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California Redwoods attackman Rob Pannell

Rabil, Grant and RP3: Rob Pannell joins lacrosse royalty with 600th point

By Jerome Taylor | Aug 1, 2024

In lacrosse, if the only two people in a sentence with you are John Grant Jr. and Paul Rabil, you’ve done something right. This past Sunday, Rob Pannell joined those two in the most exclusive club in professional lacrosse when he scored his 600th point. 

Pannell has made a career of driving from X and finishing with a patented question mark, inside roll or a levered pass to a teammate. 

For point No. 600, RP3 once again drove from X, but this time, he scored on a backhanded shovel shot to add some optionality to whichever video editor will be responsible for creating his career highlight reel. 

Pannell started the California Redwoods’ Homecoming weekend four points away from the milestone. He only registered one point in Saturday’s win over the Carolina Chaos. But that one point was his 317th goal, which made him the fourth-leading goal-scorer in professional lacrosse history. 

Pannell has accumulated several accolades over the last two years, and in his typical fashion, when it came to acknowledging the scoring milestone, he was more concerned about the result. 

“It’s cool. I think we’re more focused on wins and losses right now,” Pannell said about moving into fourth place in goals scored. “I had no idea about fourth all time until I saw a PLL post. … That stuff’s all great. When we’re not playing, we can look back and appreciate it, but when you’re in it, you’re not supposed to think about those things. You’re supposed to think about how you can get that next win.”

But when it came to joining the 600 club, Pannell’s only two contemporaries helped put his accomplishment into context. 

“To see it up close and personal, to see how much time and effort he puts in off the field to maintain that level of play, as someone who knows how hard it is to do, I can kind of appreciate it as a fan of the game, as an alumnus of the game, and obviously as his coach,” said Grant, Pannell’s current offensive coordinator with the Redwoods.

“It takes an awful lot to be that good for that long. He'll probably say it means having a lot of really good teammates to help you through that.”

One of those former teammates was the other member of the 600 club. Rabil and Pannell played and won a championship together with the MLL’s New York Lizards in 2015. Rabil called Pannell “one of the game’s greatest players” after the goal that admitted him into exclusive company. 

Since only three players have reached the milestone, putting Pannell’s 600 points in context makes sense. 

A closer look at Rob Pannell’s 600 points

Of the players to register 600 points, Pannell has done it by averaging 4.3 points per game, more than Rabil (3.9) and Grant (3.8). That said, Grant and Rabil had at least 14 seasons of professional outdoor lacrosse under their belt, and Grant, who is in second place, has 32 more points than the 34-year-old Pannell, who’s in his 12th season.

All of which emphasizes how vital longevity is to reaching 600. 

“He plays more golf than I did, I will say that; I don't know how that helps or hurts, but I know I'm jealous of that,” Grant playfully added about the differences in how he and Pannell stayed in shape to reach the milestone. 

“As you get older, especially over the 30s, you have to work harder because it takes more work to get the same result. He's got to put in double the work during the week, but he also has to know his body, read it and pull back. The ones who don't start breaking down because you just keep pushing, pushing, pushing, but ultimately, father time is undefeated.”

Pannell's achievements have impressed not only his coaches and former teammates, but also his current teammates. 

“It’s pretty incredible from my perspective, where I watched him play professionally for so long through my high school and college years, then now having a chance to be his teammate,” Redwoods midfielder Charlie Bertrand said. “Seeing him not only do the things that he has always been great at but continuing to evolve his game, like with the chicken parm roll ... it’s a prime example of him continuing to try to be better and find ways to produce for his team.”

With Pannell reaching the milestone in a loss to the Maryland Whipsnakes, there wasn’t much celebration, but Bertrand made sure to convey his appreciation to Pannell personally.

“Walking to the bus, I just told him congrats again and that it's an incredible accomplishment,” Bertrand said. “He's not one to take compliments like that, and he understands that that's not why he plays the game, but I was hoping to just take a second for him to realize that it's pretty incredible what he's done.”

Grant understands Pannell's approach to statistical milestones and accolades, believing those celebrations are best reserved for the end of one's career. While playing, the most critical aspects of the game are often the hardest to quantify.

“I'd be lying if I told you that the individual stuff doesn't matter, because it does, but it matters more when you're done,” Grant said. “It's something to look fondly on. But I always tell young guys that your teammates don't remember how many points you had or the records. They remember who you are as a teammate, the effort you put forth, the behind-the-scenes stuff you do, the determination and grit you show and the sacrifices you make for your teammates. [Rob]'s doing all those things, and that's why the points are there.”

The Redwoods will continue to rely on their 600-point scorer as they make a late-season push to earn a spot in the playoffs, starting this weekend in Baltimore when they take on the Denver Outlaws.

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