Storm win second straight, drop Destroyers 46-36

April 25, 2004 - Arena Football League (1987-2008) (AFL I)
Tampa Bay Storm News Release


COLUMBUS, Ohio - The Tampa Bay Storm scored 15 unanswered points to start the third quarter to turn a five-point halftime deficit into a ten point lead en route to a 46-36 victory over the Columbus Destroyers Sunday afternoon at Nationwide Arena.

The win was the second straight for Tampa Bay, marking the first time the Storm have won back-to-back games this season. Tampa Bay improved to 5-7 overall, while the Destroyers dropped to 3-8 with the loss.

Trailing 22-17 at halftime, TT Toliver returned the opening kickoff of the third quarter to the Tampa Bay 23-yard line. From there the Storm needed just five plays before quarterback Shane Stafford scored on a five-yard run to give the Storm their first lead of the game, 25-22.

A penalty on the ensuing kickoff backed the ball up to the three yard line before Ernest Certain nearly sacked Columbus quarterback Ryan Vena in the endzone. Vena, instead, threw the ball in the air and after it was batted around, Kelvin Kinney intercepted it in the endzone for a touchdown. The score pushed the Storm lead to ten points, a lead which the Storm never lost.

Kinney, who resides in Columbus in the offseason, was named the Defensive Player of the Game. He also recorded two tackles in the contest.

Stafford completed 18-of-26 passes for 212 yards and a touchdown. He also rushed for six yards and a touchdown and earned Offensive Player of the Game honors.

Toliver compiled a game-high 172 all-purpose yards and was named Ironman of the Game. He had 126 kickoff return yards, including his third kickoff return for touchdown in two games.

The Storm held the Destroyers to a 26-yard Steve Videtich field goal on the first possession of the game, but Nyle Wiren was penalized for roughing the kicker and the Destroyers opted to take the points off the board. On the next play Wilmont Perry rushed in from five yards out for a Columbus touchdown. Videtich's extra point attempt was no good, and Columbus led 6-0 with 9:54 left in the first quarter.

The Destroyers then forced the Storm to turn the ball over on downs on Tampa Bay's first offensive possession, dropping Stafford in the backfield for a loss on fourth down. Three plays later Vena rushed in from two yards out to push the Columbus lead to 12-0 after Videtich again missed the extra point.

Toliver got the Storm back into the game on the ensuing kickoff, returning the kick 58 yards for a touchdown. The return cut the Columbus lead to 12-7 with 3:42 left in the first quarter.

Videtich did his part to make up for the earlier missed extra points, drilling a 48-yard field goal. The kick put the Destroyers on top 15-7 with 44 seconds left in the first quarter.

Tampa Bay answered with a field goal of its own, as Ignacio Brache connected on a 17-yard kick that pulled the Storm to within 15-10 with 10:32 left in the first half.

Columbus added an eight-yard touchdown pass from Vena to Corey Hill. Videtich's extra point pushed the Columbus lead to 22-10 with 3:49 left in the second quarter.

Tampa Bay scored its first offensive touchdown of the game with just 29 seconds remaining in the first half, as Andre Bowden rushed in from a yard out. Brache's extra point cut the Columbus lead to 22-17. On the Storm's scoring drive, WR/LB David Saunders was ejected from the game after making a 17-yard catch and then making contact with the referee.

Tampa Bay took its first lead of the game early in the third quarter. Stafford scored on a five-yard touchdown run. Then Stafford hit Carlos James on the two-point conversion to put the Storm on top 25-22 with 11:12 left in the third quarter.

The Storm added to their lead with a defensive score. Storm lineman Ernest Certain wrapped up Vena in the endzone. As the Columbus quarterback was going down, he threw the ball into the air, and after it was batted around, lineman Kelvin Kinney snatched it out of the air on the endzone for a Tampa Bay touchdown. Brache's extra point pushed the Storm lead to 32-22 with 9:32 left in the third quarter.

Vena hit Sedrick Robinson on a 10-yard touchdown pass for the Destroyers' first points of the second half. Videtich's extra point cut the Tampa Bay lead to three points, 32-29, with 5:00 left in the third quarter.

Bowden scored his second touchdown of the day with a one-yard run to increase the Storm lead to 39-29 with 11:28 left in the game. But the Destroyers quickly answered with an 11-yard touchdown pass from Vena to Robinson to cut the Tampa Bay lead to 39-36 with 9:27 left in the game.

Stafford finally tossed his first touchdown of the game with 5:25 left in the fourth quarter when he hit Freddie Solomon on a 17-yard touchdown play, giving the Storm a 46-36 advantage.

Lawrence Samuels was the Storm's leading receiver in the game. He had seven catches for 81 yards. Freddie Solomon and Clif Dell each had three catches in the game.

Vena was 16-of-28 for 175 yards with three touchdowns and an interception. His favorite target was Robinson, who finished with six catches for 69 yards and two touchdowns.

Tampa Bay returns to action next Sunday when it travels to Orlando for another installment of the War on I-4. The contest kicks off at 3:00 pm and will be broadcast live on NBC Sports.



Arena Football League (1987-2008) Stories from April 25, 2004


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