(ST. LOUIS, MO) Following sixty minutes of intense play Saturday night at St. Mary’s High School, the St. Louis SLAM guaranteed themselves an exciting road trip two weekends from now.
Photo Credit: Gerald Affeldt
The local rep of the Women’s Football Alliance (WFA) topped the Minnesota Vixen, 20-3, and claimed the league’s Pro American Conference title, their second straight.
The top-seeded SLAM’s 17-point triumph against their arch rival kept the squad’s spotless record intact (8-0) and earned them placement in the WFA Pro Championship finale in Canton, Ohio on Saturday, July 27.
“It’s a dream to be going back to Canton,” said SLAM running back Jada Humphrey, who collected three touchdowns on the night. “I’m so proud of my team. I’m actually honored to be a part of this team.”
At the site of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, St. Louis competes in a re-match of last season’s trophy tilt against five-time, defending WFA Pro Champs, the Boston Renegades, who claimed the Pro National Conference trophy following Saturday’s 41-0 shutout over the Pittsburgh Passion.
In Saturday’s conference win over Minnesota on South Grand, the SLAM’s winning points were posted early, but the main cog to their triumph was the defensive lockdown that ensued.
After the Vixen scored a field goal with four minutes left in the opening quarter, the SLAM’s “D” shut out the opposition for the remainder of the game.
“I’m extremely proud,” said SLAM safety Kaylee Neutzling of the clamp down. “We’ve been putting in the work all year-round. Iron sharpens iron.”
Heading into the contest, St. Louis had already claimed a pair of regular season wins over the Vixen and a trifecta was projected by many. An enthusiastic Minnesota, seeded second in the American playoff bracket, aimed for their first national title game appearance since 2022 and certainly possessed the talent to claim an upset.
Unfortunately for the optimistic visitors, that never occurred.
Receiving opening possession, the SLAM methodically churned a seven-play, 58-yard scoring drive topped by Humphrey’s first end-zone appearance of the evening, a 37-yard picture-perfect catch down the right sideline from quarterback Jaime Gaal at the 11:07 mark.
“We haven’t called that play really all season,” reflected Humphrey. “Jaime knows that she has to throw that in front of me. She lets it loose and expects me to go out there, run after it, and catch it. That’s exactly what we did. We knew exactly in the back of our heads what we are capable of.”
Veteran Taylor Hay, making her first start of 2024 following recovery from a pre-season injury, added the successful PAT kick that pushed the SLAM’s lead to 7-0.
Photo Credit: Gerald Affeldt
Minnesota countered with a solid, nine-play scoring drive with their opening possession. Starting from their own 38, the Vixen jettisoned to the SLAM’s side of the field and pushed deep thanks to veteran running back Sarah Roche’s lengthy run to the 11-yard line.
The visitors posted their first points of the game with Amanda Dvorak’s 23-yard field goal made with 4:33 left in the opening quarter that shored the score to 7-3.
St. Louis started their second possession near mid-field but couldn’t net any yardage and punted. Kerri McMahan’s perfect boot spotted the ball at the Minnesota five-yard-line, where the Vixen took over on offense with under four minutes remaining.
Pinned deep on their own side of the field, Minnesota’s offense sputtered and had to punt the ball back to the SLAM, which resulted in St. Louis claiming excellent field position at the Minnesota 21 with about a minute left in the opening frame.
St. Louis capitalized on the gift with a three-play scoring sequence that was finished in the opening snap of the second quarter with Humphrey’s four-yard touchdown scamper that widened the differential to ten points.
Hay successfully added the PAT kick at the 14:50 mark that extended the SLAM’s lead to 14-3.
Minnesota responded with a hard-charging effort cheered by their faithful North Star State followers. Their 40-plus-yard push unfortunately went south as Vixen quarterback Erin Kelley’s intended pass was intercepted by SLAM co-captain Jamie Skinner with 9:38 left in the half.
St. Louis attempted their own push midway through the quarter and all seemed stable, but Gaal’s passing effort within the red zone with five minutes remaining was snared by Vixen safety Hannah Eckhardt, which kept the differential to 11 points.
Minnesota attempted another strike down the first-half stretch but had to punt with under three minutes left in the quarter. St. Louis rookie Sydney Bloch’s 37-yard punt return gave the SLAM excellent field position at the Vixen 27 with 2:09 left.
Quick-fire work was propelled by the SLAM offensive line of Antonnia Washington, Caitlin Erickson, Pamela Green, Marion Ball and Tamikka Brents to promptly make things happen.
Four plays later, Humphrey collected her third touchdown of the half, and sixth of the post-season, with a seven-yard catch from Gaal with :47 left that made the score 20-3.
Hay’s attempted PAT kick afterwards fell short, but the SLAM carried their 17-point advantage into the halftime break.
Quite honestly, who would have thought that that would be all the scoring recorded for the remainder of the night, considering that both squad’s offenses averaged over 40 points-per-game heading into the weekend?
Photo Credit: Gerald Affeldt
The SLAM defense collectively launched their narrative as Minnesota started with opening possession in the third quarter at their own 21.
The stubborn unit, consisting of starters Neutzling, Tay Johnson, Myah LeFlore, Alisha Straws, Mary Altepeter, Maddie Embree, Keyonna Smith, Ciara Morgan, Kinnaudy Daniels, Brooklynn Devitt and Danielle Price, gave the Vixen perpetual fits.
After collecting 50 yards offensively, Minnesota turned the ball over on downs with 6:01 left in the third quarter after Kelley’s attempted quarterback keeper on fourth down fell short.
WHOA! Let that time stamp sink in for a moment. The Vixen opening-half drive resulted in zero points but chewed up nine minutes of precious clock time.
“That was extremely important,” assessed Neutzling. “I feel like we always start on ‘D’ and that sets the tone. We came out.”
St. Louis’ first possession of the second half was not as clock-draining, but still yielded minimal results. The SLAM turned the ball over to the Vixen with 2:13 left in the third quarter while still holding their 20-3 edge.
With remaining time becoming an issue, Minnesota made quick strides and attempted to shore the score. Starting at their own 41, the Vixen quickly cobbled a drive in the third frame’s final reps and began the final quarter near the endzone.
With about twelve minutes left in the game, Kelley forced a pass but it was snared by the SLAM’s Neutzling at the three-yard line, resulting in another heart-breaking Vixen turnover.
“That one came out of nowhere,” reflected the safety.
As the fourth quarter continued with their next possession, the SLAM was content to drain minutes by giving handoff after handoff to Humphrey. Eight carries by “The Jet” during the drive ensued, resulting in 70 total yards rushing, and while no SLAM points were inevitably posted, the sequence evaporated any potential Vixen comeback.
Photo Credit: Gerald Affeldt
“It’s hard physically, but I always know that mentally my mind is going to dominate,” said Humphrey of the task. “My coach warned me and told me that it was going to be a stretch down the game. I appreciate that he believed in me, so I made it happen.”
Eye-opening that there was no scoring in the second half, but the overall “W” is what matters most and the SLAM claimed their 20-3 Pro American Conference win.
Unofficially, Gaal finished the game 16-28 for 167 yards and two touchdowns while Humphrey had a pair of TD catches and a solo run.
Minnesota, who displayed ongoing improvements this season, finished 5-3 overall and aims to continue their upward trajectory next season.
The SLAM now prepares for the upcoming battle with Boston two Saturdays from now for the WFA Pro trophy. Boston will look for their sixth straight national championship while St. Louis seeks their fifth overall.
The Renegades topped the SLAM at last year’s trophy game, but St. Louis edged Boston, 36-27, at St. Louis University High in mid-May, leading to early intrigue and dialogue amongst those that follow the WFA.
Ongoing intensity will ramp up as both teams aim to reign supreme.
“That will be a great one,” projected Neutzling. “I’m always excited about a re-match and it will be amazing. We always work hard and we want it.”
Photo Credit: Gerald Affeldt
“I want it more than the clothes on my back, the food on my table, the roof over my head, I’d give it all,” added Humphrey. “I haven’t stopped thinking about it . We’re hungry and we’ve just gotta get it done. We’re just foaming at the mouth for it.”
For more information on the St. Louis SAM, go to their official website.
ST. LOUIS SLAM INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS (UNOFFICIAL)
PASSING: Gaal 16-28, 167 Yds, 2 TDs, 1 INT.
RUSHING: Humphrey 12-93, 1 TD. McMahan 1-4.
RECEIVING: McMahan 7-80. Humphrey 3-49, 1 TD. Bloch 5-36. Richardson 1-1.
KICKING: Hay 2-3 PATs
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 Arch City 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.
