Diamonds Out Shine Ruff Riders
March 30, 2010 - Indoor Football League (IFL)
Arkansas Diamonds News Release
Once the Diamonds captured the lead late in the first half they never looked back as they defeated the Abilene Ruff Riders 53 to 34. New quarterback James Pinkney started the night with back to back end zone strikes to give the Diamonds a 13-7 lead after a missed extra point. The Ruff Riders would catch back up with their own quick strike for a touchdown but would only be able to even the score 13-13 after they were unable to tack on their extra point either. The Diamonds defense would continue to be hard for the start of the 2nd quarter and kept the Ruff Riders out of the end zone for the rest of the half. With roughly a minute left in the 2nd quarter the Diamonds offense drove down the turf into Ruff Rider territory. With just seconds left Arkansas was able to kick a 29 yard field goal and go into halftime leading 19 to 13.
Early in the 3rd quarter the teams traded touchdowns but the quick Diamonds offense led by Pinkney would help Arkansas pull away from Abilene in the early in the second half. Another series of back to back touchdowns put the Diamonds on top by 14 points. Unfortunately, during the next offensive series new Diamonds quarterback James Pinkney was injured during a tackle near the end of the 3rd quarter and he would not return for the rest of the night. Quarterback Willie Copeland was brought into the game and he picked up were Pinkney left off. Copeland quickly shook off the two interceptions from last week and connected in the end zone to expand the Diamonds lead even further. But the Diamonds defense were unable to hold off the Ruff Riders gave up a touchdown and a 2 point conversion to make the score 43-28 as the game moved into the 4th quarter.
In the 4th quarter the Ruff Riders tried to mount a come back but the Diamonds defense would not bend. Quarterback Haven Mosely continued to be abused by the Diamonds defense keeping the Ruff Riders from getting into any kind of offensive rhythm late in the game. This divisional match up ended with the Arkansas Diamonds winning over the Abilene Ruff Riders 53 to 28. The Diamonds move to 3-1 to lead the Lonestar East by one game. The Ruff Riders drop to 0-3 and continue to be the only winless team in the Lonestar Division.
Next week the Corpus Christi Hammerheads are coming to Little Rock after a loss on the road to the San Angelo Stampede Express of 31-45. The Hammerheads were unable to get anything going on offense after the first quarter and the Stampede Express were able to hold back Corpus Christi to get a home win. The Diamonds already faced Corpus Christi in their first game of the season. The Diamonds defeated them in Corpus Christi winning 26-18. Arkansas shut down the Corpus Christi offense for two consecutive quarters to grab their first win of the season. The Diamonds hope to repeat their performance from Corpus and grab one more win at home before heading out to San Angelo to face the Stampede Express.
This will be the last home game until May 1st so come support your only professional football team in the state. Arkansas will host the Corpus Christi Hammerheads Saturday, April 3rd 7:05pm at Verizon Arena. It is Faith and Family night with a special halftime performance by the Gloryland Pastors Choir.
Indoor Football League Stories from March 30, 2010
- Spartans Look To Cook Beef In Home Opener - La Crosse Spartans
- Colorado Ice Announce New Owner - Colorado Crush
- Beef's Nationally Televised Game Comes Up Short - Omaha Beef
- Diamonds Out Shine Ruff Riders - Arkansas Diamonds
- Raiders Cut Ties With Former Player and Trainer - Rochester Raiders
- Over a Cup of Coffee - OSC Original by Jerry Hewitt
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