NASHVILLE-Foster Warhurst was a one-man scoring machine for the Tampa Bay Storm, with three second-half touchdowns, and also set a single-game AFL reception record in helping the Storm snap their ten-game winless streak in a 31-30 victory in Week 2 over the Nashville Kats.
Allie Navarro started the game for Tampa Bay by intercepting Curt Wardlaw at the Storm 34-yard line. Tampa Bay was forced to punt, but Lando Duckworth sacked Wardlaw and caused a fumble that was recovered by Jose Moore at the Nashville 39-yard line. After four plays gained 21 yards, Johnny Quincey connected on a 35-yard field goal to give the Storm a 3-0 lead with 9:02 remaining in the first quarter. The Kats would respond with a 14-play, 64-yard drive ending with a 3-yard touchdown run by Oliver Osler to take a 7-3 lead with 4:23 to go in the first.
The Storm would answer by driving 72 yards on 10 plays. Orval Stanley would throw a 6-yard touchdown pass to Burton Carmon to help Tampa Bay retake the lead at 10-7 with 14:04 remaining in the second quarter. The Kats would go three-and-out, but Emmit Quasar fumbled the return and Isao Orlando recovered for Nashville at the Tampa Bay 31-yard line. Six plays later, Osler caught a 6-yard touchdown pass from Wardlaw to give the Kats a 14-10 lead with 9:30 to go in the half. After Lincoln Bingham picked off Stanley at the Nashville 45-yard line, the Kats went on a 6-play, 55-yard drive that ended with a 28-yard touchdown pass from Wardlaw to Alza Chipman making it 21-10 with 6:43 to go in the second quarter. Tampa Bay drove into scoring territory, but Quincey had a 32-yard field goal attempt partially blocked and missed. Wardlaw had a pass intercepted by Dazzle L. Singletary who took off 39 yards to the Kats' 21-yard line. Following a four-play, 17-yard drive, Quincey kicked a 21-yard field goal to close the gap to 21-13 with 1:06 left in the half. Blue Hanan picked off Wardlaw at the Storm 30-yard line to thwart Nashville's last scoring threat at the end of the half.
Tampa Bay started the second half with possession, but Quincey missed a 44-yard field goal attempt. A poor punt by Red Hull gave the Storm the ball at their own 48-yard line, then three plays later, Stanley hit Warhurst for a 42-yard bomb for a touchdown. The Storm tried to tie the game with a 2-point conversion, but failed and the score was 21-19 with 7:48 to go in the third quarter. The Kats punted, then Bingham picked off Stanley again at the Storm 41-yard line. After a 5-play, 35-yard drive, Daniel Stevenson kicked a 23-yard field goal to make it 24-19 with 2:41 left in the third.
After a Storm punt, Navarro would pick off Wardlaw again and return it 8 yards to the midfield stripe. Six plays later, Warhurst caught a 6-yard touchdown pass from Stanley. The Storm missed another 2-point conversion, and the score was 25-24 with 11:38 left in the fourth quarter. A facemask penalty on Tampa Bay during Vince Caselli's return gave the Kats the ball at the Tampa Bay 43-yard line. Six plays later, Damien Holden scored on a 1-yard touchdown run, and the Kats missed a 2-point attempt making the score 30-25 with 8:57 to go in the fourth. The Storm were turned away on fourth-and-goal from the 4-yard line on their next drive. The Kats punted, and Tampa Bay found themselves at their own 27-yard line with 2:39 remaining. The Storm went 73 yards on 9 plays, and Stanley threw an 8-yard touchdown pass to Warhurst with 41 seconds to go in the game. The 2-point conversion attempt failed again, and Tampa Bay led 31-30. The Kats could only get as close as the Storm 18-yard line before time ran out.
Tampa Bay (1-1) gained 452 yards of total offense. The Storm ran for 91 yards on 23 carries. Jefferson Taylor led the team with 63 yards on 12 carries. Stanley was 29-of-46 passing for 368 yards, 4 TD and 2 INT. He was sacked once for a 7-yard loss. Warhurst set a single-game AFL record with 14 catches. Those 14 catches netted 195 yards and 3 TD. The Storm host the Orlando Predators in the "War on I-4" next week.
Nashville (1-1) gained 347 yards of total offense. The Kats ran for 126 yards on 29 carries. Osler led the team with 64 yards on 12 carries and a TD. Wardlaw was 16-of-34 passing for 243 yards, 2 TD and 4 INT. He was sacked three times, losing 22 yards. Cobey Kingston led the receivers with 4 catches for 91 yards. The Kats visit the Georgia Force next week.
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