BY: Alex “Shaggy” Shragis
PHOTO BY: Shawn Lanzillo
It was a tough Week 9 for the Philadelphia Phoenix, who faced Montreal and Boston on Friday and Saturday, losing by seven and 16 respectively, falling to 1-7 on the year. With the loss to Royal the Phoenix now sit firmly in last place of the East, and with their final four games against DC and New York, Philly is in danger of finishing last in the East for the first time since 2016. The loss to Boston also marks the first time since 2018 that the Phoenix have lost to the same team three or more times in the regular season — the Hotbirds suffered three losses to DC in 2022, two in the regular season and one in playoffs.
The rematch with Montreal was a struggle, as Royal jumped out to an early lead and Philly was never able to regain their footing, falling behind 9-5 in the first quarter. The Phoenix had several short field turnovers, with 9 of 21 coming on their half of the field, leading to easy break chances for the Royal. Montreal, who finished 10/13 on break chances, had the tenth most efficient defense playing offense of any team in any game this season with more than 10 break opportunities.
Coming out against Boston the next day, Philly played the best quarter and a half of frisbee they have had all year, breaking to take an early lead and breaking back to tie it again in the second quarter. However, after a Scott Heyman break goal was mistakenly ruled out of bounds, the Hotbirds unraveled, allowing 11 straight goals to Glory, who took a 19-9 lead before Philly would score again. Much like against Royal the night before, early turnovers put the Phoenix offense in difficult positions, and Boston converted on 15 of 21 break chances. In both games this weekend the Philly offenses allowed the opposition to convert on 70%+ of break chances, a mark that would be worst in the league if it carried throughout the entirety of the 2026 season.
The opponent break conversion rate is a particularly alarming statistic, and it speaks to some of the early drive difficulties the Phoenix have faced all season. Heading into the weekend, Philly ranked second to last in opponent DLC% — only the Pittsburgh Thunderbirds are ranked lower — allowing 64.49% of their turnovers to result in breaks for the other team. The nearly 65% number will only grow after this weekend, and it would be the second highest DLC% allowed by a team in league history, with only the current Thunderbirds season narrowly behind. Dedicated Hotbird Huck readers will remember the 2024 season where Philly was ranked last in opponent DLC%, setting the record for the worst defensive effort after a turnover. The 2026 Phoenix are currently on pace to be substantially rated lower, as the 2024 Hotbirds held opponents to a 61% conversion rate on break opportunities.
One huge bright spot from the weekend was the dynamic debut of Owen Erdman. The rookie had seven goals against Montreal and four assists against Boston, leading all Phoenix players in scores for the weekend. The rising sophomore from Brown University also led the Phoenix in receiving yards for both games, and finished with 853 total yards for the weekend. This marks the fourth week in a row that the Phoenix have had a stellar debut from a first or second year player, and it speaks to the strength of the Philadelphia youth movement, with huge contributions from Ezra Beidler-Shenk, Max Tran, Nolan McCloskey and Owen Erdman in the second half of the season, to say nothing of the load carried by players like Ethan Sarles, Chase Rawlins, Tyler Mackey, Jimmy Bray, Jack Wisner and a host of other first and second year Philly players who have stepped into big roles on a Phoenix team that is clearly in a transition year.
While the games certainly had growing pains for the players, they also generated important learning opportunities for the coaching staff. Adam Callahan — second year on the coaching staff and first year as head coach, and Harrison Schwarzer — first year coaching pro ultimate, are quickly learning the ins and outs of the UFA season. Both have done a good job at giving the team a direction, and guiding the roster through a particularly tumultuous period of Philly pro frisbee, with so many players leaving after the 2025 season. However, while both have a lot of experience coaching frisbee at other levels, they are still adjusting to the unique aspects of the pro game.
One of the most important facets of coaching professional frisbee is managing the referees. Reffing in the UFA is a difficult job. There are virtually no training opportunities to become a frisbee referee, it is a thankless position, and because refs tend to be pulled from the community, they are heavily influenced by the home crowd. There were two opportunities this weekend where the Philly coaches could have done a better job managing how the refs approached the game. Against Montreal, the referees allowed Royal to play far too physically, leading to several injuries as Montreal players dove into Philly players after the catch, culminating in an injury to Max Tran. This play was typified by Thomas Lalonde-Landry punching Colin White in the hand, causing him to drop the disc. The referee initially ruled it a foul, before conferring and deciding to waive the foul away, despite White being in considerable pain.
Against Boston, Philly called a timeout and subbed on their O-line and ran an excellent end zone set that ended in a Scott Heyman reception in the end zone. Referees ruled him out, however several replay reviews in the booth determined he was clearly in bounds. Both games presented opportunities for the Philly coaches to become heavily involved in the referee decisions, and while I would never advocate for anyone to get themselves thrown out of a game, going on to the field to argue for their players may have created a galvanizing moment for a Phoenix team who have struggled to stay invested in the game when they fall behind.
The Phoenix are off this weekend before returning to action Wednesday to face the New York Empire on July 1. Philly has been a much stronger team at home, and the Wednesday game catches the Empire in a bit of a lull, as the 2023 UFA champions have not played a game since June 12, marking a 20 day hiatus from frisbee. The Hotbirds follow that up with a second Week 11 game on Friday July 3 at home against DC. Get your tickets to the last two home games of the regular season on the Hotbird Web Shop: phoenixulti.com.
