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Home not so sweet for Avengers

by Tim Peterson - Mid Valley News
March 2, 2004 - Arena Football League (1987-2008) (AFL I)
Georgia Force


(Los Angeles)- For the second straight week the Avengers were at home and for the second straight week home sweet home was anything but sweet. Leon Murray hit Dialleo Burks in the left corner of the end zone for a two point conversion to complete a 53-52 overtime victory for the Georgia Force over the Avengers before 10,236 Monday night at Staples Center.

Los Angeles had taken a 52-45 lead when they scored on the first possession in OT. But the Force bounced right back with a nine yard pass from Murray to Dameon Porter to cut it to 52-51. In Arena Football after each team scores it becomes a sudden death game. So Georgia opted to go for the win and succeeded with Murray's toss to Burks.

"The Force will go for two," AFL commissioner David Baker correctly predicted during Georgia's winning drive. "They don't want to get into a sudden death situation."

"We had worked on stopping that play during the week and we had seen it on film," said Avenger coach Ed Hodgkiss of the game winning two pointer. "We just didn't execute very well defensively."

Georgia kicker Steve Mclaughlin booted a 50 yard field goal as time expired in regulation to force the overtime session.

LA was in control early leading 14-7 after one quarter and 28-21 at halftime. Tony Graziani found Joe Douglas on a six yard strike on the Avengers first possession. After a Kevin Ingram interception, Josh Jeffries scored a rare touchdown on the ground, busting in from 15 yards out to put LA up 14-0.

The Force rebounded with touchdown passes of 10 and 14 yards from Murray to stay close. Douglas hauled in another touchdown catch from Graziani and Greg Hopkins got into the act with a nine yard score for the Avengers.

Porter and Murray connected on a 21 yard scoring pass just before the break stay within a touchdown.

The Force grabbed the lead for the first time with 1:14 left in the third when Murray hooked up with Markieth Cooper on a 26-yard pass for a 35-31 lead. The Avengers responded with a ten play 33 yard drive to go back up 38-35. Hopkins capped the march with a three yard TD reception.

The two teams battled back and forth until the Force finally put it away with 9:22 left in the extra session.

"I think the key in the game was we kind of lost the possession battle before halftime,' Hodgkiss said. "They got the last points before half and then they came out and got the ball at the beginning of the second half."

For Georgia, Murray threw for 297 yards and six touchdowns. Cooper caught seven passes for 83 yards and a touchdown while Porter had eight receptions for 96 yards and three scores.

"This win is as important as can be," Porter said. "We felt good coming in because we've won before on the road. But we've lost two at home so we need to get that monkey off our back"

Graziani completed 23 of 36 for 253 yards and six touchdowns and still has not thrown an interception this year. The Avengers have a bye this week before embarking on a three game road trip.

"We're just going to pay one game at a time. We dug ourselves a hole and hopefully we can get out of it," Graziani said. 

G-   7  14  14  10  8  -  53
LA- 14  14   3  14  7  -  52

Passing; G- Murray 27-38-297-6-1, LA- Graziani 23-36-253-6-0.
Rushing Yards: G- 44, LA- 25.
Total Yards: G- 339, LA- 278.

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Arena Football League (1987-2008) Stories from March 2, 2004


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