2009 Toronto Nationals season

The 2009 Toronto Nationals season was the first for the franchise. Their first game in the MLL was on May 15, 2009 against Washington Bayhawks, which they won 17–16.^[1] They also won their first home game over the Chicago Machine 15–11.^[2] The Nationals qualified for the playoffs as the second seed with a 7–5 record and the best offense in MLL with 184 goals for. The Nationals played their first playoff game against the Long Island Lizards at Navy–Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in Annapolis, Maryland. Toronto won their semi-final matchup 14–13 thanks to a strong game by Merrick Thomson scoring 4 goals. Toronto went on to face the Denver Outlaws in the Steinfeld Cup Final.^[3] The Nationals were tied with the Outlaws 9–9 with over a minute to go in the game. Nationals head coach Dave Huntley called a time-out to draw out a strategy. With 45 seconds left to go, Joe Walters passed to Shawn Williams and Williams scored the winning goal to give the Toronto Nationals their first championship victory 10–9 over the Denver Outlaws.^[4] Merrick Thomson was named Playoff MVP^[4] and Brodie Merrill won the Major League Lacrosse Defensive player of the Year Award.^[5]

2009 Hamilton Nationals season
Head coach	David Huntley
Home field	BMO Field
Results
Record	7–5
Division place	2nd MLL
Playoff finish	Won Steinfeld Cup
← N/A Hamilton Nationals 2010 →

Standings

W = Wins, L = Losses, PCT = Winning Percentage, GB = Games Back of first place, GF = Goals For, 2ptGF = 2 point Goals For, GA = Goals Against, 2ptGA = 2 point Goals Against

Qualified for playoffs

Team	W	L	PCT	GB	GF	2ptGF	GA	2ptGA
Denver Outlaws	9	3	.750	-	166	8	138	6
Toronto Nationals	7	5	.583	2	184	4	172	9
Long Island Lizards	6	6	.500	3	125	4	144	9
Boston Cannons	6	6	.500	3	173	12	150	6
Washington Bayhawks	5	7	.417	4	148	14	175	9
Chicago Machine	3	9	.250	6	159	8	176	11

Long Island finished ahead of Boston based on a head to head record of 3-0.

^[6]

Schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Field	Result	Attendance	Record
1	May 15	@ Bayhawks	Navy–Marine Corps Memorial Stadium	17–16	3,715	1–0
2	May 22	Machine	BMO Field	17–16	5,144	2–0
3	May 29	Lizards	BMO Field	13–9	3,424	2–1
4	June 4	@ Bayhawks	Navy–Marine Corps Memorial Stadium	17–15	3,216	3–1
5	June 13	Bayhawks	BMO Field	19–12	3,544	4–1
6	June 20	@ Outlaws	Invesco Field at Mile High	15–8	8,216	4–2
7	June 25	@ Cannons	Harvard Stadium	19–15	7,532	4–3
7	June 27	Outlaws	BMO Field	20–16	3,791	4–4
8	July 4	@ Machine	Glenbrook South High School	24–19	1,338	4–5
10	July 18	@ Lizards	James M. Shuart Stadium	19–9	7,621	5–5
11	July 23	Cannons	BMO Field	18–17 (OT)	3,542	6–5
13	August 8	Outlaws	BMO Field	16–10	3,635	7–5

^[7]

Playoffs

Round	Date	Opponent	Field	Result	Attendance
MLL Semifinal	August 22	Lizards	Navy–Marine Corps Memorial Stadium	14–13	6,720
Steinfeld Cup	August 23	@ Outlaws	Navy–Marine Corps Memorial Stadium	10–9	7,003

^[8]

References

1. "Nationals Victorious in MLL Debut". Fan 590. May 16, 2009. Retrieved May 7, 2011.
2. Lankhof, Bill (May 23, 2009). "Nationals rock Machine in MLL". Slam! Sports. Archived from the original on July 13, 2012. Retrieved May 7, 2011.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
3. "Nationals edge Lizards 14–13 in MLL semifinal". Our Sports Central. August 22, 2009. Retrieved May 7, 2011.
4. "Toronto Nationals Win MLL Championship 10–9 Against Denver". The Sports Network. August 23, 2009. Retrieved May 7, 2011.
5. . Major League Lacrosse. August 18, 2010. Archived from the original on January 7, 2011. Retrieved May 7, 2011.
6. "MLL Standings - 2009". Pointstreak. Retrieved May 27, 2011.
7. "Toronto Nationals - Team Schedule - Summer 2009". Pointstreak. Retrieved May 7, 2011.
8. "Toronto Nationals - Team Schedule - Playoffs 2009". Pointstreak. Retrieved May 7, 2011.

External links

• "Toronto Nationals - Summer 2009". Pointstreak. Retrieved May 15, 2011.
• "Toronto Nationals - Playoffs 2009". Pointstreak. Retrieved May 15, 2011.