Philly Sports Jabronis
Report From Philadelphia Soul
ALLENTOWN— The Philadelphia Soul (11-3) defeated the Cleveland Gladiators (7-7), with the score 83-62 in front of 5,593 fans at the PPL Center in Allentown, PA on Saturday evening.
“We were on a roll offensively tonight,” said Soul head coach Clint Dolezel. “We came back from bye week ready to play and we were able to keep control of the ball. Now we have to focus for the next three weeks and finish the regular season strong.”
Soul WR Sean Kauleinamoku led the receivers with six receptions for 112 yards and two touchdowns. WR Darius Reynolds added four receptions for 77 yards and three touchdowns and J. Lewis Small AFL Playmaker and FB Jeramie Richardson tallied 10 rushes for 31 yards and 3 touchdowns. Cleveland WR Quentin Sims led the Gladiators with ten receptions for 128 yards and 2 touchdowns.
Philadelphia QB and Under Armour Offensive Player of the Game, Dan Raudabaugh completed 20-21 passes for 335 yards and eight touchdowns. Cleveland QB Arvell Nelson completed 32-of-40 passes for 404 yards and two touchdowns.
The Soul won the coin toss and elected to kick off to the Gladiators. On Cleveland’s first drive of the game, Soul DL Teddy Jennings sacked Gladiator QB Arvell Nelson. Immediately after, Soul DB Tracy Belton intercepted a pass thrown by Nelson into the end-zone. Soul QB Dan Raudabaugh capitalized on the opportunity with a TD pass to TE Adam Smith on their first drive of the game. The Soul took the lead to start the game, 6-0 with 7:41 left in the quarter. The Gladiators bounced back with a touchdown pass to WR Colin Taylor. The kick was good, and with 4:43 left in the first, Cleveland took the lead. The Soul retaliated on their next drive of the game with a touchdown run by FB Jeramie Richardson. The kick was good, and the Soul took back their lead, 13-7 by the end of the first.
The Gladiators started off the second quarter with a long touchdown. The kick was no good, but Cleveland tied the game up, 13-13. On their second play of their next drive, Richardson ran in his second touchdown of the night. The kick was good, and the Soul took back the lead, 20-13 with 10:54 left in the game. Cleveland quickly tied up the game with a touchdown pass by Nelson to WR Devin Wilson. The Soul immediately took back the lead with a 37-yard touchdown reception by Darius “Money” Reynolds. The kick was good, and with 7:11 left in the second, the Soul led the Gladiators 27-20. Cleveland WR Larry Beavers ran in a touchdown on the Gladiators next drive of the game. The kick was good, and the Gladiators tied the game, 27-27 with 3:48 left in the half. The Soul wrestled back the lead with another touchdown pass from Raudabaugh to WR Sean Kauleinamoku. With 2:22 left in the game, the Soul led 34-27. On the next play of the game, the Soul recovered a Gladiator fumble on the kick return. The Soul took advantage of the opportunity with another rushing touchdown by Richardson. The kick was good, and the Soul added to their lead, 41-27 going into halftime.
To kick-off the second half, Raudabaugh found Kauleinamoku for a Soul touchdown. The kick was good, and the Soul added to their lead, 48-27. On their next drive, the Gladiators scored a touchdown, making the score 55-34. The Soul answered with a touchdown pass to WR Chris Duvalt. Cleveland turned the ball over on downs on their next drive. Raudabaugh took advantage of the opportunity with a touchdown pass to WR Ryan McDaniel. The kick was good, and the Soul maintained their lead at the end of the third quarter, 62-34.
To begin the fourth quarter, Nelson connected with Beavers for a Gladiators touchdown. The Gladiators were unsuccessful in their onside kick attempt when Money Reynolds caught the ball. On the next play of the game, Raudabaugh tossed it to Reynolds for another Soul touchdown. The kick was good, and the Soul added to their lead, 69-41. Cleveland scored another touchdown on their next possession of the game with a pass from Nelson to Wilson. The kick was good, and the Gladiators tacked on another 7 points to make the score 69-48. Cleveland was successful on their next onside kick attempt. Nelson found WR Quentin Sims in the end zone for another Gladiators touchdown. The kick was good, and with 4:36 left in the game, the Soul led 69-59. Cleveland tested their luck on a third onside kick attempt. Money Reynolds scooped up the ball and brought it in for a Soul touchdown. The kick was good, and with under four minutes left in the game, the Soul added to their lead, 76-55. On Cleveland’s next possession, Soul LB Beau Bell sacked Nelson. The Gladiators scored another touchdown, to make the score 76-62 with 44 seconds left in the game. On the next Soul drive in the game, Dan Raudabaugh completed his 600th career touchdown pass to Reynolds. The kick was good, and the final score of the game was 83-62.
Next week, the Soul will travel to Tampa Bay to face off against the Storm. The game will be held in Tampa Bay, FLA on Saturday, July 16. Kick-off set for 3:30 p.m.
Under Armour Offensive Player: Philadelphia QB Dan Raudabaugh
Riddell Defensive Player: Philadelphia DB Tracy Belton
J Lewis Small AFL Playmaker: Philadelphia FB Jeramie Richardson
Cutter’s Catch of the Game: Philadelphia WR Darius Reynold’s 37-yard catch in the second quarter
AFL Highlight of the Game: Philadelphia WR Darius Reynolds onside kick recovery for a touchdown in fourth quarter
