Hamilton Nationals - News and Notes July 29th

The Hamilton Nationals have clinched a playoff berth and will head to Philadelphia for Championship Weekend on August 24th. This will be the third time in team history that the Nationals have advanced to the postseason. The Nationals won the championship in 2009 and in 2011 made it to the Finals before falling short to the Boston Cannons.

Not only did the Nationals clinch a playoff spot, but they also earned their ninth win to extend their single-season wins record. The record was broken last week when they notched their eighth win in a 13-12 win over the Ohio Machine on July 20^th.

Rookie Garrett Thul led the Nationals with six points (5+1+0) in the 17-12 win Saturday night over the Boston Cannons. Thul started off the game with two goals in the first quarter, including his second two pointer of his career, to help the Nationals take a 6-1 lead at the end of the first.  He then went on to score three more times in the fourth quarter to seal the Nationals win.

Brett Queener scored the second goal of the contest, which was the first MLL goal of his career. He also made 17 saves. Queener and the Nationals defense held leading point producer Paul Rabil to just a two-point goal that didn’t come until the fourth quarter.

Kevin Cunningham tied his career best with five points (2+3). Cunningham connected with Thul twice in the first quarter, and also found the back of the net for three points in the first quarter. Cunningham has 21 assists this season and trails just Joe Walters for the team lead. Walters continues to lead to the league in assists with 22. Kevin Crowley, who leads the team with 44 points, scored once Saturday to extend his point streak to 27 games. Crowley is now tied for second in points in the MLL with Chris Bocklet of the Denver Outlaws. 

Thul ,Queener and Cunningham will head to Baltimore for the US National Team try outs, alongside teammates Tucker Durkin, Mike Poppleton, Roman Lao-Gosney, and Cameron Lao-Gosney from August 30th through September 1st. 

The Nationals are back home on Saturday August 10th for a 3:00 p.m. game against the undefeated Denver Outlaws (12-0). For tickets call 905-525-NATS (6287).