Dusters earn first victory of season in 42-32 triumph
May 16, 2009 - arenafootball2 (af2)
Amarillo Venom News Release
Amarillo, TX - The Amarillo Dusters forced four turnovers and received solid special teams play to propel the home squad to a 42-32 victory over the Corpus Christi Sharks Saturday night at the Amarillo Civic Center.
After a KEITA IIZUKA touchback on the opening kickoff, the Sharks were forced to begin their initial drive from their own five-yard line. On just the third play of the drive, Corpus Christi quarterback GARY COOPER rifled a pass to receiver BRANDON HUSSEY across the middle-Hussey was slammed by Amarillo defensive back RICKY WILLIAMS, popping the ball into the air. Linebacker JOHN KING ran underneath the ball, plucking it off his shoetops and returning it 12 yards to the endzone, giving Amarillo an early 7-0 lead.
On Corpus Christi's next drive, MYRON NEWBERRY intercepted a Cooper pass and returned it to the Shark 16-yard line. The first offensive play from scrimmage for the Dusters resulted in a touchdown strike from signal caller COLLIN DRAFTS to receiver ALEX WATSON, pushing the score to 14-0 following Iizuka's second extra point of the contest. The Sharks, in their effort to answer, drove the ball to the Amarillo six on the ensuing drive, only to fumble on a fullback trap on the next play. Amarillo would recover, but were forced to attempt a long field goal (missed) after the drive stalled in their own territory. Corpus Christi would score on their fourth possession, with Cooper finding a wide-open NATHAN FRICKE in the endzone from 25 yards out. The extra point was missed, and after one quarter of play, Amarillo led 14-6.
The Dusters would score again on their next drive, this time with a Drafts one-yard rush. All five plays on the drive (which spanned 38 yards) went on the ground. The visitors would fight back before halftime, earning a duo of scores before the conclusion of the second quarter. JONATHON GRAHAM caught a three-yard touchdown strike from Cooper with 6:37 remaining in the half, putting Corpus Christi within eight at 21-13. With just 38 seconds remaining before intermission, Sharks kicker NICK GATTO drilled a 40-yard field goal to solidify the halftime score at 21-16, Dusters.
Amarillo would strike quickly to begin the third quarter, with Drafts finding an open ABRAHAM HOLLOWAY for the latter's second career touchdown catch. The tight end tromped to paydirt after the 15-yard conversion, giving the Dusters a 28-16 lead. Gatto answered with a 41-yard field goal, bringing Corpus Christi back to within nine. However, on the ensuing kickoff, the Dusters' Watson scooped up a two-hopper off the net and proceeded to race 43 yards to the endzone-the return was the Dusters' first kickoff return for a touchdown since the 2007 season, and put Amarillo up 35-19.
The lead would prove insurmountable for the Sharks, despite a Cooper two-yard touchdown run late in the third quarter. Down 35-25 beginning the fourth quarter, the Sharks could not muster a scoring drive to start the final frame. Amarillo wideout BRENT CRAFT hauled in a 19-yard touchdown pass from Drafts to help extend the Dusters' lead. After a Graham 10-yard touchdown catch for Corpus Christi to make the score 42-32, there would be no further tallies from either squad, as the Dusters cruised to their first victory of the 2009 season.
Dusters kicker Iizuka was a perfect 6-for-6 on extra points, and pinned the Sharks in their own territory frequently on kickoffs (his four touchbacks more than doubled his total from the first six games). Meanwhile, Amarillo's defensive effort limited the Sharks to just 194 yards and four touchdowns.
Amarillo (1-6) will play their next game on Saturday, May 23 in Des Moines against the Iowa Barnstormers. The game will be broadcast on KPUR-FM 107.1 in the Amarillo area on worldwide on af2TV (go to www.dustersfootball.com for more information). Corpus Christi (1-6) will suit up on Monday, May 25 at home against Oklahoma City.
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