Phillylacrosse.com, posted 3/28/08
The Philadelphia Wings hope to rebound from a tough loss last week when they visit the Rochester Knighthawks Saturday night (8:05) at the Blue Cross Arena.
Last weekend the Wings tasted defeat for the second time this season with a 20-13 loss to the New York Titans. They still lead the National Lacrosse League’s (NLL) Eastern Division with a 7-2 mark, one-half game ahead of Minnesota.
“When you play as aggressively as we play, the scores of our games are always going to be in the 30s; we were just on the wrong end last week,” said Wings coach Dave Huntley. “I’m not really too concerned about if we lose by seven or lose by one, the bottom line is we lost.
“We’re not off track, but we have to keep going and keep playing the type of high-risk lacrosse that we play.”
The Wings edged the Knighthawks, 15-14, when the teams first met on Jan. 18.
The Wings’ aggressive transition attack has yielded 138 goals this year. They are led by Athan Iannucci, the league leader in goals (43) and points per game (6.8).
Veteran Jake Bergey has posted 42 points (22 goals, 20 assists) and rookies Merrick Thomson (17 goals, 16 assists) and Jamie Rooney (17 goals, 16 assists) have also made significant contributions. Goaltender Rob Blasdell has led the Wings defense with 335 saves and a 13.50 goals against average.
The Knighthawks, last year’s NLL champions, are struggling at 4-6 this season. Their offense is led by John Grant (31 goals and 34 assists) and Scott Evans (26 goals, 21 assists). Goaltender Pat O’Toole has made 334 saves and is expected to start in goal for the Knighthawks this weekend.
NOTES: Wings have added Brian Beisel, a tenth-year free agent, to their 23-man roster effective March 25.
