Valor Drop Road Matchup With Empire
Saturday May 26, 2018
Gray becomes 15th receiver in AFL history with 800 career receptions
ALBANY, NY — The Washington Valor were defeated, 48-21, by the Albany Empire Saturday night at Times Union Center. Empire quarterback Tommy Grady was named the game’s Most Valuable Player for his six-touchdown performance. Valor wide receiver Reggie Gray caught eight passes for 48 yards and a touchdown and became the 15th player in AFL history to surpass 800 career receptions.
The Empire got on the board first when Grady found wideout and Offensive Player of the Game Joe Hills for a 30-yard touchdown, giving Albany a 7-0 lead with 8:30 left in the first quarter. Valor quarterback Shane Austin led a game-tying drive on the following possession, finding wideout TT Toliver on an eight-yard, over-the-wall touchdown catch with just over two minutes left in the game’s opening quarter. Albany took charge in the second quarter, scoring a trio of touchdowns before the Valor broke the scoring streak on a three-yard connection between Austin and wideout Josh Reese, cutting the Empire lead to 28-14.
Empire wide receiver Malachi Jones hauled in a seven-yard touchdown from Grady to open the second half scoring and give Albany a 35-14 lead. Another pair of Grady touchdown passes – his fifth and sixth of the night – extended the Empire lead to 48-14. Gray grabbed his eighth touchdown of the season with 5:20 left in the fourth quarter, cutting the Albany lead to 48-21, setting the final score. Gray has now scored in four-straight games.
MVP: ALB QB Tommy Grady – 17/23 passing, 237 yards and six touchdowns
OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE GAME: ALB WR Joe Hills – Five receptions, 99 yards and three touchdowns
DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE GAME: ALB LB Terrence Moore – 8.5 total tackles and one interception
The Valor are back in action Thursday, May 31, hosting the defending-champion Philadelphia Soul at 7 p.m. at Capital One Arena. The game will be broadcast live on Monumental Sports Network, AFL Now and Facebook Watch.
ABOUT THE WASHINGTON VALOR
The AFL’s Washington Valor are owned and operated by Monumental Sports & Entertainment, which is one of the largest integrated sports and entertainment companies in the country with one of the most diverse partnership groups in all of sports. The company also owns and operates the NBA’s Washington Wizards, NHL’s Washington Capitals, the WNBA’s Washington Mystics, the NBA G League’s Capital City Go-Go, the AFL’s Baltimore Brigade, NBA 2K League’s Wizards District Gaming, as well as Capital One Arena, the premier sports and entertainment venue in Washington, D.C. Monumental Sports & Entertainment is also co-owner of aXiomatic, which has controlling interest in global esports franchise Team Liquid, and oversees the management of Kettler Capitals Iceplex--the training facility for the Washington Capitals--and the Eagle Bank arena at George Mason University.
