DRAGONS, PHANTOMS FALL; CRUSH SURVIVE
Two of the EFL’ early-season juggernauts fell in Week 6 as the Americans nipped the Dragons by a 26-20 final count while two-time EFL champs Parlor City were unceremoniously bounced by Coos Bay in a surprisingly one-sided 38-17 final.
Daniel Dehner’s pair of fourth quarter field goals helped Rochester pull away from a 20-20 tie in the final 7 minutes to score the win. Both kicks were set up by Glendora turnovers as the Dragons ended the game going interception-fumble-fumble before their last-gasp came to a halt as time expired.
In Coos Bay, the Red Rocks stunned the Phantoms with 28 third-quarter points to break open what had been a narrow 10-3 Coos Bay lead at the half. Timothy Scroggins returned a punt 76 yards for a score while Joshua Bell did the sack-and-score thing after dislodging the ball from Phantom QB Tony Strait. The Red Rocks also tallied a trio of rushing touchdowns in the contest.
Those results leave Canton as the EFL’s last undefeated team this season, but even they had to endure some nervous moments against the Geechee. Trailing 29-3, Charleston rallied with three TD’s in the final 6 minutes to pull within 29-25, but the Crush fell on the onside kick in the final minute to ride out the final few seconds. Elsewhere…
Islanders 40, Event 10…Hawai’i went crazy in the rivalry game as Curtis Brown threw for 334 yards and 4 TD’s in the victory. The Islanders out-gained the event by a 509-212 margin in this one.
Wallabies 27, Bandits 17…Perth scored 24 second-half points to eventually wear down a game Santa Fe squad on its home field. Michael Gee had 307 yards and a TD in the contest for the Wallabies.
Assassins 40, Riptide 7…Michael Hardnett had a stellar night going 21-for-27 with 4 TD’s, including a pair to Duane Hilton as Columbus City rolled past San Diego. Hilton finished with 152 receiving yards on six receptions.
Coyotes 13, Marauders 0…Daniel Olmos returned a punt 65 yards for a touchdown as Mt. Washington scored all of its points in the second quarter of a defensive contest that saw both teams combine from just 323 yards. The Coyotes are now 4-1-1 and sit a game and a half atop the competition in the Gibbs Division at present. The Marauders are one of 4 EFL teams still in search of their first victory this season.
Witches 38, Bulldogs 6…Jonathan Embree put on a show for the ages against Bennington in Week 6. The Salem QB completed all but three of his 33 passing attempts, ending the night with 413 yards and 5 TD’s throwing the rock. Franklin Ray and Edmond Walker each topped the century mark receiving and also had 1 TD reception each.
Crusaders 23, Twisters 3…Jacob Perez threw for 221 yards and a TD while the California defense limited Arkansas to just 144 yards of offense. The Crusaders held the Twisters off the scoreboard until roughly 10 minutes remained in the contest.
Kings 22, Burn 9…George Fletcher’s 1-yard TD run in the first quarter was the only touchdown of the night by either team. Fortunately for Lyon, Wendell Jessen was there to add five FG’s to the ledger and help the Kings defeat Boise
Snappers 30, Bombers 17…Natchitoches jumped out to a 24-0 first-half tead and never looked back against Brooklyn as 128,326 crazy fans looked on. Jason Rodriguez threw for a pair of 12-yard TD’s during the early onslaught. He would finish with 240 yards of offense on the night while Leo Griffin accounted for one yard more than half that total.
Golden Pterodactyls 15, Tennessee 7…Star City was outgained 289-261 by Tennessee but came up with three second-half interceptions, including 2 in their territory, to hold on for the win. The Golden Pterodactyl are now 5-1 on the season.
Talons 24, Stampede 16…A pair of third-quarter interceptions led to back-to-back field goals for Tallahassee. Scott Barr followed on the next possession with a 28-yard touchdown reception to help the Talons break away from a 10-10 halftime tie and improve to 5-1 on the year.
Spartans 45, Wampas 0…Toronto teed off on Aspen to the tune of 45-0. Willie Coyne had 308 yards and three TD’s passing. Adam Bennett hauled in six passes, including two touchdown receptions, for 112 yards but had to watch teammate Dewayne Gaulke lead the squad with 122 yards catching.
Thunder 15, Cobras 13…Ralph Mucci’s fifth field goal, a 32 yarder as time expired, delivered victory to the Tacoma Thunder and crushed the hopes of Rancho Cucamonga fans who had watched their team take the lead little more than a minute earlier as Michael Mullens pulled in an 8-yard TD pass for a 13-12 lead with 1:22 to play. Erik Cole had 272 passing yards for Tacoma.
Wild 23, Hefty Buffalo 7…John Richardson threw for 289 yards and a touchdown while teammate Philip Gordon ran for 81 yards and a score to lift Milwaukee past Fort Drum. Richard Bird had 101 receiving yards for the Wild.
