By Greg Gonzales

For any rookie, the transition from college lacrosse, to Major League Lacrosse is a difficult one. Unlike most other sports, rookies have a very small learning curve when it comes to the pro game. The MLL starts directly after the college season ends; there is no training camp, no minor leagues, so MLL rookies have to learn fast.

Not only do rookies have to get acclimated to new teammates, they also have to get used to new rules. The professional game is much faster than the amateur one, with a shot clock, a two-point arch, and only 18 players a side. These new guidelines make for more than a few bumps in the road. Gone are the days of stalling the ball, mass substitutions and specialty players. Instead, midfielders are forced to play defense and goalies are forced to withstand upwards of 50 shots a game.

In 2003, the Boston Cannons took three players that they thought would help them in the future.

The future seems to be now, as those three players are paying huge dividends for the Cannons organization. Chris Fiore, Kevin Leveille, Chris Garrity and Chris Rotelli who was acquired in the off season, all second year players, have been key members of Boston’s 4-0 run to start the season and all are members of the 2003 MLL Collegiate Draft class.

Coming out of college, Fiore was a highly decorated player from the University of Massachusetts. In his senior season, Fiore was named 1st team All American and ECAC Offensive Player of the Year. Last season, Fiore only scored seven points with five goals, one two-point goal, and one assist. A good sign for the Cannons was that most of those points came in the second half of the season, which meant that Fiore was catching on.

So far this season, Fiore has shown steady improvement, his large size (6’4, 225) and rocket-shot make him a difficult match-up for any defenseman. Fiore has scored six goals in four games this season and at least one in every game. Fiore’s best games this season have come against Long Island. Fiore has notched four total goals against the Lizards.

Kevin Leveille was Fiore’s teammate throughout all four years at UMass. Leveille has been one of Boston’s biggest contributors this season. He is second on the team in points with 18, right behind Conor Gill (23).

Leveille exploded against Baltimore in week two, scoring seven points with five goals, one of which was his first career two-pointer, and an assist. To put things in perspective, Leveille scored seven points all of last season. This season, Leveille is tied with four other players for the league lead in power-play goals with four. Coach Scott Hiller attributes Leveille’s exceptional play to growth in confidence.

Leveille continued his great play this season by scoring three goals and adding three assists against Rochester in week three. Against Division rival Long Island; Leveille has posted five goals and one assist. One of those goals includes a beautiful twisting shot from his knees in the teams’ last meeting a week ago. In his senior season at UMass, Leveille was named second team All American and scored a career high 51 points.

Chris Garrity became one of the biggest surprises for Boston at the end of last season. The Penn State grad became the Cannons starting goalie and he did not disappoint. As a third round draft choice, Garrity came in as a relative unknown. But by the end of the season Garrity led the team in wins with 4, and was also named MLL Defensive Player of the Week for stopping 22 shots against Baltimore on July 12. For his work last season he was named Boston Cannons Rookie of the Year.

Garrity has started the 2004 campaign hot by winning all four of his starts. Not only does Garrity lead the league in wins, he has also been a model of consistency for the Cannons. He is the only goalie to have more than one win all season, and he has played every minute of every game for Boston. Against Rochester in week three, Garrity tied a career high by making 24 saves.

In the off-season Boston traded Co-Captain Brian Kuczma and two picks in the 2004 draft to the Philadelphia Barrage for Chris Rotelli and the Barrage’s first pick in the 2005 draft. Rotelli was the first pick in the 2003 draft and last season he scored 10 points for Philadelphia.

Rotelli joins Fiore and Leveille on the second midfield line, and while he hasn’t had breakout success in the scoring column like Leveille, Coach Hiller loves his desire for victory, stating that he can “do it all”. Rotelli is no stranger to success in the lacrosse world. In his senior season at the University of Virginia in 2003, Rotelli not only won the National Championship, he won the coveted Tewaarton Trophy as college lacrosse’s best player. But Rotelli has proved that he can contribute to Boston in big ways.

He started off his Cannons career with a bang, assisting on Tim Byrnes’s goal with eight seconds left against Long Island to give Boston the 18-17 victory. Against Rochester in week three, Rotelli scored his first goal as a Cannon, and followed up with his second goal as a Cannon last week against Long Island. Boston hopes that Rotelli’s success will rub off on them.

The second year players are making a big impact for the Cannons. The second midfield that is made up of Fiore, Leveille and Rotelli trails the first midfield in scoring by only 1 point. The second midfield has scored 29 points while the first midfield has scored 30 points.

The second year pros are adding to the overall depth of the team and proving they can hang with the big boys. So far into this season, Boston is asking a lot from its young players. But the more their confidence builds the better chances the Cannon have of taking home their first MLL Championship.