Photo by Alan Bloodgood
APRIL 28, 2025
By Kyle Turnbaugh
The Philadelphia Phoenix came into the nation's capital on a mission to do what has seemed impossible for them in recent years: defeat the DC Breeze. Despite close matchups, including a double-overtime thriller last season, DC has come out on top of every matchup against Philadelphia since 2017 and defended home turf from the Phoenix successfully since 2013. That all changed on Saturday when a revamped Phoenix roster came into Carlini Field and took down the reigning East Division champions 16-15.
The first quarter for the Phoenix was the Sean Mott and Scott Heyman show, with the dynamic duo tearing through the Breeze defense. The DC offense opened the period positively, with Thomas Edmonds, who played a game-leading 24 points, finding Cole Jurek deep for a goal. But, when the Breeze tried to look for Jurek in the deep space again, Philadelphia’s Nate Little blocked Edmonds’s huck, jumpstarting a break for the Phoenix. In total, the Breeze turned the disc five times in the first quarter, leading to two breaks for the Phoenix. The first quarter ended with a chance for the Breeze to get within one, but Rowan McDonnell was unable to secure a tight-window throw from Andrew Roy.
The second quarter began with a Phoenix hold, and the Breeze turnover struggles continued, as the Phoenix broke once again to expand their lead to 8-4. Wild winds caused drops and throwaways from both sides, including three endzone turnovers from the Phoenix in a single point, which the Breeze failed to punish. A block from Jasper Tom led to a Breeze break, as Edmonds once again found Jurek down the sideline for a score. Edmonds posted three assists and a goal in the second quarter, as DC put up a strong second quarter and closed in on Philadelphia, ending the frame down just one goal.
Philadelphia’s pesky downfield defense continued to stump the Breeze, as a block by Heyman on a floaty pass from Jace Dean sparked a break for the Phoenix to open the third quarter. Little continued to stifle Breeze deep shots, beating Jurek in the endzone once again as the clock ticked toward the end of the quarter. Scoring was limited for both sides in the third with the Breeze only finding the endzone twice, through Jurek and Jacques Nissen, and the Phoenix only striking three times, including their break, to increase their lead to a two-goal margin heading into the final period.
The fourth quarter was by far the Breeze’s best. Starting off down by two, the Breeze matched the Phoenix’s hold to start the quarter with a hold of their own through a scoober from Roy to Kevin Healey. Both teams held once more before a break punched in by Heyman seemingly put the Phoenix lead out of reach, up four with just five minutes to go. After a Breeze hold, DC found themselves down three but proceeded to capitalize on a poor throw from Little, which ultimately led to Jurek finding Roy in the endzone. With just one minute remaining, William Tober dropped a hammer, gifting DC another break chance, which the Breeze took advantage of by subbing on their O-Line and having Nissen hit Jeff Wodatch in the endzone to bring the Breeze within one with about 40 seconds remaining. DC got their chance to level when Tom came up with a huge block on an errant pass from Greg Martin, setting up the Breeze with a chance to score with just 23 seconds left. However, DC’s heroic comeback fell just short in heartbreaking fashion, as Theo Shapinsky, who made a wonderful diving grab earlier in the game, dropped the game-tying pass from AJ Merriman, and Philly ran out the clock.
Although a loss to a division rival is tough to take, Breeze fans should remember last season opened with a defeat as well, and there is lots of time for a team this talented to make up for the defeat. Some of the positive aspects of the game for the Breeze were a three-assist day from McDonnell and Edmonds, as well as a five-goal game for Jurek. In his debut, rookie Graham Turner appeared on the Breeze O-line throughout the game and played confidently, drawing a foul in the endzone in the first quarter. Shapinsky, the other debutante, played well, despite the crucial drop, as Coach Boyle trusted him to mark at crucial moments in the game, and he showed his athleticism and field awareness with a diving grab in the fourth quarter to keep possession for the Breeze.
The DC Breeze return to action at Carlini Field against the Toronto Rush on May 3. First pull goes up at 7:00 PM EDT. Tickets are available at thedcbreeze.com.
