It has been a familiar scene the last couple of seasons at the Women’s Football Alliance (WFA) Pro American Conference post-season trophy tilt.
St. Louis SLAM versus Minnesota Vixen for a chance to enter the league’s championship game held at the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio.
Yikes, high stakes!
The ongoing rivals tangle Saturday night as the SLAM (7-0) hosts the Vixen (4-3) at St. Mary’s High School (4701 South Grand, St. Louis).
Kickoff is at 7 p.m. General admission tickets are $15 while children 10 and under are free. (Coverage can be seen on ESPN+.)
The tussle will be third straight over the last three seasons for the WFA’s American Conference top prize.
Photo Credit: Gerald Affeldt
The SLAM, the defending national Pro champ, blanked Nebraska, 56-0, in the conference’s semifinal round and pushed their current winning streak to 16 games. LINK
Meanwhile Minnesota – who competed at Canton’s Pro finale in 2022 – upended Cali War, 37-26, in the conference’s other bracketed match-up.
The SLAM and Vixen battled on the gridiron twice in May during the regular season with St. Louis claiming the sweep (34-27 on the road, 42-19 at home).
The central focus of Saturday’s match-up is the St. Louis offense that is anchored by the line work from Marion Ball, Tamikka Brents, Pamela Green, Caitlin Erickson, Katelynn Hartman-Grier and others.
Quarterback Jaime Gaal threw five touchdowns in the semifinal win, pushing the veteran’s total to 30 overall this season.
The projected targets in Saturday’s aerial attack include Kerri McMahan (10 TDs), Keyonna Smith (6), Aaryana Cook (5), Sydney Bloch (3) and Amanda Richardson (3).
Rushing will be paced by running back Jada Humphrey (9 TDs), Robin Cooksey (4) and others.
Photo Credit: Gerald Affeldt
On the other side of the ball, the SLAM’s defense recorded their fourth shutout of the campaign with the Nebraskan semifinal blanking.
St. Louis’ clampdown is propelled by the collective’s Brooklynn Devitt, Jasmine Yandell, Raven Williams, Tay Johnson, Kinnaudy Daniles, Ciara Morgan, Mary Altepeter, Jennifer Perkins, Stephanie Moore, Taylor Hay, Jennifer Tussey and others.
If they are successful Saturday, the SLAM continues their quest for back-to-back titles and six national championships overall. Meanwhile Minnesota craves a return to a trophy game.
There’s one sure bet, given the tight play historically between the pair- expect another classic showdown.
For more info on the SLAM, go to their official website.
Litehouse Media will have a full recap posted Sunday.
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.
