Game Day USA - 10 August 2019

Eight weeks remain until Nationals.  Each game is important for seeding and positioning heading towards that one weekend in October where champions are crowned.  This weekend, there are seventeen games in six cities across the country as part of the USAFL league lineup.  Here is what’s on tap, as well as game and location info.  All games are being played on Saturday, August 10th.

EAFL ROUND 4 @ BOSTON
Pope John Paul II Park, Boston (Event Page) 11am EDT

-- MEN: Boston v Philadelphia, Boston v New York, New York v Philadelphia
-- WOMEN: Boston, Philadelphia, DC, Montreal

New York, New York, they are very much a part of it.  At 4-0 in the round-robinish competition, the Magpies can wrap up their tenth EAFL Competition with a sweep over the Demons and Hawks.  Both Boston and Philly can, however, keep the competition alive if either can knock off New York.  Normally this would be a monumental task, but this is the Div 2 and Div 1 regional champions we’re talking about here.  The Dees have yet to play an EAFL game, while the Hawkers lost to New York at home and picked up a walkover win against North Carolina to be 1-1 in league play.

On the women’s side, the Lady Demons, Lady Hawks, Lady Eagles and Angels will come together as each get set for Division 2 play at Nationals.

PORTLAND @ MINNESOTA
Eagan Community Center, Eagan, MN (Event Page) 10am CDT

-- MEN: Minnesota Freeze v Portland Steelheads
-- WOMEN: Minnesota Freeze v Portland Sockeyes

There is a bit of history in both matchups at Lake Nakomis.  The men’s matchup is a rematch of last year’s Nationals D2; the Freeze beat Portland twice in a 24-hour span, first in Group Play and then again in the Grand Final.  Both are coming off of opposite results at regionals – Portland battled through a tough D2 Western gauntlet in Salem, while Minnesota but up hearty fights against powerful Austin and Denver at Centrals.

On the women’s side, the Freeze and Sockeyes renew pleasantries after Minnesota upended Portland at Nationals last season in D1 pool play.  The two sides came together in 2016 to win, as a combined side, that year’s Western Regionals.

SACRAMENTO & ORANGE COUNTY @ LOS ANGELES
Charles H. Wilson Park 2200 Crenshaw Blvd, Torrance, CA 90501 - 1:30pm PDT

MEN: Los Angeles v Orange County, Los Angeles v Sacramento, Orange County v Sacramento
WOMEN: Los Angeles Dragons v Sacramento Lady Suns

The Suns head down I-5 to tangle with two SoCal rivals on the men’s side, while two D2 women’s teams duke it out in a test ahead of Nationals.  The Giants defeated Sacramento’s men by 28 points two weeks ago in Salem at the Western Regionals, and will try to do the same again in neighboring LA.  The Dragon men, meanwhile, beat OC earlier in the season in SoCal Cup play, and will try to duplicate the feat with a full complement of fire breathers.

VANCOUVER & DENVER @ SEATTLE
Stewart Heights Park, Tacoma, WA (Event Page) 11am PDT

MEN: Seattle v Denver, Seattle v Vancouver, Vancouver v Denver
WOMEN: Seattle Grizzlies v Denver Lady Bulldogs

Seattle fancies themselves as Division 1 probable in a couple of years.  This home test against Denver and against rival Vancouver will be a good litmus test for that milestone.  The Bulldogs, meanwhile, will play their first match against Seattle since the 2011 Nationals, which Denver won.  They’ll also face Vancouver for the first time since Nats in 2009; the ‘Dogs won that one too.

For the women, it’s also a Nationals rematch, as the Bulldogs look for payback after Seattle ended their finals streak in the semis last season in Racine.  The Bulldogs’ two teams finished 2nd and 4th at Regionals in Denver, while the Grizzlies finished second from the four teams at the Westerns.

COLUMBUS @ NASHVILLE
Elmington Park, Nashville (Event Page) 3pm CDT

Men: Nashville Kangaroos v Columbus Cats
Women: Nashville Kangaroos v Columbus Cats

Midwest rivals go at it again, but this time it’s a first ever double header in the Music City between them at Historic Elmington Park.  Nashville’s women, fresh off of all-regional performances by Brooke Elias and Natalie Smith at their two regionals, try to notch their second win of the year. While Columbus goes in search of their first official W after losing to Chicago two weekends ago.

The men’s match is a rematch of June 29th in Cincinnati, when the Kangas bested the Hoops by 21 points.  Columbus will try to snap a five game losing streak in the process.

BALTIMORE @ MAINE
Wainright Athletic Complex, South Portland, ME (Event Page) 1pm EDT

Men: Maine Cats v Baltimore Dockers

The Dock Show goes in its furthest regular season road trip, as they take to the banks of Casco Bay to face the Mainers.  The Cats played their first USAFL game of the season, a good albeit losing effort to Boston, while Baltimore is on the hunt for win number nine in game number eleven in 2019.