Freedom, Slaughter capture victories
Published on March 21, 2009 under Continental Indoor Football League (CIFL) News Release
Fort Wayne 46, Marion 23
FORT WAYNE, Ind.-The Freedom turned four Marion turnovers into 20 points en route to handily defeating visiting Marion at Allen County War Memorial Coliseum on Saturday night.
Aaron Lane had two interceptions, returning one 48 yards for a score, and David Gater picked off a pass on the game's second play to set up the Freedom's first score.
After Gater returned the pick to the Marion three, Randy Hutchison hit Dan Musielewicz for a score to give the Freedom (1-0) an early 7-0 lead.
Marion got a 29-yard field goal from Eric Schnatz on their next drive, but they wouldn't score again until close to the midpoint of the third quarter.
Fort Wayne, meanwhile, scored once more in the first, added the lone score of the second quarter and opened the second with a touchdown.
The score in the first came when Hutchison hit Brian Jackson for a three-yard score and the second-quarter score was the 48-yard pick-six by Lane. Jackson hauled in his second score of the night with 11:47 left in the third.
Marion finally got back on the board with 8:34 left in the third when Tavares Woodley, who was making his first CIFL start after replacing an injured Stanley Jackson last week, hit Ian Schmidt for a 28-yard touchdown.
Fort Wayne answered just over three minutes later when Hutchison hit Brian Dolph for a three-yard score.
The two teams would trade scores in the final period.
Fort Wayne scored first on a nine-yard hookup between Hutchison and Luther Stroder, followed by a Woodley to Justin Sayre seven-yard score for Marion. Musielewicz got his second score of the night, a 25-yarder from Hutchison, with 5:17 left and Marion capped the scoring when Bryceson Lawrence returned an interception 46 yards to the house with no time remaining.
On the night, Hutchison was 15-of-27 for 155 yards and six scores. Musielewicz caught four balls for 40 yards and two TDs, Jackson caught three for 15 yards and two TDs, Stroder snagged five passes for 42 yards and a score and Dolph had 48 yards and a score on three catches.
Woodley finished 21-of-35 for 233 yards and two touchdowns. The Mayhem (1-1) outgained Fort Wayne 287-196 on the night.
Fort Wayne travels to Wheeling on March 28 and Marion hosts Miami Valley on March 27.
Chicago 40, Wisconsin 36
MADISON, Wis.-Chicago recovered a late onside kick, securing a four-point win over the Wolfpack at the Alliant Energy Center in Madison on Saturday.
Wisconsin cut the Slaughter (2-0) lead to four with 1:45 remaining, but Dennison Robinson came up with the loose ball on the ensuing kickoff. Chicago salted away the final minute of play, capturing the win in their road debut.
Derrick Brown started the scoring on the opening kickoff, a 57-yard return for a touchdown. Kicker Paul Schroeder added the extra point and the Wolfpack led 7-0 just 20 seconds into the game.
The Slaughter would answer on their opening drive as quarterback Russ Michna would bull his way into the endzone from one-yard out. Kicker Chris Nendick added the extra point and the game was tied at seven with 9:29 left to play in the first quarter.
The Wolfpack responded on their next drive. Stetzer found wide receiver Reggie Davis on a 42-yard touchdown pass. Schroeder's kick was wide right and the Wolfpack led 13-7.
The back-and-forth battle would continue as the Michna connected with wide receiver Reggie Gray on a nine-yard touchdown toss on their next drive. Nendick's kick was good and the Slaughter took their first lead of the game, 14-13 with 1:55 to play in the first quarter.
Michna and Gray would again team up with 11:50 to play in the half. Michna found Gray wide open down the right sideline on a 32-yard toss-and-catch. Nendick converted his 15th-consecutive conversion to give the Slaughter a 21-13 lead.
Brown nearly broke the ensuing kickoff, returning it to the Slaughter five-yard line. Running back Eric Donoval would finish the job, going in from five yards out. He would also tack on a two-point conversion run to tie the game at 21 with 6:30 to play in the half.
The Slaughter took the lead right back on Michna's third passing TD of the game, this time to lineman Raasche Hill from two yards out. Nendick's kick attempt failed and the Slaughter led 27-21 with 3:38 to play.
The Slaughter would get an interception and turn it into six more points on a two-yard run by wide receiver Dontrell Jackson. Nendick's kick was good and the Slaughter led 34-21 with just five seconds left in the half.
The Wolfpack would pull off the unbelievable with just one second left on the clock. Stetzer hit wide receiver Will Norwood who took the ball to the Slaughter 20-yard line. With three Slaughter defenders hanging on him, Norwood was able to pitch the ball to a streaking Marques Johnson who took the ball in the rest of the way for a touchdown. Schroeder added the extra point and the Wolfpack went into the half down 34-28.
The two teams only managed two scores between them in the second half. The Slaughter scored midway through the third quarter when Michna ran in from a yard out for his second rushing touchdown and fifth total touchdown of the game. The two-point conversion run failed and the Slaughter led 40-28.
With just 1:45 left in the game, Stetzer found Johnson on a five-yard pass for a touchdown. Donoval ran in for the two-point conversion and the Wolfpack (1-1) trailed 40-36.
Schroeder setup for an onside kick. The kick went ten yards and took a Wolfpack bounce but glanced off the hands of defensive back Sam D'Alie and into the hands of Slaughter player Dennison Robinson. The Slaughter ran out the clock and squeaked away with a 40-36 victory.
Wisconsin Wolfpack radio announcer Don Wadewitz contributed to this story.
Continental Indoor Football League Stories from March 21, 2009
- Freedom, Slaughter capture victories - CIFL
- Slaughter Slips by Wisconsin, Moves to 2-0 - Chicago Slaughter
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