California Redwoods vs. Philadelphia Waterdogs (6 p.m. ET; ESPN)
Redwoods’ depth and versatility will be tested
After Chris Merle went down with a season-ending injury in the team’s last game, defensive coordinator Chris Collins said the team needs to have a next-man-up mindset. Collins and head coach Anthony Kelly have raved about fellow short-stick defensive midfielders Brian Tevlin and Carter Rice, but they also know they need more help.
Rookies Andrew McAdorey and Sam English have been heralded for their ability to play both ways, and Collins said the two could “run all day long.” But that will be a tall order to ask of them both to do that on back-to-back nights.
California will bring defensive reinforcements to Homecoming Weekend as a pair of fresh faces look to make their team debuts.
The Redwoods signed Carter Parlette this week. Parlette was teammates with several current Redwoods players while at Notre Dame, and he helped the Boston Cannons win the 2025 Championship Series. Kelly said he’s excited about Parlette’s potential and that his presence defensively will allow English to focus more on the offensive side of the ball.
Cole Kastner will also finally make his debut for California, 416 days after the team drafted him. Kelly said Kastner was dealing with a hamstring issue coming out of training camp, and the team wanted to give him time to get back to 100% and not overdo it.
Kastner, who played basketball at Stanford this past season, will take Merle’s spot on the lineup, and Kelly and Collins are excited to deploy his size, physicality and athleticism.
The Redwoods have added a lot of new faces to the lineup already this season, and Parlette and Kastner add to that total. The early returns have been good, but Kelly said he realizes building the team’s roster and chemistry is a process.
“It takes time. We have 13 new guys on our roster,” he said. “It’s really about working through that and giving guys opportunities and trying to figure out exactly what that looks like.” — Phil Shore
Denver duo meets at faceoff stripe for crucial matchup
Four years after sharing a sideline at the University of Denver, TD Ierlan, Alec Stathakis and Waterdogs head coach Bill Tierney will reunite, this time on opposite sides.
“These two guys know each other well,” Tierney said. “TD is dynamic, he’s top two or three in the world and it’s going to be another challenge. He’s a handful.”
Stathakis, now donning purple and black, had a rocky start to the season, going 10-for-25 against the Maryland Whipsnakes. But since then, he’s settled into form, hovering just above 50% on draws by utilizing his grit and relentless pursuit.
“I would say our most improved player over the years is Alec Stathakis,” Tierney said. “He’s been phenomenal and put us in a position to win.”
Ierlan, the Redwoods’ stalwart faceoff man, continues to dominate. A top-five pick in 2021, he’s maintained a staggering 62% win rate this season — best in the league — and remains one of the sport’s most reliable specialists.
The Waterdogs need possessions and time to get this offense figured out, and giving Michael Sowers more touches is the key to the game. Sowers will need well north of 30 touches to activate other weapons like Thomas McConvey, Jake Taylor and Kieran McArdle.
But it all starts at the stripe.
“We have to make sure we measure the impact that a faceoff guy can have in a game,” Tierney said. “A: see if we can win more to give our offense a better chance. B: if we don’t, make sure we don’t give up two-pointers or goals on fast breaks and give our defense a break.” — Mike Bolger
Carolina Chaos vs. Boston Cannons (8:30 p.m. ET; ESPN+)
Will the Chaos defense bounce back and avoid kill shots its offense can’t provide?
A kill shot in basketball occurs when a team scores 10 consecutive points without allowing any; in lacrosse, it triggers after a four-goal run. It’s a sign of an exposable defense and crippling unproductive offense. This year, it’s been the story of the 1-3 Chaos.
The best defense from 2024 has given up a kill shot in all three of its losses. And each bullet has signified the destruction of the Roman Empire of PLL defenses.
To open the year, Carolina allowed four goals to the New York Atlas in the first 5:36 of the season. The early four-goal run proved pivotal in the 10-8 loss, but the severity emulated the Sack of Rome by the Visigoths. It was the sign of a cracking façade, stabilized by a heroic foundation — Blaze Riorden’s record-setting 25-save performance against Denver the following game — and a quick glimpse into the tumultuous future ahead.
In Charlotte to open the month, the Chaos gave up 12 straight scores in a 16-10 loss to the Redwoods. For the second time in as many weeks, Rome was sacked again, this time by the Vandals. It was another shock to a crippling fortress.
The Maryland Whipsnakes followed California’s 12-goal onslaught by trouncing the Chaos 20-6. Three separate kill shots, including two different six-goal runs — the second coming in the final 15:48 of gameplay — heralded Rome’s fall.
It begs the question: When is it Constantinople’s turn to crumble?
Carolina’s defense held Boston scoreless for 28 minutes in the 2024 playoffs and has matched up well against the Cannons’ offense. However, a few kill shots from the Boom Squad’s Basilica cannons could be a sign of the Fall of Constantinople, indicating the final extinction of Carolina’s reign as a top defensive force in the league. It would signify that Rome had already fallen, and finally, the once-impregnable Theodosian Walls of Carolina’s defense had been breached.
The Chaos are last in the league in score differential. If the losses keep stacking, they’ll be on a one-seat train ride to the first overall pick. — Hayden Lewis
Will the Cannons use this game as an opportunity to separate from the rest of the pack?
The Cannons enter San Diego at 3-1, sitting atop both the Eastern Conference and the league standings. A win over the reeling Chaos would not only widen that gap, but also give them a bit of a buffer down the road in an especially competitive Eastern Conference.
The Chaos have struggled mightily this season, especially on defense. They’ve allowed a league-worst 55 goals and carry a minus-19 score differential – a steep fall for a team that ended Boston’s season in last year’s quarterfinals.
But that history is exactly why the Cannons can’t afford to overlook them. Execution, not emotion, has to drive this one.
Surely it’s in the back of guys’ minds that this was the team that eliminated them back in September, but vengeance doesn’t come in June. Head coach and general manager Brian Holman has preached this idea of taking each game “two minutes at a time,” and that’s exactly what they need to continue to do.
Offensively, the Cannons’ balance continues to be a strength. They don’t rely on one guy to carry the load, which makes them harder to scout and harder to stop. We did get a vintage Asher Nolting performance last weekend against the Whipsnakes, with the Cannons’ quarterback recording six points, but Boston has proven throughout the start of this season it doesn’t need Nolting to be the focal point every game.
Yes, Riorden is fully capable of stealing games, but if Boston stays disciplined with shot selection and avoids letting him heat up, it should be in control.
Additionally, if the Cannons can string together a couple of early scoring bursts — or “kill shots,” as Hayden called them — things could really get out of hand quickly. But that only happens if Boston stays aggressive and doesn’t let its foot off the gas.
Yes, it’s early, but in a league in which wins are hard to come by, this is the kind of game that matters in the long run. This isn’t the time to chase revenge or make a statement – the Cannons just need to keep stacking wins. — Sarah Griffin
