The St. Louis SLAM returns home Saturday in a “must-see” battle against a long-time rival that is highly anticipated by those that follow the team locally as well as by those who monitor the league nationally.
Photo Credit: Gerald Affeldt
The defending champs of the Women’s Football Alliance (WFA) Pro Division host the Minnesota Vixen at St. Mary’s High School (4701 S. Grand Blvd.) Kick off is at 7 pm.
General admission tickets are $15 while children under 10 are free.
The SLAM (2-0) pushed their current win streak to 11 straight after thumping Columbus Chaos 48-0 in Ohio last Saturday. St. Louis possessed a 34-0 win at halftime en route to the shutout victory.
Veteran SLAM quarterback Jaime Gaal threw four touchdown passes in the game, highlighted with a pair of snares by rookie receiver Aaryana Cook. The newcomer had 10 catches for 159 yards in the debut.
Additionally, Kerri McMahan made two end zone receptions that pushed her total to a position-leading three after two games.
On the ground, both Robin Cooksey and Jada Humphrey had a pair of touchdown romps that pushed their totals to four and three, respectively while long time fixture Taylor Hay claimed her first plunge of the campaign.
Photo Credit: Gerald Affeldt
The SLAM, who currently ranks second in total offense (54.5 PPG), is paced by the solid line work of Caitlin Erickson, Marion Ball, Tamikka Brents, Pamela Green, Katelynn Hartman-Grier and Antonnia Washington.
Receivers Sydney Bloch and Amanda Richardson as well as running back Patrice Fitzpatrick also aim to reach the pay window to add to their respective scoring ledgers.
Defensively, St. Louis claimed their second straight shutout in the Columbus win. The squad is primed for another lockdown Saturday with the projected line-up consisting of Myah LeFlore, Jasmine Yandell, Stephanie Moore, Mary Altepeter, Tay Johnson, Raven Williams, Kaylee Neutzling, Samantha Smiley, Jennifer Perkins, Keyonna Smith, Kinnaudy Daniles, Brooklyn Devitt and Ciara Morgan.
The SLAM’s long-time rival is hungry to top the defending champs Saturday and they certainly possess the fire power to make this game a tight one on both sides of the ball.
Photo Credit: Gerald Affeldt
Minnesota (1-0) clobbered Nebraska Pride, 41-0, at their hosted season opener two weeks ago. The Vixen easily displayed the attributes to make them a prime candidate to return to the WFA Pro American finale later this summer.
A quartet of Vixen running backs collected solo scores in the game, propelled by returnee Johanna Vermoehlen’s 23 rushes for 91 yards.
Long-time Vixen quarterback Erin Kelley threw a pair of touchdown passes with grabs by Jackie Radford and Sam Anderson.
The defensive shutout was paced by Emily Sampson, Keisha Watkins, Chary Fluegel and a host of others.
Both teams possess similar mentalities in all areas. It has made for one of the most competitive WFA divisional rivalries over the past several seasons.
Anticipate the same Saturday night at St. Mary’s.
Live coverage of the game can be viewed for free at LiveStream STL.
By trade, he is a six-time, regional Emmy Award-winning news videographer/editor for KTVI/KPLR-TV. By hobby, he is a writer for Litehouse Media, dating back to February 2014. Emphasis is on featuring and promoting local women's sports, but will cover anything that is not reported by traditional media outlets. Also a contributor to local concert reviews. Finally, he prefers Diet Ski over coffee.
