Week 1 - Gladiators 61 Dragons 49


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(March 3) After falling behind 14-0 in the first quarter, the Dragons played catch up and even led in the third quarter. But they ultimately fell 61-49 to the Cleveland Gladiators at Quicken Loans Arena, Monday night in their season opener.

Dragons QB Aaron Garcia left the game early in the second quarter with a sprained knee and did not return to action following an interception. Garcia finished the game 7-of-16 for 64 yards and one interception.

QB Rohan Davey stepped up commendably to fill in for Garcia and was 21-of-30 for 249 yards, five touchdowns and one interception. Leading the way on the receiving end for the Dragons was WR Kevin Swayne, who finished 106 yards and three touchdowns. WR/LB Chris Anthony chipped in with 83 yards and two touchdowns.

The Dragons took a 35-33 lead with 1:29 remaining in the third quarter on Anthony's first touchdown. But the Gladiators answered on the ensuing drive to regain the lead, which they didn't relinquish to finish their inaugural game with a victory. After Anthony gave the Dragons the lead, the Gladiators out-scored New York 28-14 in the game's final 16 minutes.

Leading the way for the Gladiators was QB Raymond Philyaw. He was 18-of-23 for 240 yards, five touchdowns and one interception. Philyaw's favorite receiver in the game was Otis Amey, who finished with seven receptions for 101 yards and two touchdowns. Amey also scored a rushing touchdown.

Davey was pressured all night and was sacked four times – twice by both DL Karon Riley and DL Joe Minucci. DL Bryant Shaw made a crucial fumble recovery in the fourth quarter to turn the ball over to the Gladiators.

Dragons Leaders
PASSING: Rohan Davey - 21/30, 249 yds, 5 TDs
RECEIVING: Kevin Swayne - 10 rec, 130 yds, 3 TDs
DEFENSIVE: Levy Brown - 8.5 tackles & 2 INTs



Week 2 - Dragons 50 Brigade 47


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(March 9) Jason Willis added the last of his four touchdown receptions with 21.6 seconds remaining to give the Dragons a dramatic 50-47 victory over Kansas City in front of 10,542 fans in the home opener at Nassau Coliseum.

Quarterback Rohan Davey again filled in admirably for Aaron Garcia, throwing for 233 yards and six touchdowns. Billy Parker clinched the victory with a leaping interception as time expired, preventing former teammate Mike Horacek from completing a comeback with a potential touchdown catch.

But Parker capped the last of the Dragons' six defensive stops on the afternoon, improving his team to 1-1. Brigade quarterback John Fitzgerald threw for four touchdowns and scrambled for another three touchdowns. Yet the Arena Football League veteran couldn't prevent Kansas City from dropping to 0-2.

Parker held Horacek in check most of the game and nearly added his second big interception of the contest when he raced in front of his ex-teammate late in the fourth quarter. Parker was just a step too slow and Horacek hauled in his second touchdown. Jerald Brown tacked on the two-point conversion as Kansas City went up 48-45 at the one-minute warning.

Brigade coach Kevin Porter elected to go for the on-side kick, which Willis recovered. Kansas City nearly finished a clutch defensive stand before Jerald Brown knocked down Chris Anthony for a pass interference penalty on fourth-and-three. The infraction resulted in a first down, allowing Davey to complete a swing pass to Willis along the sideboards for the go-ahead score.

The Dragons defense produced big plays throughout the contest. A stout secondary generated three first-half defensive stops. But Fitzgerald still put Kansas City on the scoreboard by rushing for two touchdowns and throwing for another.

Facing a fourth down -and-four situation, Davey lobbed a pass over a wave of Brigade cornerbacks to find Willis open just in front of the end line for a 13-12 Dragons lead in the final minute in the first half. Chris Onorato couldn't execute the ensuing onside kick, giving Kansas City good field position.

Fitzgerald inched into the end zone on a quarterback keeper on a fourth-and-goal play from the one-yard line with 20 seconds remaining. Onorato responded by drilling a 41-yard field goal with time expiring to cut the halftime deficit to 19-16.

Former Dragons DB Will Holder and Horacek victimized their former team late in the first quarter. Holder hauled in an endzone interception and returned the ball to midfield. Horacek took advantage of the turnover moments later, making a sliding catch on Fitzgerald's 13-yard touchdown pass.

Jerald Brown, another former Dragon, followed Holder's lead and added an interception of his own on the next drive. In response, the Dragons prevented Kansas City from forging a two-score lead after Levy Brown picked off Fitzgerald's pass headed towards the corner of the end zone.

Brown, the reigning af2 Defensive Player of the Year, capped a sound opening stand by breaking up a fourth-down pass, swinging possession back to the home team. Brown's clutch pass coverage facilitated Davey's 15-yard touchdown strike to Willis to open the scoring.

Dragons Leaders
PASSING: Rohan Davey - 22/36, 238 yds, 4 TDs
RECEIVING: Jason Willis - 6 rec, 59 yds, 4 TDs
DEFENSIVE: Levy Brown - 6.5 tackles & 2 INTs



Week 3 - Soul 63 Dragons 42


Photo Courtesy of NewYorkDragons.Com


(March 16) QB Aaron Garcia returned to the Dragons lineup after missing the past game and a half due to a sprained knee, but left in the fourth quarter with a bruised rib. Before leaving, Garcia and the Dragons cut the Philadelphia Soul lead to seven points with under five minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, but were unable to get the equalizer, dropping a 63-42 decision in an embittered battle, Sunday afternoon at the Wachovia Center.

QB Tony Graziani led the Soul's offense, going 16 of 27 for 204 yards, six touchdowns and two interceptions. But late in the third quarter, Graziani left the game with a sprained knee, following a late hit by DT John Nix. Filling in for Graziani was former ArenaBowl champion with the Chicago Rush, Matt D'Orazio, who started the fourth quarter for the Soul and picked up a rushing touchdown in the final minute of the game.

Graziani relied heavily on WR Chris Jackson and WR Larry Brackins. Jackson caught eight passes for 91 yards and three touchdowns. Brackins hauled in eight catches for 118 yards and two touchdowns.

Garcia was also effective, going 25 of 40 for 250 yards and six touchdowns. But in the final minute, Garcia was hit hard and forced to sit out the rest of the game because of a bruised rib. He will be going for X-Rays. QB Rohan Davey replaced Garcia and threw two incomplete passes before an interception to LB Rod Davis, who returned the ball for a touchdown.

Before going down, Garcia divided up the passing offense among Chris Anthony, Kevin Swayne and Jason Willis. Anthony caught ten passes for 91 yards and one touchdown. Swayne finished with seven catches for 84 yards and three touchdown passes, while Willis caught five passes for 25 yards and two touchdowns.

Willis got the Dragons within seven points with less than five minutes to play. Garcia stumbled before leaning back and finding Willis, who made it into the end zone with a second effort.

However, on the next drive, D'Orazio led his team down the field, eating up valuable minutes before going with a dive play to score the touchdown himself and increase the Soul lead to 14 points.

What started out as an offensive game with both teams scoring on their first three possessions, turned into a defensive battle during the middle part of the game. Leading the defensive charge for the Soul was DL Gabe Nyenhuis, who forced two fumbles and finished with two sacks.

Dragons Leaders
PASSING: Aaron Garcia - 25/40, 250 yds, 6 TDs
RECEIVING: Kevin Swayne - 7 rec, 84 yds, 3 TDs
DEFENSIVE: Levy Brown - 5.5 tackles & 1 INT



Week 4 - Rattlers 62 Dragons 33


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(March 22) QB Jeff Smoker and WR Trandon Harvey led the Arizona Rattlers to a 62-33 victory over the New York Dragons, Friday night at US Airways Center in Phoenix.

Smoker went 22-of-31 for 240 yards, five touchdowns and one interception. Smoker's favorite target in the game was Harvey, who caught eight passes for 110 yards and five touchdowns. WR Kevin Nickerson and OL Wendell Gaines also caught touchdown passes for Arizona, who also earned rushing touchdowns from Smoker, Nickerson and Harvey.

For the Dragons, WR Kevin Swayne did all he could to contribute offensively, catching nine receptions for a season-high 187 yards, but only one for a touchdown. WR/LB Chris Anthony and WR Keron Henry also hauled in touchdown receptions.

Following strong performances in his first three games, QB Rohan Davey wasn't as effective against the Arizona defense, going 21-of-43 for 334 yards, three touchdowns and one interception.

DB Levy Brown served as a kick returner on four occasions, totaling 122 yards, including a touchdown.

The Dragons were in good shape after one quarter, down only 14-7, but in the second quarter, the Rattlers broke it open, out-scoring the Dragons 21-3. At the half, Arizona led 35-10. Arizona increased their lead to 48-17 through three quarters, putting the game out of reach.

Dragons Leaders
PASSING: Rohan Davey - 21/43, 334 yds, 3 TDs
RECEIVING: Kevin Swayne - 9 rec, 187 yds, 1 TDs
DEFENSIVE: Billy Parker - 6.5 tackles & 1 INT



Week 5 - Dallas 33 Dragons 31


Photo Courtesy of NewYorkDragons.Com


(March 30) Dallas opened up the game with a 2 play 24 yard drive ending with a 3 yard Josh White TD run to take an early 7-0 lead. The Dragons answered right back with a 9 yard Aaron Garcia Touchdown pass to Chris Anthony. Following a Dallas TD to take to the lead 14-7, Aaron Garcia was intercepted by Dallas DL Ricky Simpkins on an attempted screen pass.

On the first play of the second quarter, Dragons DL Jason Hardee had a similar interception to Simpkins as he picked off an intended Chris Sanders screen pass. The Dragons would then march down field on a 10 play 22 yard drive to tie the game at 14. New York was then able to force two Chris Sander fumbles on Dallas' next two drives. New York capitalized on one of those turnovers with a 19 yard Chris Onorato Field Goal with 26 seconds left in the first half to give the Dragons a 17-14 lead going into the half.

New York extended their lead to 10 points on the opening drive of the third quarter following a 28 yard TD pass from Aaron Garcia to Chris Anthony. The Dragons then held Dallas to a Field Goal on the next drive to keep their lead at 24-17. Dallas then recovered a surprise onside kick, but Angel Estrada intercepted Chris Sanders and returned it 43 yards to give the Dragons a 14 point lead at 31-17.

Dallas opened up the 4th Quarter with a 9 yard TouchDown pass to Marcus Nash to cut the Dragons lead to 31-24. Dallas then came up with a big defensive stop on the Dragons next offensive series. On a 4th and 3 from the Dallas 20, Ricky Simpkins sacked Aaron Garcia to get the ball back for Dallas down 31-24 with 7:50 left in the game. The Desperados then followed with a 7 yard Touchdown pass to Marcus Nash to tie the game at 31-31. On the next drive, the Dragons were forced to settle for a long field goal attempt that was blocked out the back of the endzone for a safety giving Dallas a 33-31 lead. Dallas was then able to run the clock out following the safety kick by the Dragons to hold on for the victory.

Dragons Leaders
PASSING: Aaron Garcia - 20/35, 174 yds, 3 TDs
RECEIVING: Chris Anthony - 7 rec, 86 yds, 2 TDs
DEFENSIVE: Angel Estrada - 4.5 tackles, 1 INT & 1 Defensive TD



Week 6 - Dragons 63 Rampage 34


Photo Courtesy of NewYorkDragons.Com


(April 5) The Dragons defeated the Grand Rapids Rampage 63-34 on Saturday Night at the Nassau Coliseum. Quarterback Aaron Garcia passed for 311 yards and 7 TouchDowns and was backed up by a dominant New York Defense which had 4 Interceptions and 2 Fumble Recoveries.

The Dragons defense held the Rampage to no points in the first half. Grand Rapids picked up its first points of the game with 8:29 remaining in the third quarter. The Dragons led 35-0 at the half before Grand Rapids tried to catch up by scoring 21 points in the third quarter, but the Dragons countered with 21 points of their own in the third. In the fourth, the Rampage scored 13 points to the Dragons' seven.

Dragons Defensive Back John Walker tied a Dragons record with 3 Interceptions in the game returning one for a Touchdown. Walker ties Mike Furrey and Corey Johnson as the only other Dragons to accomplish this.

Dragons Leaders
PASSING: Aaron Garcia - 26/42, 311 yds, 7 TDs
RECEIVING: Chris Anthony - 10 rec, 92 yds, 4 TDs
DEFENSIVE: John Walker - 3 INTs, 2 Tackles, 1 Defensive TD



Week 7 - Dragons 62 Destroyers 44


Photo Courtesy of NewYorkDragons.Com


(April 11) As a result of dominant play on both sides of the ball, the New York Dragons defeated the division rival Columbus Destroyers, 62-44, on Sunday at the Nassau Coliseum. The Dragons have now won two games in a row to improve to 3-4 on the season.

QB Aaron Garcia went 27-of-37 for 298 yards, eight touchdowns and no interceptions. On the receiving end, Jason Willis caught ten passes for 131 yards and two touchdowns, Kevin Swayne hauled in six passes for 61 yards and three touchdowns, while Chris Anthony caught nine passes for 99 yards and three touchdowns. Anthony followed up his ten receptions last game with another valiant performance.

Defensively, the Dragons were strong again, especially in the first half. The Dragons defense allowed only one touchdown and a field goal in the opening two quarters, staking New York to a 28-17 lead at the half.

DB Billy Parker led the Dragons defense with two pass breakups and an interception. DL Henry Taylor proved his meddle on the line of scrimmage, sacking QB Matt Nagy twice and causing one quarterback hurry. DB Levy Brown led the Dragons with seven tackles, while DB Angel Estrada pitched in with five tackles.

The Dragons increased their lead after the third quarter to 42-24 with two more Garcia touchdown passes and Parker's interception. With the game out of reach, the Dragons and Destroyers each scored 20 points in the fourth quarter.

Dragons Leaders
PASSING: Aaron Garcia - 27/37, 298 yds, 8 TDs
RECEIVING: Jason Willis - 10 rec, 131 yds, 2 TDs
DEFENSIVE: Henry Taylor - 2 Sacks & 2 Tackles



Week 8 - Dragons 66 Storm 47


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(April 19) The Dragons offense was as effective as it's been all season, scoring on every drive. The result was a 66-47 victory against the Tampa Storm at the St. Pete Times Forum. The Dragons won for the first time on the road in four tries this season.

QB Aaron Garcia was the star of the offense, leading the onslaught against the Storm. Garcia finished 22-of-26 for 254 yards, seven touchdowns and zero interceptions. Garcia spread out the offense, firing touchdown passes to four different players.

WR Jason Willis led the receivers, catching eight receptions for 105 yards and two touchdowns. WR/LB Chris Anthony caught six receptions for 61 yards and two touchdowns. Veteran Kevin Swayne also chipped in with four catches for 46 yards and two touchdowns. TE Elliot Seifert's only reception was a touchdown – his first as a Dragon.

K Chris Onorato was a key contributor to the Dragons scoring on every drive. He finished with three field goals, including a 42-yarder in the second quarter. He also went 6-for-7 on extra points.

On the opposite side of the ball, the Dragons defense was all over QB Brett Dietz. Defensive backs Billy Parker and John Walker each caught interceptions. DL John Nix returned a fumble for a touchdown and DL Farouk Adelekan sacked Dietz in the end zone for a safety.

Tampa Bay scored on the opening drive and led 14-10 after the first quarter, but after scoring on the opening drive in the second quarter, the Dragons never looked back.

The Dragons continued their dominance in the middle quarters, out-scoring Tampa Bay 35-20 in the second and third quarters. The fourth quarter was more of the same as the Dragons came away with a 21-13 advantage in the final frame.

For Tampa Bay, Dietz was 26-of-40 for 334 yards, six touchdowns, two interceptions and a lost fumble. Terrill Shaw and Hank Edwards each caught two touchdown passes, while David Saunders and Lawren Samuels, each picked up one touchdown reception.

Dragons Leaders
PASSING: Aaron Garcia - 22/26, 254 yds, 7 TDs
RECEIVING: Jason Willis - 8 rec, 105 yds, 2 TDs
DEFENSIVE: Billy Parker - 8 tackles & 1 INT

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