August 7, 2021
By Adam Ruffner
Available to watch live on AUDL.TV at 7:00 PM/ET
The Raleigh Flyers extended their winning streak to seven games last night with a narrow 19-18 win over Boston, and now face a full-strength New York Empire squad in tonight’s AUDL Game Of The Week. This is the first matchup between these two teams since their epic double overtime clash during the 2019 regular season.
Much of Raleigh’s win streak can be credited to the play of their league leading offense, which is averaging 24 goals per game in 2021. The Flyers have the most balanced and dangerous attack in the AUDL ten weeks into the season, able to execute short drive possessions at will, while also possessing the best deep game. Henry Fisher and Jacob Fairfax remain one of the best one-two receiving combos in the AUDL, but the emergence of Anders Juengst and Allan Laviolette as midfield attackers—particularly Laviolette’s deep throws—has given a new potency to this Raleigh offense. The two were borderline unstoppable for the Flyers last night in Boston, combining for five assists, seven goals, and over 760 yards of total offense compared to just two total turnovers.
And for as dazzling as the Raleigh offense has been, the Flyers defense has been equally stout over the last several weeks. Since allowing 24 goals to Boston on June 19, Raleigh has allowed just 96 goals in their last six games, with no opponent scoring more than 19 in a game. The Flyers have the second highest defensive efficiency thanks to a terrific counterattack led by Noah Saul, Seth Weaver, and rookie Elijah Long.
But for as good as Raleigh has looked during their streak, they have not faced an opponent with a winning record since their Week 2 matchup with the Breeze; the Empire will pose a considerably larger threat than the Flyers have seen in recent weeks.
Ben Jagt is quietly having a better year than his MVP season, with more scores and a slightly higher completion rating than at a similar point during his 2019 campaign. Jagt leads the AUDL in receiving yards per game (365), and is the only player to average 4-plus assists and 4-plus goals per game in 2021. In just his last three appearances, Jagt has 13 assists and 21 goals while averaging close to 560 total yards per game.
And though his raw scoring totals are down—most likely due to the addition of Ryan Osgar on offense—Jack Williams remains as valuable to this New York team as ever. He’s completing a career best 97.1 percent of his throws, averaging 39 completions per game and using his versatility as a foundation for the Empire’s initiating looks. Williams has taken on more of a backfield role in 2021 as the season has progressed, and as Osgar has grown into his striker role in the Empire offense. Osgar is also playing well as of late, throwing 18 assists to go along with 10 goals and over 600 yards of offense per game in his last three outings.
Defensively, the Empire employ a good system with a deep rotation of capable players. But New York mostly relies on Jeff Babbitt, Marques Brownlee, and the Drost twins for takeaways, and are at the league midline as a team, averaging just nine blocks per game. The Empire are not as dangerous in taking the disc away as in previous seasons, but they still make opponents work, and allow just 19.3 goals per game.
New York won the first ever matchup between these two teams on a Williams huck to a streaking Beau Kittredge in sudden death. The Empire went on to a perfect season and their first AUDL title. A similar championship path could unfold in 2021 for the victor of this game tonight.
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