Three adjustments Atlas defense must make in semifinal vs. Waterdogs

In the regular-season finale, the New York Atlas outlasted the Philadelphia Waterdogs 20-19 in a record-setting shootout that featured 39 combined scores. The game was the highest-scoring contest in PLL history, and it proved to be a prelude to the semifinal matchup between the two squads.

With New York and Philadelphia set to play each other on Monday for a spot in the U.S. Bank Championship, the Atlas must address some of their defensive flaws from their last meeting as they look to reach their first-ever championship game.

1. Sub offensive midfielders early

While Atlas head coach Mike Pressler touts his midfielders as athletic and able to play on both sides of the ball, not all of their personnel fit into that category.

One of New York’s most dynamic offensive midfielders, Reid Bowering, is not the best matchup to have stuck on defense. The Waterdogs took advantage of that mismatch early by keeping him trapped on the field, getting him stuck in their pick game and using that to create space.

Philadelphia short-stick defensive midfielder Dylan Hess did a great job of keeping Bowering stuck within the play on a pick that eventually led to a Waterdogs goal.

New York needs to sub its personnel off early to prevent mismatches in the midfield. While midfielders like Bryan Costabile and Jake Stevens are better suited for the two-way play style, if New York cannot get everyone off, it should make it a top priority that Bowering is subbed for a defensive midfielder. Philadelphia loves to use big-little picks with its attackmen and will dodge any short stick it deems worthy of an early slide.

Bowering needs to be extra careful during the two quarters when the lefty side is farthest away from the box.

2. Slide Early to CJ Kirst

In Philadelphia’s quarterfinal win over the Maryland Whipsnakes, its attack unit was responsible for all 14 Waterdogs goals. CJ Kirst tallied four goals and one assist in his playoff debut.

With the No. 1 overall pick starting to find his rhythm within the pros, New York’s best way to defend Kirst is to make him a pass-first player by sliding to him early when he initiates his dodge.

Between Kirst and Michael Sowers, Kirst is the better option to slide to early because of his playing style and lack of professional experience. Sowers is a known quarterback and has some of the best vision out of all attackmen in the PLL. He has more assists (23) than goals (18) this season and can comfortably play as a distributor when defenses slide early.

Kirst, on the other hand, has always been a score-first type of player. He has the most goals in NCAA history and has a knack for finding the cage with any free space given to him. If New York slides early on his dodges, it would make him less likely to go to the goal if the double team is bound to come to him.

Taking a look at their previous matchup, New York hesitated here to send the double to Kirst, which gave him ample time and room to get a shot off:

If New York had sent the slide right away instead of hesitating, it could have easily made Kirst less comfortable and limited his goal-scoring ability.

Forcing Kirst to be a distributor would be preferable to letting him pile up goals by himself.

3. Defend the Michael Sowers “Up” Picks

Sowers’ ability to set the “up” pick has become a staple in his game, especially when he works with his midfielders off-ball. An “up” pick creates a nearly straight angle for the ball-carrier to attack the goal compared to a traditional pick, which frees up space laterally.

The last time these teams met, Sowers set a clean pick for Connor Kelly that essentially gave him a clear runway to the goal for an easy finish. Sowers made contact with the on-ball defender, which gave Kelly an extra few steps to hit the seam and use his straight-line speed.

Sowers did it yet again later in the game for Mikie Schlosser. Sowers created contact on the pick, giving Schlosser room to run right to the goal untouched.

These easy goals showed there was little to no communication when Sowers set the pick.

When Sowers sets an “up” pick, New York must switch its matchup regardless of the personnel. Both times, the Atlas tried to keep the matchup and were beat cleanly, leading to the goals.

While switching off of Michael Sowers might not be the best idea at the moment, New York needs to play its percentages for whoever is carrying the ball at the time of the pick.