The original game that was supposed to occur on Tuesday between the Jousters and Alphas was pushed back due to COVID-19 protocols. Instead, the Conquerors and the Aviators, who were supposed to play on Wednesday, played Tuesday night.
The Aviators took flight on the opening kickoff, where Mathew Sexton returned one for a 90-yard touchdown to put the Aviators up 7-0. The Conquerors answered back on the next drive when quarterback Kevin Anderson threw a 24-yard touchdown pass to Nick Holley. The extra-point was no good, and the Aviators remained ahead 7-6. After the Aviators went three and out, the Conquerors special teams made a critical play, blocking the punt attempt before recovering the ball at the Aviators 19-yard line.
The Conquerors were ready to put more points on the board, but Anderson threw an interception to DaShaun Amos, who ran it back for a 101-yard touchdown. The Aviators missed the extra-point; the score was now 13-6. On the next possession, Conquerors kicker Matt Mengel booted a 51-yard field goal to cut the Aviators lead 13-9.
After the Aviators went three and out, the Conquerors got the ball back. Then a couple of huge plays set up the Conquerors on the one-yard line. Anderson handed the ball off to Jordan Salima for the touchdown. Mengel missed the extra-point as the Conquerors were up 15-13 in the second quarter.
On the next possession for the Aviators, McLeod Bethel-Thompson threw to Woody Brandom, but the ball bounced off of his hand and into the hands of Conquerors linebacker Royce See, who took it to the house on a 28-yard touchdown. Once again, Mengel missed the extra-point, and the Conquerors were up 21-13.
The Aviators continued to shoot themselves in the foot with turnovers. This time, Aviators running back De’Veon Smith fumbled the ball that was recovered by the Conquerors. By that point, it was the Aviators fourth turnover of the game. The Conquerors took advantage of this turnover and marched down the field to score another touchdown. This time, Jordan Salima punched it in on a four-yard run with under two minutes left to play in the first half. Mengel made the extra point as the Conquerors went up 28-13 at halftime.
In the second half, the Aviators created a turnover after Haki Woods picked off Kevin Anderson with over seven minutes left in the third quarter. On the next possession, Bethel-Thompson threw a 40-yard touchdown pass to DelVon Hardaway. Aviators kicker Toshiki Sato missed the extra point to cut the Conquerors lead 28-19. On the next possession for the Conquerors, they once again marched down the field as Jordan Salima scored his third touchdown of the game on a one-yard run. The Mengel made the extra point for a 35-19 Conquerors lead.
In the fourth quarter, the Conquerors put the game away for good with over five minutes left as Anderson threw a five-yard touchdown pass to Dan Williams III. Mengel made the extra point, and the Conquerors were up 42-19. After that, both teams put in their backup players for the rest of the game. Kevin Anderson finished the game going 25/32 for 325-yards, two touchdown passes, and two interceptions, while McLeod Bethel-Thompson went 16/28 for 178-yards, one touchdown, and two interceptions.
The Conquerors would defeat the Aviators 42-19 getting their first win of the season, while the Aviators dropped to 2-1 on the year. The Conquerors will look to get their second win next Tuesday, November 17th, against the Jousters at 8 pm on FS1, while the Aviators will look to rebound against the Generals on Wednesday, November 18th at 8 pm on FS1.
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