Harrisburg Stampede Corral Mariners 37-34

Published on March 29, 2009 under American Indoor Football Association (AIFA)
Baltimore Mariners News Release


(Baltimore, MD) The 2009 Baltimore Mariners have established themselves as a force to be reckoned with on their home filed at 1st Mariner Arena, posting two consecutive wins to start their season 2-0 with sole possession of first place in the AIFA Northern Division. In those first two games, the Mariners averaged 59.5 points per game. The Mariners did not fare as well on their first road trip of the season, allowing Harrisburg to stay in the game, while failing to capitalize on scoring opportunities of their own.

Harrisburg held Baltimore scoreless in the first quarter of play while putting up a single score with 9:55 on the clock when WR Silas Daniels hauled in a 27-yd touchdown pass from QB A.J. Roque (12 of 30 COMP, 3 INT, 3 TD, 136-yds). The extra point by Andy Eminger gave Harrisburg a 7-0 lead over Baltimore. Neither team would see the endzone again until the second quarter.

Baltimore closed the gap on the Stampede, early in the second quarter when DB Richard Johnson picked of A.J. Roque at Harrisburg's 21-yd line, returning it twenty yards before being brought down at the 1. Mariners QB E.J. Nemeth (22 of 31 COMP, 0 INT, 3 TD, 202-yds) would do the heavy lifting as he moved the pile and plowed into the endzone for the touchdown. Kicker J.R. Cipra evened the score 7-7 with the extra point. Harrisburg moved the ball well on their next possession, marching downfield from their own 20, to Baltimore's 10-yd line. Baltimore's defensive stand on the play forced Harrisburg to attempt a field goal. Harrisburg's Andy Eminger sent the field goal attempt wide right, turning the ball over to Baltimore on their 10-yd line. E.J. Nemeth required only one play on the possession to put up six points, as he found WR Jamaal Stokes wide open for a 40-yd TD strike. J.R. Cipra drilled the extra point, giving Baltimore their first lead of the game. Harrisburg was not finished though. The Stampede put up three points on their next possession with an Eminger 28-yd field goal, narrowing the Mariners' lead 14-10. The Mariners would see their lead slip away; as Harrisburg's Roque tossed a 13-yd TD pass to WR Rafael Cooper, giving Harrisburg a 17-14 lead heading onto halftime.

Harrisburg opened the second half of play with kicker Eminger drilling a 45-yd field goal after A.J. Roque failed to move the ball a single yard, further widening their lead 20-14. Baltimore wasted no time in re-gaining their lead, when Nemeth hit Scorpio Brown (80-yds rec, 2 TD) on the run for a 21-yd gain, putting the ball on Harrisburg's 8-yd line. Nemeth would scramble for a one yard gain on the next snap, following it up by finding Scorpio Brown uncovered in the endzone for the score. The shootout would continue as Harrisburg scored on their next possession, courtesy of RB Eugene Goodman (79-APY, 1-TD). Goodman broke off 31-yd dash to the endzone, regaining Harrisburg's lead, 27-21. With fifty seconds left in the quarter, Baltimore would score again, taking over the lead 28-27, when Nemeth fired a rocket to Scorpio Brown for a 9-yd TD.

The fourth quarter would see Baltimore lose the lead, never to regain it. Harrisburg would add an additional ten points to their score, while the Mariners would only pad their score with an additional six points. When asked about their first loss, Mariners' head coach Chris Simpson said "There are little things that need fine tuning. We did not finish this game. We Let Harrisburg hang around for too long. We kept fighting back, but it was the little things that killed us. We left plenty of points on the field by missing some key scoring opportunities." When asked to elaborate on what needs improvement, Simpson added "Well, protection broke down on extra points, for one. We had something like three or four blocked kicks. We definitely need to work on that. We needed those points on the board."

Baltimore's defense continued to show a strong outing in the game against Harrisburg, sacking A.J. Roque once, and forcing three interceptions. Mariners' DB Richard Johnson added to his interception tally by picking Roque off twice, and LB Joe Taylor plucked a lingering pass out of the air. "We did okay out there," said defensive coach Bryan Milburn, "we had some mental lapses and there is a ton of work to do when we get home, but we will be fine. It's our first loss and it hurts, but it is time to move on and prepare for Columbus" added Milburn.

Baltimore continues their road game stretch as they travel to Columbus, S.C. next week to take on the 2-1 Columbus Lions.

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