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June 16, 2004 - arenafootball2 (af2)
San Diego Riptide News Release


2004 RECORDS:

San Diego Riptide (4-5, 3rd National West)

Hawaiian Islanders (6-4, t-1st National West)

SERIES HISTORY:

8 Games (SDG 3, HAW 5) – The Riptide snapped a streak of five straight losses to the Islanders with a 91-77 victory in Week 9, as the two teams combined to set an af2 record for scoring.

2004 SEASON: The two teams have split their first two meetings of the season, with the Islanders winning game one in San Diego on a two-point conversion in overtime, but the Riptide bounced back to demolish the Islanders in Hawaii in Week 9. They will meet once more this season after Week 12, July 3 in San Diego.

GAME NOTES: After their worst start in franchise history (1-5) the Riptide are now in the middle of their longest win streak in franchise history (three). The reasons for the turnaround are obvious – stronger play from their defense, fewer turnovers and a nearly unstoppable offense. This week the ‘Tide will look to run their streak to four games and put themselves squarely back in the race for the playoffs.

San Diego currently trails both the Islanders and the Bakersfield Blitz in the National West Division by one-and-a-half games, but play each team over the next two weeks and have a chance to end the month of June in first place after having the worst record in the league just four weeks ago.

After using a dominant offense to win the first two games of the streak, the ‘Tide turned up the heat on defense in Week 10 against Central Valley, holding the Coyotes to just 24 points, the third lowest output by a Riptide opponent in franchise history. Nakoa McElrath, Week 10's Ironman of the Week, led the way with two interceptions, part of a five-takeaway team effort. Quincy LeJay continued to be a force, adding another 6.5 tackles to his season total, which currently ranks eighth in af2.

The five takeaways tied a season high for San Diego, which now has 21 in its last six games after forcing just four in their first three. To go along with the increase in takeaways, the Riptide offense in turning the ball over much less as well. After 12 turnovers in their first three games of the season, they've only given up the ball 10 times in their last six games and now boast a +3 turnover differential for the year.

By doing a better job of holding on to the ball, the offense has given themselves a chance to score on virtually every drive during the recent winning streak. After a 91-point outburst in Week 9, the ‘Tide put up 45 more points in Week 10 against Central Valley, while quarterback Kane Claunch took home his fourth straight offensive player of the game award. In all, Claunch is 80-of-125 (64%) on pass attempts during his last four games, throwing for 1192 yards (including two games with over 300 yards) and 22 touchdowns, while tossing just five picks. Dwight Carter (63 catches) has continued to pace the receiving corps, while the emergence of McElrath as an offensive force (13 TD's in six games) has provided Claunch with a big-play threat capable of scoring at any time.

Hawaii is led by QB Darnell Arceneaux, who ranks in the top 10 in af2 in virtually every rushing and passing category. The ‘Tide did a good job of containing him in Week 9 (18-of-30 passing with two picks), but will also need to focus on his brother, Anthony Arceneaux, who returned an af2-record three kicks for touchdowns in the game. He also had a fourth kick return TD called back on a penalty. With such an explosive offense, San Diego cannot afford to give up too many points on special teams.

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