The Mahoning Valley Thunder sputtered early, and never got on track, turning the ball over 2 times before falling to Manchester 45-39. The offense struggled early scoring just 22 first half points and never recovered. Manchester led for most of the game but trailed by two with under a minute to play. That’s when fullback Dan Crozier stumbled into the end zone from a yard out for what proved to be the game winning touchdown. The loss evens Mahoning Valley ’s record at 1-1 and leaves them winless all-time against Manchester in three tries. Mahoning Valley (1-1) hits the road for the first time in 2008 when they travel to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton next Friday night. Manchester (1-0) will be looking for back-to-back wins when they visit the Green Bay Blizzard Friday night.

 

 

Thunder quarterback Josh Swogger finished 21-of-42 for 177 yards and five touchdowns. The offense never got into rhythm. Swogger was sacked three times and fumbled another three times, including two of which were recovered by the Wolves. Manchester quarterback Justin Rummell, making his first start as a member of the Wolves, finished 22-of-33 with five scores; he was intercepted once. Wolves wide receiver Emery Sammons hauled in seven passes for 93 yards and three scores. Thunder wide receiver DeMarcus Mathes snagged five balls for 52 yards and three scores in the losing effort.

 

 

The game ended with a controversial call as the clocks read triple zero. Swogger hit Mathes in the end zone with no time left for what appeared to be the game winning score. But, officials ruled that Mathes was out of bounds when he caught the ball, voiding the touchdown and sending the Wolves home with their first win of 2008.