Post by alecs on Mar 25, 2023 21:37:37 GMT -8
Knight Hawks 57, Barnstormers 44
3/25/23 --
HENDERSON, NV - For the second time in as many seasons, the Vegas Knight Hawks begin the season 1-0, tallying a season-opening home win against the Iowa Barnstormers by a score of 57-44 at the Dollar Loan Center in Henderson NV.
This was the first of contest for both teams in the 2023 campaign.
Vegas began with the football and quickly engineered a four-play, 35-yard drive, with Da’Quan Neal finding former Northern Arizona Wrangler Quentin Randolph for an 18-yard touchdown pass on a 3rd & 13 play. Stevie Artigue would add the extra point to give Vegas the early 7-0 lead. Iowa struck back with a four-play TD drive of their own, with the score supplied by a DJ Peterson 15-yard pass to LaQuvionte Gonzalez, who played for Frisco last season. A botched snap prevented Gabriel Rui from attempting the extra point, so Vegas retained the 7-6 advantage. Vegas would respond to that, as on their next drive Neal would find Caleb Holley for a 16-yard score through the air, which extended their lead to 14-6. After the ensuing kickoff deflected off an Iowa upback, the Barnstormers rode Antonio Wimbush for all three plays on their next drive, eventually scoring from three yards out. DJ Peterson would run the two-point conversion in to tie it up at 14 apiece.
The first defensive breakthrough of the game would come on Vegas’s third offensive possession, as Neal attempted a deep pass that was intercepted by Tyrell Pearson. Shortly after the second quarter began, Wimbush broke tacklers en route to a nine-yard score; his second of the game. Rui would boot through the extra point to give Iowa their 1st lead of the game at 21-14. The Knight Hawks would once again have the answer, as an eight-play, 30-yard scoring drive brought the game back level. Davonte Sapp-Lynch hauled in a five-yard screen pass to make the game 21-21. Iowa responded quickly, with Peterson finding Gonzalez for a deep 28-yard touchdown toss, giving Gonzalez his second score of the game, and Iowa the 28-21 advantage. Shortly after the one-minute warning, Neal rushed in a three-yard touchdown that he appeared to fumble shortly before reaching the goal line. Luckily for Vegas, he was able to come out of the ensuing pile with the ball. Iowa’s first mistake of the game came when Peterson tossed an interception while scrambling, and Michael Witherspoon returned it into Iowa territory. With seven seconds to go, Neal tossed a perfectly placed ball to Randolph, who found his way into the end zone, giving Vegas a 35-28 lead heading into the locker room.
Stevie Artigue, who was five-for-five on extra point attempts in the first half, began the second half by kicking a deuce, which gave Vegas its largest lead of the game at 37-28. Iowa’s drive would shave over six minutes off the third quarter, but they would come up empty in the red zone, as Peterson threw his second interception of the contest. Mister Harriel came up with the pick to give the Knight Hawks the ball. They would waste no time in capitalizing, connecting on a 45-yard bomb from Neal to Randolph, completing the hat trick for Randolph in his first game with Vegas. The Knight Hawk defense would once again stand strong, sacking Peterson on a fourth down to take possession near midfield. They would again take just a single play to score, with Davonte Sapp-Lynch breaking free down the right sideline for a 28-yard touchdown. On the next kickoff, Iowa would catch a much-needed break, as they would recover a deflected kickoff at the Vegas 10 yard line, moved up to the five-yard-line due to an after the whistle penalty on Vegas.
At the start of the fourth quarter, the Barnstormers would end the 23-0 Vegas run with a five-yard jet sweep TD rush from Wimbush. Peterson would make a nice scrambling play, finding Gonzalez open in the back of the endzone to complete a two-point conversion, bringing them back within 15. After Sapp-Lynch provided a nice return just past midfield, Neal found Frank Brown for a 15-yard TD pass a few plays later. A botched snap would keep the game at 57-36 with about 10 minutes to go in the game. Iowa would score again on a drive lasting roughly six minutes, as Wimbush took one in from 4 yards out for his 3rd score of the contest. Caleb Smith would convert the two-point conversion to make it 57-44 Vegas. Iowa’s defense would manage a four-and-out on Vegas to give themselves a fighting chance for a comeback, but that bid was thwarted by a costly intentional grounding penalty with about 30 seconds remaining. Iowa was unable to score before time expired, ending the game at 57-44 in favor of the Knight Hawks.
Da’Quan Neal would finish the game 13 of 21 passing for 233 yards with six passing touchdowns and one interception. He also added five rushes for 21 yards and an additional score on the ground. Darius-James Peterson completed 10 of his 20 passing attempts for 128 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions, adding 75 rushing yards on 11 carries. Antonio Wimbush rushed 15 times for 83 yards and three touchdowns, while contributing 52 additional yards on four catches out of five targets. Quentin Randolph had himself a fine night, securing five of six targets for 99 yards and three touchdowns. Frank Brown eclipsed the century mark as well for Vegas, converting six of his eight targets into 103 receiving yards and a touchdown.
This was the only meeting between the teams this season. The Barnstormers will continue their season-opening three-game road trip with a stop in Green Bay against the Blizzard. That game will take place on Friday March 31 at 4:05 p.m. The Knight Hawks will also hit the road for their next game, making their way over to Prescott Valley to take on the defending IFL Champion Northern Arizona Wranglers. Kickoff for that game is set for Saturday April 1 at 6:05 p.m. Click for our complete 2023 IFL Schedule.
3/25/23 --
HENDERSON, NV - For the second time in as many seasons, the Vegas Knight Hawks begin the season 1-0, tallying a season-opening home win against the Iowa Barnstormers by a score of 57-44 at the Dollar Loan Center in Henderson NV.
This was the first of contest for both teams in the 2023 campaign.
Vegas began with the football and quickly engineered a four-play, 35-yard drive, with Da’Quan Neal finding former Northern Arizona Wrangler Quentin Randolph for an 18-yard touchdown pass on a 3rd & 13 play. Stevie Artigue would add the extra point to give Vegas the early 7-0 lead. Iowa struck back with a four-play TD drive of their own, with the score supplied by a DJ Peterson 15-yard pass to LaQuvionte Gonzalez, who played for Frisco last season. A botched snap prevented Gabriel Rui from attempting the extra point, so Vegas retained the 7-6 advantage. Vegas would respond to that, as on their next drive Neal would find Caleb Holley for a 16-yard score through the air, which extended their lead to 14-6. After the ensuing kickoff deflected off an Iowa upback, the Barnstormers rode Antonio Wimbush for all three plays on their next drive, eventually scoring from three yards out. DJ Peterson would run the two-point conversion in to tie it up at 14 apiece.
The first defensive breakthrough of the game would come on Vegas’s third offensive possession, as Neal attempted a deep pass that was intercepted by Tyrell Pearson. Shortly after the second quarter began, Wimbush broke tacklers en route to a nine-yard score; his second of the game. Rui would boot through the extra point to give Iowa their 1st lead of the game at 21-14. The Knight Hawks would once again have the answer, as an eight-play, 30-yard scoring drive brought the game back level. Davonte Sapp-Lynch hauled in a five-yard screen pass to make the game 21-21. Iowa responded quickly, with Peterson finding Gonzalez for a deep 28-yard touchdown toss, giving Gonzalez his second score of the game, and Iowa the 28-21 advantage. Shortly after the one-minute warning, Neal rushed in a three-yard touchdown that he appeared to fumble shortly before reaching the goal line. Luckily for Vegas, he was able to come out of the ensuing pile with the ball. Iowa’s first mistake of the game came when Peterson tossed an interception while scrambling, and Michael Witherspoon returned it into Iowa territory. With seven seconds to go, Neal tossed a perfectly placed ball to Randolph, who found his way into the end zone, giving Vegas a 35-28 lead heading into the locker room.
Stevie Artigue, who was five-for-five on extra point attempts in the first half, began the second half by kicking a deuce, which gave Vegas its largest lead of the game at 37-28. Iowa’s drive would shave over six minutes off the third quarter, but they would come up empty in the red zone, as Peterson threw his second interception of the contest. Mister Harriel came up with the pick to give the Knight Hawks the ball. They would waste no time in capitalizing, connecting on a 45-yard bomb from Neal to Randolph, completing the hat trick for Randolph in his first game with Vegas. The Knight Hawk defense would once again stand strong, sacking Peterson on a fourth down to take possession near midfield. They would again take just a single play to score, with Davonte Sapp-Lynch breaking free down the right sideline for a 28-yard touchdown. On the next kickoff, Iowa would catch a much-needed break, as they would recover a deflected kickoff at the Vegas 10 yard line, moved up to the five-yard-line due to an after the whistle penalty on Vegas.
At the start of the fourth quarter, the Barnstormers would end the 23-0 Vegas run with a five-yard jet sweep TD rush from Wimbush. Peterson would make a nice scrambling play, finding Gonzalez open in the back of the endzone to complete a two-point conversion, bringing them back within 15. After Sapp-Lynch provided a nice return just past midfield, Neal found Frank Brown for a 15-yard TD pass a few plays later. A botched snap would keep the game at 57-36 with about 10 minutes to go in the game. Iowa would score again on a drive lasting roughly six minutes, as Wimbush took one in from 4 yards out for his 3rd score of the contest. Caleb Smith would convert the two-point conversion to make it 57-44 Vegas. Iowa’s defense would manage a four-and-out on Vegas to give themselves a fighting chance for a comeback, but that bid was thwarted by a costly intentional grounding penalty with about 30 seconds remaining. Iowa was unable to score before time expired, ending the game at 57-44 in favor of the Knight Hawks.
Da’Quan Neal would finish the game 13 of 21 passing for 233 yards with six passing touchdowns and one interception. He also added five rushes for 21 yards and an additional score on the ground. Darius-James Peterson completed 10 of his 20 passing attempts for 128 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions, adding 75 rushing yards on 11 carries. Antonio Wimbush rushed 15 times for 83 yards and three touchdowns, while contributing 52 additional yards on four catches out of five targets. Quentin Randolph had himself a fine night, securing five of six targets for 99 yards and three touchdowns. Frank Brown eclipsed the century mark as well for Vegas, converting six of his eight targets into 103 receiving yards and a touchdown.
This was the only meeting between the teams this season. The Barnstormers will continue their season-opening three-game road trip with a stop in Green Bay against the Blizzard. That game will take place on Friday March 31 at 4:05 p.m. The Knight Hawks will also hit the road for their next game, making their way over to Prescott Valley to take on the defending IFL Champion Northern Arizona Wranglers. Kickoff for that game is set for Saturday April 1 at 6:05 p.m. Click for our complete 2023 IFL Schedule.
Both games, as well as all IFL games this season, will be streamed live on the IFL's Official YouTube Channel. SCtoC will present previews of those, and all, games this season. Those previews will be posted on the board of the home team in each game.
- AS
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