Rematch This Sunday, BlueCats Visit Storm
July 21, 2006 - United Indoor Football Association (UIF)
Evansville BlueCats News Release
EVANSVILLE, IN: The Evansville BlueCats continue on the road toward United Bowl II this Sunday afternoon at 3:05pm when they will face the defending champion Sioux Falls Storm in the semi-finals of the United Indoor Football playoffs. The winner of this game will advance to United Bowl II next weekend. The BlueCats are coming off an impressive road victory over the Omaha Beef in first round of the playoffs last weekend. The top seeded Storm enjoyed a bye in the first round. Sunday's game will be a rematch of the regular season finale just two weeks ago where the Storm escaped with a 33-26 victory over Evansville. The BlueCats have won 5 of their last 6 games, with the only loss coming at the hands of the Sioux Falls Storm. This game can be heard live on ESPN radio 94.9 in Evansville and the Official BlueCats Listening Party will take place at Crawdaddy's in downtown Evansville.
Last Saturday, #3 Rock River defeated #6 Sioux City. This weekend, #3 Rock River will take on #2 Lexington in the other UIF semi-final.
The BlueCats entered the playoffs as the #5 seed and won their first round game at Omaha. Sunday's opponent, top seeded Sioux Falls, is the defending national champion. Last season, Sioux Falls also entered the playoffs as the #5 seed and won their opening round game on the road in Omaha on their way to claiming the United Bowl championship.
BlueCats quarterback Aaron Leak passed for a season high 222 yards and 4 touchdowns against the Omaha Beef. It was Leak's first game without an interception since June 3rd against Bloomington. BlueCats wide receiver Tommy Manus, formerly of the Baltimore Ravens, had 5 receptions for 98 yards and 2 touchdowns in the game.
Last week against Omaha, the BlueCats defense grabbed 4 interceptions with each of the starting defensive backs recording one each. The defense also held the league's leading rusher and UIF Offensive Rookie of the Year RJ Rollins to only 14 yards on 9 carries.
The BlueCats will be without UIF Defensive Rookie of the Year and UIF Defensive MVP runner-up John Winchester, who suffered an injured knee in the previous game with the Storm, and will miss the rest of the season.
Evansville will face a Sioux Falls Storm team that leads the league in scoring defense, rushing defense, turnover margin, and sacks. Sioux Falls also ranks second in the league in scoring offense, total defense, and pass defense. The BlueCats lead the league in red zone defense and rank second in sacks, red zone offense, and kicking percentage. They rank third in rushing defense and turnover margin.
The BlueCats defense has come to life in the past several weeks, giving up less than 20 points per game. An opponent hasn't scored more than 30 points on the BlueCats defensive unit since June 10th against the Fort Wayne Freedom. Of those opponents, Sioux Falls did the best, scoring 33 points as a team and scoring 26 points against the BlueCats defense.
Since June 10th:
6/17 vs. Peoria: Final Score - W 70-31: Defense allowed 24 (7 points on fumble return for TD)
6/24 vs. Omaha: Final Score - W 28-17: Defense allowed 17
7/1 at Ohio Valley: Final Score - W 28-26: Defense allowed 19 (7 points on interception return for TD)
7/8 at Sioux Falls: Final Score - L 33-26: Defense allowed 26 (7 points on interception return for TD)
7/15 at Ohio: Final Score - W 37-15: Defense allowed 13 (2 points on a safety)
The BlueCats defense has allowed a league best average of 19.8 points per game since June 17th. The rest of the league is averaging 34.3 defensive points allowed over the same time period and the other 5 playoff teams are giving up an average of 24.3 points per game since June 17th.
Be sure to tune in to ESPN Radio 94.9 this Sunday afternoon with a spot in United Bowl II on the line in Sioux Falls. Wear your BlueCats gear and join your fellow BlueCats fans at Crawdaddy's for the Official BlueCats Listening Party. Jimmie Ford and Nick Hart will bring you all the action live with pregame starting at 2:45pm. Kickoff is scheduled for 3:05pm. For the complete Evansville BlueCats 2006 schedule, please visit the website at www.evansvillebluecats.com.
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United Indoor Football Association Stories from July 21, 2006
- Rematch This Sunday, BlueCats Visit Storm - Evansville BlueCats
- Storm to Battle BlueCats for Trip to United Bowl II - Sioux Falls Storm
- Four Teams Remain in UIF Playoffs - UIF
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