July 9, 2024
By Evan Lepler
1. Oakland Overwhelms Portland
The Week 11 battle for third place in the West Division was a multi-day roller-coaster of highlights, missed opportunities, and stomach-churning emotions.
On Saturday in the East Bay, the Spiders dominated the Nitro 26-17, snapping their two-game losing streak to improve to 6-4. Beginning the contest with three consecutive breaks, Oakland led 11-4 midway through the first half in their wire-to-wire victory.
“The D-line did the bulk of the work for that game,” said Oakland’s Jason Vallee, highlighting the teams 11 breaks in 17 chances.
Along with Vallee’s four goals and four assists and Raekwon Adkins scoring five more goals for the Spiders, Evan Magsig anchored the O-line, tossing four assists, six hockey assists, and leading Oakland with 425 total yards.
“I think Evan Magsig is having an MVP caliber year,” said Spiders Coach Dan Silverstein, “and that it is kinda hidden in that the stats don’t show it as obviously as you can see it in the games. He has replaced Mac Hecht and is, in my opinion, playing it better than Mac—or [Justin] Norden in previous years—ever did. Evan leads the team in yards, assists, completions, and blocks. He plays O-line but has like 50 percent more blocks than the next closest player on the team. We lean on him really heavily and the reason we are in the playoffs is because of the work he has put in.”
Oakland’s O-line held on 15-of-19 opportunities against the Nitro, its highest hold rate of any game this season.
But this was just the prologue to the real story of the Spiders’ weekend.
2. Colorado Overcomes Sloppy Start to Stay Alive
With Oakland taking care of business, Colorado knew that its interdivisional battle against Indianapolis was a true must-win. But the Summit struggled mightily on offense in the opening half against the AlleyCats, who strongly believed they should’ve led by more than just one at the break.
“We should have been up by four or five points at halftime,” said Indy’s Travis Carpenter, bemoaning the fact that the ‘Cats went just 2-for-11 on break chances in the opening 24 minutes. “That probably would have won us the game. But Colorado made good adjustments, and things started clicking for them in the second half.”
Trailing 9-8 heading into the third, the Summit switched some personnel, refocused, and immediately used a 4-1 run to take the lead. To the contrary of Alex Atkins’ claim that his coach’s main halftime message was, ‘You’re all incredibly bad, play better,” that was not actually what Tim Kefalas or Mike Lun said to the team at halftime.
But it might have been what he told himself.
And perhaps it helped inspire the game’s defining moment with Colorado up 17-15 with just a few minutes left, the Summit retaking possession with a chance to up their lead to three for the first time all game. During a timeout, Atkins told his teammates they did not have to hurry and could simply complete passes to run out the clock. This was all before the gregarious Summit star launched a full-field missile on the very first throw after the restart.
“Would I say I’m surprised [by Atkins’ choice to huck immediately]? No.” said Noah Coolman. “Was I excited? Yes. It was awesome. I can’t complain.”
Atkin Arnstein, the deep target who hauled in Atkins’ backhand bomb with a ridiculous full-extension layout, was not caught off guard either.
“Although we emphasized patient possession in the huddle, as soon as the defense set up I think it became clear to both Alex and I that I was gonna go deep with the intention of scoring,” said Arnstein. “My defender was even with me and there was no help. Also, it was a backhand force—good for Alex—with no lane sag. Quinn [Finer] recognized this and stayed shallow enough to ensure his defender couldn’t poach. I knew I could catch it when it went up; props to [Indy’s defender Jack] Galle for applying the pressure he did.
“Alex said ‘thank you’ and also ‘you’re welcome.’ We joked about how upset TK would have been if it was incomplete. Making plays in front of the home crowd is always a privilege. I had tons of friends and teammates there to celebrate with, so it was a real treat.”
The thrilling highlight gave Colorado an 18-15 advantage, and the Summit prevailed 18-16, with the home team actually embracing Atkins’ message concerning patience on the final possession of the night to run out the clock. The victory improved the Summit to 5-6 and kept them in the playoff race for at least one more day.
But they knew they still needed San Diego to beat Los Angeles on Sunday afternoon to remain in contention.
3. Another SoCal Classic Caps the West’s Wild Weekend
Oakland and Colorado could only helplessly watch as San Diego tangled with Los Angeles, though not everyone chose to tune in.
“I’m very superstitious and did not watch the game nor check it out at all live,” said Spiders Coach Dan Silverstein. “In fact, one of the players called to let me know the result. Having retroactively watched the game, I think I might have died of a heart attack!”
The Spiders knew that an LA win would punch their ticket to the playoffs, while the Summit needed a San Diego victory to stay live in the race.
“I was watching,” said Colorado Co-Coach Tim Kefalas. “Wasn’t really any chatter in the slack. I think people were pretty at peace regardless, since it was so unlikely anyway. When whoever it was got that layout block on the goal-line to put the Aviators up two, I turned it off.”
Milan Ravenell was the man who recorded the pivotal D with less than two minutes left, and Sean McDougall scored his fifth goal of the game to give the Aviators a 25-23 lead, their first multi-goal advantage of the entire game. The Growlers inched back within one with 47 seconds left, but could not create another turn as the Aviators scrambled to complete 12 more passes to make the remaining time disappear. Despite leading 10-4 at the end of the first, the Growlers let their sizable early edge slip away in a 25-24 loss that eliminated both San Diego and Colorado from playoff contention.
“Our defense got us back in the game with some amazing blocks, and our offense played almost perfect after the first quarter,” said LA’s Michael Kiyoi. “We converted all our timeout calls and didn’t turn the disc once in the second half.”
The Growlers got huge games from both Stefan Samu and Travis Dunn—10 goals, nine assists combined—but struggled to generate the same pressure they created early.
“Offensively, we were able to do what we wanted,” said San Diego Coach Kevin Stuart. “Stefan, Travis, and Matt [Miller] all had great games, and when you score 24 points you put yourself in a good position to win. If you had told me before the game that we would be able to put up 24, I would have taken that given how well our defense had played the last few games. Give a lot of credit to LA, both offensively and defensively.”
Indeed, the two teams combined for 49 goals and just 25 turnovers, speaking to the high quality of offense throughout the game. Both sides experienced their season-low in giveaways on the afternoon, and ultimately, the Aviators eked out the victory.
“Honestly, I wasn’t thinking about playoffs until after the game was over,” said Stuart. “In the final moments, we were trying to pull any levers that we could to pull out the win. Afterwards, we were obviously all disappointed having a big lead and letting it slip away.”
The Aviators, understandably, were pleased to be able to spoil things for their closest rival.
“The goal was to get better every game and keep fighting for wins,” said Kiyoi. “And anytime we can end San Diego’s season, that feels very good. We are going to keep causing chaos and could potentially finish fourth in our division after such a terrible start.”
Meanwhile, in northern California, several Spiders breathed a sigh of relief, while also recognizing that it would have been preferable to barge into the postseason through the front door, rather than sneaking in with someone else’s help.
“We knew nothing was guaranteed and definitely is a weight off of our shoulders to be officially locked in for playoffs and have these last two regular season games to focus on improving,” said Vallee. “But I do feel like we missed out a little on the emotion and experience of playing and winning a game that you know would send you to the playoffs.”
Since Vallee played for the Aviators last season, he had various communications with many of his former teammates after Sunday’s game.
“Messaged a couple thank yous and got a lot of ‘your welcomes,’” he said. “Was great to see the pals compete and make great plays even without considering what it means for Oakland. And always easy to root for Coach [Jeff] Landesman; hard to find a genuinely nicer and more caring guy.”
Perhaps the biggest story of the weekend—though not an unexpected one based upon the first 10 weeks of the season—was Colorado officially eliminated. It’s the first time in three years of the franchise that the Summit will miss the playoffs.
“It’s a bummer, but I think the ability for some folks to exhale isn’t the worst thing in the world,” said Kefalas. “I’ve thought a lot about what we need to focus on to really get back some of the joy and success we experienced previously. We’ve got one more fun one vs. LA this season, then there’s plenty of time to to marinate.”
4. Carolina Cools Down the HotBirds
After serious thunderstorms rolled through the Triangle, delaying the start of Carolina’s Saturday night home tilt against Philly, the Flyers found their form pretty quickly. They trailed 3-2, but then used a 5-1 spurt to lead 8-4, and the Phoenix never got closer than within three scores of the Flyers the rest of the night, as Carolina cruised 24-19.
“The leadership of the team has done a great job of keeping the team level through the two tough losses,” said Flyers hybrid Allan Laviolette. “While losing sucks, we recognize that both Atlanta and DC are two of the strongest teams in the entire league. It’s good for us to get looks at teams who challenge us and force us to evolve and adapt.”
Laviolette erupted for seven assists and four goals, with nearly 800 yards of offense, earning him a spot on the Week 11 Honor Roll. But he was far from the only Flyer who played well, as the Carolina offense was broken once in the first quarter and never again the rest of the game.
“Our offense was starting to integrate the pieces we gained once the college season ended, and I only expect guys like Dylan Hawkins and Tobias Brooks to continue to be problems for other teams as we move into the postseason.”
The Phoenix O-line only had one more turnover than the Flyers’ O-line, however Carolina’s D converted six breaks in eight chances, while Philly went just 1-for-7. The Flyers finished the night with just 10 turns, a season-low.
“I wasn’t aware it was our fewest turnover game, but I’m not surprised,” said Laviolette. “It felt like our D-line offense was really punishing Philly on their first possession, which is something North Carolina ultimate has always put a high emphasis on.”
5. Salt Lake Steamrolls Portland
While the scars from the blowout loss to New York are still relatively fresh, the Salt Lake Shred enjoyed an uneven but ultimately lopsided victory over the Portland Nitro on Friday evening in Utah. The Shred only went 4-for-10 on hucks and were broken four times, including on back-to-back points in the opening quarter, but Salt Lake ultimately built a double-digit lead and prevailed 28-17.
“Our main focus was playing ball,” said Salt Lake’s Joe Merrill, acknowledging the vast gap between New York and Portland. “We had different lines and different configurations, and while we prepared for the very athletic and explosive Nitro team, we were focused on playing our game and just going out and having fun.”
After scoring only nine goals on 13 chances in red zone possessions in Week 10 against New York, the Shred went 22-for-22 in these situations against Portland, their first game this year without a single red zone miscue. Salt Lake’s defense also compelled 27 turns from the Nitro.
“Watching the O-lines play better defense was awesome,” added Merrill. “The D-line played phenomenally well, ready with their sets each team they took the field. Individually, I’d say Tony Mounga stepped up as a thrower. Chad Yorgason was also super fun to watch as he played a fair amount of O as well. His vision of the field is amazing; he can really open up the opposing defense.”
The Shred travel to Portland for one more matchup against the Nitro in Week 12. Win or lose in the Pacific Northwest this weekend, the top spot in the West will be decided when they host Seattle at Zions Bank Stadium on Friday, July 19.
6. More of the Same for the Sol
At some point, we’ll see an upset in a game involving the Texas trio. But the status quo remained intact in Week 11, with Austin belting Houston one night after the Havoc edged the Legion.
The Sol finished the season 3-0 against the Havoc, outscoring Houston 78-47. And the Havoc went 5-0 against Dallas, with victories by five, one, two, three, and one.
After a lengthy weather delay, Houston actually took a 10-9 lead over Austin midway through the second quarter on Saturday night, scoring four straight goals to earn their first lead of the night. But the Sol immediately answered with five in a row to close out the first half. It was 14-10 at the break, 22-14 through three, and 28-18 at the final buzzer, with the Sol clinching a playoff spot for the third consecutive season.
Elliott Moore led Austin with six assists, two goals, two blocks, and no turns, while Mick Walter tallied four blocks and Matthew Armour added three.
The Sol know they will travel to either Carolina or Atlanta in round one of the playoffs, as they’ll await the loser of the Week 13 Flyers-Hustle showdown. Few are expecting Austin to replicate their magical Championship Weekend run from a year ago, however it was absolutely stunning as it unfolded in 2023, so the Sol have a general roadmap of emotions and tactics to perhaps create some more chaos in the coming weeks.
We shall see.
7. Houston Finish 2024 at 5-7
The only team in the league whose season truly came to a close in Week 11, the Havoc capped their second ever campaign with a one-goal win over the Legion and a 10-goal loss to the Sol. Houston went 5-0 against Dallas this season, but were outscored by 75 goals in their other seven games, all losses.
“Beating a team five times in one season is no small task,” said Houston’s Ben Lewis. “I am proud of how the team showed up every game against Dallas. Yea, the games against Atlanta, Austin, and Carolina were pretty lopsided, but there was a lot of good that came from those games.”
The Havoc did improve their win total from their inaugural 2023 season, when they finished 2-10. A dozen rookies on the 2024 squad added some new juice to Houston’s outlook.
“I want to highlight Caiden Burt and Kyle Kolafa,” said Lewis. “Caiden was tasked with guarding Alec Wilson Holliday all season. If you go back and watch the first game, you can see AWH got the better of Caiden. But what I loved about Caiden is that he didn’t get discouraged. You could see the confidence build every game. Then this last game against Dallas, he was a nightmare for AWH.
“Then, there is Kyle. He came to tryouts with zero competitive ultimate experience. He is a gamer and one of the best teammates I’ve ever played with. He was a sponge all season and he let Coach Bex [Forth] shape him into an ultimate player.”
Overall, Lewis, who’s led the team in scoring two years in a row, looks at the second season of Havoc ultimate as a success.
“Of course, I want the instant gratification of winning and making the playoffs, but I’ve got to look at the bigger picture and that is helping build a franchise that is going to be competitive for years to come. I was so proud of how the team improved this year. We more than doubled our wins from last year and the atmosphere and fan base continue to grow. We have the youth that will continue to get better and grow with each season, so the foundation for this franchise to springboard in the future.”
The Hammer
One recurring storyline as the season nears its conclusion will undoubtedly be the varying levels of the four different divisions. There’s clearly a perception that the East is the best, but the parity across the league and throughout every quadrant is definitely more apparent than ever before.
In 2023, these were the interdivisional records across the four divisions in the regular season:
East: 8-2
South: 4-4
West: 2-4
Central: 1-5
In 2024, notice how things have shifted:
South: 5-3
East: 3-3
Central: 4-4
West: 2-4
Obviously, there’s a smorgasbord of context that goes into every matchup and these standings are a gigantic oversimplification of interdivisional strength, but it is an interesting snapshot of how the season has played out.
There are also two more interdivisional contests coming up during the final two weeks of the season, as Minnesota hosts New York this Friday and Pittsburgh travels to Philly in Week 13.
In three days, I’ll be back at TCO Stadium, the site of last year’s Championship Weekend festivities, for the highly anticipated first ever battle between the Wind Chill and the Empire.
With every week, the games get bigger, the intensity rises, and it’s truly a privilege to be along for the ride.
