DENVER-The Colorado Crush scored 17 points in the last three minutes of the game to defeat the New York Dragons 17-10 in a Week 15 AFL game.
The Dragons opened the game with a 7-play, 72-yard drive. Faron Emerson finished it off with a 2-yard touchdown pass to Freddy Ashercraft to put the Dragons up 7-0 with 10:55 remaining in the first quarter. Colorado would punt on their first drive, but would then see Stan Dinn intercept Emerson at the New York 32-yard line. But Earl Ginger would subsequently miss a 41-yard field goal attempt. New York would move into scoring position, but Burt Hamrick would miss a 53-yard field goal attempt.
The second quarter would play much the same as the first. Dusty Mills recovered a Regis Duck fumble for the Dragons at the Colorado 45-yard line, but Hamrick would miss a 47-yard field goal attempt. On the subsequent Crush possession, Ginger would miss a 53-yard attempt. Hamrick would then miss a 53-yard field goal, and following a 6-play, 33-yard drive, Ginger would finally connect on a field goal from 41 yards out to make it 7-3 with 3:07 remaining in the half. Ginger would try another field goal from 55 yards just before the half, but missed it and the teams went into halftime.
The Crush would open the second half with a 10-play, 70-yard drive. Howton Thom would finish the drive with an 8-yard touchdown pass to Norris Taylor to put Colorado ahead 10-7 with 10:04 to go in the third quarter. The Dragons would punt, then Hugh Strickland would pick off Thom at the New York 38-yard line. Following a 5-play, 42-yard drive, Hamrick would kick a 37-yard field goal to tie the game at 10 with 44 seconds remaining in the third.
After an exchange of punts early in the fourth quarter, New York would embark on a 10-play, 83-yard drive, Emerson ended the drive with a 12-yard touchdown pass to Ardell Ashmore to give the Dragons a 17-10 lead with 4:24 left in the fourth quarter. Following a long return by JC Holman, Colorado drove 54 yards on 4 plays. Thom fired a 20-yard touchdown pass to Turk Dill to tie the game at 17 with 3:08 remaining in the fourth. Emerson fumbled a snap, and Eric Adcock recovered for the Crush at the Dragons 25-yard line. Four plays later, Thom fired a 2-yard touchdown pass to Sandy Kelley to give Colorado a 24-17 lead with 52 seconds to go. After the Dragons' ensuing possession went nowhere, Colorado gained a yard on three plays, and Ginger kicked a 54-yard field goal on the last play of the game.
Colorado (7-8) gained 337 yards of total offense. The Crush ran for 91 yards on 26 carries. Valentine Millstone led the team with 41 yards on 10 carries. Thom was 25-of-37 passing for 281 yards, 3 TD and 1 INT. He was sacked four times, losing 35 yards. Kelley (55 yards, TD), Millstone (49 yards), Taylor (46 yards, TD) and Dill (31 yards, TD) each caught 4 passes in the game. The Crush will finish the regular season visiting the Grand Rapids Rampage.
New York (7-8) gained 284 yards of total offense. The Dragons ran for 154 yards on 29 carries. Ashercraft led the team with 47 yards on 10 carries. Emerson was 19-of-33 passing for 152 yards, 2 TD and 1 INT. He was sacked twice, losing 22 yards. Ashmore led the receivers with 5 catches for 37 yards and a TD. The Dragons will finish the regular season hosting the Los Angeles Avengers.
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