The Alumni Game was originally published 7/31/17 on PowellLacrosse.com via their Field Exploration series and republished with permission.
Last week, the MLL announced the rosters of the second annual MLL Alumni Game to be held during the Lake Placid Classic. Last year was incredible. This time around, the rosters are absolutely mind-blowing.
If you were an avid lacrosse fan in the 90s and 2000s, these guys were your heroes.
The Warrior defensive side alone is something dreams, or nightmares, are made of, depending who you ask. You’ve got two of the greatest Syracuse poles of all-time, Rick Beardsley and Regy Thorpe; Notre Dame defensive coordinator Gerry Byrne; Towson head coach Shawn Nadelen; alongside the equally decorated Jamie Hanford and John Gagliardi. Put these guys together in their prime and this group would be better suited for saving the planet from Decepticons or the Legion of Doom. Behind them stands RIT head coach Jake Coon and the legendary Brian Carcaterra. We would say that scoring will be nearly impossible, until you examine Team Brine.
First, Gary Gait. When the living legend is on your team, goals will be scored. He’s got help from fellow Orange great Liam Banks and two mammoth human beings in Tim Goettelman and Dan Deniham. Those four are a tall order, pretty literally, for that giant group of stellar poles from Team Warrior. The guys working to get the ball down to them is where this team will shine. They’ve got a handful of guys fresh out of the league and likely with some good miles left on those tires. Brendan Mundorf, Drew Westervelt, and Matt Striebel seem like they could hop back on the field with the best of them next weekend. With the way Peter Vlahakis used to dominate the X, he’s most likely got more than enough left in the take to have his fun in the Alumni Game.
Ground ball vacuum Jake Deane is listed as the sole LSM, probably because there’s an even beefier line backing him up. We’ll get to see a pair of Cuse legends, John Glatzel and Pat McCabe, throwing the lumber next to defensive legends like Joe Smith, Ryan Mollett, and Chris Passavia. Team Brine is also going to stick with one man between the irons to get the job done, with only the iconic Mike Gabel strapping it on.
If everyone of these names aren’t in the Hall of Fame within the next 20 years, it would be a crime. If you’re a fan of the Syracuse Orange, we would say this game should be circled many times on your calendar.
The second-everl Legends Alumni Game is going down on Friday, August 4th, 5 p.m. ET, and you can tune in live online via Lax Sports Network. If there’s a can’t-miss livestream of 2017, this is the one!
TEAM BRINE
Attack
Liam Banks (Syracuse ‘03)
Dan Denihan (Johns Hopkins ‘00)
Gary Gait (Syracuse ‘90)
Tim Goettelmann (Loyola ‘99)
Middies
Tim Byrnes (Syracuse ‘00)
Kevin Dougherty (Syracuse ‘04)
Blake Miller (Hofstra ‘96)
Mike Mollot (Maryland ‘03)
Brendan Mundorf (UMBC ‘06)
Stephen Sombrotto (C.W. Post ‘91)
Matt Striebel (Princeton ‘01)
Peter Vlahakis (Fairfield ‘04)
Drew Westervelt (UMBC ‘09)
LSM
Jake Deane (UMass ‘06)
Defense
John Glatzel (Syracuse ‘02)
Pat McCabe (Syracuse ‘90)
Ryan Mollett (Princeton ‘01)
Chris Passavia (Maryland ‘04)
Joe Smith (Towson ‘03)
Goalie
Mike Gabel (Vermont ‘05)
TEAM WARRIOR
Attack
David Evans (Duke ‘06)
Seth Goldberg (Yale ‘05)
Kevin Leveille (UMass ‘03)
Mike Leveille (Syracuse ‘08)
Middies
Matt Alexander (Syracuse ‘99)
Nate Watkins (Maryland ‘02)
Casey
Mike Regan (Butler ‘00)
Brian Silcott (Nazareth ‘93)
Lorne Smith (Princeton ‘99)
Vinnie Sombrotto (Hofstra ‘81)
Zach Heffner (Virginia ‘04)
Defense
John Gagliardi (Johns Hopkins ‘97)
Shawn Nadelen (Johns Hopkins ‘01)
Gerry Byrne (UMass ‘96)
Ric Beardsley (Syracuse ‘95)
Jamie Hanford (Loyola ‘98)
Regy Thorpe (Syracuse ‘93)
Goalies
Brian Carcaterra (Johns Hopkins ‘00)
Jake Coon (Nazareth ‘01)
