Throughout the 2017 DC Breeze season it seemed that offensive consistency was the theme for the team and the highlight of most contests. If the offense played well the team would walk away with a victory, and it often did just that. However, the full season statistics may tell a different story.
Looking back at the season, it appears that the defensive line provided the most consistency throughout the year. The top nine defenders on the team in terms of points played each appeared in 10 or more games. In contrast, only four O-line players among the top nine in points played participated in 10+ games. After the top nine defenders, only one more player broke the 100+ points played plateau on the D line: Brian Marshall.
Offensive Points Played Leaders:
Lloyd Blake 208 points 13 games
Jonathan Neeley 179 points 12 games
Jeff Wodatch 178 points 11 games
Max Cassell 174 points 11 games
Tyler Monroe 157 points 9 games
Alan Kolick 152 points 9 games
Matt Kerrigan 115 points 8 games
Nathan Prior 106 points 9 games
Markham Shofner 104 points 7 games
Defensive Points Played Leaders:
David Bloodgood 198 points 14 games
Delrico Johnson 189 points 13 games
Rowan McDonnell 188 points 12 games
Austin Bartenstein 164 points 13 games
David Shields 146 points 12 games
Chuck Cantone 137 points 13 games
John Agan 132 points 10 games
Ryan Swift 128 points 11 games
Marcus Thaw 120 points 10 games
This type of consistency can lead to incredible chemistry in our sport. The top nine guys on the D-line made that happen. And quite staggering is that they created this level of chemistry despite the fact that six of the nine defensive players were new to the team.
Rowan McDonnell led the team in with 277 points played in 12 games. Of the 35 guys on the roster, 21 of them played in over 100 points. No one, however, broke the 100+ mark for both the O-line and D-line. The closest was the versatile veteran Chuck Cantone, who played 95 offensive points and 137 defensive points.
Only one player suited up for all 14 contests this season, and that Iron Man honor goes to rookie David Bloodgood.
Due in part to the teamwork oriented offense and in part to 
the inconsistency of the line-up throughout the season, no offensive players really stand out in terms of goal and assist totals. Lloyd Blake and Jonathan Neeley saw the most action, but they are both possession-oriented offensive handlers. They don’t take as many shots downfield as some of the other handlers.
2nd year player Max Cassell led the team with 37 goals, followed by last year’s leader Jeff Wodatch with 30. Tyler Monroe, another productive cutter with 26 goals in nine games, also threw 39 assists. No one else was close in that category. Monroe and Cassell were the only players to reach both 20 goals and 20 assists (Cassell had 24 assists).
10 players had a perfect receiving record on the season, but only four caught the disc more than 100 times.
Perfect Catching Percentage (100+ catches):
Lloyd Blake 368 catches
Rowan McDonnell 218 catches
Jeff Wodatch 209 catches
Markham Shofner 115 catches
Overall, team receiving came in at 98 percent with 3,606 catches.
On the passing side, six players recorded a perfect passing mark. The leader among them in attempts was Zach Norrbom with 75 consecutive completions. According to Evan Lepler in this week’s AUDL Tuesday Toss, this also led the league in most completions with a perfect percentage on the year. For players with 100+ attempts, Nathan Prior led the team at 98 percent. The overall team passing percentage was 93 percent.
Highest Passing Percentage (100+ catches):
Nathan Prior 250/255 98.0%
Matt Kerrigan 108/111 97.3%
Lloyd Blake 420/438 95.9%
Chuck Cantone 116/121 95.9%
Plus/minus is considered one of the biggest determining factors for productivity in our sport, and the highest marks on the team should not be a surprise.
Plus/Minus
Rowan McDonnell +45
Max Cassell +44
Chuck Cantone +44
Tyler Monroe +43
Lloyd Blake +37
Finally, looking at the flashiest stat on the defensive side of the disc, blocks were evenly distributed across the team. Eight players reached double-digit blocks on the season. In the end, Delrico Johnson (18) won the social media contest with McDonnell (17) by one block. The coaching decision to move McDonnell to the O-line in the final contest may have sealed his fate.
One game to go; Who you got? pic.twitter.com/bjUcHSbiLv
— R̶I̶C̶O̶ (@Skyinflatballaz) July 21, 2017
Shockingly, team productivity (likelihood of the offense scoring after receiving the pull) was lower than expected on the season. The Breeze finished the season with only a 69 percent offensive productivity mark due to some contests that came in extremely low. At home the Breeze were much better, roughly 80 percent in that category. The conversion rate (likelihood of the defense scoring a break after getting a turnover) was not much better at 49 percent.
Breeze Top 5 Performers:
Rowan McDonnell: 18 goals, 29 assists, 17 blocks, 198/215 throws (+45)
-Leads the team in plus/minus, tied for second in assists, second in blocks
Max Cassell: 37 goals, 24 assists, 6 blocks, 181/201 throws, (+44)
-Leads the team in goals, Tied for second in plus/minus with Cantone
Tyler Monroe: 26 goals, 39 assists, 2 blocks, 194/211 throws (+43)
-Leads the team in assists, O-line efficiency is 58% (T-2nd)
Alan Kolick: 17 goals, 29 assists, 11 blocks, 278/295 throws (+34)
-Tied for second in assists
Lloyd Blake: 15 goals, 28 assists, 12 blocks, 420/438 throws (+37)
-Passing percentage is 96% (3rd among players with 100+ attempts)
At home, which fortunately the Breeze are for the first playoff game, the Breeze have been solid and are a perfect 7-0 with a +37 point differential. If they can keep up the undefeated stretch in D.C., then the true test is in Toronto August 13 where the Breeze will have had a full travel day to get to Toronto (unlike most two-game weekends) and hopefully a full roster on the road for the first time all season.