Photo credit: Daniel Cohen
July 1, 2024
By Grant Loehrke
For the second time this season, the Chicago Union have lost to the UFA Central Division leaders: the Minnesota Wind Chill. However, Friday’s repeat game was decided by a slightly narrower margin than the teams’ last matchup at the Union’s home opener back in May.
Chicago trailed 3-6 to end the first quarter, but from that point on, the game was back-and-forth. A light drizzle did not hinder either team’s ability to complete passes, each tallying percentages at or above 95%. 58 of those completions came from Union veteran Sam Kaminsky, who also led the way in points played (21) alongside Dex Dremann. On the other side of the disc, 2024 college D-III offensive player of the year Will Brandt led the Wind Chill in both assists (4) and completions (43). Chicago’s main pitfall came in the huck category; not weighing on the percentage that were completed downfield, but on the number attempted in wet conditions. Yet another key stat line to note, Minnesota ran their offense with much fewer passes than Chicago (an over 100-pass difference across four quarters), a testament to their efficiency with the disc so far this season. Many of the Union’s pulls came from the dynamic duo of rookie Nate Astrom and second-year player Ian Falck, both of whom dominated the Union’s short game. Noah Hanson sealed the victory for Minnesota in the final minutes of the fourth quarter with two clutch blocks, ultimately preventing the Union from tying it up. The 17-16 Minnesota victory represented a seemingly closer game than the Union’s 16-14 loss earlier in the season, as the Union led the Wind Chill for a few more periods on Friday than they did in their previous matchup.
Photo credit: Norman Timonera
Chicago is not through with Minnesota yet; the two teams face off yet again at Minnesota on Saturday, July 6. This is the Union’s last regular-season matchup with the UFA Central Division leaders, but the teams will likely meet again at some point in the postseason.