CHARLESTON, S.C. – Matt Kavanagh wasn’t going to let a little rain get in the way of his celebration.

As the post-game fireworks began to burst over the field, the Denver Outlaws gathered together at midfield at MUSC Health Stadium to revel in the club’s third Major League Lacrosse championship in the last five years.

But just as the party was getting cranked up, a heavy downpour fell on Kavanagh and his teammates as they held Steinfeld Trophy up to the handful of Outlaws fans who made the trip from Denver to the South Carolina Lowcountry.

The former Norte Dame star didn’t even notice.

“Did it rain?” Kavanagh joked as he entered the media room after the game. “It didn’t feel like it. It didn’t matter. That was an awesome feeling, just being on the field, celebrating like that with the guys.”

Kavanagh scored four goals and added five assists and was named the game’s MVP as he led the Outlaws past the Rattlers 16-12 in the MLL championship game Saturday night before a crowd of about 4,000 at MUSC Health Stadium in Charleston, S.C.

It was the third title in the last five years for the Outlaws and the third time since 2014 that Denver has eliminated the Rattlers from the playoffs.

“Are we a dynasty? Yeah, I guess we are,” Kavanagh said. “We’ve got a great group of guys and a great coaching staff. Three straight years in the championship game. It was a hard-fought game in the first half and we got a couple of goals early in the second half and never looked back. We were talking before the game that we’re a second-half team. When we turn it on like we did tonight and play a full 60 minutes, we’re a tough team to beat.”

The Dallas Rattlers had been one of the few teams in MLL that had been able to handle the Denver Outlaws during the regular season over the years. Whether in Rochester, N.Y., or Frisco, Texas, the Rattlers are 7-5 in the regular season against the Outlaws, a club that has been to the MLL title game five times in the last seven seasons.

This year, Dallas defeated the Outlaws twice during the regular season, including an overtime thriller in the Rattlers’ first game in Frisco. Dallas and Chesapeake were the only two teams that the Outlaws didn’t beat during the regular season.

But when it comes to the postseason, the Outlaws hold the upper hand.

Three times since 2014, the Outlaws have ended the Rattlers’ run at a title, including a 12-11 win in the 2014 championship game. A year ago, Denver won 15-8 in the semifinals.

The three losses in the playoffs to the same team has been especially hard for faceoff specialist Drew Simoneau.

“It’s tough to lose to these guys the way we have during the playoffs,” Simoneau said. “We’ve had some really close games with them, especially during the regular season. We beat them twice this year, but they were both one-goal games. It’s not like they turn it up or anything. The games, even in the playoffs, could have gone either way. A couple of plays here or there and it could have been a different outcome.”

PHOTO BY JOSHUA KELLY/PRETTY INSTANT

Dallas led 9-6 midway through the second quarter on Ryan McNamara’s goal at the 10:23 mark. But the Outlaws reeled off seven consecutive goals, including four to end the half as Denver grabbed a 10-9 lead going into the locker room.

“We finally scored some goals,” Denver coach BJ O’Hara said. “MLL games are usually games of runs. There are runs and in order to be successful in this league you’ve got to be successful. Honestly, that was a typical MLL game. We were down in the second quarter and then we got quick ones before halftime and that gave us a good feeling going into the locker room.”

Kavanagh had three assists during the Outlaws’ seven-goal stretch, including a nifty behind-the-back pass to Kylor Bellistri just before halftime.

“Matt has been big for us in all of our big games,” O’Hara said. “He had a little stretch where he struggled a little bit and got down on himself a little bit. He played well last week in the semifinals and we liked the matchup against [Dallas defenseman] Matt Dunn. He was confident in that matchup and I thought he was going to have a big night.”

The Outlaws defense went to work in the second half. With Denver faceoff specialist Max Alder winning 15 of 28 draws, the Outlaws were able to maintain possession and score during the final 30 minutes of the game.

The Rattlers managed just three goals in the second half, as Denver outscored Dallas 10-3 over the final 30 minutes of the game.

“We couldn’t get many possessions and they kind of choked us off,” Dallas coach Bill Warder said. “They got some resets, and they had a ton of possessions. They scored the first three goals of the game, and I think we spent four minutes playing defense to start the game. That kind of wore of down.”

Jordan Wolf and Randy Staats led Dallas’ attack with three goals each in the losing effort.