[MIJB#19]

Merchantmen Beat Raiders, Now Win Six In A Row
It's there, the best season ever for the Maassluis Merchantmen. with a 21-14 victory over the RayCo Raiders, the nineth win of the season ment the Merchantmen clinched having at least a 9-7 record at season's end. Randy Harris ran wild on offense, but it wasn't until late in the fourth quarter when the team clinched the win. Especially the defense was impressive in their effort to overcome missed field goals and turnovers.

The Merchantmen scored early to take the lead on a 7-yard run from Randy Harris. As the defense managed to keep the Raiders to just 73 yards in 26 plays on 7 drives, it looked like it would be an easy win. But it wasn't at all. Raiders' kicker Myron Gomez had to miss a field goal to help the Merchantmen 7-0 in the half time lead. But the offense didn't hlep either as Louie Flannery threw his 14th interception of the season, while the until today perfect kicker Cary Coles missed field goals from 40 and 54 yards away.

In the second half both teams picked up where they left off. The Raiders were held to three and out, while the Merchantmen moved forward and saw Cary Coles miss his third kick of the game. At that moment the Raiders got the confidence back and second year quarterback connected with wide receiver Stan Butler for 69 yards and the touchdown to tie the score immediately after the missed kick. The Merchantmen got he ball back, but Louie Flannery lost his confidence and threw his second interception of the game.

What followed was good defensive play going towards the end of the third quarter, when all of a sudden the defense stood up for another big play. Defensive tackle Charles Gomez blocked a punt and as safety Lincoln Gilmore recovered the ball at the 11-yard line, the Merchantmen were in scoring position once again. This time Flannery didn't make a mistake, on second down he connected with tight end Jim Reiser to take a 14-7 lead. Going into the fourth quarter it looked over, until Stan Butler returned a punt for 65 yards to tie the score again with ten minutes left to play.

In the remaining minutes, the Merchantmen offense kept moving forward, while the Raiders offense was stopped for losses. Again having possession, the Merchantmen decided to run out the clock as much as possible in a long drive towards the end of the game. As Louie Flannery kept passing and Randy Harris kept running, the home team marched into the red zone and Randy Harris eventual ran the points in for a 21-14 lead.

The Raiders had two minutes and three time outs left to tie the score and Neal Aguillard decided to go for it. But after his first pass fell complete, his second attempt was intercepted by Myron Stevens. The Merchantmen got the ball and on third and three, former Raiders' running back Rodger Mowery clinched the win by converting a first down by inches. The Raiders had used all their time outs and te game was over.

For the game the Merchantmen backfield combined for 219 yards, which ment a franchise all-time best. Randy Harris anchored the group with 141 yards on 26 carries with two scored. But Jamel Rosenberry (45 yards) and Rodger Mowery (28 yards). Harris has ran for 100 yards in three of the past four games now and scored 7 touchdowns in the last three games. He's slowly became the most popular player on the team and it payed off with a player of the game mentioning today.

Looking back, the game was closer than needed and the Merchantmen should worry about how they almost gave a relative easy win away. When the defense breaks up 14 of 37 passing plays and allows only 43 yards rushing for a total of 184, the offense shouldn't struggle that much with 416 total yards. But looking at last week, the Raiders had pulled an upset 20-10 win with similiar looking stats at the Ann Arbor Anachronism.

The bad news of the day was arguably the injury linebacker Cody Cluff picked up early in the game. But even with Cluff out, the defense did what they usually do. Charles Gomez made a sack and provided enough pass rush pressure to have the entire line haunt the Raiders quarterback. The linebackers Carl Meier and Mike Kershner made the needed run stops, while the secondary played a good game as well. Emile William made his 3rd interception of the season, while Tai Wayne didn't allow a single catch, but did defended 3 passes.

Upcoming are the 6-5 Georgia Gridlock. With a victory over the Gridlock, the Merchantmen would clinch being at least third seed in the conference if the division title is won two weeks later against the Gothenburg Giants. The Gridlock are an upcoming team and, like the Merchantmen, already clinched having their best season to date. And as the Gridlock are the number one team in the IHOF in turnover margin, the Merchantmen will once again have to stay away from their usual mistakes.