Rattlers

For the second time in three nights, Florida A&M's Terrence Woods was a terror from the outside against a Baltimore college, following his 36-point outburst against Coppin State on Saturday night. But in the Rattlers' 69-56 victory over Morgan State last night, it wasn't Woods' six three-pointers and 20 points that did the most damage. Center Jermaine Hill made all eight of his field-goal attempts in scoring 17 points, and the team got eight points and 10 rebounds from reserve O.J. Sumter to attain a sweep of its trip here for the second consecutive season.

Combine its own recent struggles at home with a desperate Florida A&M team coming to visit, and Coppin State looked to be headed for trouble last night. That's exactly what Coppin got, as Florida A&M received 36 points from Terrence Woods - all on three-point shots - during a 73-69 overtime victory over the Eagles at the Coppin Center. Coppin led by 11 points with less than five minutes to go, but it couldn't stop the Rattlers - one of the highest-scoring teams in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference - from scoring 23 points over a 4:57 stretch to send the game into overtime.

ROCHESTER, N.Y. - The Bayhawks' offense might strike fear into the opposition's hearts, but last night the team rode its defense to a 10-7 win over the Rochester Rattlers that earned a second straight Nationals Division championship in Major League Lacrosse. "We're happy to have that," said Bayhawks goalie Greg Cattrano, "but what we really want is the MLL championship. This is just a first step." The Bayhawks are guaranteed to play host to an MLL semifinal at Ravens Stadium, the opponent and date to be determined.

The immediate reward for the Bayhawks in a 15-8 win over the Rochester Rattlers last night was their clinching of a spot in the playoffs. But player-coach Gary Gait was looking farther ahead than that. "It's great to make the playoffs, but our goal is to get to and win the championship," said Gait, who scored two goals. "We're focused on getting better every game and getting ready for the playoffs." Mark Millon tied a league record for points with six goals and two assists and goalie Greg Cattrano made 19 saves to give the Bayhawks a crucial Nationals Division victory before 3,351 at Ravens Stadium.

ROCHESTER, N.Y. -- In a battle that was largely Mark Millon vs. Nate Watkins, Millon had the better supporting cast. As a result, the Baltimore Bayhawks improved to 3-0, holding off the Rochester Rattlers for a 17-13 Major League Lacrosse victory last night. Millon scored five goals and had three assists, including the final score to end a rally by the Rattlers that had brought them within three goals, as close as they had been since the first quarter. And after Rochester finally found its scoring touch midway through the second quarter, it was Millon who put in two extra-man goals to keep the Bayhawks in command.

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. - There was no hiding the fact that Florida A&M was having a hard time putting its Gulf Coast Offense into gear. For 29 of the 30 minutes in the first half against Morgan State last night, the Rattlers' offense was clearly out of sync. "Give Morgan State credit," said FAMU head coach Billy Joe. "They played a nearly flawless game and we struggled," though, in the end, the Rattlers earned a 21-12 win. Dropped passes, overthrown balls, two turnovers and just 66 yards of offense by FAMU helped Morgan State (0-2)

Bayhawks midfielder Kip Fulks entered yesterday's game against the Rochester Rattlers with one thing on his mind: Score a goal on his former college roommate, Brian Dougherty. The hottest goalie in Major League Lacrosse, Dougherty had shut out Fulks three times. But this time, Fulks got the best of his former University of Maryland roommate, scoring three goals to lead the Bayhawks to a 12-11 victory before 3,173 at Homewood Field. "You don't know how good it felt to score three times today," Fulks said.

GENEVA, N.Y. - The problem with playing the same opponent three times in a seven-game span: It'll eventually find a way to beat you. That's a bit of truth the Bayhawks learned the hard way last night, when they suffered a 16-9 loss to the Rochester Rattlers, breaking their six-game winning streak. Two of those wins came at the Rattlers' expense, which prompted Rochester coach Guy Van Arsdale to raid the Baltimore playbook. "They score a lot of goals on second chances," Van Arsdale said.

ROCHESTER, N.Y. - Tight spots have become commonplace for the Bayhawks, who pulled out another Major League Lacrosse nail-biter, this one a 14-13 triumph over the Rochester Rattlers. Midfielder Josh Sims scored the game-winner with 2:26 left, disappointing the Frontier Field crowd of 5,106. Baltimore, which has a league-best 6-2 record, is 3-0 in one-point games. "We've won a lot of tight games," said Bayhawks attack Dan Denihan. "The ball can bounce either way, and it's been bouncing for us. But I think we've been showing some pretty good composure."

The big question entering last night's Major League Lacrosse game at Homewood Field was which Bayhawks team would show up against the Rochester Rattlers. Would it be the team that dominated all phases of the game in its season-opening 16-13 win over Long Island, or the team that stumbled to consecutive road losses last weekend? The 4,762 fans in attendance saw both versions. While the Bayhawks struggled during a couple of stretches, they were at their best when it mattered most as they registered a come-from-behind 13-12 win over the Rattlers (1-2)