Philadelphia Blitzes Bayhawks for Eastern Title

[Sonny]

Downingtown, PA (August 11, 2007) – With a dominating performance on all sides of the ball, the Philadelphia Barrage finished the regular season with a 22-7 win over the Washington Bayhawks at United Sports Training Center to be the Eastern Conference Champions for the second year in a row and earn first place in the MLL. Finishing with their best performance of the season, the Barrage racked up their highest single-game goal total of the season with 22. The Barrage have also earned a first-place seed in the 2007 playoffs, becoming the first defending champions since 2002 to make it back to the playoffs the following year. In front of 2,648 fans in Downingtown, Pa., Roy Colsey's five goals and one assist led the offensive barrage that ensured the Barrage's first-place standing as he earned the Bud Light game MVP award.

The Barrage wasted no time in getting on the scoreboard. Jed Prossner started off the scoring for Philadelphia when Michael Springer found him cutting to the net less than three minutes into the game. Both Springer and Colsey scored less than one minute after Prossner's opening goal to take a quick three-point lead. Crucial face off wins by Andy Corno gave the Barrage ample offensive opportunities, which resulted in the early scoring onslaught. Justin Smith, shooting as he spun around a defender, found the back of the net for five-goal Barrage lead before the Bayhawks could net a point of their own. After Washington answered with two points, Matt Zash grabbed a ground ball and dashed up the field where he found Ryan Boyle for another Barrage goal. By the end of the first quarter, Colsey had a hat trick, scoring three of the Barrage's nine first-quarter goals. Corno finished the half with 11 of 16 face off wins.

At the start of the second quarter, goalie Kevin Keenan entered the game for starter Brian "Doc" Dougherty. After surrendering a Bayhawks goal less than two minutes later, Keenan continued what Dougherty started, holding Washington scoreless until midway through the third period. Colsey added his fourth goal of the night, Prossner scored on an open net, and Matt Striebel scored before half to give Philadelphia a nine-point lead.

The third quarter featured more of the same Barrage highlights. Both Boyle and Prossner notched their third goals of the game, while the defense kept Washington at bay. Keenan and the back three consisting of Kyle Sweeney, Armando Polanco (who entered in the second quarter), and Brian Spallina only allowed two more goals in the quarter as the Barrage racked up a 12-point lead. In the final period, Striebel added his fourth goal of the game with an assist from Boyle, and Goldberg got his name in the scorebook, netting a goal as he lost his balance in front of the net. Corno's goal after winning a face off gave the Barrage their final goal of the game, en route to the playoffs as the top overall seed.

Philadelphia finished off the regular season tonight with the victory over the Bayhawks, but the season is far from over. The Barrage will advance to the 2007 NB Zip Championship weekend for a first round match up against the Denver Outlaws on August 25 at 2:00 p.m in Rochester, N.Y.
Line Score 1 2 3 4 TOTALWashington 2 1 2 2 7Philadelphia 9 3 5 5 22
1st Quarter
Philadelphia - Jed Prossner (Michael Springer) 2:42
Philadelphia - Michael Springer (unassisted) 3:04
Philadelphia - Roy Colsey (unassisted) 3:33
Philadelphia - Roy Colsey (powerplay) (Ryan Boyle) 5:03
Philadelphia - Justin Smith (Michael Springer) 7:43
Washington - Matt Ward (unassisted) 8:29
Washington - Andrew Combs (Conor Gill) 9:09
Philadelphia - Ryan Boyle (unassisted) 10:39
Philadelphia - Ryan Boyle (Seth Goldberg) 13:36
Philadelphia - Roy Colsey (unassisted) 14:16
Philadelphia - Michael Springer (Joe Ceglia) 14:49

2nd Quarter
Washington - Andrew Combs (Matt Ward) 1:17
Philadelphia - Roy Colsey (powerplay) (Matt Striebel) 9:14
Philadelphia - Jed Prossner (unassisted) 11:50
Philadelphia - Matt Striebel (Ryan Boyle) 12:48

3rd Quarter
Philadelphia - Ryan Boyle (Michael Springer) 2:59
Philadelphia - Michael Springer (unassisted) 5:20
Washington - Brendan Healy (unassisted) 7:22
Philadelphia - Jed Prossner (unassisted) 10:03
Washington - Mark Frye (Conor Gill) 12:58
Philadelphia - Matt Striebel (unassisted) 14:29
Philadelphia - Roy Colsey (unassisted) 14:59

4th Quarter
Philadelphia - Matt Striebel (Ryan Boyle) 0:35
Philadelphia - Seth Goldberg (Justin Smith) 1:46
Washington - Kyle Dixon (unassisted) 3:40
Philadelphia - Michael Springer (powerplay) (Roy Colsey) 4:32
Philadelphia - Seth Goldberg (powerplay) (Ryan Boyle) 7:11
Philadelphia - Andrew Corno (unassisted) 7:26
Washington - Brendan Healy (unassisted) 9:06