by Neal Rozendaal
Boston, MA – Against an ordinary
team, 54 points would be good enough to win
a football game.
The 2013 Boston Militia are no ordinary team.
The DC Divas and Boston Militia shattered the
WFA record for most combined points in a single
game, but the Divas came up on the short end
of an 81-54 final score. The Divas (4-2) fought
valiantly on offense, scoring 54 points despite
losing star running back Kenyetta Grigsby due
to injury early in the first quarter. But they
ultimately had no chance against a Boston team
that scored 12 touchdowns on their first 13
possessions.
Grigsby went down with an injury on the Divas’
second series of the game, and the DC offense
struggled in the first quarter in her absence.
An 88-yard touchdown pass from Allyson Hamlin
to Ashley Whisonant gave the Divas their first
points of the game, but DC trailed, 28-7, after
the first quarter.
The Militia (6-0) scored their fifth touchdown
of the game one minute into the second quarter
to extend their lead to 35-7, and it looked
like the contest was destined to be a Boston
blowout. Instead, the Divas’ offense regained
their balance and matched the Militia point
for point from then on. The resurgent DC offense
kept the Divas within striking distance and
turned the contest into the greatest shootout
in WFA history.
Starting tight end Donna Wilkinson – the only
member of the roster who played for the Divas’
inaugural team in 2001 – shifted from tight
end to the running back position in the second
quarter, and the DC offense exploded. Wilkinson
was a record-setting running back for the Divas
earlier in her career, and she proved that she
can still handle the job, carrying the ball
time and again for solid gains. Wilkinson’s
hard running provided balance to the DC offense
and helped them move the ball down the field.
Hamlin found Whisonant in the end zone on two
more occasions in the second quarter; the Divas
trailed at halftime, 55-21. Less than two minutes
into the second half, Hamlin threw her fourth
touchdown of the game, this one to Juliette
Baker-Brice to cut the deficit to 55-28.
The DC defense then provided their only highlight
of the evening, stopping Boston’s Whitney Zelee
on fourth down to get the ball back for the
Divas. The offense took advantage as Hamlin
threw her fourth touchdown pass to Whisonant,
which sliced the margin to 55-35.
Hamlin found Whisonant in the end zone for a
fifth time on the Divas’ next possession, which
again drew the Divas within twenty at 61-41.
Ashley Whisonant ended the game with five receiving
touchdowns. When Boston’s Whitney Zelee scored
just before the end of the third quarter to
give the Militia a 67-41 lead, the contest surpassed
the record for the most points ever scored in
a WFA game with a full quarter still remaining.
Wilkinson gave the Divas their first rushing
touchdown of the game with 12:02 left, which
again cut the deficit to twenty at 67-47. Just
over five minutes later, Kasee Hillard snared
Hamlin’s seventh touchdown pass of the game
and pulled DC within 73-54. But the Militia
tacked on their 12th touchdown of the game moments
later for the final points of the game, and
the Divas fell to an 81-54 defeat.
The 135 total points scored easily surpassed
the previous WFA record of 105, set last season
in the Kansas City Tribe’s 63-42 victory over
the St. Louis Slam. The Divas’ 54 points were
also the most ever scored in a losing effort,
topping the 42 scored by St. Louis in that game.
The 81 points surrendered by the Divas was easily
the most ever yielded in franchise history,
topping the 56 points the Militia racked up
against DC in their first meeting this year.
At the same time, the 54 points the Divas tallied
against Boston was by far the most points Boston
has ever given up in a single game, topping
the previous record of 36 scored by the Divas
in a 2010 contest.
DC will get two weeks to rest from this exhausting
scoring duel. After a scheduled bye week, the
Divas next take the field at home on June 1
against the Pittsburgh Passion in a game that
will likely decide the division championship.
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