
Fire Prepares for Round Two
August 9, 2004 - arenafootball2 (af2)
Louisville Fire News Release
It came down to the wire but the Louisville Fire escaped Quad City with a 53-48 victory Saturday night. The Fire won the game on one of the most amazing plays in the history of the ArenaCup Playoffs and advanced to the National Conference semi-finals against the Tulsa Talons.
Kicker Danny Kight lined up for a 53-yard field goal to win the game with only four seconds left. The kick had the distance, but missed just left and careened off of the upright. The ball bounced over Quad City's Jeff Hewitt to the 10-yard line. Fire lineman Derrick Shepard picked up the bouncing ball and with a block on Hewitt from teammate Demetrius Forney, Shepard, the 330-pounder from Georgia Tech, took the ball into the end zone to give the Fire a 53-48 victory.
The game also featured an outstanding individual performance by wide receiver/defensive back Tony Stallings, who earned U.S. Army Ironman of the Game honors. On offense, Stallings totaled 17 rushing yards on five carries with two touchdowns, five receptions for 41 yards and two touchdowns. Special teams, however, is where Stallings stood out with one field goal return for 12 yards and eight kick returns for 180 yards. Stallings totaled 233 all-purpose yards on Saturday night.
The Fire now must prepare for the National Conference number one seed, the Tulsa Talons. The Talons come into the game on a 10 game winning streak, are the reigning Southwest Division champions and also the defending ArenaCup Champions. The Fire and the Talons have met three times before with the Talons winning all three games. The last time the two teams played was on July 17, 2003 in Freedom Hall with Tulsa winning 43-37. The game can be heard on 1080-AM WKJK at 8:30 P.M. with Paul Wilman calling the action.
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