Head Coach Jim Stagnitta
On what he expects from Rochester this weekend
“Every week everybody asks what you expect – in this league, we expect that everybody is talented, everybody has players. Again, we’re still in that mode where we have to focus on us right now. We are 3-0, but we are a precarious 3-0. We have played great in stretches and there have been times where we have let our opponents back into the game. We need to be more consistent. I think that focusing on us and what we do right now is probably our best approach. Certainly there are some guys on their team from a defensive standpoint that we’ll make sure we have the proper matchup for. But, we just need to do what we do on a more consistent basis and do it better. I feel like we were fortunate to get out of Boston last week with a win. It took a great effort on Jesse Schwartzman’s part and they certainly had their opportunities. It was a good win on the road and we’ll take them, but in order for us to be successful going forward, we have some areas that we just need to clean up and improve in.”
“Every week everybody asks what you expect – in this league, we expect that everybody is talented, everybody has players. Again, we’re still in that mode where we have to focus on us right now. We are 3-0, but we are a precarious 3-0. We have played great in stretches and there have been times where we have let our opponents back into the game. We need to be more consistent. I think that focusing on us and what we do right now is probably our best approach. Certainly there are some guys on their team from a defensive standpoint that we’ll make sure we have the proper matchup for. But, we just need to do what we do on a more consistent basis and do it better. I feel like we were fortunate to get out of Boston last week with a win. It took a great effort on Jesse Schwartzman’s part and they certainly had their opportunities. It was a good win on the road and we’ll take them, but in order for us to be successful going forward, we have some areas that we just need to clean up and improve in.”
On midfielder Drew Snider
“We moved Drew into the lineup last year about mid-season, maybe a little bit earlier than that. He just filled a void that we needed. I was going to school last year in our first Boston game. I learned a lot about the league that day – how important it is to have defensive midfielders that can play offense and how important it was to be able to be athletic in the middle of the field. We made some changes at that point and that helped thrust us into that winning streak. Drew was a big part of that. Drew plays one-on-one defense, maybe he and (Justin) Pennington are neck-and-neck, as far as their abilities to get up and play a short stick and us not have to worry too much about sliding right away. He did that for us last year, but he gave us that element of being able to go from defense to offense and keep the other team’s offensive middies on the field. That gave us some opportunities that we weren’t able to get early in the year. Through that we recognize that he is a really talented offensive player. He shoots the ball very well. He can dodge and break you down both in unsettled situations and in six-on-six. There are a lot of ways that we are using him and want to use him. We surely don’t want to give him up on the defensive end because he does such a great job at getting it back to the offensive end and create offense there. We are trying to find some balance in that. I think as you saw last weekend, he finally kind of came out of it and he can really shoot the ball well. He’s very slick, he’s very athletic. His effort and Jesse’s effort went a long way to get us a win on the road last week.”
“We moved Drew into the lineup last year about mid-season, maybe a little bit earlier than that. He just filled a void that we needed. I was going to school last year in our first Boston game. I learned a lot about the league that day – how important it is to have defensive midfielders that can play offense and how important it was to be able to be athletic in the middle of the field. We made some changes at that point and that helped thrust us into that winning streak. Drew was a big part of that. Drew plays one-on-one defense, maybe he and (Justin) Pennington are neck-and-neck, as far as their abilities to get up and play a short stick and us not have to worry too much about sliding right away. He did that for us last year, but he gave us that element of being able to go from defense to offense and keep the other team’s offensive middies on the field. That gave us some opportunities that we weren’t able to get early in the year. Through that we recognize that he is a really talented offensive player. He shoots the ball very well. He can dodge and break you down both in unsettled situations and in six-on-six. There are a lot of ways that we are using him and want to use him. We surely don’t want to give him up on the defensive end because he does such a great job at getting it back to the offensive end and create offense there. We are trying to find some balance in that. I think as you saw last weekend, he finally kind of came out of it and he can really shoot the ball well. He’s very slick, he’s very athletic. His effort and Jesse’s effort went a long way to get us a win on the road last week.”
On Zack Greer
“Unfortunately, he is not going to be with us this week. Zack Greer – regardless of what people think about some of the moves that we made, Zack Greer is one of the greatest scoring forces ever to play at the college level. He can do it a lot of different ways. We knew that we were getting someone who is motivated, because he wants to play on the Canadian World Team, we knew we were getting someone who was in great shape and who is a consummate professional. We also knew we had a guy who had experience in a lot of different situations. There is not a lot that he hasn’t seen or done. He showed that this weekend. He scored four goals I think in four different ways. He dodged for one, he was able to get one in man-up in a severe-angle shot that he stuck, he picked up a ground ball in the crease and threw it in behind-his-back as hard as most people can throw it overhand and he grabbed a goal off a cut. In an unsettled situation, he cut underneath – not something that a lot of guys can do in tight space. He plays very well off the ball. He is a great complement to (Brendan) Mundorf. I think Mundorf really likes playing with him. When we get him back full-time after this week, he is going to be a huge addition. He certainly stepped up big last week in his first game in the field in probably more than two years.”
“Unfortunately, he is not going to be with us this week. Zack Greer – regardless of what people think about some of the moves that we made, Zack Greer is one of the greatest scoring forces ever to play at the college level. He can do it a lot of different ways. We knew that we were getting someone who is motivated, because he wants to play on the Canadian World Team, we knew we were getting someone who was in great shape and who is a consummate professional. We also knew we had a guy who had experience in a lot of different situations. There is not a lot that he hasn’t seen or done. He showed that this weekend. He scored four goals I think in four different ways. He dodged for one, he was able to get one in man-up in a severe-angle shot that he stuck, he picked up a ground ball in the crease and threw it in behind-his-back as hard as most people can throw it overhand and he grabbed a goal off a cut. In an unsettled situation, he cut underneath – not something that a lot of guys can do in tight space. He plays very well off the ball. He is a great complement to (Brendan) Mundorf. I think Mundorf really likes playing with him. When we get him back full-time after this week, he is going to be a huge addition. He certainly stepped up big last week in his first game in the field in probably more than two years.”
On starting 3-0 on the road before returning home this week
“In this league, early-season wins are important. When the league changed last year and the numbers changed, I learned that early-season victories really carry a lot of weight late in the year. You need to get to that nine-win mark – that might be the number you had to get to last year – and getting a quick start out of the box and winning on the road, it’s important to be able to be in the hunt at the end of the year. Even for Denver, it’s an away game for some of our guys, but at least the other team is sleeping in a hotel too and they have to travel. More of our guys have settled in Denver than we’ve had in the past. So maybe half our guys will be sleeping in their own beds. The other guys are comfortable with Denver, with our fans, with the stadium and they’ll be excited to be there. Worst-case scenario, we’re playing on an even playing field. We get to practice at a reasonable time and at least the other team is sleeping in hotels and traveling also. That kind of evens it out a little bit.”
“In this league, early-season wins are important. When the league changed last year and the numbers changed, I learned that early-season victories really carry a lot of weight late in the year. You need to get to that nine-win mark – that might be the number you had to get to last year – and getting a quick start out of the box and winning on the road, it’s important to be able to be in the hunt at the end of the year. Even for Denver, it’s an away game for some of our guys, but at least the other team is sleeping in a hotel too and they have to travel. More of our guys have settled in Denver than we’ve had in the past. So maybe half our guys will be sleeping in their own beds. The other guys are comfortable with Denver, with our fans, with the stadium and they’ll be excited to be there. Worst-case scenario, we’re playing on an even playing field. We get to practice at a reasonable time and at least the other team is sleeping in hotels and traveling also. That kind of evens it out a little bit.”
Midfielder Drew Snider
On his five-goal game against Boston
“I was able to score five because my teammates found me in good positions on the field and I shot well. At times we moved the ball quickly on the offensive end and when we do that it seems to open a lot of scoring opportunities for us.”
“I was able to score five because my teammates found me in good positions on the field and I shot well. At times we moved the ball quickly on the offensive end and when we do that it seems to open a lot of scoring opportunities for us.”
On what it is about playing in Boston that brings out his best MLL games to date
“I do like playing in Boston. It is one of the best venues in the league and the Cannons always put up a good fight.”
“I do like playing in Boston. It is one of the best venues in the league and the Cannons always put up a good fight.”