Box Score With just two games left in the regular season, the Green Bay Blizzard (9-5) has one thing in mind: win and in for the playoffs. The Massachusetts Pirates (7-7), the reigning Eastern Conference champions, needed a win to keep their playoff aspirations alive. Who would prevail? Who would stay in the hunt? Let's dig right into the action!
The first half was a defensive battle, with both teams looking to obtain an upper hand. The Massachusetts first drive ended with a successful field goal. A warm welcome back to Blizzard RB Kymani Clark as he exploded into the endzone for the game's first touchdown, putting Green Bay in front 7-3. Pirates QB Kenji Bahar drove the Pirates down the field and capped off their drive with a rushing touchdown of his own. The Pirates led 10-7 at the end of the first frame.
The second quarter saw Pirates DB Smoke Monday intercept a pass and set up great field position for the Pirates offense. However, just a few plays into the drive, QB Bahar fumbled a handoff, and DL
Scean Mustin jumped on the ball. Blizzard QB
Max Meylor shovel passed to WR
Lowell Patron Jr. a few plays later. Green Bay now led 14-10. The next possession by both teams resulted in touchdowns; Bahar ran in another, and Meylor found WR
Andre Williams for the score. The next Pirates drive was methodical. They killed off the entire one-minute warning and looked prime to punch it in for another score and leave no time on the clock. With only a handful of seconds left, DB
Cail Jackson Jr. came up with a clutch tackle, leaving just two seconds in the half. The Pirates would settle for a field goal. However, the Blizzard crowd brought the noise, and the Pirates missed the chip-shot field goal. The Blizzard led 21-17 at the break.
On the first play of the second half, Meylor hooked up with Williams for their second touchdown. Massachusetts would stall and convert a field goal. The following Blizzard drive saw the connection between Meylor and Patron Jr. working again as they tally another touchdown, and it was beginning to look like the rout was on. Green Bay now led 35-20, but were not done there. Green Bay recovered a surprise onside kick. Meylor found Clark out of the backfield for an easy walk-in touchdown to stretch the score to 41-20 at the end of quarter three.
During the quarter break on-field kicking promotion, Blizzard kicker
Andrew Mevis was place holding for his girlfriend to attempt field goals, when he pulled out a ring and proposed. In the snow, and in front of an elated Blizzard crowd and team, she said yes! Congratulations to Andrew and his now fiancée, Sophie Le Mieux. Hopefully not the only ring we see in Green Bay with championship aspirations. The fourth quarter saw another Pirates touchdown, this time from QB Bahar to WR Teo Redding, which would be the final score for Massachusetts. Green Bay continued to pile on as Meylor found a wide-open
TJ Davis for a 28-yard touchdown. The next Pirates possession resulted in a pick-six for DB
Kevin Ransom II. On the point after attempt, Mevis converted a drop kick, putting two more points on the board. Green Bay defeated the Pirates by a score of 56-27.
The Massachusetts Pirates fall to 7-8 and need a lot of help this weekend and next to preserve their chance at making the playoffs. The Pirates return home for a date with the Western Conference top seed, Bay Area Panthers.
The Blizzard clinched a playoff berth with the win and improved to 10-5. They travel to Jacksonville for a heavyweight showdown as seeding becomes the focus with playoff home games on the line for both teams. Kickoff is at 6:05 PM CST. Join the Blizzard watch party at
D2 Sports Pub Stadium District at 788 Armed Forces Dr in Green Bay.
Written By: Tyler Klackner
