Titans Top Forge 2-1
By: Isabel Roseth
The New York Titans arrived in Boston in hopes of continuing to forge their way to an 18-0 record, but following intense beater play and transition superiority from their rivals,Titans came out a game short. The three game series took place in Boston on Saturday, June 15 in windless warm conditions, setting the stage for both teams to demonstrate their prowess.
They did exactly that — Forge and Titans are each other’s biggest challenge of the regular season, and Saturday’s showings made it clear that they are not to be underestimated this summer. New York and Boston are the top two franchises in the East division and, until this series, have gone relatively untested. New York blew the Washington Admirals out of the water 3-0 on June 1, while Forge shot down the Aviators last week with a score differential no lower than 115. Heading into this past weekend's matchup, Boston certainly had something to prove, and despite New York’s 2-1 series win, both teams convinced the crowd of their ability to put up a fight.
While New York won the first two games, Boston ultimately overtook them in the third, clinching amidst a close final score. “We were kind of put in a rough spot,” Titans Head Coach Tate Kay told Fast Break News following the series. “Putting a lot of pieces together in a short amount of time was tough, and you can tell.” However, Kay was proud of their team for fighting hard throughout and adjusting their play as needed. While Boston’s “[three] trees” approach shook New York up, Kay said his team simply needs to focus on the “upstairs, mental” aspects of the game and move the ball more.
Alternatively, Forge emerged from the third and final battle with the opportunity to look back on what went right. Leeanne Dillmann, Assistant Coach for Boston, commended Forge’s chaser game and beater strategy. “I think our first game we were looking at- frankly, we were getting cooked by the JJs [Titans chasers Jonathan Jackson and Josh Johnson] and I think we adjusted our chaser defense,” she said, adding that in game three, “our chasers dominated on the field, so even though they caught, we were in a good position.”
Max Havlin and Lulu Xu (BOS), who recently beat for the US National Team at IQA World Cup 2023, were a fearsome pair; this long-term beater pair worked together to create no-dodgeball situations and open up lanes for their chasers by picking off opposing players one-by-one.
As anticipated by many, the “JJs” — Josh Johnson and Jonathan Jackson (NY) — dominated the pitch, despite the fact that Josh Johnson’s personal goal of an 18-0 season did not pan out. Both players are also part of the USNT standing team, and were rostered at IQA World Cup 2023. and Johnson helped the Austin Outlaws reach that coveted 18-0 milestone the same summer. This summer, the Titans greatly benefit from his skill. The other JJ, Jackson, was a formidable threat on offense; his dunks on hoops players played a large role in New York’s scoring.
New York overcame Boston in the first game with a final score of 155-70, but the score differential only reflects a sliver of gameplay. For the first 20 minutes, Titans and Forge repeatedly traded point for point while the beaters battled it out. In an early play, a card on Christian Barnes (NYC) for a questionable possession of 2 dodgeballs gave control to Kieran Collier and Ufuk Guner. Despite Boston’s success, Titans Ryan Leary of Emerson College, in their second-ever Major League Quadball series, scored the first goal of the game in the same offense. Forge chaser William Richardson, who plays for Brown University, shortly followed up with a goal for Boston, tying the score 10-10.
Forge’s “trees” defense, set up to prevent Titans from taking shots, prompted chasers to dunk on Boston’s defenders and cut to hoops. Cutting off these drives in his MLQ debut, Ethan Dillon (BOS) was the sole defender up top. Conversely, Titans set up a “two-two” zone defense, and Forge attempted to strong-arm their way through it. In an impressive play, Athena Mayor (USNT) (BOS) passed to Peter Lawerence in the midst of fighting off a tackle, and once the whistle blew, Boston returned to their hoops with a tied score of 30-30. However, Lawrence’s aggressive playing style led to a yellow card early on for illegal contact.
Dillon made two wraps on two individual New York chasers, allowing Lawrence the opportunity for a fast break. Zach Doyle (BOS) blocked a shot by a New York chaser, but in the next offense, Mohammed Haggag (NYC) did the same to Forge. Largely thanks to their physical playing style, Haggag was a particularly key part of the Titans’ defensive stops. That said, they did earn themselves a card for illegal contact.
Once Boston was up 60-50, New York fought even harder to stop the opposing team from racking up more points. Up top on defense, chaser Mike Li (NYC) prevented Forge players from driving towards hoops, while Lindsay Marella — another Team USA player — intercepted and ended a Boston possession. Johnson continued to block shots and passes to shut down Forge’s offenses. Conversely, Forge defenders struggled to step from hoops, allowing New York’s chasers to dunk and score. Despite that struggle, Zach Doyle (BOS) was a key component in Boston’s defensive stops throughout the series.
At the 20 minute mark, the Titans were up 80-60; if Boston could catch, they would only be up by 15 points, not quite enough of a leg up to ensure themselves a win. They sent in seeker Stephen Trempel, while Haggag seeked for New York. Tessa Mullins (NYC) continuously beat out Trempel, preventing him from getting many looks. Havlin (BOS) kept an eye on Haggag, and eventually Haggag subbed out for Jason Ng (NYC), and Richardson went in for Trempel. While flag runner chaos ensued, Forge floundered without their beaters on defense, and New York readily took advantage. After a few minutes of seeker play, Ng caught, putting Titans in a comfortable 135-70 lead with a set score of 150.
New York had caught, and the game was essentially over, although Forge persisted until the end. Molly Potter (NYC) scored after a cut to hoops, and beater Mullins beat out Forge’s ball carriers to end their possessions. Ian Scura (BOS), also of Team USA, played a leading role in the final minutes of the game; in an impressive play, he raced from hoops to the other side of the field and got in front of a fast-breaking Titan to end their offense just in the nick of time. However, a running goal by Haggag won the game for New York.
Titans faced a slightly greater challenge the second time around after Forge began to fine-tune their strategy, although still beating out Boston 145-100. Nail-biting half courts put Forge in the lead early on, albeit small leads. Marella (NYC) saved the quadball from rolling out of bounds and hit it over to Johnson, who scored. Scura intercepted passes in three consecutive defenses. In one play, Scura blocked a pass, ran the quadball down to the other side of the pitch and passed to himself, and although he fumbled the ball, Emily Hickmott (BOS) recovered the possession and scored.
Shakthi Kodeswaran (NYC) also made his MLQ debut. He and Marella marked the last possession before the 20 minute mark after he blocked a shot and she caught the quadball. At that point, Titans and Forge were tied 60-60, and it could have been anyone’s game. While the flag runner was on pitch, the score stayed close as the two opponents played point-for-point. Ufuk Guner and Erin McCrady (BOS) focused heavily on the seekers, which left Boston’s chaser game vulnerable.
Forge eventually subbed in Abraham Beningson to seek, and he did so defensively, prolonging seeker play. Haggag’s first catch was called no good, but his second — when the score was 110-100, a ten point difference — clinched the win for Titans.
Down two games with one to go, it was now or never for the Boston Forge, and they decided it was now. In what some might call an unexpected victory, Forge took the final game 170-135. Titans gave their newer, younger players more field time than the previous two match-ups, while Boston prioritized playing their stronger, more experienced players. Forge’s half-courts appeared more synchronized; their chasers’ passes seemed more strategic, which allowed them to seal the deal on offense.
At first, New York’s beaters excelled at distracting Forge’s, and their chaser offense took advantage. The Titans were in the lead by a couple goals early on, but Forge caught up after a pass to Andrew Steinberg (USNT) and their subsequent goal left the score 70-70. Dillon also scored for Forge, in one case while he had two defenders attempting to take him down. On Titans, Frank Minson had an impressive save in which he prevented the quadball from rolling out of bounds at the last second with a dive of his own.
Boston was only up by two goals at the 20-minute mark. Mullins (NY) made it difficult for Richardson (BOS) to get close enough to the flag runner to get a look, let alone catch. Haggag eventually caught once more for Titans while the flag runner was fighting off Beningson, but the 35 points were not enough to put New York in the lead. After the catch, Forge was still one point away from the game point. Once Havlin and Xu left the Titans with no dodgeballs, Lawrence passed to Scura, who proceeded to score the winning goal.
The biggest rivalry on the East Coast is far from over, but the two teams will not meet again until MLQ Championships at the earliest, if not next season. While New York came out on top with the series win, Boston wasn't lagging far behind. The Titans will face the Ottawa Black Bears on July 6 in Palisades Park, New Jersey, while Forge will play the Washington Admirals at home on July 20.
