WOMEN’S EASTERN REGIONAL CHAMPS!

Yall. I am beaming.  I am so proud of the growth of the Baltimore/DC women’s team and what we’ve been able to achieve.

I started playing with the Baltimore-Washington Eagles in 2012 in the shadows of USA Freedom players Eileen Geoghegan, Judith Stein, and Karen Stablein. Since then we have been a consistently small group of strong players, but have had trouble getting past a critical number of players needed to field a full team.  Over the past year, with the help of some fresh leadership in DC’s Molly Halberstadt and Baltimore’s Kristin Poti, we have been able to recruit some fresh talent and make huge strides towards being able to field a full team.

Last year at Nationals, we had our highest numbers and wore our own uniforms at the tournament for the first time in my history with the club.  I was both proud of the Lady Eagles and heartbroken to be sidelined with an injury. This past weekend at Regionals in Philadelphia, though, I got to be a part of what our team has become.  With 14 players from DC and Baltimore, we paired up with a few Boston Demons players as the “Deeagles” (Demon Eagles? Docker Eagles? DemonDockerEagles?), and ultimately took home the cup after taking down Columbus/Philadelphia and New York in two well-matched, hard-fought games.

I cannot tell you how amazing it was to be on this field with this group of women.  Did you know we had FIVE first-time players? If you were on the sidelines you would never have guessed.  Between the players in their first games, other players who had only played one season before, and a small number of seasoned vets, we were able to link up across the field and make some magic happen.

Our first game we found ourselves lined up against a combined Columbus/Philly team in a game that was low scoring but fairly evenly matched on the field.  Strong competition between the teams occurred in the midfield with Kendall Jennings winning in the ruck with Karen Stablein, Molly Halberstadt, and Sam Worrall playing fiercely.  Baltimore player Kristin Poti took the first goal for the team.  Fearless play from our newest kept the momentum going and we were able to secure our first win of the season.

DC Eagles Women
2.4.16

Columbus Cats Women
0.2.2

After watching the NY Magpies defeat the Columbus/Philadelphia team by a much larger margin than we had, Kendall revved us up with a pregame chat and we all agreed to keep the talk up on the field and play as hard as we could.  The defense with newbie Kristin Lough at fullback nearly shut out the Magpies, marking any ball that came her way and only letting one behind through the posts.

Two plays that put points on the board were beautiful illustrations of teamwork. Mariam Mehter, who debuted last year at Nationals, scooped up the ball and with quick thinking passed it along and shepherded away a NY player to clear the way for our first goal.  For another 8 minutes we play a tight nail-biting game of possession to protect our narrow lead over the Pies.  Then, Beth Kirkwood, another new player, finds herself in the forward line with the ball and Kristin telling her she’s all alone and has plenty of time!  Beth (admittedly suppressing panic) popped the ball into the goal square to set us up for a second goal that secured the game.  With a loud cheering section from Baltimore, DC, and Boston, whose men’s teams were done for the day, we finished out the last moments of the game and took straight to celebrating.

New York Magpies Women
0.1.1

DC Eagles Women
2.1.13

I know there are more highlights than this, but with a long day (about 5 hours between our two games…woof!) and my limited view of the field, these are the standout moments for me.  The one advantage of being injured at Nationals last year is that I “ran water” but basically got to get the best vantage points during all the games. I’m also not known for having an excellent attention span. Off-field highlights include finding a 4-leaf clover, giving it to Tracy for luck, which he promptly ate, finding a really fluffy moth trying to hide from the rain, oh, and drinking out of the championship cup!! Final moment of teamwork: Filling the trophy with cider for the first round so Poti could get a drink out of it!

I am so thrilled to see how much our team has grown, and I also want to thank the men’s teams for supporting us along the way!

xo,

Mims

USAFL Regionals schedule is up

This Saturday, June 23rd, the Dockers head to Philadelphia, PA for a full day of men’s and women’s competition at the USAFL Eastern Regional tournament.

Teams competing include our hosts, the Philadelphia Hawks, and visitors the Baltimore Dockers, DC Eagles, New York Magpies, Boston Demons, North Carolina Tigers, and the Columbus Cats.  Our men’s team is playing in Division II against Columbus, Boston, and DC, and our joint Baltimore/DC women’s team is joining forces with Boston to take on New York and Columbus.

The Dockers have the first game starting at 9:00am and it will be a full day of footy at Lower Perkiomen Valley Park.

USAFL Eastern Regionals: June 23, 2018

Men’s team schedule

9:00 AM ET

Baltimore Dockers

Columbus Cats

Noon ET

Boston Demons

Baltimore Dockers

3 PM ET

DC Eagles

Baltimore Dockers

Women’s team schedule

10 AM ET

DC Eagles Women

Columbus Cats Women

4 PM ET

New York Magpies Women

DC Eagles Women

Off the field: Nashvegas, Boats, Axes, and more

Summer is upon us and the footy season is heating up!

The Baltimore Dockers are beyond happy to have picked up the team’s first W just a few weeks ago. Impressive numbers made the trip out to Nashville, making it a fun day on the field as well as out on the town following the win. The Roos set up our post-game event at Tennessee Brew Works, and the two teams quickly engulfed the entire second floor of the brewery. Great banter ensued during the Roos and Dockers game day awards and it is safe to say that Nashville was a bit salty watching the Dockers get around the Capitals game on the tele while their hockey team was booted from the playoffs.

This weekend will be another entertaining footy trip with the Dockers looking to make a statement at Regionals in Philly. The whole team is amped up and ready to come with their A-game in hopes of celebrating a victory in the city.

Upcoming Events:

Floating Footy: Bogans & Babes on a Boat

June 29th
9:30-11:45PM
3100 K St NW
Washington, DC 20007

Please check out this great event to support our women’s team! Enjoy a night on the Potomac River with a live DJ, open bar, and great company! Tickets are going fast so avoid FOMO (fear of missing out) and buy yourself a ticket now! Click here for tickets and more information

Urban Axes

July 8th
2:00-4:00PM
$35/person (24 person limit)*
1 North Haven St.
Baltimore, MD 21224

Baltimore Dockers have reserved a time slot at the new axe throwing venue in Baltimore: Urban Axes. This will be the 3rd event put on with our Baltimore-Chesapeake Football Club counterparts who we are thankful have allowed us to share their storage unit at Bocek (BIG shout out to them for the generosity!).

*Spots are limited so it will be first come first serve with RSVPing/payment

Next Home Games – Afterparty at Noble’s!

Columbus and New York will be coming to Bocek Park on July 14th for a full day of men’s and women’s footy. The post-matches after party will be held at Noble’s Bar and Grill. Raffle prizes, 50/50, drink and food specials, and heaps of fun will be included with the festivities. Please invite any and all who would like to enjoy a great Saturday at the field and/or at the event. More details to come.

Bogged down at Bocek Park

Saturday June 9th saw the Dockers host their first EAFL tournament that saw three outstanding Eastern Region teams converging on Baltimore, MD. The teams consisted of the Philadelphia Hawks and DC Eagles with the Baltimore Dockers serving as hosts. The game was played at Bocek Park in Baltimore City and in true Baltimore City fashion the day turned from a hot sunny day to a wet cold monsoon in a matter of hours that saw teams playing in water ankle deep.

Game 1: Battle of the Beltway, Game 2

The rain held off for the first game where the DC Eagles took on the Baltimore Dockers in the second game of the “Dennis Ryan Cup”. The first half went back and forth, with DC pulling ahead at halftime. As the second half began, the Dockers where able to trim the Eagles lead but in the end fell short.  Game 2 went to the Eagles by a score of 6.4.40 to 8.3.51. In the end, DC’s midfield with standout performances from Jake Moyer and Sam Radcliffe served too much for the Dockers to overcome.  Standouts for the Dockers were Josh Richardson and Mike Horney.

Baltimore Dockers
6.4.40

Philadelphia Hawks
8.3.51

Game 2: Dockers vs the Philly Hawks

The second game started shortly after the first one ended and saw the Dockers take on the Philadelphia Hawks. Hawks jumped out early on the Dockers kicking three quick goals. The Dockers were able to answer in the first half with a goal of their own two behinds. At halftime the heavens opened up and it was a torrential downpour that lasted for about 20 minutes. As players and spectators took shelter the rain, thunder and lightning lasted for about 20 minutes.

With a break in the weather the second half started. With ankle deep water all over the field it turned to a very sloppy game of footy with each team just trying to gain territory in each other’s scoring half. The Hawks were able to pull away with some timely marks and straight goal kicking to come out on top of the Dockers by a score of 3.3.21 – 6.8.44. The Dockers were led by Ian Payne, Terrance McAuliffe, and Mike Horney who won Iron Man honors for his effort in both games.  

Baltimore Dockers
3.3.21

Philadelphia Hawks
6.8.44

Dockers bring home their first “W” from Music City U.S.A.

Earlier this month, the Dockers headed to Nashville, TN to take on the Kangaroos (June 2, to be precise). The Dockers were still hungry for the first win of the season — and after canceling the May 19 games due to a a monsoon in Baltimore, it was nice to play a game on a sunny warm Tennessee day.

Both teams started the game feeling each other out as each tried to swing the momentum to their respective sides. The first half saw the Kangaroos being on top 16 -7. The Dockers made some adjustments at half time and started to assert themselves on the offensive end. In the 3rd quarter Baltimore had repeated forward 50 entries that resulted in multiple goals being kicked. Ian Payne lead the charge by kicking 2 in the 3rd term with Jack Chalmers and Jake Moyer adding a goal each. In the 4th quarter the Dockers were aided by the Kangaroos inability to kick straight and coupled with a great defensive effort, were able to hold on for the win. The final score was 3.13.31 to 6.5.41 in favor of the Dockers.

Nashville Kangaroos
3.13.31

Baltimore Dockers
6.5.41

Zeluis Teixeira played a great game in the ruck, winning multiple ruck taps and not coming off the field all game, earning himself Iron Man honors for the match. Mike Gilbart, Nick Tyson, Mike Horney, and Matt Woodruff dominated the back line and held the Kangaroos from kicking a goal in the 4th to preserve the win. Coupled with some timely goal kicking by Ian Payne, the Dockers were able to secure their first win as a stand alone club.