Defending champion New England rallies to beat Chicago Hounds, reach MLR final
The MLR Eastern Conference final featured 12 Canadians.
The Free Jacks, who rallied from a 17-0 deficit with 21 points in the second half, will face either the Houston SaberCats or the Utah Warriors in the June 28 final in Pawtucket, R.I., at Centreville Bank Stadium, the 10,500-seat home of the United Soccer League's (USL) Rhode Island FC.
Utah hosted Houston in the Western Conference final later Saturday.
Trailing 20-14, New England prop Kyle Ciquera bulled his way for the winning try in the 77th minute after a prolonged Free Jacks attack. The conversion was automatic given he scored under the posts, giving New England a 21-20 lead.
Chicago had a chance to win it after New England was penalized at the breakdown. But Hilsenbeck, who was good on four of six kicks on the day, saw his kick hit the upright.
Viewers didn't get to see the kick for the win, with the broadcast freezing as Hilsenbeck, an American-born German international, lined up the kick.
Jed Melvin and Canadian Cam Nordli-Kelemeti also scored tries for New England. Dan Hollingshead booted two conversions.
Tom Swiel and Noah Brown scored tries for Chicago, which led 10-0 at the half at Veterans Memorial Stadium. Hilsenbeck added two penalties and two conversion.
Down 17-0, New England cut the lead to 17-14 with tries in the 53rd and 58th minute. A 61st-minute Chicago penalty upped the lead to 20-14.
Chicago was captained by Canada skipper Lucas Rumball. Fellow Canadians Mason Flesch and Jason Higgins also started for the Hounds with Matt Owuru coming off the bench.
Canadians Andrew Quattrin, Piers Von Dadelszen, Ben LeSage, Brock Webster and Nordli-Kelemeti started for New England with Foster DeWitt, Josh Larsen and Ethan Fryer on the bench.
LeSage had to be helped off the field midway through the first half after injuring his ankle.
New England and Chicago both finished the regular season with 11-5-0 records, with New England topping the conference thanks to two more bonus points.
The Free Jacks, who have 16 Canadians in all on their roster, defeating the Seattle Seawolves 20-11 in last year's championship game and edging the San Diego Legion 25-24 for the title in 2023.
Chicago lost 23-17 to New England in last year's Eastern final.
The Hounds split their two regular-season meetings with the Free Jacks, winning 36-17 at home on March 2 and losing 27-17 at New England on May 10.
The Hounds went 7-1-0 in the first half of the season, finishing at 4-4-0. But, including the 27-16 playoff semifinal win over Old Glory DC, they had won four straight prior to Saturday.
After opening the season at 2-3-0, including the loss to Chicago the second week of the season, New England has gone 11-2-0. The Free Jacks downed the Miami Sharks 32-10 in their Eastern semifinal.
LeSage and Rumball are among 12 players from New England and Chicago on new Canada coach Steve Meehan's extended 59-man roster ahead of July tests against Belgium and Spain in Edmonton.
—
This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 21, 2025.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Winnipeg Free Press
12 hours ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Dallas hosts New York following Ionescu's 30-point outing
New York Liberty (17-7, 10-2 Eastern Conference) at Dallas Wings (7-19, 3-12 Western Conference) Arlington, Texas; Monday, 8 p.m. EDT BOTTOM LINE: New York Liberty visits the Dallas Wings after Sabrina Ionescu scored 30 points in the Liberty's 101-99 loss to the Los Angeles Sparks. The Wings are 4-8 in home games. Dallas leads the Western Conference in rebounding, averaging 36.7 boards. Myisha Hines-Allen leads the Wings with 5.3 rebounds. The Liberty are 5-4 on the road. New York leads the Eastern Conference with 21.8 assists. Natasha Cloud paces the Liberty with 5.9. Dallas is shooting 41.5% from the field this season, 0.1 percentage points lower than the 41.6% New York allows to opponents. New York averages 87.9 points per game, 1.3 more than the 86.6 Dallas allows to opponents. The matchup Monday is the first meeting of the season between the two teams. TOP PERFORMERS: Arike Ogunbowale is averaging 16 points and 3.9 assists for the Wings. Paige Bueckers is averaging 15.0 points over the last 10 games. Cloud is averaging 10.4 points and 5.9 assists for the Liberty. Ionescu is averaging 18.9 points over the last 10 games. LAST 10 GAMES: Wings: 3-7, averaging 82.3 points, 36.4 rebounds, 20.8 assists, 7.1 steals and 4.1 blocks per game while shooting 42.0% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 89.0 points per game. Liberty: 6-4, averaging 88.1 points, 33.1 rebounds, 22.0 assists, 8.5 steals and 5.2 blocks per game while shooting 45.3% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 84.2 points. INJURIES: Wings: Maddy Siegrist: out (knee), Tyasha Harris: out for season (knee). Liberty: Nyara Sabally: out (knee). ___ The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
Winnipeg Free Press
12 hours ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Griner leads Atlanta against Golden State after 22-point game
Golden State Valkyries (11-13, 6-8 Western Conference) at Atlanta Dream (15-10, 9-6 Eastern Conference) College Park, Georgia; Tuesday, 7:30 p.m. EDT BOTTOM LINE: Atlanta Dream faces the Golden State Valkyries after Brittney Griner scored 22 points in the Atlanta Dream's 90-86 win against the Minnesota Lynx. The Dream have gone 8-3 in home games. Atlanta leads the Eastern Conference with 28.0 defensive rebounds per game led by Griner averaging 4.9. The Valkyries are 3-9 in road games. Golden State ranks seventh in the Western Conference shooting 30.7% from 3-point range. Atlanta makes 43.4% of its shots from the field this season, which is 2.7 percentage points higher than Golden State has allowed to its opponents (40.7%). Golden State averages 78.8 points per game, 0.2 fewer than the 79.0 Atlanta gives up. The teams square off for the second time this season. The Dream won the last meeting 90-81 on July 7. Allisha Gray scored 24 points to help lead the Dream to the victory. TOP PERFORMERS: Brionna Jones is averaging 12.6 points and 7.4 rebounds for the Dream. Gray is averaging 17.3 points over the last 10 games. Veronica Burton is averaging 10.7 points and 5.2 assists for the Valkyries. Tiffany Hayes is averaging 13.0 points over the last 10 games. LAST 10 GAMES: Dream: 5-5, averaging 84.3 points, 36.7 rebounds, 21.7 assists, 7.3 steals and 3.3 blocks per game while shooting 45.5% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 81.7 points per game. Valkyries: 4-6, averaging 78.6 points, 35.4 rebounds, 18.7 assists, 5.3 steals and 2.1 blocks per game while shooting 40.5% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 78.8 points. INJURIES: Dream: Rhyne Howard: out (knee). Valkyries: Kayla Thornton: out for season (knee). ___ The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
Winnipeg Free Press
12 hours ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Los Angeles plays Las Vegas, seeks 6th straight victory
Las Vegas Aces (13-13, 7-7 Western Conference) at Los Angeles Sparks (11-14, 3-10 Western Conference) Los Angeles; Tuesday, 10 p.m. EDT BOTTOM LINE: Los Angeles Sparks heads into a matchup against Las Vegas Aces as winners of five games in a row. The Sparks have gone 3-10 against Western Conference opponents. Los Angeles gives up 87.3 points and has been outscored by 2.3 points per game. The Aces are 7-7 in Western Conference play. Las Vegas is 10th in the WNBA averaging 8.1 made 3-pointers per game while shooting 32.5% from downtown. Jewell Loyd leads the team averaging 1.9 makes while shooting 36.0% from 3-point range. Los Angeles scores 85.0 points per game, 2.4 more points than the 82.6 Las Vegas allows. Las Vegas' 41.8% shooting percentage from the field this season is 3.3 percentage points lower than Los Angeles has given up to its opponents (45.1%). The teams meet for the third time this season. The Sparks won 97-89 in the last matchup on June 12. Rickea Jackson led the Sparks with 30 points, and Jackie Young led the Aces with 34 points. TOP PERFORMERS: Dearica Hamby is averaging 17.6 points, eight rebounds, 3.5 assists and 1.8 steals for the Sparks. Kelsey Plum is averaging 19.7 points over the last 10 games. A'ja Wilson is scoring 21.6 points per game and averaging 9.1 rebounds for the Aces. Young is averaging 1.3 made 3-pointers over the last 10 games. LAST 10 GAMES: Sparks: 7-3, averaging 90.6 points, 33.3 rebounds, 22.8 assists, 6.7 steals and 2.9 blocks per game while shooting 49.4% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 87.3 points per game. Aces: 5-5, averaging 82.1 points, 33.2 rebounds, 17.9 assists, 6.8 steals and 4.8 blocks per game while shooting 43.4% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 83.5 points. INJURIES: Sparks: None listed. Aces: Cheyenne Parker-Tyus: out (personal). ___ The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
