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Panella Throws For Five Touchdown Passes

June 15, 2007 - arenafootball2 (af2)
Stockton Lightning News Release


AMARILLO, Texas - QB Steve Panella threw for five touchdown passes along with 263 yards passing to help the Amarillo Dusters send the Stockton Lightning to a 66-53 defeat at Amarillo Civic Center on Friday, in week 12 of arenafootball2 play.

The Lightning have six games remaining, with four scheduled at home in Stockton and two road matchups within the state of California (Bakersfield and Central Valley).

Amarillo escaped with a 14-13 lead after one quarter, beginning when Craig Fulton Jr. gave the Dusters their first lead of the game on a 52-yard kickoff return for a touchdown to snap a 7-7 tie. On the following drive, Lightning QB Evan Gray found WR Clarence Cunningham on a 34-yard bomb with 1:10 remaining, despite Alex Walls' failed point-after kick which caromed off the right pole of the nine-foot wide uprights.

Walls' 18-yard field goal with 9:55 remaining in the second quarter gave the Lightning their final lead of the game at 16-14. From there, Amarillo embarked on a 21-7 run, beginning with a one-yard keeper from Panella and an 11-yard interception return by David Ihedigbo, hiking Amarillo's lead to 28-16 with 4:25 left. The Lightning responded with Peter Tuialuuluu's one-yard blast through the middle but were countered with WR Steve Bergeski's five-yard touchdown grab with 27 seconds remaining.

Walls hit his second field goal of the game - a 28-yard strike, as time expired to end the quarter and cut Amarillo's lead to 35-26.

The Lightning fell behind at a 52-40 deficit through three quarters, as WR Sale' Key posted his first two of three touchdown receptions in the frame while Amarillo countered with WR Tim Wilkins' 10-yard receiving score, Panella's second touchdown run of the game, and Jacob Felton's 21-yard field goal to end the quarter's scoring.

Amarillo increased the margin to 59-46 and threatened to put the game on ice late in the fourth quarter, but Panella's pass into the middle of the endzone was picked by DB Travis Seaton, which set up Gray's highlight 45-yard touchdown toss to Cunningham on the ensuing play. Cunningham's spin move broke a tackle near the right side of the 15-yard line, and found daylight toward the end zone to cut the margin to 59-53 with 2:42 left in the game.

A failed onside kick by the Lightning set-up Bergeski's third touchdown reception of the game with 1:25 left, sealing the game on Panella's 12-yard pass to the tiny left corner of the endzone which Bergeski hauled in despite heavy pressure by DB Diamond Francies.

Bergeski led all Amarillo receivers with 10 catches and four TD receptions, tying the team-high with 106 receiving yards (Tim Wilkins). Key's seven-catch, 121-receiving yard and three touchdown performance led all Lightning receivers in all categories. Gray completed 22-of-37 passes for the Lightning with 302 yards and six touchdown passes.

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