ATLANTA BLAZE ______________________2016 Game Notes_______________________ Media Contact: Kathryn Eckhart • [email protected] • 281-650-0740 1301 Shiloh Road NW Suite 340 • Kennesaw, GA 30144 • 470-231-0336 atlantablaze.com • @AtlantaBlaze || @atlantablazemll SETTING THE SCENE: BLAZE VS. BOSTON CANNONS 2016 SCHEDULE & RESULTS GAME INFORMATION 2-2 Overall DATE: Saturday, June 4, 2016 1-1 Home • 1-1 Away LOCATION: Kennesaw, GA STADIUM: Fifth Third Bank Stadium APRIL FACEOFF: 7:00 p.m. (EST) 23 vs. Chesapeake 5:00 pm BROADCAST: Lax Sports Network 30 at Boston 7:00 pm TWITTER: @AtlantaBlaze MAY 14 vs. Denver 5:00 pm All-Time Series: 0-1 21 at Florida 7:00 pm 2015 Series: 0-1 JUNE 04 vs. Boston 7:00 pm 11 vs. New York 7:00 pm THE MATCHUP This will be the second meeting between the Atlanta Blaze and the Boston Cannons. The 18 at Ohio 4:30 pm Atlanta Blaze is the newest expansion franchise in Major League Lacrosse, the premier 25 at Charlotte 7:30 pm professional outdoor lacrosse league. JULY 01 vs. Charlotte 8:00 pm SCOTT RATLIFF COMES HOME 09 All-Star Game Fullerton, CA The Atlanta Blaze acquired the defenseman and Marietta (GA) native from the Boston Cannons along with the #15 overall pick in the 2016 MLL Draft and a third-round pick in the 16 at Denver 7:30 pm 2017 MLL Supplement Draft. Ratliff, 6’0”, 218 pound Defenseman, was a second round 21 at Chesapeake 7:30 pm selection by the Cannons in the 2013 MLL Collegiate Draft. One of the Cannons tri-captains 23 vs. Florida 7:00 pm in 2015, Ratliff played in all 14 regular season games while leading the team to the 30 vs. Ohio 7:00 pm playoffs. He scored a career high eight goals in 2015 including a career high three 2-point AUGUST goals. Ratliff was a member of the 2012 NCAA National Championship at Loyola University 04 at Rochester 7:30 pm (MD). His experience motivated Ratliff to return to Atlanta and give back to the sport the same way his coaches had, by promoting its growth and sharing his passion for it with kids. 2016 MAJOR LEAGUE LACROSSE CHAMPIONSIOP BROADCAST INFORMATION The season will finish once again in metro Atlanta on Saturday, August 20 with the 2016 Stream: Lax Sports Network Championship Game hosted at Fifth Third Bank Stadium on the campus of Kennesaw State PxP: Matt Martucci University. This marks the third consecutive year that the greater Atlanta area has hosted the Analyst: Brian Silcott MLL Championship Game. For the past two years, the Fifth Third Bank Stadium has hosted the final showdown of the MLL season for a crowd of over 8,000 energetic fans. LOOKING AHEAD FIFTH THIRD BANK STADIUM Blaze vs. New York Fifth Third Bank Stadium is an 8,300-seat state-of-the-art stadium built in 2010 in When: Saturday, June 11 partnership with the former Women’s Professional Soccer team Atlanta Beat, designed to Time: 7 p.m. showcase a variety of events. It has hosted Major League Soccer, KSU Soccer and Lacrosse, Location: Fifth Third Stadium the Southern Lacrosse Showdown, NCAA Women’s College Cup, concerts and music festivals. Situated within a beautiful 88-acre KSU Sports and Recreation Park, the facility is conveniently located just one mile from both I-75 and I-575 in Cobb County, which is often MEDIA CONTACT referred to as Atlanta’s sweet spot. Kathryn Eckhart [email protected] 770-238-9244 (cell) HEAD COACH JOHN TUCKER UPCOMING MILESTONES John Tucker is a three time All- American for John Hopkins, who in 1984 were undefeated and won the NCAA Men’s Lacrosse Championships. He is also a three-time gold medal winner Kevin Rice has four games with hat playing for Team USA in the World Lacrosse Championships in 1986, 1990, and 1994, tricks, recording 26 goals in four games captaining the 1990 and 1994 teams and recognized at the Top Midfielder in 1990. Additionally, with the Blaze. he played and captained for the NLL’s Philadelphia Wings. There he added two more championships to his resume, 1989 and 1990. Tucker has been a teacher and administrator in the Randy Staats recorded two hat tricks in Baltimore area for 25 years. During which, he has coached five state championship teams. He just two games with the Blaze with a total was inducted into the US Lacrosse Greater Baltimore Chapter Hall of Fame in 2003. He joined of 14 goals. the National Lacrosse League as head coach for the Baltimore Thunder in 1997 then onto the Pittsburgh Crossfire in 2000. From 2006 to 2008, he served as the head coach of Major League Adam Ghitelman records 59 saves in Lacrosse’s Los Angeles Riptide. In 2007 he was given the Major League Lacrosse’s Coach of the Year Award. Next, he coached the Chesapeake Bayhawks for the 2009 and 2010 seasons. In three games. 2010, the NLL inducted him into the Hall of Fame. He then joined the Boston Cannons as head coach for the 2013 through 2015 seasons. In 2015, he was named the MLL Brine Coach of the Scott Ratliff leads the team with 23 Year. In September 2015 he became the Atlanta Blaze’s first Head Coach and General Manager. ground balls. KEVIN RICE Scott Ratliff leads defensemen with 9 Acquired from the Rochester Rattlers, Kevin Rice spent the 2015 Season with the Rattlers after points. being traded from the Florida Launch in the 2015 MLL Draft. Rice went on to score 96 Goals and 126 Assists, helping lead the Rattlers to the MLL Finals. Rice was a 3-year starter at Franchise recorded its first win against Syracuse University and a 2X All American. In Kevin Rice’s senior season at Syracuse the Denver Outlaws, 23-12 and second University, he compiled a long list of accolades. He was a Turnbull Award Winner, the Nation’s win against the Florida Launch, 22-10 Best Attackmen, Lowe’s Senior Class Award All-American, 1st Team All-American, 1st Team All ACC, 1st Team Academic All-American, Tewaaraton Award Finalist, ACC All Tournament Team, ACC Tournament MVP, and All Academic ACC. Rice finished his final season for the Orange with 36 goals and 48 assists for a total of 109 points. ATLANTA BLAZE NO. 1 OVERALL PICK MYLES JONES With the first overall pick in the 2016 Major League Lacrosse Collegiate Draft the Atlanta Blaze selected Myles Jones of Duke University. This is the 16 th Collegiate Draft in MLL history. In 2015, Jones, a 6’5”, 240 pound senior midfielder, was the Donald MacLaughlin Jr. Award winner as the nation’s top midfielder. He was also a first-team USILA All-America selection. Jones led the Blue Devils in scoring with 77 points (40 goals/37 assists) and led all midfielders nationally in scoring and ranked fourth overall in points per game (4.28). His 77 points are the most by a midfielder in Duke single-season history and he ranks 11 th on Duke’s all-time list. Jones became the 43 rd Blue Devil in program history to reach 100 career points for his career. Jones was a four-year letterman at Walt Whitman High School (Huntington Station, NY) and a four- time Suffolk County All-League selection. He tallied 149 goals and 123 assists for 272 points in his scholastic career. Jones was rated as the No. 8 postgraduate player by Inside Lacrosse and ranked among the top 10 players by Inside Lacrosse throughout his high school career. 2016 Game By Game Results GAME DATE OPP. STRK. RESULT TOTAL HIGH (G) HIGH (A) ATTEND. 1 4/23 CHE 1 Loss 13-16 21 6 2 4,145 2 430 @BOS 2 Losses 12-13 12 4 2 8,479 3 5/14 DEN 1 Win 23-12 36 5 3 4,279 4 5/21 @FLA 2 Wins 22-10 32 4 2 1,621 5 6/04 BOS 6 6/11 NY 7 6/18 @OH 8 6/25 @CHA 9 7/01 CHA 10 7/16 @DEN 11 7/21 @CHE 12 7/23 FLA 13 7/30 OH 14 8/04 @ROC ATLANTA BLAZE PLAYERS Alphabetical Roster: ACTIVE ROSTER NO. NAME POS HT WT BIRTHDATE COLLEGE YRS. PRO 4 Jake Bailey D 6’6” 230 1-8-93 North Carolina 1 7 Deemer Class M 5’11” 200 6-24-93 Duke R 41 Kevin Cooper M/A 6’4” 205 4-7-91 Maryland 3 20 Greg Danseglio D/LSM 6’0” 190 5-1-93 Maryland R 88 Josh Dionne A 5’8” 170 4-31-91 Duke 2 5 Nicky Galasso M/A 6’0” 190 12-5-91 Syracuse 1 8 Adam Ghitelman G 5’9” 185 4-25-89 Virginia 5 11 Pat Harbeson M 5’7” 170 8-26-91 Virginia 1 13 Chris Hipps D 6’4” 225 9-27-91 Duke 2 18 Graeme Hossack D 6’2” 220 7-22-92 Lindenwood 1 21 Casey Ikeda D 6’1” 190 6-2-91 Maryland 1 15 Myles Jones M 6’5” 240 3-15-93 Duke R 33 Shayne Jackson A 5’9” 175 11-16-90 Limestone 1 9 Joe LoCascio M 5’9” 195 5-15-93 Maryland 1 35 Jeremy Noble M 5’8” 175 9-5-91 Denver 2 25 Chris May FO 5’8” 195 - Ohio State 1 68 Conrad Oberbeck A 6’2” 195 12-12-92 Yale 1 14 Justin Pennington M 5’11” 210 7-13-88 Rutgers 6 2 Scott Ratliff LSM 5’11” 190 7-26-91 Loyola 3 22 Kevin Rice A 5’9” 180 10-26-92 Syracuse 1 45 Randy Staats A/M 6’2” 200 11-23-92 Syracuse 1 6 Eric Schneider G 6’0” 175 3-30-92 Johns Hopkins 1 77 Henry Schoonmaker M 6’1” 200 6-17-92 Syracuse 1 3 Ryan Tucker M 6’1” 195 10-11-92 Virginia 1 PRACTICE SQUAD NO.