We made it. The third year of the Premier Lacrosse League will come to a close this Sunday afternoon in Washington DC when the Whipsnakes and Chaos will meet for the second year in a row in the championship. Everyone knows how that one went last year. The Chaos got out to a fast start and led 6-3 after three quarters. The Whipsnakes behind Zed Williams’ six goals went on a 9-0 run in the fourth quarter alone to win their second straight PLL Championship 12-6. The game was close, and then it wasn’t. The Whipsnakes flexed their muscles and showed the league they were still the league’s best.
(You can discuss this on the BSL Board here.)
Last year was in a bubble. The teams played four regular season games and had the potential of three more postseason games. This year was back to normal, nine regular season games from early June to late August, and a few postseason September matchups. Plenty has been different and I don’t expect anything else this coming Sunday. First lets take a quick look at how the two made it back to Championship Sunday.
The Chaos went in against the #2 seeded Atlas two weeks ago in Philadelphia and ended up putting a beatdown on the league’s hottest team throughout the regular season. Both teams scored seven in a quarter, as the Atlas responded to a fast start by the Chaos with a 7-1 second quarter to take an 8-5 lead into halftime.
Cue a halftime speech that probably went something like this from Chaos head coach Andy Towers, which was just the spark the underdog Chaos needed to come out in the second half and outscore the Atlas 10-1. They allowed just a single goal in the second half and poured in 10, seven coming in the third quarter. Blaze Riorden had 17 saves and 2 assists. Dhane Smith and Josh Byrne combined for 11 points. The Chaos have been a tall task to take down since starting 0-3. They have quietly ran teams down and still have yet to get the respect they deserve. In a year that the Whipsnakes have not been completely dominant, I think they are going to make this Sunday’s game a good one by playing with their grit and passion.
The Whipsnakes are a much different story than the Chaos. They fell off midway through the year when a ton of their players were sent to the injured list, missed time for personal reasons, or simply didn’t play the best. They relied on young talent to move them through the regular season and hold their own.
They have since gotten their best two attackmen back from injury and what a duo that is. Matt Rambo and Zed Williams is the best attack duo in the world. They both consistently combine for 10+ points per game and the conbination of Rambo’s dodging/feeding with Williams’ finishing provides a scary situation for any defense. The Whipsnakes bolstered the middle of the field this offseason with Matt Abbott to pair with Nardella and Bernhardt, and they picked up goalie Brian Phipps who has started the last few games for the Whips.
The Whips were in control two weeks ago in Philadelphia against the #1 ranked Waterdogs. They essentially led throughout the game, holding a lead at the end of each quarter. Brian Phipps saved 13 shots and Rambo/Williams had 8 points. Jim Stagnitta’s team still has a lot of the major pieces from the last two championship runs. They have also added plenty of key contributors throughout the past year which makes them a tough out, especially with their sights set on a third straight trophy.
PLL Championship – Whipsnakes vs. Chaos – Sunday, 12pm
The rematch goes down on Sunday at noon. All you football fans can start your afternoon an hour early and catch the first half of this game which should be a good one. In a league that is as deep as the Premier Lacrosse League, I find it rare that these two teams are matching up again in the Championship, let alone that the Whipsnakes are taking a run at their third straight trophy.
There will be plenty to look for in this weekend’s matchup and I want to start with a couple big names: Matt Rambo and Zed Williams. The two most important pieces to the Whipsnakes offense will be going up against Jack Rowlett, Johnny Surdick and Jarrod Neumann. The Chaos defense loves to play their individual matchups because these three defensemen are big, physical and athletic. They may be able to double pole the Whipsnakes midfield and leave a defensive midfielder on Jay Carlson in the crease, making the dodging opportunities harder for the Whipsnakes. This is a situation that will rely on Matt Rambo and Zed Williams.
A top-rated recruit out of high school had an insane career at Maryland, winning a National Championship. He was always and remains the focal point of any offense he plays on. He is able to do so many things, dodging to score, feed and taking every last inch the defense will give him. He favors his left hand while Zed Williams favors his right. Zed dodges similar to Rambo, they both bulldodge their way to their top hand and hope to get free for a shot. Zed looks more to shoot, while Matt looks more than Zed does to feed. Two stats that might hint at this side of the field:
In August and September, the Chaos defense have allowed a 13.6% unassisted shooting percentage. Zed Williams is going to have to shoot better than 13% in order to win this game. Since 2019, Matt Rambo’s teammates have finished 41.3% of his assist opportunities. The stats are pointing to Rambo feeding Zed being the combination for success. Don’t forget they are going to have to get every shot past Blaze Riorden (61% SV, 95 GA).
The middle of the field is going to be interesting as both teams have guys who can, and like to push transition. The Chaos have four players ranked in the top-8 in two point goals (Ian MacKay, CJ Costabile, Mac O’Keefe and Jake Froccaro), two of which will be running the field from defense to offense. This begs me to ask the question about how long of a leash will Mike Ehrhardt have in staying on the field. He has two 2-pointers this season and one of the hardest shots with a long pole. Two bombs are going to be flying on Sunday afternoon.
Last year’s Whipsnakes run was aided by a 9-0 faceoff run from Joe Nardella, debatably second in line for last year’s MVP trophy. Nardella consistently wins faceoff cleans and pushes fast breaks to Zed and Rambo. To counter, the Chaos went and picked up Max Adler out of the MLL in the expansion draft. Adler has won 61.5% of the faceoffs he has taken in the past three games and will go up against a guy he trains with in Nardella. This is an aspect of the game that is going to be much much different from last year’s.
Finally, down to the Chaos’ offensive end. Throughout their big run they have had multiple offensive players step up. Dhane Smith has become the facilitator for an offense that thrives on off ball motion. He has seven assists in the last four games and is consistently finding guys like Chase Fraser, Mac O’Keefe and Josh Byrne. The Chaos adopted heavily a Canadian aspect throughout the last year, consistently getting guys who play one handed, box-style, lending them to lead the league in assist rate (56%) as the next closest team is 51%. Unselfishness and trust are the name of the game for these guys.
In two postseason games, Brian Phipps has posted a 60% and 57% save percentage. He started the semifinal over Kyle Bernlohr, a guy many people will say is a top-3 goalie in the league.
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I don’t expect either team to win handily (3 or more goals) but I could see a situation where we have a two goal (one possession) game late. The Chaos have been on some run in the past month plus, while the Whipsnakes are finally clicking again with their offense back together. My prediction however is that the run ends here, and Andy Towers’ passion and enthusiasm he brings to the field and that he brings to his players is going to lift them to the top. The Whipsnakes run is going to end on Sunday afternoon and the Chaos will be your new PLL Champions. I wonder how many beers will fit in the cup.
CHAOS 14, Whipsnakes 12
Lacrosse Analyst
Sam Kuhn currently is the graduate assistant for the men’s lacrosse program at Heidelberg University in Tiffin, Ohio and is working to complete his Masters of Business Administration in 2020. Sam graduated from the College of Wooster in 2018, where he received his Bachelors Degree in English and played lacrosse as well. In his four years, Sam was a two time All-NCAC selection, a first team All-Region selection in 2018, and surpassed 100 goals for his career, one of seven members in program history to do so. Sam has interned with Inside Lacrosse, and wrote for the sports section of The Wooster Voice.