Soul edged by Allgood, Talons

PHILADELPHIA (June 17, 2011)  – The Philadelphia Soul (5-9) snapped their three-game winning streak at home, while Tulsa quarterback, Justin Allgood got revenge against his former team by leading the Talons (6-8) to a 48-42 victory in front of 8,140 fans at the Wells Fargo Center on Friday night.

“At our current record, sometimes you just go out there to try and make things happen, but in the end you try too hard, and it doesn’t work out,” said Soul head coach Mike Hohensee.  “We need to look at the effort that our team put out with all of the changes on offense.  We are playing better than our record shows, but we can’t let it dictate how we prepare each week, we need to finish strong.”

Soul quarterback Brandon Kirsch made his first Arena Football start since 2008, completing 14-of-25 passes for 180 yards, two touchdowns, and three interceptions before being replaced by Ryan Vena at halftime.  Vena finished the game completing 11-of-14 passes for 168 yards and four touchdowns.

With the Soul’s leading-receiver, Donovan Morgan, out with a leg injury, Syvelle Newton stepped up with 11 receptions for 160 yards and four touchdowns, earning him Offensive Player of the Game honors.  Mike Brown converted from his usual defensive back position to add six catches for 108 yards and two touchdowns.

Kirsch started off hot by connecting with Brown for a 36-yard touchdown, his first as a member of the Soul and first in the AFL since March 17, 2008.  The following drive of the Talons ended with receiver Al Hunt catching a four-yard touchdown at 6:38, capping the first quarter scoring and leaving the Soul with a 7-6 lead.
The first four drives of the second ended on turnovers, including two Talon fumbles, and two Kirsch interceptions, with the second returned 50 yards for a touchdown by defensive back J.C. Neal.  The Talons then forced the Soul to go four-and-out, and capitalized with a six-yard touchdown catch by Hunt to put the Talons up 20-7 at 3:41.  Brown of the Soul fired back with a 29-yard catch and cutback run into the end zone, followed by Talons rookie receiver, Troy McBroom adding a 42-yard receiving touchdown to end the half with the Talons leading 27-14.

The Soul began the second half by replacing Kirsch with Vena, which paid off on the Soul’s first possession in the form of a 19-yard touchdown pass to Newton at 11:20.  Allgood and McBroom recaptured the Talons 13-point lead four minutes later with a 31-yard pass-and-catch.  Vena again found Newton, this time for a five-yard strike, ending the third with the Talons up 34-28.

Both teams continued to trade scores, beginning with McBroom catching an eight-yard pass at 12:41, followed five minutes later by Newton, hauling in a 27-yard catch.  Talons receiver, Brandon Copeland, found the end zone with a 26-yard catch at 3:32, followed by a 31-yard Newton touchdown reception, his fourth of the quarter, at 0:53.

Soul defensive tackle Dustin Barno blocked a Talons’ field-goal attempt at 0:28, allowing Philadelphia to take control.  The Soul fumbled the snap on second-down, giving the Talons the ball, and ending their chances of another last-minute comeback at home.

Allgood earned National Guard MVP honors, completing 26-of-42 passes for 283 yards and six touchdowns.  The Talons receiving corps was led by McBroom and his 10 catches for 152 yards and three touchdowns, earning him the Playmaker of the Game award.

Next week, the Soul face the National Conference leading Arizona Rattlers (11-2) on Saturday, June 25 at the Wells Fargo Center.  Coverage of the game begins at 7:05 p.m. (ET) on WMCN.