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Defense, special teams lead Sabercats past Storm

May 11, 2003 - Arena Football League (AFL)
Tampa Bay Storm News Release


TAMPA, FL – The San Jose Sabercats held the Tampa Bay Storm to their lowest scoring output of the season, defeating the Storm 47-34 Sunday afternoon at the St. Pete Times Forum. In the process the Sabercats pulled into a first place tie with the Storm and two other teams for the overall lead in the race for the top seed in the playoffs.

With the win the Sabercats improved to 11-4 on the season and are now tied with Tampa Bay, Los Angeles, and Orlando for the best overall record. All four will play their final game of the regular season next weekend.

Neither team could consistently move the ball, but it was San Jose's defense and special teams that stepped up and proved to be the difference. The Sabercats picked off three John Kaleo passes, returning one for a score, and scored a pair of special teams touchdowns in the contest.

Sabercats quarterback Mark Grieb finished the game 14-for-35 for 185 yards and a touchdown. As important, he did not throw an interception.

Barry Wagner earned Ironman of the Game honors after rushing for a pair of touchdowns and catching three passes for 65 yards. He also picked off a pass and recorded a team-high five tackles in the game.

Clevan Thomas was name Game MVP after recording his 12th interception of the season, tying him for the highest single-season total in AFL history. He also returned three kickoffs for 104 yards, including a 57-yard touchdown, and broke up six passes.

For the Storm, quarterback John Kaleo completed just 15-of-41 passes for 260 yards and four scores. He also tossed three interceptions in the contest.

The top receiver for the Storm was Lawrence Samuels, who caught four passes for 62 yards and a touchdown. Freddie Solomon had three receptions for 91 yards and two touchdowns, while Clif Dell had three catches for 69 yards and a score.

Neither team was able to get its offense going early in the game, as the contest remained scoreless through one quarter of play. The Sabercats were finally able to break the scoreless tie on a two-yard touchdown run by Wagner with 10:56 left in the first half.

The Storm attempted to answer, but Kaleo was intercepted by Thomas in the endzone on fourth down, giving the ball back the San Jose offense.

While the Storm offense continued to struggle, the San Jose offense was able to move the football to the Storm side of the field. But the Tampa Bay defense stiffened, holding San Jose to a 28-yard Daron Alcorn field goal with 0:52 left in the half, giving the Sabercats a 10-0 lead.

Tampa Bay was finally able to dent the scoreboard on its next offensive possession, as Kaleo found Freddie Solomon wide open and he raced 39 yards for a touchdown. Steve Kratz's extra point attempt was no good, and San Jose led 10-6 with 0:40 left in the first half.

San Jose scored the final touchdown of the first half, recovering a missed field goal in the endzone for a touchdown with no time left on the clock. The Sabercats led 17-6 at halftime.

Clevan Thomas returned the opening kickoff of the second half for a 57-yard touchdown. Alcorn's extra point gave the Sabercats a 24-6 lead with 14:08 left in the third quarter.

Tampa Bay answered with a 41-yard touchdown pass to Solomon on the next play from scrimmage. Kaleo hit Clif Dell on the two-point conversion, cutting the Tampa Bay deficit to 24-14 with 12:42 left in the third quarter.

Grieb completed a 10-yard touchdown pass to Aaron Bailey to push the San Jose lead to 31-14. The Sabercats then went ahead 38-14 after George Williams intercepted Kaleo and returned it 10 yards for a touchdown.

David White scored on a one-yard touchdown run to cut the San Jose lead to 38-20 and TT Toliver caught a two-point conversion to bring the Storm to within 38-22 with 11:10 left in the game.

Lawrence Samuels hauled in a 35-yard touchdown pass to cut the San Jose lead to 38-28 with 0:59 left to play before Barry Wagner added a two-yard rushing score with 0:45 left.

The Storm scored on a two-yard touchdown pass from Kaleo to Clif Dell as time ran out on the Storm's comeback bid. With no time left on the clock, Thomas capped off the San Jose win, intercepting Kaleo's two-point conversion pass and returning it for two points for the Sabercats.

The Storm close out the regular season next Sunday with a road game at division-rival Georgia. Kickoff for the contest is scheduled for 3:00 pm.



Arena Football League Stories from May 11, 2003


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