Utah Archers fall to Denver Outlaws in PLL’s postseason return to Beehive State
Sep 7, 2026, 5:39 PM
SALT LAKE CITY — The Utah Archers returned to the Beehive State with the league’s top defense, the higher seed and home-field advantage for the semifinals of the 2026 Premier Lacrosse League playoffs.
Denver silenced the sold-out crowd wearing mostly orange and blue, though.
Brennan O’Neill had three goals and an assist, and Jared Bernhardt scored twice as the Outlaws jumped out to a 9-1 halftime lead to pull past the Utah Archers, 11-5 in Monday’s PLL playoff semifinals.
Pat Kavanagh added two goals, including a 2-pointer, and an assist for the Outlaws, who won 10-of-17 face-offs and got five saves from Logan McNaney in the win.
“We knew it was going to be a heckuvan environment,” said Kavanagh, the former Notre Dame star. “This is one of the better home atmospheres in the league; it’s pretty cool that they got a home game in the semifinals. But it went our way today.”
Park City native Beau Pederson and former Harvard standout Sam King each had a goal and an assist to lead the Archers, who were out-shot 45-28 and conceded 52.9% of possession.
But Denver’s fast start put Utah a hole from which it could never recover.
“The first half was incredible,” Outlaws head coach Tim Soudan said after the win. “We ran into a hot goalie in the second half. But that’s a really good team, and I’m just happy that we are playing our best lacrosse at the end of the year.”
Peak. https://t.co/OHu2qgPxmS pic.twitter.com/luLm8OTSyC
— Utah Archers (@PLLArchers) September 7, 2026
Sam King scored for the Archers in the first quarter, taking a pass from Pederson before putting one past the pipe with 9:31 left in the period.
But O’Neill, the three-time PLL All-Star out of Duke, had two goals in the opening 12 minutes to lift the visitors to a 3-1 lead after one quarter of play.
Kavanagh had two goals and O’Neill completed a first-half hat trick during a 6-0 second quarter to take a 9-1 halftime lead.
Former Utah star Ryan Stines broke a 27-minute goal drought midway through the third quarter, and Tre Leclaire and Park City native Pederson capped a 3-0 run to cut the deficit to 9-4 with 3:59 left in the period.
But long pole Jake Piseno responded with a 2-point goal in transition to help Denver get back on track en route to an 11-5 lead with 12 minutes remaining and clinch a spot in the PLL championship for the second consecutive year.
Ryan Stines scores the first Archers goal in nearly 28 minutes! 😮😮😮
Archers- Outlaws on ESPN2. pic.twitter.com/qitqRq8Z9H
— Premier Lacrosse League (@PremierLacrosse) September 7, 2026
“That 2-point killed us,” said Bates, who describes himself as a “big momentum guy” after the Outlaws’ win in last week’s quarterfinals. “That’s the game; I thought the ball bounced their way … and we just felt like we weren’t getting that break that we need.
“They started off well, started off fast, had a great defensive game plan,” he added, “and here we are.”
The Outlaws will face the Eastern Conference champion Philadelphia Waterdogs in the PLL championship Sept. 20 at Sports Illustrated Stadium in Harrison, New Jersey.
