The Charlotte Hounds were a Major League Lacrosse (MLL) field lacrosse franchise that began play in the 2012 MLL season and ceased operations after the 2018 season. The team played their home games at American Legion Memorial Stadium.[1]

Charlotte Hounds
SportLacrosse
Founded2012
Folded2019
LeagueMajor League Lacrosse
Based inCharlotte, North Carolina
StadiumAmerican Legion Memorial Stadium
ColorsRoyal Blue, Tan
    
Head coachJoe Cummings
General managerMike Cerino
MascotBlue the Plott Hound

Franchise history

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In January 2011 the MLL voted to grant expansion teams to Charlotte and Columbus, Ohio for the 2012 MLL Season.[1][2] The team's first hire was Wade Leaphart, who was instrumental in establishing the team's identity, sales, marketing and operations, among other things. McPhilliamy and Leaphart launched a Name the Team Campaign, sponsored by OrthoCarolina, the official team physician of the Hounds, and was heavily run via social media – Facebook. First, fans pitched in ideas for the team name and location identity (Charlotte, Carolina, Queen City, etc.) Then, fans voted on the location ID, choosing Charlotte easily over Carolina. The next stage was mostly on the team staff, in choosing 6 finalists for team names and logo prototypes. Fans then voted on those, narrowing it down to the final three, Hounds, Legion, and Monarchs. A final vote was held, and Hounds won by a mere 21 votes over the Legion. On June 21, 2011, the team name was announced to be the Charlotte Hounds and their colors to be royal and tan. On September 29, 2011, the team announced the hiring of head coach Mike Cerino. On February 10, 2012, the team announced the hiring of assistant coaches J.B. Clarke, Chris Phenicie, and Brad Touma.

The Hounds announced on February 7, 2012, that they had signed a landmark deal with WMYT (MyTV12) Charlotte to broadcast 7 of the 14 scheduled games. The TV broadcasts will alternate with the Radio games on WFNZ, with the exception of the home opener and season finale, which will be covered by both stations. WFNZ will air all home games, while WMYT will broadcast the away games as well as the home opener and season finale. The local TV deal with WMYT is the first of its kind in major league lacrosse, as WMYT will be the only local broadcast station in the nation to offer Major League Lacrosse Broadcasts.[3]

On May 12, 2012, the Charlotte Hounds beat the Ohio Machine 18–15 at American Legion Memorial Stadium to earn their first win in franchise history.

2013: Quick start

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On August 3, 2013, the Charlotte Hounds clinched a playoff spot in just their second season after defeating the Hamilton Nationals, 14–11.[4] On August 24 in the semifinals, Charlotte defeated top seed Denver, 17–14 for their first playoff win and championship berth in team history.[5] Before that, the Denver Outlaws were the first team in league history to complete a perfect 14–0 regular season. On August 25, the Hounds took on the Chesapeake Bayhawks in the Steinfeld Cup. The Hounds lost 10–9 to the Bayhawks, who won their league-record fifth championship.

2014-15: Team struggles

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The Hounds struggled out of the gate in 2014 starting 1–4. But on June 7, the Hounds defeated the Outlaws again, 18–15 at home. The loss for Denver snapped a 25 regular-season-game win streak for the Outlaws.[6] Charlotte would finish 4–10 in 2014 for the worst record in the team's three-year history. Things did not get better in 2015; the Hounds actually posted a worse record: 3–11, the worst record in 2015.

Road to recovery

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Before the 2016 season, the Hounds announced head coach Mike Cerino would move to general manager, a role held by Leaphart since 2012. Jim Stagnitta was hired as the team's new head coach. They started the year out with three straight home games against the Boston Cannons, Rochester Rattlers, and Florida Launch. As a result, the team got off to a 3–0 start for the first time in franchise history.

On August 6, the Hounds came back from an 11–6 deficit to defeat the Chesapeake Bayhawks, 15–13 to clinch not only their second playoff berth in franchise history, but their first winning record in franchise history at 8–6. On August 13 in Minnesota, the Hounds' season would be ended after a 16–10 loss to the top-seeded Ohio Machine.

In 2017, things would hit a speed bump. The Hounds would get off to an 0–3 start thanks to two meetings with the defending champion Outlaws. Despite being able to win five of their next eight and put themselves in the top four in the league, the Hounds were not able to finish the season strong. Charlotte posted a 6–8 record in their 2017 campaign, finishing in seventh place. One highlight from the year including drafting of Maryland attackman Matt Rambo, who led the Terrapins to their first NCAA championship since 1975 and won the 2017 Tewaaraton Award.[7]

The Hounds began the 2018 campaign at home against the Boston Cannons. Charlotte scored 16 of the first 17 goals, setting many team records in a 25–7 win including most goals in a game, largest margin of victory, and tied the team record for fewest goals allowed in a game.[8] Head coach Jim Stagnitta became the team's all-time leading wins leader on June 9 with a 19–13 victory over Atlanta.[9]

Despite the hot start, Charlotte would fizzle down the stretch. Charlotte played their last "home game" on June 30 against the Atlanta Blaze at MUSC Health Stadium in Charleston, South Carolina, also the site of the year's championship game. They lost the game, 16–10. Charlotte played the Cannons in their last game of the season and lost, 14–7, a point differential of 25 goals compared to Week 1's 25–7 thumping. The Hounds were eliminated that week from postseason contention.

Season-by-season

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Charlotte Hounds
Year W L % Regular season finish Playoffs
2012 5 9 .357 6th in League Did not qualify
2013 7 7 .500 4th in League Won semifinal 17–14 over Denver Outlaws
Lost championship 10–9 to Chesapeake Bayhawks
2014 4 10 .286 8th in League Did not qualify
2015 3 11 .273 8th in League Did not qualify
2016 8 6 .571 4th in League Lost semifinal 16–10 to Ohio Machine
2017 6 8 .429 7th in League Did not qualify
2018 7 7 .500 6th in League Did not qualify
Totals 40 58 .408 Total Playoff Record 1-2
Playoff Win % = .333

Roster

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2018 Charlotte Hounds
# Name Nationality Position Height Weight College
0 Bill Milone   G 5 ft 11 in 185 lb Pfeiffer
1 Mike Chanenchuk   M 5 ft 11 in 180 lb Maryland
2 Charlie Cipriano   G 5 ft 11 in 185 lb Fairfield
4 Ryan Brown   A 5 ft 10 in 190 lb Johns Hopkins
5 Connor Fields   A 5 ft 11 in 160 lb Albany
6 Will Haus   M 6 ft 1 in 185 lb Duke
7 Danny Sweeney   D 6 ft 3 in 230 lb Villanova
8 Michael Howard   D 6 ft 5 in 220 lb Virginia
9 Matt Rambo   A 5 ft 10 in 210 lb Maryland
11 Joey Sankey   A 5 ft 5 in 160 lb North Carolina
13 Tim Rotanz   M 6 ft 1 in 210 lb Maryland
14 John Scheich   A 5 ft 10 in 180 lb Catawba
17 Adam Osika   SSDM 6 ft 3 in 205 lb Albany
18 Jake Withers   FO 5 ft 11 in 192 lb Ohio State
19 John Crawley   M 6 ft 0 in 205 lb Johns Hopkins
20 Brendan Hynes   LSM 6 ft 3 in 185 lb Richmond
21 Kevin Crowley   M 6 ft 4 in 200 lb Stony Brook
22 Joe McCallion   M 5 ft 11 in 200 lb Penn
25 Dylan Maltz   A 5 ft 8 in 170 lb Maryland
26 John Haus   M 6 ft 0 in 190 lb Maryland
27 Jake Richard   M 6 ft 0 in 180 lb Marquette
28 Michael Ehrhardt   D 6 ft 5 in 210 lb Maryland
32 Adam DiMillo   M 5 ft 11 in 190 lb Maryland
33 Pierce Bassett   G 6 ft 3 in 200 lb Johns Hopkins
40 Kevin Cooper   A 6 ft 4 in 190 lb Maryland
41 Kevin Massa   FO 5 ft 10 in 200 lb Bryant
43 Noah Rak   FO 6 ft 0 in 203 lb Massachusetts
44 Brett Schmidt   D 6 ft 0 in 181 lb Maryland
45 James Barclay   D 5 ft 11 in 195 lb Providence
48 Tom Noell   LSM 5 ft 10 in 215 lb UNCW
50 Morgan Cheek   A 6 ft 1 in 200 lb Harvard
55 Scott Hooper   D 6 ft 1 in 200 lb Virginia
91 Matt McMahon   D 6 ft 4 in 225 lb Penn
  • Regular season 25-player protected roster updated 2018-07-16

Head Coaching History

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# Name Term Regular Season Playoffs
GC W L W% GC W L W%
1 Mike Cerino 20122015 52 19 37 .339 2 1 1 .500
2 Jim Stagnitta 20162018 42 21 21 .500 1 0 1 .000
3 Joe Cummings 2019 - - - - - - - -


Award Winners

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  • Mike Chanenchuk: 2016

Draft history

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First round selections

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References

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  1. ^ a b Babo, Zach (January 21, 2011). "MLL Expanding to Charlotte, Columbus for 2012 Season". Inside Lacrosse. Retrieved February 7, 2011.
  2. ^ McLean, Derek (January 21, 2011). "Major League Lacrosse To Add Two New Franchises in 2012". Major League Lacrosse. Archived from the original on February 10, 2015. Retrieved February 7, 2011.
  3. ^ "WMYT (myTV12) To Broadcast Charlotte Hounds Games". charlottehounds.com. February 7, 2012. Archived from the original on February 10, 2015.
  4. ^ "Hounds punch ticket to postseason with 14–11 win over Nationals". Archived from the original on 2013-08-06. Retrieved 2013-08-04.
  5. ^ "Hounds stun Outlaws in Semifinals, 17-14". Archived from the original on 2013-08-29. Retrieved 2013-08-24.
  6. ^ "Charlotte 18, Denver 15". Archived from the original on 2015-02-10. Retrieved 2014-06-08.
  7. ^ "2017 Draft summary". Archived from the original on 2017-08-06. Retrieved 2017-08-06.
  8. ^ "Hounds cruise in season opener 25-7". charlottehounds.com. April 21, 2018. Archived from the original on June 18, 2018.
  9. ^ "Hounds score seven unanswered and extinguish the Blaze, 19-13". charlottehounds.com. June 9, 2018. Archived from the original on June 18, 2018.
  10. ^ "2013 Collegiate Draft Results | Major League Lacrosse". Archived from the original on 2014-02-26. Retrieved 2014-02-05.
  11. ^ "2014 Collegiate Draft Results | Major League Lacrosse". Archived from the original on 2014-02-09. Retrieved 2014-02-05.
  12. ^ "Atlanta Blaze Select Duke's Myles Jones No.1 Overall in 2016 MLL Collegiate Draft | Major League Lacrosse". Archived from the original on 2016-03-30. Retrieved 2016-04-04.
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