Storm

Storm clinches home playoff game

By STEVE VEDDER, Times Correspondent
Published June 17, 2007

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - It might not have been pretty, but it leaves the Tampa Bay Storm at home for the first round of the Arena League playoffs.

The Storm took advantage of the Rampage's seven fumbles, an AFL record, to knock off Grand Rapids 69-40 Saturday night at Van Andel Arena.

The win means Tampa Bay (8-7), which has now beaten Grand Rapids (4-11) in seven of eight meetings since 1998, clinches a first-round home playoff game for the first time since 2003. The Storm went on to win the Arena Bowl that season.

The teams' 11 combined turnovers also set an AFL record.

Tampa Bay converted four Rampage turnovers into 24 points in the first two quarters, but still couldn't clinch the win until the game's final eight minutes.

Jeroid Johnson scored first for the Storm on a 5-yard fumble recovery on the opening kickoff. The Storm turned a second Rampage fumble into a 41-yard field goal by Seth Marler.

In the second quarter, Tim McGill recovered a fumble in Grand Rapids' end zone, and yet another fumble was eventually turned into a 2-yard run by Torrance Marshall with 6:22 left in the first half.

Still, the Storm couldn't pull away, leading only 38-34 at halftime after two fumbles and an interception. The Rampage's Jerome Riley returned one of the fumbles 37 yards for a touchdown.

In the first half, Storm quarterback Brett Dietz threw touchdown passes of 4 and 20 yards to Hank Edwards and Marvin Brown, respectively.

The Rampage nearly tied the game at 41 on a 28-yard pass from former Florida State quarterback Adrian McPherson to Clarence Coleman, but couldn't convert the extra point.

Marshall tied the franchise's single-season mark of 15 touchdown runs.

TB GRR

First downs 18 18

Rushes-yards 3-12 9-56

Passing yards 269 277

Passes 22-37-0 24-37-0

Fumbles-lost 3-3 5-5

Penalties-yards 4-34 9-53

Tampa Bay 17 21 3 28 - 69

Grand Rapids 7 27 6 0 - 40

Scoring summary

TS - Nazir fumble recovery (Marler kick)

TS - Marler 41 fg

GR - Bonne 7 pass from McPherson (Gowins kick)

TS - Edwards 4 pass from Dietz (Marler kick)

GR - McPherson 10 run (Gowins kick)

TS - McGill fumble recovery (Marler kick)

TS - Marsha 1 run (Marler kick)

GR - Ryan 1 run (Gowins kick)

GR - Riley fumble recovery

TS - Brown 20 pass from Dietz (Marler kick)

GR - Bonne 43 pass from McPherson (Gowins kick)

TS - Marler 32 fg

GR - Colema 28 pass from McPherson

TS - Marsha 4 run (Marler kick)

TS - Williams 18 pass from Dietz (Marler kick)

TS- Shaw 7 pass from Dietz (Marler kick)

TS - Marsha 7 run (Marler kick)

Storm 69

Grand Rapids 40

[Last modified June 17, 2007, 20:08:33]