By RICHIE HALL
Everything was dramatic about the Indianapolis AlleyCats’ game with the Minnesota Wind Chill on Saturday night, in the first round of the American Ultimate Disc League playoffs.
That includes the conditions and the game’s outcome. But the AlleyCats weathered both storms, holding off a furious charge from Minnesota to win 20-19 at Westfield High School’s Riverview Health Stadium. The victory gave Indy its first playoff win in six years; the AlleyCats will play at Madison next Saturday in the Midwest Division championship game.
“Playoffs, it’s win or go home,” said AlleyCats head coach Eric Leonard. “We had a good lead going into the fourth, but Minnesota made a big push at the end.”
Indy led 19-15 with 6:36 remaining in the fourth quarter. The Wind Chill then made a big push, cutting the AlleyCats’ lead to 19-18.
“I knew that was going to happen,” said Indy player Travis Carpenter. “I knew that they weren’t going to go down without a fight. Halfway through the fourth quarter I thought to myself, ‘This is a little bit too good to be true. I don’t think we’re going to beat them by multiple points. I know they have more left in them.’ Sure enough, they made that surge.”
Carpenter wound up being a hero for Indy on both offense and defense. He threw a pass to Aaron Schwartz with 2:44 left to score what would be the AlleyCats’ final goal of the game, putting them ahead 20-18.
Minnesota scored almost a minute later, cutting Indy’s lead to 20-19. The Wind Chill got the disc back and were threatening the goal line, but Carpenter came up to bat the disc away. Minnesota got one more chance with around 30 seconds left, but Spencer Loscar and Keegan North teamed up to force a turnover.
Carpenter said it was a matter of being mentally prepared for the Wind Chill’s last push.
“The AlleyCats have been in this situation many times before and so we know now what it takes, that extra effort, that extra push in your legs, that extra jump, that extra little bit you need to seal out the game, and I think that’s what was the difference here today was the fact that we had that experience before,” said Carpenter.
This was the first home game that Indy had played outdoors in a while; the AlleyCats had been playing for the past couple months at the Grand Park Events Center. That in itself affects the scoring, but the strong wind and occasional rain forced Indy’s strategy to play.
“The wind was gusty and strong, unpredictable, and the rain was on and off, so it was tough,” said Leonard. The coach said that his team “had to play a lot more conservatively,” and that was reflected in the scores.
Both teams were tied at 5-5 after the first quarter, and the AlleyCats led 11-10 at halftime. Indy then held a 15-13 advantage after three periods, then built a lead in the fourth before holding off Minnesota’s last comeback.
Levi Jacobs scored four goals to lead Indy’s scoring, while Sam Sohn had three goals. Cameron Brock handed out four assists, while Carpenter made three assists. Sohn also had three blocks.
Levi Jacobs scored four goals for the Indianapolis AlleyCats in their playoff win over Minnesota Saturday at Westfield High School’s Riverview Health Stadium. The AlleyCats won 20-19 and will play at Madison next Saturday in the AUDL’s Midwest Division championship. (Mike Gross)
Travis Carpenter swats down the disc in a key defensive play late in the fourth quarter. (Mike Gross)