game highlights HERE.
Riorden made seven saves in the first half while allowing six goals, once again saving over 50 percent of the shots he faced. Dunham led all defenders on the day in caused turnovers (three) and groundballs (six); he caused a turnover that led to the West’s go-ahead goal in the fourth quarter. That play was able to happen thanks to Piseno’s game-tying two-point goal just a few minutes before. He notched a caused turnover and three ground balls to go along with his two points.
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Senior “B”:
The Can-Am regular season has officially come to an end. Taylor Jensen and the Tonawanda Braves finished in second place at 14-6. Zed Williams and the Allegany Arrows rank third at 12-8 after falling to the top-seeded Newtown Golden Eagles on Sunday.
MacLeod will be returning from the EBLC to a squad that has not missed a beat. The Edmonton Sr. Miners played three games without MacLeod and won all three by a combined score of 49-27. Despite missing games, he still has the best save percentage in the league at 86.7 percent. The Sr. Miners have three games left in their regular season, from July 8-12.