CIF Duke City Gladiators

Gladiators' Playoff Hopes Cut Short by Venom

Published on May 29, 2016 under Champions Indoor Football (CIF)
Duke City Gladiators News Release


Albuquerque, N.M. - It was a hopeful night on Saturday as the Duke City Gladiators (5-6) sought to control their playoff destiny. A win versus the Amarillo Venom (7-4) would have set the stage for the Gladiators to potentially grab their first playoff berth in franchise history.

The atmosphere inside Tingley Coliseum was an exciting one as fans came out to witness the intense rivalry and league history. Both Duke City and Amarillo had one win a piece on the season and this game was the tie breaker for the third spot in the Southern Division. Also, wide receiver Dello Davis was looking to break 1,000 reception yards in one season which would entitle him to be the first player in Champions Indoor Football history to break this threshold.

With a stacked roster which included the return of Quarterback Kasey Peters and Defensive End Roosevelt Falls, the Gladiators were hopeful of a victory.

The Gladiators set the tone in the first quarter as they were first to strike on a 3 yard scoring pass from Peters to Davis, but Kicker Cody Nuzzo missed the point after. The game became a wild west shoot out as both teams scored one right after the other. Duke City had the last say in the first quarter with a 9 yard touchdown catch by Davis and ending on a 13-7 lead over the Venom.

The second quarter was no different than the first in the fact that both teams took turns scoring. Amarillo outscored the Gladiators 21-14, but it didn't go without an entertaining play by Receiver Dello Davis as QB Kasey Peters finds him on a 37 yard pass which gave the Gladiators the lead in the middle of the second. At halftime, Duke City trailed Amarillo 28-27.

With hopes to figure out how to overcome the shootout and end on top, Head Coach Bramante set the tone as the Gladiators controlled the clock for over 4 minutes ending on a Damion Clark 3 yard touchdown reception. Amarillo was then able to drive and score the equalizer in 3 plays and a missed PAT by their own Jacob Felton. Both defenses remained in battle and an Amarillo interception by Raiford put the Venom at an opportunity to score and take the lead at the end of the third.

The fourth quarter started out on a great note as Peters connects with Davis on a 45 yard touchdown pass to bring the Gladiators closer. Nuzzo missed the point after which resulted in Duke City still trailing 41-40. Defensive miscues lead the Amarillo Venom to score just 54 seconds later. The Gladiators were only down by just 8 points as the bread and butter team came out which resulted in Kasey Peters finding Dello Davis on a 27 yard touchdown. Only down by two, a 2 point conversion was attempted and fumbled on a bad snap resulting in a failed attempt. Duke City wasn't out of the game just yet as 12:53 remained in the game with a score of 48-46. Nuzzo attempted an onside kick but unfortunately the Gladiators could not recover. Amarillo capitalized on the field position by driving 6 plays and scoring. The Venom controlled the rest of the game scoring two more times and a final score of 69-46 was in the books.

The Gladiators will settle at 4th in the Southern Division and will miss the playoffs.

GAME NOTES: Wide receiver Dello Davis reached a milestone of breaking 1,000 reception yards and being the first player in the CIF to do so. Davis had 8 catches for 147 yards and 6 touchdowns. He currently leads the league with 34 touchdowns, 82 receptions, and 1,106 yards. To put things into perspective, the closest league player to Davis has just 844 yards. Quarterback Kasey Peters had an outstanding return to the Duke City completing 21 of 28 passes for 302 yards and 7 touchdown passes.

The Gladiators will round out the 2016 season against the San Angelo Bandits this Saturday June 4th in Albuquerque, NM. Kick-off is set for 6:05 PM mountain time at Tingley Coliseum and tickets start at $10. The game can be watched online at dukecitygladiators.com/watch.

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Champions Indoor Football Stories from May 29, 2016


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