Ryan Baker
The Madison Radicals need a win. It’s crucial. It’ll be a tall order when the Indianapolis AlleyCats travel to Breese Stevens Field on Friday, June 23.
Indy may be 5-2 and second place in the Central Division, but they are coming off of a rather shaky game against Detroit. Last week, the AlleyCats just squeaked out a win by one point late in the game to gie Detroit their 67th straight loss.
Madison is coming off their worst game of the season, losing by five to Minnesota in a fourth quarter meltdown. However, it was a game where they were missing a lot of firepower. That firepower returns for the second-straight home game.
Pat Schriwise will be back to give the offense a sense of confidence and calmness. Avery Johnson returns, along with Kelsen Alexander and Jack Kelly. The defense is still suspect with Sterling Knoche being listed as questionable. If he’s active come game time, be ready to see true Radical defense.
In the first matchup between the two, the Radicals lost on a last-second cross-field huck to the back corner that ended up in the hands of Cameron Brock. It was a game that Madison played well in, but they just failed to create blocks in an indoor environment.
Even with being outdoors, it is still going to be hard for the Radicals to create blocks on an Indy team that has turned the disc over the second-fewest times this season and has the highest completion percentage. The AlleyCats also have one of the best scoring defenses in the league, scoring 60% of the time when they get a turn.
The other circumstance was that the AlleyCats had three games under their belt opposed to Madison’s one. Now, both teams are battle-tested and game ready. Head coach Tim DeByl is aware of the struggles coming into the game and needs to change some things up.
“I think I probably waited a couple of games too long to try something different. So, you know, got to see what we got for next week as far as players and try something different,” said DeByl.
There has been potential all season for the Radicals, but it just hasn’t all connected quite yet. Veteran Victor Luo has seen the bright spots in his team, especially in the younger guys.
After the Minnesota game Luo had this to say, “We got some nice young players, like Gumby [Anthony Gutowsky] is looking great. Joe Leibforth is looking great. Matt Grinde played really well today on defense. We have a bright future. We just got to clean things up a little bit on offense, give our defense a chance.”
A win for the Radicals would set them up well in a couple different instances. Not only would they close the gap in the playoff race, but they would be a step closer to taking the season series against Indy. If a win goes to Madison, it would set up a rubber match between the two just a week later.
Both teams work their handler rotations more than most teams across the league. They both throw deep infrequently, and choose the methodical way to score more often than not. Look to see a slower-paced and lower-scoring game between the two.
Breese Stevens Field will be bringing the energy this Friday for the rematch between the Radicals and the AlleyCats at 7 p.m. CDT.
