It was Hispanic heritage night at Desert Diamond Arena
(Glendale, AZ) The 16th matchup between the Rattlers and Sugar Skulls is the first since Rattlers’ coach Kevin Guy sold off his majority ownership of the Tucson club during the off season. The Rattlers returned to the Snakepit tied for second in the Western Conference after a trip to Vegas resulted in a 56-42 loss to the Night Hawks. The Skulls traveled to the Valley after a 35-17 loss to the San Antonio Gunslingers. The I-10 rivalry game drew 8004 fans to Desert Diamond Arena on Mother’s Day.
Photo – Joanna Riggle
1st quarter
On their first drive the Rattlers turned the ball over on downs. The Skulls took over at their own 21 but the drive stalled out at the six-yard line when Kevin Macius missed a 21-yard field goal on 4th down. Two plays after the turnover, Drew Powell, starting at quarterback in place of season long starter May Meylor, carried for a 27-yard touchdown from his own 23-yard line. Matt Cook added the point after giving the Snakes a 7-0 lead. on the ensuing kickoff the Skulls’ Taron Keith ran the ball all the way back to the endzone, but the play was called back to their own 4-yard line after an illegal block in the back penalty. The Rattlers’ defense stepped up and on 4th down Carson Taylor met and stopped the Skulls’ Tavion Thomas at the line of scrimmage resulting in a turnover on downs to the Rattlers. Ron Brown Jr. slithered through a stacked-up line of scrimmage at the 14 to score the second TD of the night. Matt Cook added the point after touchdown giving the Rattlers a14-0 lead. The skulls had good field position when Cook’s kickoff went out of bounds as the first quarter was coming to an end.
Photo – Joanna Riggle
2nd quarter
On the second offensive play of the 2nd quarter, Tucson’s quarterback Tasleem Wilson hooked up with Taron Keith from the Rattlers’ 20- yard line for their first score of the game, cutting the Rattlers’ lead in half, 14-7 after Macias’ point after attempt was good. A second down offensive pass interference penalty called on Arland Bruce IV moved the Snakes back to their own 9-yard line on the next offensive possession. The very next play, Powell targeted Bruce again who caught the pass just short of the first down marker but pin balled down to the Sugar Skulls 18-yard line. Powell found Bruce again, wide open in the end zone for another Rattlers touchdown from the 16-yard line. Matt Cook’s point after attempt was good giving the Snakes a 14-point lead again, 21-7. On the kickoff, Matt Cook hit his first deuce of the season extending the lead to 23-7.
The Sugar Skulls drove down to the Rattlers’ 19-yard line when Wilson’s pass was intercepted by Carl Decius at the goal line and returned back to the 15-yard line. The Snakes marched down the field and Drew Powell again found Bruce in the end zone for a 6- yard touchdown. Matt Cook added the point after and successfully scored his second deuce of the season on the ensuing kickoff, giving the Rattlers a 32 -7 lead. With time winding down in the first half, the Skulls’ hurry up offense was slicing through the Arizona defense; but with 20 seconds left in the half, Yahsyn Mckee Sr. intercepted Wilson’s pass in the end zone. As time ran out in the first half Matt cooks 23-yard field goal attempt was no good. The score at the half remained 32-7.
Photo – Joanna Riggle
Halftime
While the offense scored over thirty points in the first half, the Rattlers’ defense stood out with an interception, a turnover on downs, quarterback hurries and short or no yardage gain tackles. The Sugar Skulls had some promising drives but were turned away by the Snakes’ defense.
3rd quarter
Having won the toss and deferring to the second half, the Sugar Skulls received the kickoff at the beginning of the third quarter. A few plays in, Wilson found Tamorrion Terry for a touchdown from the seven yard line on 4th down. The point after attempt by Macius was good and the score was 32-14. On the Rattlers’ first possession of the second half, Powell used his legs for 5 downs, finally scoring from the 1-yard line to give the Rattlers a 39-14 lead after Cook’s successful point after attempt. For the third time in the game, Cook’s deuce attempt was successful, extending Arizona’s lead to 41-14. The Skulls’ next drive ended on a turnover on downs when the Rattlers’ Hayden Hatcher rushed Wilson and Tucson failed to convert the first down.
Photo – Joanna Riggle
4th quarter
On the first play of the fourth quarter, Drew Powell ran the ball in from the Sugar Skulls’ 24-yard line to pad the lead by 6. Matt Cook added the point after and the Rattlers’ lead was 48-14. On second down of the Skulls’ first possession of the final quarter, the Rattlers’ outstanding defensive back McKee got his second interception of the night at the Rattlers’ 21-yard line. Four plays later Kymani Clarke carried the ball in from the six-yard line for another Rattlers’ touchdown. Matt Cook added three more points when his point after attempt was good and he scored his fourth deuce of the game. The lead was 57-14. On Tucson’s penultimate possession of the game, the Rattlers’ defense held the offense to a net 3-yard gain and Macias’ 50-yard field goal attempt on 4thdown was shanked out of bounds, returning the ball to the Rattlers at their own 20-yard line. The Rattlers drove down the field and Powell ran the ball in from the three after an unsportsmanlike penalty against the Sugar Skulls. Matt Cook’s point after doinked into but through the upright and his try was good. The Rattlers had a 64-14 lead. Another unsportsmanlike penalty, this time against Aaron Jackson of the Sugar Skulls, was banked for the ensuing kickoff. The banked penalty backed Tucson up to their own 8-yard line at the one-minute warning. On the first play from scrimmage, quarterback Draylen Ellis fumbled the ball; it was recovered in the end zone by the offense which resulted in a safety for the Rattlers taking the score to 66-14 with 42 seconds left in the game. The Rattlers chose to run the clock out after the post-safety kick.
Photo – Joanna Riggle
Recap/Coming up Next
The final score of 66 -14 set several records for these instate rivals. The Rattlers’ 66 points are a record high number of points scored in the series, and for the Skulls, 14 points is record low scored against the Rattlers. It’s also a record point margin in the series. Coming up next for Snakes fans is breakfast with the boys on a Monday morning. The Rattlers play against the New Mexico Chupacabras Monday, May 18th at 10:00 AM local time. The Sugar Skulls travel to Moline, IL to face the Quad City Steamwheelers on Friday, May 15th.The Rattlers, with a record of 5-2 after the victory, looked much more poised and hungry on defense and the offense was a slightly more balanced attack than in some weeks past. The offense has scored 40 or more points in every game this season. Tucson fell to 2-5 and are still looking for answers.
Aritcle by Joanna Riggle – 602 Sports Talk
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