Ryan Baker
For the first time since 2017-18, the Madison Radicals will be making back-to-back playoff appearances!
This past weekend, Madison secured two wins, bringing their record to 6-3 and clinching a spot to face either Chicago or Minnesota in the first round of the 2025 playoffs.
The first win was against the Detroit Mechanix, 29-19, in an easy win at Breese Stevens Field. The second win came the next day when they traveled to Indianapolis and defeated the AlleyCats, 24-19.
Much like the first game against Detroit, the first quarter was a tight one. While the Radicals jumped out to a 4-1 lead, Detroit was able to claw themselves back within two by the end of the first quarter. A Kai Marcus to Kainoa Chun-Moy goal with one second left gave Madison that two-point lead.
Detroit hung in the game until about halfway through the second quarter on the back of Jake Felton’s monster game. Madison didn’t have too much of an answer as Felton had over 500 total yards with over seven minutes left in the first half.
After a three-point run by Madison, then a hold by Detroit, the score was 14-10. This is where the Madison put Detroit into the ground. After a couple turns, Detroit had the disc on their front cone, and as Felton swung the disc to the middle of the field, Jake Carrico broke off from his defender on the back side, laid out, and snatched a Callahan before the Felton swing hit the ground.
This gave Madison even more momentum, a five-point lead, and gave Carrico his fourth career Callahan. No other player in the history of the UFA has three career Callahans, and Carrico has three in his last 20 games.
I would say I have a pretty good instinct for realizing when an opposing thrower is in a tight spot on the field, and I have a pretty aggressive mentality on when to take my chances. It really is a product of the style of defense that [Jacob] Spiro and Tim [DeByl] scheme up, and my other teammates playing incredible defense downfield. Knowing they always have my back when I decide to go make an aggressive play makes it worth the risk,” said Carrico.
Detroit had too many self-inflicted wounds the rest of the way. Coming out of halftime, Madison had a 16-10 lead and was able to extend that lead to 22-15 after a last-second Gabe Vordick to Kai DeLorenzo goal. It was good to see DeLorenzo get back on the field, and his 30-40 yard chunk throws provided a nice change of pace for the Radicals.
The game stayed relatively consistent from there, in terms of what had been happening the rest of the night. A few more miscues by Detroit, some second chances for Madison, and all of a sudden, that clock hit zero with a Madison 10-point win.
You heard the names of Anthony Gutowsky, Chun-Moy, and Nico Ranabhat called often in this one. Gutowsky walked away with six goals, two blocks, and one assist. Meanwhile, Chun-Moy threw five assists and scored two goals, with Ranabhat punching in four goals of his own. Ranabhat has quietly been putting up a career season, being second on the team in goals, and scoring 10 times in his last three games.
“Coming off injury, I’ve gained a real appreciation for every rep. I know how quickly they can be taken away, and that mindset of gratitude has helped me stay focused and mentally sharp. But really, it’s the people around me. The coaching staff has put me in positions to succeed, and my teammates bring an energy I can feed off of, especially when it’s tough to push,” said Ranabhat.
With the win, the scene was set for Saturday night. A win for Madison clinches a playoff spot, and conversely, a loss for Indy would eliminate their chances for the season. Indy’s head coach, Drew Shepperd, brought his healthiest and best squad of the year to this matchup, but it was to no avail.
“Any time you’re able to mathematically clinch a playoff spot, there’s always some sense of relief, but we know we aren’t fully in our best form yet and have some things to clean up to prove that we can compete and beat the likes of Chicago and Minnesota,” said Carrico.
Madison came out and scored three straight, but Indy climbed their way back in it. After a bad turn in the final seconds of the first quarter by Kai Marcus, Indy was able to punch in a break with one second left, putting them down by one.
The second quarter brought on some longer points, but with plenty of Indy turns and Madison capitalizing, the Radicals were up 13-8 heading into halftime. This is where things got a bit interesting.
The AlleyCats started to do short pulls. To explain, they would throw the disc about five yards from their pulling space, placing the Radicals’ offense about 20-25 yards out from the end zone. It forces the offense to sprint up the field to avoid the pre-stall penalty and makes them work with a very short field.
It can be an interesting strategy, but it did not pay off. There were a couple of points where Madison struggled, but for the most part, the Radicals stayed patient and punched in the goal almost every time. Another last-second goal by Indy put the score at 18-15 heading into the final quarter.
Three Chun-Moy to Gutowsky connections in the fourth quarter solidified the game for Madison. Those two were on fire this weekend as they connected seven different times for scores throughout the weekend. Chun-Moy had eight assists in this one, bringing his total to 13 on the weekend.
The other end of that connection, the goal-scorer, Gutowsky, was on a rampage this weekend. He grabbed 13 goals over the two games, pushing himself to first in the entire UFA in goals. Gumby is at 45 goals on the year through nine games. The next four players underneath him have played in 10 games, with the next closest at 42 goals. The weekend also put Gutowsky on pace for a 60-goal season.
Now, it’s tough to quantify where Madison is after this weekend. Did they clinch a playoff spot? Yes. Did they go 2-0 with a combined point differential of 15? Yes. Were there times when they looked incredibly sloppy? Also, yes. Were there also times that Madison looked incredibly crisp? Again, yes.
“This weekend was a great step for us. Winning both games in a doubleheader is never easy, especially with the quick turnaround and the heat in Indy. We came out strong despite a short warmup, which says a lot about our focus. That said, we know we let off the gas at times, and there’s still plenty of room to grow. What I love about this team is that we’re not satisfied. The energy has been positive, and we’re locked in on what we can control. We know there’s still more to prove,” said Ranabhat.
These were two games against two of the bottom teams in the league. Right now, can Madison compete with the likes of Chicago and Minnesota? Probably not. Can they get to that level before the postseason? They definitely could, and now they have the room to test out different sets, strategies, and personnel.
We will see what happens over the course of the next three weeks. Madison will have Indy again this week then follow that up with a trip to Minnesota a week later, and then close the season by hosting Chicago.
Madison Radicals vs Indianapolis AlleyCats July 5th 6:00pm Breese Stevens Field
