MEDWAY, MA - The New England Intensity, of the Independent Women's Football League (IWFL), overcame a flat start and an inspired opponent (and some atrocious officiating) to eventually defeat the resurgent Southern Maine Rebels 19-0 in Portland Saturday.  Coming off of a tough loss last week at the hands of the Tier 1 New York Sharks, the Intensity did not well represent their name for most of the 1^st half.  From not executing on offense to not tackling on defense, the visitors were being outplayed by their hosts, who have had a series of close games of late (winning one and losing two).  Some timely halftime adjustments by Head Coach Jason Fernald and his staff, as well as some hellfire and brimstone speeches by the vets, would prove to be the ?Abracadabra' needed to get New England's collective butt in gear.  They thoroughly dominated the 2^nd half of the game, leaving virtually no clue that the game was scoreless at it's midpoint.

An overcast morning gave way to a sunny and breezy afternoon which became a nice but increasingly cool evening. Southern Maine would receive the opening kickoff by rookie Kerri Richardson.   In what would be an all-to-familiar theme for the first half, a big lumbering ball carrier for Southern Maine would churn out a significant amount of yardage (most of it after contact), 22 yards in this particular case, before DL/OL Nancy O'Louhglin slowed her down and DE/QB Bridget Cambria finished her off.

With the ball 7 yards on the Intensity side of midfield, the Rebels hoped to take advantage of the great field position to start the game.  They came out passing on first down, though this attempt fell incomplete as WR/DB Tricia Donovan was in on the coverage.  Rookie LB Samantha Thacker and Captain DL/OL Jennifer ?Coco' Edwards (1 solo tackle and 3 tackle assists for the game) combined to stop the Maine RB after only a one yard gain on 2^nd down.  DB/WR Jojo Gauthier and Cambria stuffed the runner for a one yard loss to bring up 4^th and 10 on the next play.  The home team elected to roll the dice and go for it rather than punting, but their pass attempt did not work and they turned the ball over on downs.

The NE offense came out slinging, though with no measureable success, as Cambria went 0 for 3 on her first three pass attempts and Gauthier was brought out to punt on 4^th and 10.  She uncorked a beauty that TE/RB Lisa Close hustled after and downed on the Maine 11 yard line?a season best (so far) 46 yard punt for Gauthier!

LB Stacey Martin and Gauthier (who would finish the game with 4 solo tackles to lead the team, 8 tackle assists, a fumble recovery, an interception, a tipped ball that was intercepted by her teammate, and 23 yards rushing on 3 carries) managed to tackle the Rebel bruiser that eluded a would-be tackler around scrimmage at the 18 yard line, bringing up 2^nd and short.  DL/OL Lisa Paulson closed with the RB on the next play and brought her down, unfortunately Lisa would be slightly shaken up on the play and the runner gained just enough yards for the first down.  Lisa would return to the game later. Rookie WR/LB LaKia Hendricks (2 solo tackles, one tackle assist) and Thacker stood up the rusher after a short three yard gain on 1^st down and Thacker and DB Lizz Vogel held the 2^nd down run to only one yard.  Another missed tackle by NE near scrimmage required Gauthier to make a play that brought up 4^th and inches.  Edwards and O'Loughlin hung in tough on the dive but fell just short of stopping the Rebel RB from picking up another first down.   Undaunted, Defensive Coordinator Peter Brown's "D" just dug in and kept fighting.  DE/FB Suzanne Dubey and Rookie DE Bri Giarrusso stuffed the 1^st down rushing attempt for no gain.  Vogel sniffed out the sweep on 2^nd down and served up a 6 yard loss for the home team.  The 3^rd and 16 pass sailed incomplete, bringing out the Southern Maine punt team and what would be one of the worst displays of officiating all season.  The exceptionally short punt went almost straight up in the air, came down hitting one of their linemen (at which point the play should have been whistled dead).  No whistle was blown and the ball then bounced off of a NE player and was then fallen on by Maine, THEN the whistle was blown and the officials signaled Rebels ball.  Despite the vehement protest from the Intensity staff and players, no correction to the call was made.

The old sports cliché "The ball doesn't lie" rang true on the next play as the "D" kept battling and the sure-handed Donovan made a great read and came up with the pick on the next play. NE was unable to do much with the possession, as a short run by Captain RB Steph Samuelson was followed by Cambria taking a sack and a short completion led to 4^th and 19^th.  A much shorter punt by Gauthier was well-covered as Hendricks kept the return to a mere one yard. 

Gauthier came up with one of several of her massive hits on first down after a short gain on the ground.  She combined with Giarrusso for the stop on 2^nd and 6, just short of the first down.  Hendricks brought the heat on the 3^rd and inches but the mammoth running back had just enough momentum to pick up the first down.  Captain OL/DL Maia Goodall dragged down the rusher after a 6 yard gain on the next play.  This pick up looked like it might be erased on the next play as Vogel made a great read and tackled the RB for a six yard loss . . . however, the officials whistled New England for a facemask penalty?a very questionable call that moved the ball to the NE 43.  After an incomplete pass attempt, Edwards came up with a tremendous hit/tackle, absolutely demolishing the RB for a 4 yard loss and firing up her team!  Gauthier tipped the 3^rd down pass attempt to Martin who corralled the ball for the interception (as it would turn out, Gauthier would end up with an intra-articular fracture in a finger as a result of this play, but stayed in the game). 

Sameulson ripped off runs of 6, 22 and 7 yards on the next three plays, bringing the ball inside the Maine 30.  She was violently facemasked on the next play, but was fortunately and miraculously not injured.  On 2^nd and 10 from the Maine 13, Gauthier scampered for 6 yards but the refs would strike again, sending laundry flying for a phantom block in the back, pushing the ball back to the 26 yard line.  Cambria threw an interception on the next play and Donovan alertly made the tackle on the returner after only a few yards worth of return.

DT/OT Torrance Brown, all 6'1" of her, put her long arms and big mitts up in the air on the next play, doing her best imitation of Bill Russell, swatting the pass attempt almost 180 degrees backwards.  She and Giarrusso combined for the stop after only 2 yards on the 2^nd down play.  A holding call and a false start were separated by modest run gains and ultimately forced the home squad to punt, which was returned by Donovan for 14 yards, just shy of mid-field.  

Samuelson and Gauthier had runs of 5 and 7 yards, respectively to move the chains as the two minute warning was sounded.  After an 8 yard run by Samuelson, the ridiculous penalty calls struck again, this time an ?Elbow to the throat' unsportsmanlike conduct one, moving the ball all the way back to the NE 48.  Donovan connected with Gauthier for a 15 yard pickup through the air, eating up most of the 23 yards necessary for a first down.  Samuelson juked her way to a 20 yard run and a first down at the Maine 17.  Looking like they would finally put some points on the board and take the momentum into the locker room at half time, NE, sadly had a series of terrible plays:  Two sacks, and in complete pass and an interception . . . squandering a great scoring opportunity.

Not content with the 0-0 tie, the Rebels tried their level best to put themselves in a position to score. They ran for 17 yards on first down before calling a timeout with 13 seconds left in the 2^nd.  They followed this up with another 17 yard gain and subsequent timeout?this time with only 2 seconds left in the 1^st half (Thacker, with 8 tackle assists for the game, was in on both stops, the first with Gauthier, the second with Vogel).  Gauthier put an end to the madness, intercepting the Hail Mary and sending both teams to the locker rooms (oh, wait, there weren't any at this field) tied at zero.

Once the necessary local public works employee was tracked down the field lights were turned on, ending the extended half time period as the temperature dropped steadily as the evening wore on.  The coaches and players of the Intensity, unimpressed to the point of disgust with their 1^st half performance, made their tactical adjustments and motivational speeches, underscoring the point that we held our playoff destiny in our own hands:  We win, we're in; we lose, we're out.  Coaches Barlas and Callahan met with the Meat, focusing them more on their primary assignments and less on the ?2^nd level'.  Coach Fernald also made the decision to give the host team a steady diet of power running coming out of the break.  We would know in about 30 minutes if these adjustments would bear fruit. 

Samuelson returned the kickoff to the NE 48 to open the 3^rd quarter.  She then gained 6 yards on first down, before being held to basically no gain on the next two plays before Donovan threw an interception, giving the ball to Southern Maine on the NE 48 where TE Lisa Close and Samuelson brought down the returner.

Injured warriors LB Kate Miechkowski and Dubey stuffed the Rebel RB for no gain on first down, and Giarrusso, Vogel and Gauthier converged on the ball carrier two yards behind scrimmage on 2^nd down.  The home team then completed one of only two passes all game, but it was good for a first down.  They did not help their cause by committing a false start, resulting 1^st and 15.  Brown and Dubey stopped the RB after a short gain, and they were followed by a stop for no gain by Thacker and Gauthier.  DB Andrea Covelli defended the pass attempt on the 3^rd down play bringing up 4^th and 11.  Southern Maine, having shown that they are not above taking a risk on 4^th down, lined up to punt, but attempted a pass instead.  The receiver was met by Cambria (1 solo and 3 tackle assists) who forced and recovered the fumble for the visitors.  This would prove the turning point in the game for the Intensity.

Samuelson got the call on 4 consecutive plays, rushing for 20, 6, 7, and 10 yards behind the wrecking ball blocking of Goodall, Edwards, Center Bettyann Perry, Rookie Guard Lamia Bouhallel, Brown, Captain Guard/LB Kim Herrig, Close, Dubey and Miechkowski.  Cambria took the QB keeper for one yard to pick up another first down on 2^nd and inches.  Miechkowski dove forward for 2 yards between two runs of 13 yards by Samuelson, the latter being a touchdown, putting New England up 6-0 with one minute remaining in the 3^rd quarter.  Rookie Kicker Kerri Richardson nailed the PAT to put NE up 7-0. 

Richardson's ensuing kickoff traveled 32 yards and Cambria and Bouhallel stopped the returner at the Maine 38.  Gauthier alertly recovered the 1^st down rush attempt that the Rebels fumbled (her team-leading 4^th of the season and franchise-leading 8^th of her career). 

The tide having clearly turned in favor of the Intensity, would only rise even higher as the NE offense came back out on to the field.  On first down, Samuelson had one of the most impressive runs of her career, combining the shiftiness of Barry Sanders and the power of Earl Campbell, following her blocks to clear the scrum around scrimmage then brutally stiff-arming two would-be tacklers before spinning out of another as she gained 28 yards up the right side of the field to close out the 3^rd quarter.  The relentless running attack continued as the 4^th quarter got underway . . . Samuelson went for 3, Gauthier for 10 on a nice counter, Samuelson for consecutive 7 yard runs, and Donovan for 1 yard . . . all this resulting in 2^nd and Goal from the 1 yard line.  Samuelson went in for her 2^nd TD of the game, putting the Intensity up 13-0 with 10:34 left in the 4^th.  The PAT sailed wide left.

Gauthier made the special teams tackle on the kickoff, a play on which Herrig was shaken up but left the field under her own power and would return to the game later.   The O Line clearly had found their groove and now the D Line wanted to show they had stepped it up a notch for the 2^nd half as well.  Enter "Brickwall" Goodall (two solo tackles for the day), who shed her blocker in an instant and destroyed the Rebel runner, resulting in 2^nd and 11.  DL Lisa Paulson followed suit with a two yard tackle for loss, her second solo tackle of the game, and put Southern Maine in 3^rd and very long.  Maine's answer to that bad down and distance was to hand the ball to their big RB . . . New England's solution was their even bigger DT, Torrance Brown, who met the ball carrier head up and stopped her well short of the first down!   On 4^th and 8 from their own 47 the Rebels would try another fake punt, this time attempting to pick up the first on the ground.  Covelli had other plans, diagnosing the intentions of the home team, she rapidly closed on the runner and obliterated her with what was easily the hardest hit of her career (perhaps a preview of coming attractions) allowing no progress beyond where the ball was snapped from.

Tasting the blood in the water, Coach Fernald went right back to the power run.  Samuelson, behind her demolition crew of blockers, ate up the 47 yards in 3, 6, 10, 24, 3, and 6 yard chunks (gaining back 5 yards lost due to a false start on the 1 yard line) with the 24 yard effort a tremendous display of 2^nd, 3^rd and 4^th effort to get inside the 5 yard line.  This streak of runs culminated in her 3^rd touchdown of the game with less than 2 minutes in the game and putting this one on ice.

The missed PAT left the score at 19-0 as Richardson's ensuing kick was well-defended by Giarrusso (1 solo tackle, 4 tackle assists) who was subbing in for Herrig on the coverage and delivered a hearty hit on the returner after a very short return. 

Southern Maine could not muster much of a threat with DL/OL Kelly Hebert providing pressure up front.  Three short plays later the game clock expired and the scoreboard read 19-0 New England.  This was the 4^th shutout by Peter Brown's Defense of the season (tying a franchise record) and the first one that Southern Maine has suffered all season. 

In retrospect, the Jekyll and Hyde that was the Intensity from the 1^st to the 2^nd half could not have been more pronounced, at least from the Offensive side of the ball (the D was solid in both halves, though even more stifling in the 2^nd half giving up only 3 first downs and 38 rushing yards).  Of New England's 271 yards rushing all game, only 84 were gained in the 1^st half.  They also gave up 3 sacks in the first half, but none in the 2^nd.

Head Athletic Trainer Cliff Ashley is to be commended for the outstanding job he has done all season, but in particular this past week as several of the injured players were able to contribute effective and meaningful minutes in this contest, taking the edge off of those few players not presently dinged up.  Of particular note was DT Lesley Lopes, who's shoulder injury almost prevents her from even moving her arm yet still managed to play numerous plays effectively as part of a rotation--giving the starters a chance to rest.  A knowledgeable ATC and a team with players that have a ton of heart are worth their weight in gold!

This win guarantees a playoff spot for the Intensity, now 6-1 (and 6-0 in Tier II), as they begin their preparation for their final regular season game versus the Tier I cross-town rival Boston Militia?who is currently 7-0 and heading to the playoffs themselves.   The Militia will make the short drive west on the ?Pike next Saturday for the 4pm tilt.