By Avery Martin
Boston Glory took down the Minnesota Wind Chill to end their undefeated season in a thrilling 21-20 victory. Reigning MVP Tobe Decraene continued his hot streak and put on a passing clinic, tallying 9 assists to lead Glory to victory.
The first quarter was all Boston as they jumped out to a 7-3 lead. It was clear from the very beginning the offensive talent on both sides of the disc would be put on full display, with both teams scoring a point in the first minute of the game.
Following the quick back and forth to start the game, Minnesota got a stop and called a timeout in an attempt to convert the break. This led to an impressive stop by the Boston D-line and a timeout by Sam Rosenthal so he could get the offense back out for a hard-fought hold. This early timeout strategy paid off, as Thomas Edmonds capitalized on the assist from Peter Beorth to give Glory the 2-1 lead.
Boston was able to grab early momentum thanks to their ability to convert on the break, which Boston did three times in the first quarter. Boston used both of their timeouts in this quarter to give them the edge on break opportunities, and this strategy would end up paying dividends for Glory.
In the second quarter, the Wind Chill offense gained some momentum by converting on some deep shots, scoring on three hucks. They were 8 of 10 on hucks for the game, as two of the league’s top offenses put on a show in the first half.
Even with the offensive onslaught, Boston was able to stretch their lead to four, which would be the largest of the night for Glory. After Oscar Graff found Jackson McGuinness in the front of the end zone to convert on another Glory break opportunity.
Glory survived a late push by Minnesota to take a 12-10 lead into halftime. The early lead silenced the 2,500-person crowd that had fueled Minnesota's undefeated season.
It would be a tale of two halves for Boston, however, as Glory couldn’t carry their momentum to the second half. Boston started the half with some unforced errors and lost their lead at the end of the third quarter. The reason Boston was able to weather the storm against the league’s last undefeated team?
Tobe Decraene.
The reigning MVP had six assists in just the second half. That accounted for two-thirds of all of Boston’s second-half points. On top of that, he made multiple diving catches to keep possession during a tightly contested second half. The reigning MVP showed up on the biggest stage for Glory.
The third quarter was evenly matched, but Boston allowed a break, and a late third-quarter score left the game 17-17 going into the fourth quarter. One of the most anticipated matches of the season would come down to the final frame, and it would not disappoint.
Boston lost the lead in the first possession of the fourth, but quickly re-tied the game, scoring on a point that had four combined turnovers. A gritty defensive stand by Boston’s O-line led to Tobe Decraene finding Edmonds for the score.
Boston then rattled off two straight scores to take a 20-18 lead. The Wind Chill answered quickly, however, when Paul Krenik found Noah Hanson for the score to make it 19-20.
Thomas Edmonds snuffed out any hopes of an undefeated team in the Ultimate Frisbee Association this season when he found Ben Sadok for the long score down the right sideline.
The Wind Chill were able to get one back in garbage time, but Glory bled off the final few seconds to win 21-20 and improve to 10-1 on the season.
Tobe Decraene ended the game with 9 assists, one goal, and a signature performance on primetime to solidify a rock-solid MVP case. His running-mate, Thomas Edmonds, had six goals and the game-sealing assist.
The two have built strong chemistry and found their groove at the perfect time. Glory looks to end their season with a win at home against the Montreal Royal on June 18th at 7 pm to clinch the top spot in the East Division.
