Soul defeat Predators, 62-54
Saturday May 21, 2016
Philadelphia Hands Orlando Their First Loss of the Season
PHILADELPHIA—The Philadelphia Soul (7-1) snapped the Orlando Predators’(7-1) winning streak with a 62-54 win in front of 12,127 fans at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, PA on Saturday night.
“Wins are hard to come by in this league and we will take the win anytime we can get it,” said Soul head coach Clint Dolezel. “This is just a credit to this organization and finding the talent that will go out and fight week in and week out.”
Soul WR Darius Reynolds led the receivers with eight receptions for 66 yards and three touchdowns. Ryan McDaniel tallied six catches for 52 yards and one touchdown. Orlando WR and J. Lewis Small Playmaker of the Game, Brandon Thompkins led the Predator offense with thirteen receptions for 144 yards and five touchdowns.
Philadelphia QB and Under Armour Offensive Player of the Game, Dan Raudabaugh completed 20-of-27 passes for 180 yards and four touchdowns. Orlando QB Randy Hippeard completed 26-of-41 passes for 276 yards and eight touchdowns.
The Soul lost the coin toss and Predators kicked off to start the game On their first drive of the game, Jeramie Richardson ran the ball in for a 1-yard touchdown to give the Soul a quick 7-0 lead. Predators’ Hippeard retaliated back with a touchdown to Greg Carr with less than 7 minutes in the quarter. At the end of the first quarter, the Soul were tied 7-7.
An exciting second quarter began when Raudabaugh found Reynolds for a 4-yard touchdown, taking the lead for the first time in the game, 13-7. On the Predator’s next drive, LB Joe Goosby shook Hippeard up with a sack. Hippeard found Brandon Thompkins in the end zone for a 9-yard Predators’ touchdown, taking the lead, 14-13. Raudabaugh fired back with another touchdown pass to Money Reynolds for seven yards. The kick was good, and with 6:42 left in the quarter, the Soul took back the lead, 20-14. Not long after, Hippeard connected with Larry Brackins for an 8-yard TD. The kick was no good, and the Predators tied up the game with 52 seconds left in the quarter. The Soul wrestled back their lead with another 1-yard rushed touchdown by Richardson. At the end of the second, the Soul led the Predators 34-27.
On the first play of the third quarter, Soul DB Dwayne Hollis picked off Hippeard. Richardson ran in his third touchdown of the night. The kick was good, and the Soul added to their lead, 41-27 with 8:20 left in the quarter. On their next possession, Orlando turned the ball over on downs. The Soul got the ball on Orlando’s 3-yard. On the next play, Raudabaugh passed the ball to Reynolds who suffered a loss of two yards. Money quickly made up for the previous play by catching a 5-yard touchdown pass, earning his third of the night. The kick was good, and with 2:58 left in the quarter, the Soul led Orlando 48-27. Quickly after, Soul DB LaRico Stevenson capitalized on a kickoff return fumble to score another Soul touchdown. The kick was good, and at the end of the third quarter, the Soul led the game 55-27.
To begin the fourth quarter, Hippeard found Thompkins end zone for an 11-yard Predators’ touchdown. The kick was good, to make the score 55-34 with 10:14 left in the game. The Soul fumbled on the next drive, and Orlando recovered the ball. Hippeard quickly connected to Chad Anderson for a 2-yard touchdown. The kick was no good, and with 5:14 left in the game, the Soul hung onto their lead, 55-40. Orlando went for an onside kick, and were able to recover it. Thompkins came in clutch once again with a 34-yard touchdown reception. The kick was good, and with 2:31 left on the clock, the score was a close 55-47. Raudabaugh answered with a 3-yard touchdown pass to Ryan McDaniel. The kick was good, and with just 56 seconds left on the clock, the Soul led the Predators 62-47. The Predators battled back with another Thompkins touchdown reception. The kick was good, and with only 26 seconds remaining, the score was 62-54. The Predators onside kick attempt was unsuccessful, and the Soul handed Orlando their first loss of the season with a final score of 62-54.
Next week, the Soul travel to Cleveland to take on the Gladiators on Saturday, May 28 at the Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, OH. The game will be broadcast on CBS Sports, 97.5 The Fanatic. Kick-off set for 7 p.m.
Under Armour Offensive Player: Philadelphia QB Dan Raudabaugh
Riddell Defensive Player: Philadelphia DB Dwayne Hollis
J Lewis Small AFL Playmaker: Orlando WR Brandon Thompkins
Cutter’s Catch of the Game: Philadelphia WR Darius Reynolds’ touchdown catch in the fourth quarter
AFL Highlight of the Game: Philadelphia DB LaRico Stevenson’s onside kick recovery for a touchdown.
ABOUT PHILADELPHIA SOUL
The 2015 Eastern Division Champion Philadelphia Soul are in their 11th Season of play. In the first ten seasons, the Soul have won four Division Championships, three Conference Championships and a World Championship. Since the inaugural season in 2004, the Soul are the winningest professional sports team in Philadelphia. Season memberships and Group tickets for the Soul’s upcoming 2016 season are on sale now. For tickets, contact the Soul sales department at (215) 253-4900 ext. 3, or request contact from a Soul representative by filling out the form on www.philadelphiasoul.com. Follow the Soul on Facebook at facebook.com/soul and Twitter at twitter.com/soulfootball.
