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| 7/26/2010 11:52:00 AM | Email this article • Print this article |
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| JAMIE HARMS for Leader
Montreal Blitz defensive back Georgina Paull intercepts a ball meant for Bay Area Bandits receiver Lou Vitellaro in the IWFL’s Championship game Saturday at Kelly Reeves Athletic Complex. |
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Montreal blitzes Bandits to win IWFL title
By CLIFF COATS
Special to the Leader
This weekend the Kelly Reeves Athletic Complex was alive with activity. Like any typical Friday night in the fall the entire complex on Parmer was bustling with crew, fans and players. The players were the only difference - this time around they were all women.
They play in full pads under aggressive terms, running plays from the same playbooks we all know and love to see. These women are not in lingerie and there are no powder puffs in sight. This is the real deal.
The championship weekend stretched out over Saturday and Sunday with two tiers of competition settling their respective world championships on the first day with Sunday set aside for a friendly all-star competition featuring athletes from all 51 IWFL teams across North America.
Tier two had its championship game on Saturday morning when the Bay Area Bandits faced the Montreal Blitz.
The Bandits were excited to make the championship since it is their first year as a team, while the Blitz won the 2008 championship as well as bringing in the regional title last season.
Montreal won their second IWFL tier two championship in three years with a grueling 9-2 victory over the Bandits. The win made for a perfect 11-0 season for the Blitz, Canada's only semi-professional women's football team.
"We really take our hats off to the Bandits, they played their hearts out," said Blitz quarterback Saadia Ashraf after the game. "The game literally came down to a couple plays that made the difference. We want to thank our fans and our coaches for getting us here."
Saturday night saw a bit more offense when the Boston Militia took on the Sirens of Sacramento. Both teams won their conferences with perfect 10-0 seasons but only one would emerge victorious from the championship game.
Early on the defensive pressure and coordinated offensive attack of the Militia set the standard. Outstanding play from team captains Mia Brickhouse and Allison Cahill kept the Sirens on their heels all game, earning Boston a hearty 39-7 victory.
Round Rock Mayor Alan McGraw flipped the coin for the championship game. The Militia won the toss and never looked back.
Boston opened the game with a sustained 6:44 drive that was built on the hard running of Brickhouse from the running back position. The 32-year-old capped off the series with a 15-yard dash into the end zone that left three Sacramento players on their backs.
Boston's defense proved tough all night. Led by Vicky Eddy the Militia linebackers swarmed to the ball and simply would not allow the Sirens to build any momentum.
The second quarter saw Boston recover a fumble just as Sacramento started to threaten the red zone. Boston quarterback Cahill also did some damage with her foot-speed, gashing the Siren defense for several key runs for first down.
Linebacker Lineni Noa led the Sirens in a defensive stand forcing the Militia settle for a 36-yard field goal from Ashley Snyder to make the score 10-0.
Gigantic defensive linewoman Raxan English disrupted the Sirens offense greatly on their next drive and Boston took possession of the ball with little time left in the half. Striking deep into the heart of Sacramento territory, Cahill nailed a pass to Amy Saur for a 60-yard touchdown. The long bomb made the score 17-0 with 58.9 seconds left until halftime.
Siren center Mapuana Bal and the rest of the Sacramento offensive line came out in the second half ready to play but Boston's defense was still able to hold tough and force the punt.
Stacey Tiamfork made some hard earned yards up the middle for Boston while Allie Ronderique softened up the defense with series of serious skull shaking blocks.
With 3:50 left in the third quarter Tiamfork scored a rushing touchdown and Brickhouse put up the two point conversion making the score 25-0.
Cahill hit Saur for another long touchdown to open the fourth to make the score 32-0. On defense Briannah Gallo led the Militia in their efforts to hold on to the shutout victory.
Despite grinding out the clock for most of the quarter Militia running back Dawn Herring was able to rumble free and take a 42-yard run to the end zone for a touchdown. The last score by the Militia made for a 39-0 game.
To save some face Chantelle Powers was able to get the Sirens on the board with a last-minute touchdown pass to her tight end Julie Shockley to make the final score 39-7.
"I am overwhelmed with a joy I've never felt before. It has been a long road to this point, we own our families and friends and ourselves a lot for this victory," said Militia quarterback Cahill following the victory,
"A lot of hard work went into this. We owe so much to our players from the past and all our great fans."
She added, "This is my seventh year playing, I've been quarterback all seven years and we've really grown since I began. Every touchdown is everyone's touchdown; every win is everyone's win. We all did this together."
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