Soul Extends Win Streak to 7 With Rout of San Jose

SAN JOSE (July 20, 2013) – The Philadelphia Soul (12-5), jumped out to a 27-0 lead thanks to four straight defensive stops to start the game and pulled away from the San Jose SaberCats (12-5) with a 65-43 victory in front of 9,163 fans at the  on Saturday night.  The victory keeps the Soul as the top seed in the American Conference heading into the final week of the regular season.

“You are always happy anytime you come to San Jose and leave with a victory,” said Soul head coach Clint Dolezel.  “We started strong and finished strong, but there were definitely elements that we will need to work on as we get ready for the playoffs.  We are happy to be playing well during this part of the season.”

Russell AthleticOffensive Player of the Game Dan Raudabaugh finished his night by connecting on 20-of-33 passes for 181 yards and five touchdowns with no interceptions.

Andrae Thurman led Soul receivers with nine receptions for 94 yards and one receiving touchdown and one rushing touchdown, while Tiger Jones had seven catches for 60 yards and three touchdowns.  Larry Brackins added three receptions for 21 yards and a touchdown and Emery Sammons added two catches for 13 yards.

Derrick Ross recorded 21 rushing yards on 11 carries and two rushing touchdowns.

Defensively, Riddell Defensive Player of the Game Calvin Fance tallied 2.5 total tackles and two sacks, J Lewis Small Playmaker of the Game LaRico Stevenson recorded 5.0 total tackles, a forced fumble, two fumble recoveries and a fumble return for a touchdown.  Rayshaun Kizer added 3.0 total tackles and an interception.

San Jose was led by QB Russ Michna, who finished 15-of-37 for 206 yards, five touchdowns and one interception.  James Roe led the SaberCat receivers with six receptions for 70 yards and three touchdowns.

The Soul started the scoring after the first of four straight defensive stops on downs when Raudabaugh found Thurman on an 8-yard touchdown strike to cap a five-play, 32-yard drive to give the Soul a 7-0 lead.  Ross added a 1-yard touchdown and Tiger Jones added a 2-yard receiving touchdown to finish the first quarter with the Soul leading 21-0.

Raudabaugh found Jones again to begin the second quarter on a 7-yard strike that capped a four-play, 16-yard drive and gave the Soul a 27-0 advantage.  The SaberCats woke up when Michna found Roe on an 8-yard touchdown to narrow the score to 27-7 with 6:28 remaining in the first half.  The San Jose defense got a stop and recovered an onsides kick, while Roe collected two more scores to bring the score to 27-21.  The Soul’s Carlos Martinez nailed a 48-yard field goal with no time remaining to give Philadelphia a 30-21 halftime lead.

Raudabaugh led the Soul on an 8-play, 46-yard first drive that was capped with a Brackins touchdown that pushed the lead to 37-21 with 8:09 left in the third quarter.  Kizer stopped the SaberCats’ next drive with an interception that led to a Thurman touchdown to make the score 44-21 at the end of the third quarter.

Highlighted by Stevenson’s fumble return for a touchdown, Philadelphia held off San Jose in the fourth quarter to take the 65-43 victory.  The Soul will finish the regular season next weekend when they travel to play the San Antonio Talons on Saturday, July 27 at 9 p.m. ET and can be seen on CBS Sports Network.

Russell Athletic Offensive Player: Philadelphia’s Dan Raudabaugh

Riddell Defensive Player: Philadelphia’s Calvin Fance

J Lewis Small AFL Playmaker:  Philadelphia’s LaRico Stevenson

Cutter’s Catch of the Game: San Jose’s James Roe third touchdown in the second quarter.

Spalding Highlight of the Game: Philadelphia’s LaRico Stevenson’s fumble recovery returned for a touchdown in the fourth quarter.