The Maryland Charm faced the Boston Guard Friday night in the next to last WLL regular season game. A win by the Charm would punch their ticket to the WLL Championship Game next month. Meanwhile, the Guard needed to win to remain in the hunt for a berth in the title game. Adding to the pressure level for Boston: this was their first game after a six week break in their schedule. It showed to some degree in the first half, as they fell behind to the Charm 11-5.
By the start of the fourth quarter, the Guard managed to cut the Charm lead down to two. However, the Guard could not overcome their slow start, dropping a 21-17 decision. Boston falls to 0-3 with the loss and is eliminated from the race to the Finals. The Charm finish the regular season 3-1 and have clinched a berth in the WLL Championship Game. They will face either the California Palms or the New York Charging, depending on the outcome of the final regular season game between Boston and California on August 8.
Clark nets 9 for the Guard, but they cannot overcome a slow start
Boston did all they could to keep their playoff hopes alive. In the absence of Charlotte North, it was Rachel Clark who did the heaviest lifting, setting a WLL record with nine goals in this game, to go with two assists for 11 points on the night, and giving her a total of 20 points on the season, tied for the league lead. Clark also leads the league in goals with 16. Madison Ahern added two goals, and Kaylee Dyer had a goal and two assists. The Guard also got a goal each from Shea Baker, Ava Angello, Dempsey Arsenault, Annabel Frist, and Kiley Mottice. Maddie Epke won 26 of 40 draw controls, and picked up a game-high 18 ground balls. On the back end, goaltender Shea Dolce made 13 saves on 34 shots from the Charm.
Several Charm players had their own big performances in this game, starting with rookie midfielder Brigid Duffy. Duffy had seven goals and three assists for 10 points, caused two turnovers and picked up 9 ground balls to lead all Charm players. Sydni Black (5g, 2a), Ashley Humphrey (3g, 4a), Ally Kennedy (4g, 2a), and Sam Apuzzo (2g, 4a) also led the way for the Charm. Duffy (11g, 9a) and Humphrey (6g, 14a) both finish the regular season with 20 points, currently tied with Boston’s Rachel Clark, who has one more game to play this season. Humphrey and Duffy are also currently #1 and #2 (respectively) in the WLL in assists.
Are the Charm now the frontrunner to win the inaugural WLL title?
Maryland’s defense caused 13 turnovers in the game, keeping every Guard player outside of Clark in check. However, the Charm still have room for improvement in some areas. Chase Boyle, Livy Rosenzweig, and Apuzzo combined to go just 14 for 40 on draw controls. Then there is the goaltender situation. Caylee Waters once again got the start, despite making just two saves and allowing 10 goals in one half of play in Maryland’s second game against the Charging. Waters had a bounce-back performance, allowing just five Boston goals in the first half, but she would unexpectedly be thrust back into action early in the fourth quarter.
Rookie goaltender Jenika Cuocco, who was the hero in the second half of Maryland’s win against New York, allowed eight Boston goals in approximately 14 minutes of play from the start of the third quarter, as the six-goal lead the Charm had at halftime got reduced to two with 10 minutes left in regulation. Despite allowing another four goals in the second half, Waters continued to make key saves down the stretch to thwart the Guard’s comeback attempt, including a stop on Clark while caught outside the crease that prevented Clark from reaching double-digits in goals for the game.
With each goaltender having both a standout performance and a performance to forget over the last two games, it certainly begs a pair of questions: Does Maryland continue using the two-goalie system in the Finals? And if so, who gets the start? The answers to these questions might very well determine whether the Charm walk away with the inaugural WLL Championship in August.
