The Premier Lacrosse League heads to Baltimore for week four and kicks off on Friday night with a matchup between rivals — the Redwoods and Whipsnakes. The Whipsnakes boast a 5-2 record against the Redwoods, including three straight playoff wins. The undefeated Whipsnakes enter as 1.5-point favorites against a Redwoods team that has greatly underwhelmed through three games. Additionally, the total is the lowest of the week at 22.5.
Let’s take a look at the matchup and see which team has the betting edge.
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Whipsnakes (-1.5) vs Redwoods
| Whipsnakes Odds | -185 |
| Redwoods Odds | +150 |
| Total | 22.5 |
| Time | Friday, 6:30 p.m. ET |
| TV | ESPN2 |
Odds via DraftKings Sportsbook.
Whipsnakes Lacrosse Club
The Whipsnakes enter Friday night’s game following their most impressive win of the season — a 12-9 victory over the high-powered Atlas. The Whipsnakes starting goalie, Kyle Bernlohr, deserves a large amount of credit for the team’s 3-0 start. Through three games, Bernlohr has stopped a league-high 62% of shots and has averaged 13 saves per game. Last week, he held an Atlas team that had averaged 16.5 goals and a 38.5% shooting percentage through two games to just nine goals and a 16% shooting percentage.
Through three games, the Whipsnakes defense boasts a 21.8% defensive efficiency, which is the best in the league. In addition to Bernlohr’s exceptional play in net, Matt Dunn has thrived as the team’s top cover guy and has been aided by the stellar off-ball defense of Tim Muller and Bryce Young.
The Whipsnakes’ main weaknesses have been on the offensive end as they are averaging just 10 goals per game, despite shooting a league-high 130 times through three games. Their shooting percentage ranks second-to-last at 23.1%, sitting barely ahead of the Redwoods at 22.3%.
With that said, the Whipsnakes offense should get a major boost in the form of 2020 PLL MVP Zed Williams. When Williams and Matt Rambo are on the field together, this offense thrives. In the Whipsnakes’ past two meetings with the Redwoods, Williams and Rambo have combined for an average of 11 points per game and shot 53% and 37.5%, respectively. They'll also face a defense that is tied for last in defensive efficiency during settled opportunities.
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Redwoods Lacrosse Club
The Redwoods offense ranks last in shooting percentage and second-to-last in offensive efficiency — a stark contrast from a 2021 Redwoods team that had the most efficient settled offense in the league. The Redwoods offense has also generated the fewest possessions and second-fewest shots through three games. Simply put, the Redwoods offense has struggled tremendously and it will have the misfortune of facing the league’s most efficient defense this week.
Additionally, the Redwoods’ greatest asset last season was TD Ierlan’s presence at the faceoff stripe as he won 65% of his faceoffs in 2021. However, through three games, he’s averaging 48% at the stripe and is winning the clamp at a measly 26.8% rate. This is especially problematic as he faces Whipsnakes faceoff athlete Joe Nardella, who is winning the clamp at a 56.9% rate and winning 93.9% of faceoffs following clamp wins this season. While Ierlan could look more like himself on Friday, it is unlikely he’ll have an overwhelming advantage against Nardella at the stripe.
Ultimately, the Redwoods offense hasn’t done enough through three weeks to instill enough confidence that they’ll be able to put up a healthy amount of points against this Whipsnakes defense. Likewise, Zed Williams’ reinsertion into the lineup should give this Whipsnakes offensive unit the spark it needs to defeat their rivals and cover the 1.5-point spread. While it’s already heavily juiced at -135, I like betting the Whips at -1.5 and would do so up to -145.
Pick: Whipsnakes -1.5
