Major League Lacrosse :      September 1, 2002 [ The Game Story]
Baltimore Bayhawks 21 Long Island Lizards 13 Scoring: Scoring: Mark Millon John Blatchley Gary Gait Josh Sims Tom Marechek Kip Fulks Paul Cantabene Mark Frye Jeff Sonke Rob Shek (5, 2) (1, 5) (2, 4) (4, 0) (2, 1) (3, 0) (2, 0) (0, 1) (1, 0) (1, 0) Casey Powell Tim Goettelmann Terry Riordan Aj Haugen Kevin Finneran Vincent Sombrotto Pat Mccabe (1, 4) (3, 0) (3, 0) (3, 0) (2, 0) (1, 0) (0, 1) Saves: Saves: Greg Cattrano 25  (0.658) Brian Carcaterra Nick Murtha 13  (0.394) 1  (0.500) Current Record :     (12-4) Current Record :     (10-6) Team Page For 2002 Team Page For 2002       The Game Story:

the press release:

The Baltimore Bayhawks defeated the Long Island Lizards, 21-13, in the Major League Lacrosse Championship Game, in front of 5,596 fans at Crew Stadium in Columbus, OH. Baltimore dominated most of the game, led by Bud Light Champioship Game MVP Mark Millon, who racked up five goals and two assists en route to avenging a loss to the Lizards in last season's championship game.

John Blatchley started the scoring, catching a pass from Millon on the first possession and scoring. Minutes later, Blatchley returned the favor, as he assisted Millon, who blasted the ball into the corner of the net to give Baltimore a 2-0 lead. Blatchley finished with a post-season record 5 assists.

Long Island stayed in the game, with Casey Powell, Kevin Finneran, and Vinnie Sombrotto all scoring in the first, but Baltimore scored six unanswered goals in the first half, to take a commanding 12-5 lead into the locker room.

Paul Cantabene scored the game-winner early in the third quarter, winning the faceoff and beating Brian Carcaterra to score one of eight third-quarter goals for Baltimore. Player-coach Gary Gait put one in late in the quarter to give his Bayhawks a 20-8 lead after three.

The Lizards mounted a short run in the fourth quarter, winning the frame 5-1, however, it merely put a dent in the Bayhawks lead, and Baltimore cruised to their first Major League Lacrosse Championship.

Midfielder Josh Sims added four tallies for the Bayhawks, while Gait, who helped lead Long Island to their Championship in 2001, scored two goals and assisted on four others. Greg Cattrano, the 2002 Bud Light MVP of the Year, was phenomenal between the pipes with 25 saves, and a shot on goal.

Casey Powell led Long Island in scoring with one goal and four assists. A.J. Haugen, Tim Goettelmann and Terry Riordan each recorded hat tricks for the Lizards.