DOWNINGTOWN, Pa. – Kevin Cassese, who was named Lehigh’s new head coach on Thursday, began his Philadelphia Barrage career on Friday evening as he helped his team to a 14-9 victory over the San Francisco Dragons in the first-ever meeting between the two Major League Lacrosse franchises. Cassese was traded to the Barrage on June 29 and this marked the first MLL game he has played in this season. The game was played at United Sports Training Center in front of 2,503 in attendance who watched the Barrage keep their home record perfect at 4-0.
“The game went well, it was good to get back out there and play again,” Cassese explained. “It was fun, I got the chance to play with a guy who I coached, Matt Zash (Duke ’06), I ran midfield with him and I scored my first goal, so it was an exciting evening.”
Cassese continued, “With the move to Lehigh and the eastern Pennsylvania region, I have a strong sense of pride playing for the Barrage and doing whatever I can to try and help them to a playoff berth.” He added, “It’s great to still be playing; it offers me a chance to get out there and see things first-hand, which helps translate into what I will expect from our kids at Lehigh.”
Cassese scored his first goal of the season in the third quarter to pull the Barrage out of a tie with the Dragons and from there they never looked back. The Barrage scored five times in the third quarter and added another three scores in the fourth to pull away for the victory.
Cassese and the Barrage return to action on Thursday evening when they travel to Piscataway, New Jersey to take on the New Jersey Pride at Rutgers University. Game time is scheduled for 7:00 and the contest will be shown live on ESPN2.
Photographs (c) 2007 Philadelphia Barrage.
