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broken bones in both his feet, and then suffered a sports hernia early in his senior season.
After being drafted in 2011 by the Hamilton Nationals, Flanagan elected to sit out the season to fully recover (he also had his wisdom teeth removed last summer). He moved to Charlotte, where he works as a salesman for a lacrosse equipment company.
Neither Danowski (still playing indoor with the Philadelphia Wings of the National Lacrosse League) nor Turri (who will join the Hounds when Duke’s season ends), were with the team for their first training weekend. That — along with the limited practice schedule — means the Hounds will be a patchwork project. But on paper, Charlotte looks as good out of the gates as any team in the MLL. In addition to Flanagan and Danowski
— the NCAA’s all-time leading scorer and led MLL in two-point goals last season — the Hounds acquired attackman Billy Bitter, midfielders Jovan Miller and Brian Carroll, defenseman Brett Schmidt and goalie Adam Ghitelman. Attackman Jeremy Boltus, the 2011 MLL Rookie of the Year with the Hamilton Nationals, came via the expansion draft. Coach Mike Cerino, who built an NCAA Division II power at Limestone (S.C.) College, joins Dave Cottle (Chesapeake), Joe Spallina (Long Island) and Jim Stagnitta (Denver) as current or former college coaches making their pro debuts. “With the college game, you’re still dealing with 18- to 21-year-olds, and a lot of time it’s their first time away from home,” Cerino said. “So you’re often
Attackman Jeremy Boltus, the 2011 MLL Rookie of the Year with the Hamilton Nationals, looms large in plans for the expansion Charlotte Hounds to win now.
MLL PREVIEW: 5 BIG QUESTIONS 1
Who are the MVP
candidates? The Boston Cannons’ Paul Rabil (pictured at right) has won two of the last three most valuable player awards, so any MVP race starts with him. But there are a host of other worthy contenders. Matt Danowski (Charlotte), Brendan Mundorf (Denver), Brodie Merrill (Hamilton) and Max Seibald (Long Island) top the list. And don’t count out the seemingly ageless Casey Powell, coming back from a knee injury. His MLL comeback a season ago boosted the Nationals to the title game, where they lost to Boston.
62 LACROSSE MAGAZINE May 2012>> 2
What offseason move pays off the most?
Long Island shook things up big-time, shipping Danowski and Stephen Berger south to expansion Charlotte in a deal that gave them the No. 1 pick in January’s collegiate draft (Rob Pannell). The Lizards also brought Long Island native Max Seibald home, getting him from the Outlaws in a draft night deal. The Chesapeake Bayhawks were equally as busy. They
now have veteran scorer John Grant Jr., who the team believes can return to MVP form as he did with the NLL’s Colorado Mammoth. Chesapeake also traded away former MLL championship game MVP Kyle Hartzell to Ohio, and acquired longtime Lizards defenseman Brian Spallina to toughen its defense. Kevin Leveille, fifth all-time in MLL scoring (230 goals), is set to return with the Rochester Rattlers after taking a season off.
3 Which team adjusts best
to its new coach? Jim Stagnitta replaced Tom Slate in Denver, Joe Spallina took over for Jim Mule on Long Island, Boston promoted Steve Duffy after Bill Daye retired, and Chesapeake owner Brendan Kelly relinquished coaching duties to Dave Cottle. Rochester’s Tim Soudan, who stepped in for the fired B.J. O’Hara (now a Denver assistant) six games into the 2011 season, is the league’s
A Publication of US Lacrosse
©PEYTON WILLIAMS (JB); ©MARC PISCOTTY(PR)
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