Barnstormers Stand Tall, Defeat Tulsa 55-53
July 2, 2011 - Arena Football League (AFL)
Iowa Barnstormers News Release
Des Moines, IA - The last time the Iowa Barnstormers and Tulsa Talons took the same field back on April 23, it was Tulsa kicker Juan Bongarra who had the last laugh as he kicked a game winning 42 yard field goal as time expired to give the Talons the victory. Faced with the same situation again, Bongarra's kick sailed wide right giving the Barnstormers a 55-53 victory and sending the Wellmark Field crowd of 8,156 into a frenzy on Friday night.
The team's played a tough back and forth battle for much of the game. Iowa jumped out to a 14-13 first quarter lead as QB Brad Banks connected with WR Jesse Schmidt for two early touchdowns. However Tulsa rallied behind three QB Justin Allgood TD passes to take a narrow 32-30 lead into halftime.
Trailing 53-44 Banks found WR Marquis Hamilton for a 7 yard score and then tacked on a 2 point conversion pass to Jesse Schmidt to cut the lead to 53-52. Iowa's defense then delivered a huge stop on downs on Tulsa's next drive, paving the way for a 20 yard Nick Pertuit field goal with 56 seconds remaining in the contest, putting the Barnstormers up 55-53. Tulsa drove the length of the field on the ensuing drive and appeared to have kicked the game-winning field goal, but the kick was nullified due to a delay of game penalty. Bongarra's re-kick from five yards deeper sailed wide to the right, giving the Barnstormers their first victory in 5 games.
With the win, Iowa improves to 4-11 on the season, while Tulsa falls to 6-9. With the loss, Tulsa's playoff hopes take a major hit as they remain at least one game behind Spokane and Utah for the National Conference's final spot with 3 weeks remaining.
The Barnstormers return home to Wellmark Field next Saturday night, July 9 when the Kansas City Command make their first ever appearance in Des Moines. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:05pm. The first 3,000 fans will receive a free Storm Chasers dance team poster, courtesy of Allied. To order your seats today, head to the Wells Fargo Arena box office, call the Barnstormers at 515.633.2255 or order online at www.theiowabarnstormers.com .
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