The Denver Outlaws (1-0) opened their championship-defending 2019 campaign with an 11-9 road win over the New York Lizards (0-1) in Hempstead, N.Y. The game marked the return to professional lacrosse for attackman John Grant Jr. who totaled two points (1 goal, 1 assist) in his first MLL game since 2016.
Goalie Dillon Ward led the way for Denver with 19 saves on 28 shots faced. The save total marks the second highest of the sixth-year veteran’s career and most in a game since 2013.
Making his professional debut, attackman Brendan Kavanagh paced the Outlaws offensively with four points on two goals and two assists. Fellow rookie attackman Chris Aslanian scored three points (2 goals, 1 assist) while forwards Tim Barber, Zach Currier, Grant Jr., Ryan Lee and Mikie Schlosser rounded out the Outlaws’ multi-point scorers with two apiece.
Grant Jr. opened the scoring on the Outlaws’ first shot of the game at the 1:28 mark of the first quarter. Denver would total just two more first-half goals, however, as New York led 5-3 at the halftime break.
The Outlaws offense answered by scoring seven goals in the third quarter and took a 10-8 lead into the closing period. The Lizards made it a 10-9 game midway through the fourth, but Denver would not concede another goal and held on for the season-opening road win.
The Outlaws will be back on the road Sunday when they take on the Atlanta Blaze at 2 p.m. MDT in Atlanta. The game will be streamed live on Lax Sports Network.
MLL All-Time Scoring Leaders (Reg. & Postseason)
| Player | Goals | 2pt. Goals | Assists | Points | |||||
| Paul Rabil | 322 | 46 | 228 | 596 | |||||
| John Grant Jr. | 367 | 18 | 209 | 594 |