Swashbucklers Prevail Against Hammerheads

Published on June 18, 2011 under Southern Indoor Football League (SIFL)
Louisiana Swashbucklers News Release


LAKE CHARLES LA. - In a rematch worthy of a playoff contest the Louisiana Swashbucklers come away with a 59-20 victory in the semi-conference round of the Southern Indoor Football League playoffs. The Bucs will face next week either the Houston Stallions or Rio Grande Valley Magic. Those two teams will square off on Monday, July 27th. This is the third straight playoff game the Bucs were triumphant over the Hammerheads.

The first score went to Louisiana when linebacker Ellis Mead intercepted a pass from Hammerheads quarterback Anthony Andre. Bucs signal caller Ben McLaughlin a few plays later found wide receiver Marcus Wildridge for a short yard touchdown pass. Shortly thereafter the Louisiana defensive line blocked a Corpus Christi field goal which lineman John Machado took into the end zone. Andre was intercepted again by Damien Huren but the series went nowhere though there were offsetting penalties on one play.

Corpus Christi got their first points of the game late in the first period when McLaughlin was stripped of the ball and Hammerheads defensive lineman Chris Williams got it into the end zone. On the next possession by Louisiana wide receive Sammy Knight caught one in the paydirt from 17 yards out. It was 20-7 at the end of the first.

The second period belonged to Corpus Christi when McLaughlin was intercepted by defensive back Jason Lee. That led to a score by run from wide receiver Justin Hardman. A later fumble by McLaughlin set up the Hammerheads for a chance to score but was unsuccessful. This would turn the tide of momentum when Louisiana defensive back Brandon Thomas intercepted Andre with six minutes remaining in the half. Another McLaughlin pass to Knight had the scoreboard reading 28-14 at the half. Andre suffered seven interceptions at the hands of the Bucs defense. He had 15 completions out of 40 attempts.

In the third quarter Louisiana opened the period on a series that ended with a field goal attempt by kick Blake Bercegay in which the ball hit the upright. A later fumble by Corpus Christi was picked up by Machado who ran back the ball to the Hammerheads 17 yard line. This allowed Bercegay another field goal attempt which was good. Another McLaughlin to Wildridge scoring pass put Louisiana ahead at 38-14.

Louisiana's second half momentum never let up in the final period as Andre was yet intercepted again by Brian Harvey Jr. The defense continuously put pressure on Andre and the offensive running game though Andre was able to find his receivers on short yard passes. Louisiana's Taurean Robinson found the end zone and the score went to 45-14 as hope for Corpus Christi was running out. The Hammerheads were able to score again as Andre found wide receiver Scott Palmer to add more points but the two point conversion was no good. On the next play Corpus Christi attempted an onside kick but linebacker Chris Hudler for the Swashbucklers recovered the kick and ran it into the end zone. After one more scoring play with four minutes remaining in the game for Louisiana the Hammerheads' fate was sealed as the game ended with a 59-20 victory.

McLaughlin had 16 completions out of 28 attempts for 143 yards and five touchdowns. Corpus Christi had nine penalties for 97 yards while Louisiana had five for 24 yards. Wildridge had eight catches for 98 yards and three touchdowns while Sammy Knight was three for 22 yards and one score.

For the Hammerheads Palmer had five catches for 51 yards and one touchdown and Hardman was four for 13 yards.

Share: Facebook | Twitter/X | LinkedIn | Reddit | Email



Southern Indoor Football League Stories from June 18, 2011


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

OurSports Central