Ryan Baker
On Saturday, the Madison Radicals took down the Indianapolis AlleyCats for the third time in 2026, this time breaking from the themes of the previous two meetings.
The Radicals didn’t have to wait until the final minutes or seconds to secure the win. They built on a huge second quarter, outscoring the AlleyCats by three behind an atypical deep-game performance.
The defense took a step up from where it had been playing, too. The eight breaks were the second-most they’ve put up in a game this season, and the 14 blocks as a collective are the most the team has produced in 2026.
“Until later, when the rain started, it was total dead air, so it was easier to punish their fronting defense,” said Head Coach Jacob Spiro. “Other than a few points here and there, we executed the defensive game plan better for sure. The players who subbed in for us also outplayed Indy’s depth players.”
Considering both teams were missing many key players and the weather was a bit tricky to navigate, this game could have turned into a slopfest. The humidity and still air, with an impending storm, made it muggy and rather wet. It wasn’t until halfway through the third quarter that the showers began, which just caused havoc.
The game started out the same as a lot of Madison’s recent starts, going down a break on the fourth point of the game after Jake Carrico threw a callahan. The AlleyCats then shot a deep pass too far, giving Madison possession in the back of their end zone. A wholesale timeout led to them working it up the field, capped off by an Eric Sjostrom blade to Max Sample. That evened the score at three.
Shortly before the Radicals broke it open, they were down by one coming out of the second quarter. A 5-1 run created the separation. A 17-throw opening point, then taking advantage of drops and missed hucks from Indy, put them up 9-6.
With just over a minute left in the half, a Nico Ranabhat turnover almost let the AlleyCats creep into the game, but a bad throwaway kept the lead at two. From there, Madison kept playing patient offense when needed and took advantage of mistakes by the young AlleyCats.
There were a few miscues from the Radicals in the third quarter, but they immediately answered with a break of their own. The rain was picking up and becoming an eighth defender, but a clutch block and huck by Kelsen Alexander was served on a platter to Anthony Gutowsky, who pushed the lead back to two.
With less than 40 seconds left in the third quarter, the AlleyCats wound up for a huck, and due to the slippery conditions, the disc slipped right out of the player’s hands. That gave Madison a short field, which Shane Otis turned into a Joe Leibforth break score and a three-point lead heading into the final 12 minutes.
The three-point lead was necessary as Indy pulled within two after a Sample turnover, but then the Radicals applied a death-by-a-thousand-cuts strategy. Two incredibly methodical offensive points with no turnovers combined for over three minutes of play. The deal was sealed once a turnover from Indy set up another Alexander-to-Gutowsky score, which was his fourth, with just over a minute to go.
Madison took care of business. Playing patient offense when needed, sending the open deep looks, and applying enough pressure on defense to force miscues and blocks, while taking advantage of those mistakes, will win you a game every time. However, it also helps when there are 22 miscues by your opponent.
“I think we did a very good job of correcting our ship when we dipped off course,” Robert said. “It can be easy to let the mistakes pile up, but we did a nice job last night of moving on to the next point and continuing to execute our game plan. I think we can always grow in our sideline energy and defensive effort.”
Noah Nicol, Otis, and John Tan stepped up to the plate and delivered with those key players out. Nicol had an assist and a goal, while Otis matched that and added a block. Tan had one block but was able to pin Indy back on occasion with his pulls.
“It’s a huge luxury as a coach to be missing Vic[tor] Luo, Mac [Weber], [Sam] Stark, Sterling [Knoche], Noa [Chun-Moy], Luke [Marks], J-Dub [Joshua Wilson], Kyle [Conniff], and Arthur [Carne], and be able to turn to players who have not only played for us in the past but have continuity with other people on their line,” Spiro said. “Shout out to Oat [Otis], JT [John Tan], and Noah Nicol for really stepping up and playing with confidence when we needed them.”
Pieran Robert continued his amazing season with three assists, two goals, and a block. Robert was also seen on multiple occasions speaking to his team in the huddle on the sideline, a role he has embraced heading into the season and one that has been enhanced by his stellar play.
“Away games are always tough in terms of generating energy on our sideline,” Robert said. “I think it’s really important to make sure we keep our heads up and celebrate each other throughout the game. If we can all lead with our voices and help our teammates know we have their back, we’re able to put together a much more cohesive and tight game.”
Ian McCosky, Ranabhat, and Gabe Vordick played well in the backfield, all completing passes at a 97 percent clip with more than 33 completions each. Mitchell McCarthy also stepped up in his role with some of his fellow D-line teammates out and went 21/21, adding two assists, a goal, and a block.
“With Vic out, I had to step into the main handler role for D-line and prime lines, and everyone was making it really easy on me,” McCarthy said. “It didn’t feel like I had to throw into any tight windows or throw high-stall bailouts.”
At 5-3 and with the tiebreaker over the AlleyCats, as long as the Radicals don’t completely fall apart, they will coast into hosting a playoff game in late July. An official clinch can happen Friday night at Breese Stevens Field when these two teams collide for the fourth and final time in 2026.
