PLL Week 9 preview: Key stats, players for Archers’ Homecoming
Week 9 of the season of the first first Lacrosse League 2025 is there, and the double reigning champion Utah Archers is back in their country of origin.
Four games are on the file on Friday and Saturday in Salt Lake City, the archers playing one match a day.
Read the rest for more details on each game, including the way of watching, scenarios and key statistics graceful of the PLL.
Power classification
PLL Home | Classification
California Redwoods (2-5) against Utah Archers (3-4)
Friday, 8 p.m. HE | ESPN +
Injury report:
Séquoias: SSDM Chris Merle IR (ACL), SSDM BRIAN TEVLIN Avanty (Isolated legs), G Jack Kelly Out (PUP), M Sam English Out (ankle left), SSDM Marquez White Out (PUP), A Wes Berg Out (PUP)
Archers: A questionable Mac O’Keefe (left hand), a Matt Moore IR (right hip), for Mike Sisselberger IR (right hand), a Devon McLane Out (PUP)
This is the last match of the season of California of the season. With a loss, the redwood would have less than 25% chance of making the playoffs, according to PLL projections. Here are the complete projections of the playoffs of this game:
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California with a victory: 78.8% of the chance to make playoffs
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California with a loss: 21.8% of the chance to make playoffs
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Utah with a victory: 97.5% of the chance to make playoffs
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Utah with a loss: 59.6% of the chance to make playoffs
Redundant
The redwoods were struggling to finish the matches this season, with a differential of goals of less-12 in the fourth quarter.
Through the league, they have the worst percentage of shooting (21.4%) and the second first percentage of shooting against (38.7%) in the last period. The team is currently on a sequence of five consecutive defeats.
Archers
The recruit Sam King leads the archers by scoring nine goals and eight passes this season. He was a spark for the Utah car offensive because Matt Moore is sitting on the IR.
Overall, the archers are still in the form of offensive with a bass league of 9.9 goals per game. They have marked droughts more than 11 minutes in every game this season.
Maryland Whipsnakes (2-3) against New York Atlas (5-2)
Friday, 10:30 p.m. HE | ESPN +
Injury report:
Whipsnakes: M Ryan Conrad Out (PUP), M Tucker Dordevic IR (JAW), a questionable Malone (Medical) TJ
Atlas: None
The Atlas will win the playoffs with a victory, but there are also large ramifications for the seeded n ° 1 of the Eastern Conference on the basis of what is happening.
According to the projections of the PLL, here are the chances of seeds n ° 1 for each team according to the scenario:
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The chances of Maryland with a victory: 19.9%
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The chances of Maryland with a loss: 0.0%
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The chances of New York with a victory: 86.8%
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The chances of New York with a loss: 50.5%
Whip
The Whipsnakes have authorized their fewer scores against the match since 2022, when the current goalkeeper Kyle Bernlohr won the goalkeeper of the year Enen Lyons.
Maryland has never lost against New York with Joe Nardella in a game position, although Nardella has a percentage of lower victory (47.4%) against the Trevor Baptiste de l’Atlas (52.6%) in their head-to-face clashes since 2019.
Atlas
Connor Shellenberger is now the favorite of the MVP after an impressive performance against the redwoods last weekend. He has become the seventh player since 2001 to record seven assists in a match.
Against the Whipsnakes, Shellenberger will have to go beyond defender Ajax Zappitello, who was taken before him in the recovery of 2024. During their recruit season, Zappitello held Shellenberger at 0 for 4 shots as a defender closest to the PLL semi-finals. In Philadelphia this year, Shellenberger rebounded with seven points against Maryland, pulling 2 in 4 against Zappitello.
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Maryland Whipsnakes against Philadelphia Waterdogs: Game Hallows
Maryland Whipsnakes against Philadelphia Waterdogs: Game Hallows
Philadelphia Waterdogs (4-3) against Carolina Chaos (3-4)
Saturday, 6.30 p.m. HE | ESPN +
Injury report:
Waterdogs: D Kenny Brower Out (right hemstring), M Zach Currier questionable (right foot), a CJ Kirst interrogable (right hand), a Zed Williams Out (PUP), D Liam byrnes Out (PUP)
Chaos: M Shane KnoBloch IR (right hamstrings), M Chris Aslanian Out (torso)
Chaos has never beaten the Waterdogs in the history of the PLL. The Waterdogs won their first match as a chaos organization in 2020, as well as their first championship in 2022.
The two teams are squarely in the playoff race this year, but the chances of each team are improving considerably with a victory. According to the PLL, here are some probability projections on Friday:
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Philadelphia with a victory: 93.8% of the chance to make playoffs
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Philadelphia with a loss: 70.3% of the chance to make playoffs
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Caroline with a victory: 88.2% of the chance to make playoffs
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Caroline with a loss: 59.6% of the chance to make playoffs
Waterdogs
After missing the first six games of the season, choice No. 1 CJ Kirst played both in the midfield and on attack during its professional beginnings against snakes. He finished 0 for 5 with two reversals on 14 keys.
Meanwhile, his compatriot recruit Jake Taylor is about to set the records of a Waterdogs season for the points and goals of a first year player. It is respectively at a point and a goal, to link the two records.
Chaos
Carolina has her own young feeling at Owen Hiltz, who is underway to establish the recruit records of chaos in a single season for points, goals and assists.
Brian Minicus’ campaign in 2023 leads into the three categories after 24 points, 14 goals and nine assists – Ross Scott equaled his 14 goals last season. Hiltz is currently at 17 points, 12 goals and five assists.
0:49
Michael Sowers on fire with his fourth game goal
Michael Sowers marks the first four goals of the match to punctuate the Waterdogs.
Denver Outlaws (5-2) against Utah Archers (3-4)
Saturday, 9 p.m. HE | ESPN2 / ESPN +
Injury report:
Outlaws: SSDM Alex Smith Out (right hamstrings), a dubious pat kavanagh (left shoulder)
Archers: A questionable Mac O’Keefe (left hand), a Matt Moore IR (right hip), for Mike Sisselberger IR (right hand), a Devon McLane Out (PUP)
The Outlaws are currently on a sequence of five consecutive victories and could win the head of the western conference n ° 1 this weekend. If the chaos loses against the Waterdogs earlier on Saturday, the outlaws drop the seeder n ° 1 with a victory.
Outlaw
Jake Piseno is in the middle of one of the best offensive campaigns of all time by a long post, recording three goals and three assists so far in 2025.
With three games to play, he has a chance to join Michael Ehrhardt (2019) and Jarrod Neumann (2019) as the only long with 10 or more points in a single PLL season.
Archers
The faithful defender of Utah, Graeme Hossack, is the only player to hold Brennan O’Neill aimlessly from Denver on more than five shots. In two seasons, O’Neill is 0 for 13 on shots when Hossack is the defender closest to him.
