Wranglers Celebrate First Win

Photo: 10 Benji Omayebu gets brought down by 3 Ahman Ross

The Northern Arizona Wranglers snapped their winless string with a 57-33 win over the Iowa Barnstormers at the Findlay Toyota Center in Prescott Valley. Unlike their past losses, the Wranglers were able to get points in each quarter, outscoring Iowa in three of the four.

It was another good crowd on hand who were more than ready to see the Wranglers get a W. Northern Arizona set the tone early with plenty of energy when Benji Omayebu busted in for the first score and a 7-0 lead. 

Iowa quarterback Dante Aviles-Santos was picked off at the goal line by Kieran Page ending the first threat of the game. Wranglers quarterback Anthony Garrett connected with Marlon Cook Jr. on a 27 yard touchdown pass and a 14-0 lead.

Photo: 22 Nolan Susel gets a block from 65 Stacey Wilkins

The Barnstormers broke through with an 8 yard run by Damonte Martin to cut the lead in half at 14-7 near the end of the first quarter.

Benji Omayebu ran in his second touchdown for a 20-7 lead early in the second quarter. Iowa responded with a 1 yard run by Aviles-Santos, and when Spaulding added the extra point, the Wranglers led 20-14.

A missed 48 yard field goal attempt gave Iowa a chance to come down and tie or take the lead in the final minute of the first half. A critical play happened when on third and three at midfield, former Wrangler David Elder came up with a tremendous effort as he maneuvered his way through the Wranglers defense and was finally pulled down inside the Northern Arizona one yard line. Coach James challenged the play saying that the Iowa tackle had committed a penalty, a false start. After nearly five minutes, the officials agreed, eliminating the play and placing the ball back at the Iowa 20. 12 ran the ball into his own player two yards short of a first down. The Barnstormers rolled the dice and when Elder fumbled the pitch on the fourth play, the Wranglers were back in business with 40 seconds on the clock.

Photo: 9 Anthony Garrett looks downfield for a receiver as 65 Stacey Wilkins blocks

Ka’Ron Ashley pulled in an 8 yard pass from Garrett to give the Wranglers a 27-14 lead. Iowa decided to challenge the play for the very same thing the Wranglers had recently been successful with. A much shorter review kept the points on the board. Manny Higuera then added a deuce to send the Wranglers to the locker room on top 29-14.

The second half opened up with a 19 yard TD run by Elder to make the score 29-21. Garrett busted over the center of the line for a 36-21 lead.

Another empty possession by Iowa allowed the Wranglers to break the game open in the fourth quarter. Garrett drilled a short pass to Ashley, and Higuera followed with his second deuce and it was 45-21.

Iowa responded quickly on the first play from scrimmage on a 30 yard pass from Aviles-Santos to Kurtis Ravenel. The Barnstormers elected to try for two but failed as the Wranglers led 45-27 with eight minutes remaining.

Higuera drilled a 40 yard field goal to increase the lead to 48-27, then Garrett ran in for another touchdown, filled by the Higuera trifecta in deuces for a 57-27. Higuera, who scored 15 points in the game, said, “We had some fun tonight. It feels awesome to get this first win in front of the fans. We really needed this and now we just need to build on it.”

Elder scored the final TD on a pass from Aviles-Santos for Iowa who fell to (1-6). The Wranglers took their first knee at the end of the game this season as the remaining crowd roared with their approval as the clock ran out.

The offensive line did a good job and it got chippy down the stretch, tackle Robert Malcom said, “It was a lot of hard work. We just had to stay focused on what we needed to do and get it done. Credit to our defense. They did a great job and got us the ball back on offense. We will enjoy this but we have to stay humble and now focus on the next one. We still have a shot at making the playoffs and there is still a lot of football to be played. ”

Northern Arizona (1-6) will host the Vegas Knighthawks on Sunday, June 7 at 4:30pm. Before that they will travel to San Diego and Phoenix for Saturday games at 7pm on May 23 & 30.

NORTHERN ARIZONA WRANGLERS 57, IOWA BARNSTORMERS 33

Score by Quarters –   1        2        3        4     –     T

Iowa                           7        7        7       12   –     33

Northern Arizona      14      15       7       21   –     57

Scoring Summary

NAZ-Omayebu 1 yard run (Higuera kick)

NAZ-Cook Jr. 27 yard pass from Garrett (Higuera kick)

IOWA-Ravenel 1 yard run (Spaulding kick)

NAZ-Omayebu 7 yard run (Kick failed)

IOWA-Aviles-Santos 1 yard run (Spaulding kick)

NAZ-Garrett 8 yard run (Higuera kick)

NAZ-Higuera Deuce

IOWA-Elder 19 yard run (Spaulding kick)

NAZ-Garrett 1 yard run (Higuera kick)

NAZ-Cook Jr. 4 yard pass from Garrett (Higuera kick)

NAZ-Higuera Deuce

IOWA-Ravenal 30 yard pass from Aviles-Santos (Pass failed)

NAZ-Higuera 40 yard Field Goal

NAZ-Garrett 2 yard run (Higuera kick)

NAZ-Higuera Deuce

IOWA-Elder 26 yard pass from Aviles-Santos (Pass failed)

ATT:N/A

IFL STANDINGS

WESTERN CONFERENCE      W-L

Vegas                                         5-1

Arizona                                       5-2

San Diego                                  5-2

San Antonio                               3-4

Tucson                                       2-6

New Mexico                               1-5

WRANGLERS                           1-6

EASTERN CONFERENCE       W-L

Green Bay                                  8-1

Jacksonville                                6-1

Orlando                                       4-2

Fishers Freight                            5-4

Quad City                                    3-6

Tulsa                                            2-5

Iowa                                             1-6

SCOREBOARD

Wranglers, 57, Iowa 33

San Diego 48, San Antonio 36

Green Bay 41, Tulsa 35

Jacksonville 68, Fishers Freight 50

Quad City 40, Tucson 38