Photo by Jordyn Harris
JUNE 30, 2025
By Kyle Turnbaugh
On Friday, the DC Breeze (5-4) beat the Montreal Royal (3-7) by a whopping 12 goals at home. This win not only brings the Breeze much closer to the playoffs, but also makes up for their disappointing loss on the road to Montreal earlier this season. The most impressive part of the win was the Breeze D-line, who turned up in a big way after struggling all season, suffocating a Royal offense that has been known for their dangerous deep shots. Breeze fans will hope that the defense has turned a corner and that this dominant display is not just a flash in the pan.
Going into the game, there were some question marks for the Breeze. They knew they would be without Jacques Nissen, who has quarterbacked the offense all season. They also knew that their struggling D-line would be without two key pieces in Miles Grovic and Isaac Lee. However, there were also a number of returners for the Breeze. Crucial cutter Christian Boxley and defenders Moussa Dia and Charlie McCutcheon all returned to the line up after missing significant time and immediately made a major difference on the field.
DC came into the game red hot, beginning with a clean hold, courtesy of Coby Loveranes, which was immediately followed by a break for the Breeze. Jasper Tom fully extended to get up for the endzone block, and AJ Merriman led the defense down the field to break. Merriman threw the first of his season-high three assists, finding Jace Dean for the goal. The Breeze continued to dominate with Rhys Bergeron running through the disc and beating the Royal to the spot. The Breeze then called a timeout, bringing the O-line on, who worked the disc down to the goal line before Jeff Wodatch was forced into a turn. Wodatch didn't let that fly though, as he immediately got the disc back with a block of his own. Rowan McDonnell then ripped a blade to Boxley, who got his first goal on his return. Montreal finally scored through Quentin Bonnaud, who ultimately scored six of Montreal’s 14 goals, to make the score 3-1. Unbelievably, that was the last time the Royal scored in the first quarter, with the Breeze running wild, as the DC defense suffocated the Canadian outfit. Alexandre Fall got a layout block, and Merriman rewarded Ben Greenberg with a goal on a platter for the rookie. David Bloodgood, who had an excellent game after struggling a bit this season, forced a throwaway with a tough mark and then angled a perfect flick to Kevin Healey, who pulled it down with one hand for the break. Things continued to get worse for the Royal, as another one of their hucks sailed out of bounds, giving the Breeze another break chance. DC milked the clock down, and then Merriman threw his third assist of the period with a jump ball to Micah Wagner, who would use his strength to box out and pull the disc down. Just as it seemed things couldn't possibly get worse for Montreal, down 7-1 in the first quarter, they dropped the pull with eight seconds remaining. With the disc on the goal line, Merriman reset to Jasper Tom, who stayed patient and hit Dia, the big target, in the back of the endzone to rub salt into wounds and go up 8-1.
The game might have seemed over with DC already holding a seven-goal advantage over their Canadian opponents, but the Royal fought back in the second quarter. Montreal scored three straight, including two breaks, which definitely made the Breeze sweat a little. The third break came off a missed foul on Cole Jurek, who was tackled by two Montreal defenders as he ran deep. The offense came back out to right the ship and did so with Tyler Monroe, who was questionable to play after an injury suffered against New York, finding Wodatch in the endzone. But, Montreal then quickly held and broke the Breeze again to get within three goals after being down by seven. Although Montreal did surge back into the game, the tide turned back in favor of the Breeze with Boxley scoring again, in what was a five-goal day for the cutter, and the Breeze broke again after Wagner won a physical battle deep for the block, and Bloodgood slotted the disc into Merriman for the captain's first goal of the season. The rest of the frame turned out to be holds, with the highlight being a beautiful 70-yard huck from Jurek to Loveranes, with the rookie’s speed continuing to cause problems for opposing defenses.
The Breeze went into the second half up five, with the game not necessarily a closed case. But, after slipping up a bit in the second period, the Breeze dominated the rest of the game, scoring 13 times and only giving up six goals in the second half. It all started with a quick hold, as Aidan Downey picked up his first goal of the game. The Breeze then broke again, with Tom continuing his excellent game by hitting Dia in stride as he stormed into the endzone. There were holds for both sides and then a pair of long, war-of-attrition points with the first point going for four minutes before Bergeron hit Thomas Edmonds for the break and the next point lasting nearly four minutes before the Breeze offense subbed on and scored through Boxley. DC slowed down the game in the third quarter and pushed their lead out even further, going up eight goals heading into the fourth quarter.
The final period was a bit of a formality, with Montreal probably thinking more about having to do it all again Saturday night in Philly than the possibility of coming back in this game. DC started off with a break, as Wagner picked up another block and then secured bookends as he ran deep and fellow rookie Greenberg found him with a perfect hammer. There were quick holds back and forth, but then DC broke it wide open right at the end of the game, with a four-goal run, including three breaks and another goal for Merriman. There were calls for the Breeze to try to push for 30 goals at the end of the game, but common sense prevailed, and the Breeze slowed the game down once again and hold the disc for a comfortable victory that puts them in pole position to secure a playoff spot.
This win was a very promising result for the Breeze. There have been some disappointing weeks during the season, but after the display against Montreal, it's hard not to be excited about what lies ahead for the Breeze. The offense was hardly on the field, but when they were, they were effective, going a solid 75% on holds and 21/23 in the redzone as a team. The defense was immaculate, racking up 13 blocks and 14 breaks, after struggling to generate turns all season and with different personnel than usual. Although Montreal has struggled on the road all season, they have been a team that has been pesky for the top teams of the East, including DC, so dominating them in this fashion is a good sign that DC is finally heating up as the season comes to a close.
The Breeze face off against the Boston Glory next week with the chance to get one step closer to booking their ticket to the playoffs. With the Breeze hot off a big win and the Glory already qualified for the playoffs, this game seems like a good chance for the Breeze to knock off the undefeated Glory, who they have already fallen to once this season. Catch all the action from Hormel Stadium in Medford, Mass. on Sunday, July 6 on watchUFA.tv. First pull goes up at 1:00 PM ET.
