Photo by Burt Granofsky (UltiPhotos)
By Avery Martin
Boston Glory clinched a playoff berth with a dominant win over the Philadelphia Phoenix 30-14. Glory played a near-perfect game of frisbee on defense, as young players stepped up and led Boston to their fourth straight playoff appearance.
Coming off of what was their most impressive stretch of the season, with back-to-back wins against the New York Empire and the DC Breeze, Boston looked to bring some of the magic they found on the road back home to Hormel Stadium. After Saturday night’s game, it’s hard to deny Boston found something special.
Roan Dunkerley, who is coming off a season as a college national champion with UMass, had a career night against Philadelphia. Dunkerley contributed two assists and four goals to help propel Glory to the win.
“It’s just the trust that my teammates put into me,” said Dunkerley. “It felt great to be able to go out there and show them what I can do.”
Tonight was all about the plethora of young talent Boston has been able to develop. Missing key offensive players like Orion Cable and Jeff Babbitt, Glory’s up-and-coming stars would have their opportunity and would not let it go to waste.
It was clear from the first quarter that we were witnessing something special from Glory. In a high-scoring back-and-forth affair in the first frame, Peter Boerth and Dunkerly were responsible for 5/7 Boston scores.
Boston would need all those points, with Phoenix holding the lead until the very end of the first quarter. Boston lost the lead and then tied the game multiple times throughout the first quarter. Early on, it looked like we were in for a shoot-out.
Glory finally took the lead on a momentum-shifting sequence when Thomas Edmonds found Beorth in the endzone to tie it at 6. Boston’s defense was able to get a quick stop and score on the subsequent break to take a 7-6 lead at the end of the first quarter.
Starting in the second quarter, Boston would play some of the best defense they’ve played all season. Only allowing eight points the rest of the game. On top of that, Glory’s defense would convert on a staggering 14 break opportunities.
“It felt like they put up some shots early and came down with them,” said head coach Sam Rosenthal. “We knew we had to start coming down with them, and once we did, they weren’t gonna take this one back from us.”
4/8 of Philadelphia's completed huck attempts came in the first quarter. They would not have this same success the rest of the night. Boston had 11 blocks, 10 of which came in the last three quarters.
Tannor Johnson-Go had three of those blocks. It’s not random that Boston’s best defensive performance of the season coincided with the return of the 2025 Defensive Player of the Year.
In the two games Johnson-Go has played for Glory, they have allowed 29 points and scored 52. That is an eye-popping difference, and Boston will look for his contributions heading into the postseason.
The defensive player of the year for 2026 is still up for debate, however, and Oscar Graff made his case for the award tonight. He started off the second quarter with an assist to Zach Singer. This was his second of five assists; he also tallied two blocks and two goals on the night. Graff has been a spectacular handler for the Glory’s D-line all season and has played himself into being a major part of Glory’s success.
Philadelphia was able to trade scores with Boston throughout the second quarter until they were able to tie the game 9-9 with about 7 minutes left. This would be the closest the Phoenix would come to pulling off an upset as Boston rattled off 7 straight points to take a 16-9 lead into halftime.
Boston would use the momentum they built in the first half to bury Philadelphia, outscoring the Phoenix 14-5 in the second half, and securing their spot in the postseason with a 30-14 victory.
“It feels good, the mindset is every single point matters,” said Dunkerley. “Now we are looking to the future and hoping to get a big win in Minnesota.”
This was a big win for Glory as some had questioned their spot as best in the East. Tonight’s performance leaves little doubt that, from top to bottom, this roster has what it takes to come out of this division and emerge in Madison.
Glory will have a rare pair of weeks off before hitting the road for a much-anticipated championship game rematch versus the Minnesota Wind Chill on July 11.
