Several former Buckeyes made an impact as the Major League Lacrosse season came to a close with the Ohio Machine capturing its first league title. Here’s a look at how these Scarlet and Gray standouts performed:
DOMINIQUE ALEXANDER
A veteran of 67 career MLL games – all with the Ohio Machine – Alexander helped the Machine win their first-ever league title with a 17-12 win over Denver in the championship game. In 13 games, he had four assists, 25 ground balls and three caused turnovers – including one in each of Ohio’s two playoff games.
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TYLER PFISTER
A native of nearby Upper Arlington, Pfister notched his first professional points when he scored one and assisted on another goal in a 13-12 win over Denver on July 23. A two-time team captain for the Buckeyes, Pfister made his professional debut on July 15 and had at least one point in two of the last three games while going on to play a key role in Ohio’s first MLL championship.
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ANTHONY KELLY
Kelly made his way back to Ohio this summer when he was acquired by the Machine in a trade from Atlanta on July 18. Kelly is a 10-year MLL veteran who won at least 100 faceoffs for six consecutive seasons between 2006 and 2011. In 2013, he won a career-best 195 face offs for Denver, which had the first unbeaten regular season (14-0) in MLL history.
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JAKE WITHERS
Part of the program-record six Buckeyes that were taken in the 2017 MLL Draft, Withers – a first-round selection – quickly made a name for himself in Atlanta by winning 24-of-32 faceoffs and totaling 11 ground balls in his debut June 10. In a 17-4 win over Florida, he won 14-of-22 faceoffs and ranked among the league leaders in both faceoffs won and winning percentage.
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ERIC FANNELL
The 13th pick in May’s MLL Draft, Fannell helped put Rochester into the playoffs with a 7-6 overall record. Fannell energized the Rattlers offense with six goals and two assists for eight points. He had a hat trick in his first two professional games, scoring three times in a 17-16 win over Chesapeake and three more in a 21-9 win over Boston.
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KEVIN BUCHANAN
A veteran of 10 MLL seasons, Buchanan played in his 100th career professional game this season and had 10 goals and nine assists on the season for the Cannons. Buchanan’s best seasons came in 2012 and 2014 when he totaled over 40 points (42 in 2012, 41 in 2014). A 2011 MLL champion and 2012 MLL All-Star, Buchanan has 266 career points to his credit and also led Team USA to a bronze medal at the 2015 World Indoor Lacrosse Championships. Also a part of the silver medal team at the outdoor championship.
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CHRIS MAY
May played in four games for the Blaze and won 21 face offs to go along with four groundballs and one assist. A USILA Scholar-All America honoree during the 2015 season with Ohio State, May was originally drafted by Denver but played 11 games for Atlanta last season as a rookie. He won 133 faceoffs and picked up a team-high 63 groundballs for the Blaze in their inaugural 2016 season.
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