1972 Playoffs: Second Round 

Wrauport Pirates @ Norfolk Lumberjacks 
No one expected the Pirates to escape out of Ashonta alive, and now that they barely took that goliath they now need to face another in the Lumberjacks. Their luck began to run out right at the start, as on their first 3 drives they went 3 and out all each of them. Norfolk’s gears were fairly rusty for being the top seed in the league, and they fared equally as the Pirates, and failed to get past the 50 on their first few drives of the quarter. The ‘Jacks got some momentum going later into the quarter, spurred by a 34 yard run by RB Bruno Fontaine. Their momentum didn’t last for long though, as their drive quickly stalled out and had to be bailed out by K Isaac Brandt to take a 3-0 lead. Both teams went back to doing almost nothing for the remainder of the quarter.
END OF Q1: 3-0 NOR
Whatever lack of interest people had for the first quarter, people suddenly gained interest after WRA QB Kerry Knight threw a dime right to WR Ian Bourdillion for 79 yards before Bourdillion tripped right at the 3 yard line to not score a touchdown. The Pirates would end up scoring a few plays later when RB James Radcliff punched it in to take a 7-3 lead. Norfolk got right back to their regular season form after that drive, as MVP Nathan Slezak capped off a stellar drive by tossing a short 5 yard pass to TE Riley Ott to retake the lead. After these two drives, both teams almost stalled out, but both tacked on field goals to keep the difference at 3 by the end of the half.
END OF Q2: 13-10 NOR
Norfolk came out of the second half swinging, with Slezak landing another dime into the arms of WR Al Hartman, who took the ball another 30 yards to increase their lead to 10. The Pirates could not find an answer for the Lumberjacks defense in the second half, as NOR DC Vincent Rutton made the proper adjustments to halt the fiery Wrauport offense in its tracks. Because of this, they failed to get into any sort of scoring range throughout the quarter, with some semi-successful drives peppered with three-and-outs and other punts. Norfolk on the other hand, was slightly more successful on offense, stalling out for a bit during the middle of the 3rd, but did find enough footing for Brandt to nail another 3 on the board to go up by 13.
END OF Q3: 23-10 NOR
With a solid lead in front of them, all the Lumberjacks had to do was put it in cruise and hold the stalling Pirates offense. Things got scary for them at the beginning of the quarter, when their D let Radcliff right through the center of the field for a 56 yard gain, but was wrapped up at the 10 by rookie DB Titus Sheer. With that scare over, the Lumberjacks once again held Wrauport from getting into the endzone as the Pirates settled for 3 to cut the lead back down to 10. Slezak wasn’t content with only being up by 10 with half the quarter remaining, so he led another drive to put the game away, ending with RB Bruno Fontaine smashing his way in from 3 yards out to seal the game for the ‘Jacks. Wrauport could not get back on their feet for the remainder of the quarter, ending their Cinderella run to the Escalian Cup. Instead, Norfolk makes it back for their chance to become the first team to win 3 Cups.
FINAL: 30-13 NOR 



Duvall Dragons @ Ellesby Mariners 
Seashore Park was even more crowded than in recent playoff games, even though the temperature was nearly below freezing with strong winds blowing in from the ocean. The Mariners were somewhat used to this type of weather, but they struggled all throughout the first. The Dragons’ defense halted the Mariners offense’s production all through the first, coupled with multiple turnovers by QB Matt Kollen and RB Freeman Lockwood. Duvall didn’t prepare enough for the Ellesby defense, as their offense was stifled by the #2 defense in the league. Their offense was good enough to get into scoring range, but either stalled out or were stopped by the Mariners, and settled for field goals on both occasions to end the quarter up by 6.
END OF Q1: 6-0 DUV
After spending nearly all the first quarter in hibernation, the Mariners offense finally decided to show up. Kollen found his rhythm that he had in the regular season, and hit WR Dan Hersch for 20 yards to score the first TD of the game and to take the lead. Duvall sputtered out in the second quarter, with the Mariners preventing them from reaching the 30 the entire quarter. They could have taken the lead, but K Jem Wyatt sailed one wide from 40 yards out. Ellesby on the other hand, did manage one final score before the end of the half, with their K Marlon Scott nailing a 42 yarder to end the half up by 7.
END OF Q2: 13-6 ELB
The Dragons finally broke through the Mariners D on their first drive of the half, with QB Harold Bauer putting together a solid drive that ended with RB Placid Smith punching in the Dragons for 6 from 4 yards out. The game would not be tied however, as Wyatt hit the crossbar on the PAT, and so the Dragons still trailed only by 1. The Mariners almost reverted back to first quarter form with another fumble by Lockwood, but still were once again held scoreless throughout the third quarter. Duvall didn’t have much luck either, stalling out on most of their drives this quarter but did manage another field goal to retake the lead.
END OF Q3: 15-10 DUV
Ellesby still struggled on offense heading into the final quarter. Kollen could not hit his targets on each of their first drives, and had to be carried by Lockwood. Lockwood almost had every yard on their second drive, where he plowed his way for 60 yards and a TD on that drive for the Mariners to retake the lead. The Dragons went back into their funk, and struggled to even get past midfield. The Mariners struggled a bit less, finding their way into the redzone on two more occasions but only came out with 3 each time. That didn’t matter all that much, as Seashore Park erupted with cheers when the clock finally hit 0 and Ellesby would get a chance to take home their first against the #1 seeded Lumberjacks.
FINAL: 23-15 ELB


(Completely unrelated, but I think this may be my favorite uniform matchup in the EFL. Not sure which would come second though)

13th Escalian Cup Preview: Ellesby Mariners @ Norfolk Lumberjacks
Previous Matchups: 1971 W6: ELB 10-46 NOR 
The top two seeds meet each other for the first time this season in the game where it matters the most. Although their game last year was a complete blowout by the Lumberjacks, this year’s matchup should be different. Both teams have potent defenses that have stuffed opponents to low scores, while the offenses differ between the two. Norfolk has the incredibly reliable MVP Nathan Slezak and receiving core to consistently put up points, but Ellesby’s offense seems to be more wishy-washy as of late. Winning will come down to whoever’s offense performs at their best when they need to.
Escalian Sports Magazine Prediction: With the Mariners’ offense showing their flaws in the cold and Norfolk not having a problem with it, the Lumberjacks will come out on in a chilly but close game in Saint Blaise. 20-14 NOR 



C&C Appreciated!

I think Ellesby will get the win in this one

Both teams can jump in a lake, but since Ellesby is in our division, I'll root for Norfolk as the lesser of two evils.

Congrats to Norfolk! Great game between them and the Mariners, who don't seem to be able to win their first championship

Woah a team finally won a 3rd championship! Nice.
Mother nature was not happy during the game either.