North Central Third Place: 4NC Naptown Advances to Championships Over 2NC Detroit, 136-125

By Muckety Muck, Last updated Sun Oct 9 2011 9:33pm

INDIANAPOLIS, IN – There’s something to be said about home cookin’. For the host squad of Monumental Mayhem, success has never tasted so sweet.

Propelled by late a second half-scoring barrage and a stingy defense, fourth seeded Naptown defeated second seed Detroit 136-125 in the third place bout of the North Central region playoffs. The 11-point victory netted the host squad its first trip to the WFTDA Championships; for the second year in a row, Detroit came in as the second seed but failed to place in the top three.

The task would not be easy against a Motown squad still bitter about a semifinal loss to third seed Minnesota twenty-four hours earlier. It showed from the bout’s outset as Detroit raced out to a 35-0 lead in the first seven jams. Captain Racer McChaseHer’s four-point opener was followed by a five-point strike from Effin’ Money. McChaseHer collected another four at 25:25 to extend the lead to 12-0. Honey Suckit’s five-point tally on the next jam was followed by four from Cookie Rumble, which gave Motown a 21-0 lead at 23:10. Rumble later added a 14-point power jam two jams later to finish the 35-0 start.

The Tornado Sirens slashed the large deficit on the next jam as McChaseHer was sent to the box on a forearm penalty. Amooze Booche capitalized by netting 15 points on the power jam for the Tornado Sirens, cutting Detroit’s lead to 35-15 with 17:20 left in the first half.

Both teams traded numerous four-point jams as the half continued, which saw Detroit sport a 62-25 with 9:10 remaining. Naptown saw a surge in points in the final minutes, netting eight straight from Maiden America’s five followed by Dora the Destroyer’s three, which cut the gap to 62-33 Detroit with 6:20 left.

Following a trey from McChaseHer, Naptown went on a 16-0 run to end the first half. Majestic’s nine, Booche’s four and Dora’s three whittled the once 37-point advantage in half to a 65-49 Detroit lead at the break.

Naptown would continue to hold Detroit’s pointless stretch intact with the first two jams of the second half, resulting in a lead change. America’s four-pointer was followed by Booche’s 14-point sprint. The 16-0 run to begin the second period – and the 34-0 rally overall - gave Naptown its first lead of the bout, 67-65 with 27:40 remaining.

McChaseHer’s 17-pointer on the next jam made the Hoosier moral victory short-lived as Detroit regained the lead 82-67. Following a 4-3 run over the next two jams to extend the lead to 86-70, Detroit would go a 17-0 sprint over the next four jams. Punctuated by McChaseHer’s seven-point tally with 18:00 left, the second seed had built up a 103-70 edge.

Naptown’s R.I.P.Tide countered with an 18-point punch at 16:20, which began a 25-0 run for the fourth seed. Following four from Booche and three from Messiah, Naptown narrowed the gap to 103-95 with 13:30 remaining.

McChaseHer and her blocking schematic built back up a double-digit margin for Detroit with nine points, extending the lead 112-95. Indy whittled the lead to two following Dora’s 15-pointer – making the bout a 112-110 nail biter with under 8:00 remaining. Booche’s four-pointer on the next jam would push Naptown in front 114-112.

Then with 3:30 left, Naptown’s Maiden America was sent to the penalty box for her fourth minor. Mere seconds later, Detroit’s Rumble was sent off for the same infraction. After America was sprung from the penalty box, the Tornado Siren scored 24 off of the power jam, giving Naptown a 132-115 lead with 3:20 remaining.

Naptown controlled the clock in the end and finished the half outscoring Detroit 87-60 en route to the 11-point victory, the third place finish and its first trip to the WFTDA Championships.

Unofficially, Naptown was paced by Booche’s 51 points while Detroit was led by McChaseHer’s 48.