Crystal Bowl XLVI

CRYSTAL BOWL XLVI:

ADELPHIA PHOENIX 30
BALLYMORE TIGERS 27

The StarDome, Hallas | Att: 66,000 | Sun March 6, 2016

	Q1	Q2	Q3	Q4	ET	FT
ADELPHIA	14	3	10	3	–	30
BALLYMORE	0	10	7	10	–	27

Scoring:
1st Quarter:
ADE- Kelly 5 pass to Rice (Hernandez Kick); 7-0
ADE- Kelly 3 pass to Little (Hernandez Kick); 14-0
2nd Quarter:
BAL- FG Lovell 47; 14-3
ADE- FG Hernandez 34; 17-3
BAL- Mills 16 pass to Bradley (Lovell Kick); 17-10
3rd Quarter:
ADE- FG Hernandez 51; 20-10
BAL- Mills 10 pass to Hamilton (Lovell Kick); 20-17
ADE- Kelly 6 pass to Hart (Hernandez Kick); 27-17
4th Quarter:
BAL- FG Lovell 44; 27-20
BAL- Slater 27 Run (Lovell Kick); 27-27
ADE- FG Hernandez 23; 30-27

Missed FG: Lovell (BAL) 49, 2nd Quarter-wide left.

Kicker Ricardo Hernandez hit a field goal in the final 00:02 of the game as the Adelphia Phoenix won their second Crystal Bowl in four years. Having gained the ball on a Jeff Holliday interception, the Phoenix QB Matt Kelly calmy led them down the stretch, to where Rodriguez could hit a 23 yard field goal, lined up straight down the middle, as time expired.

The Ballymore Tigers had done so well to not let the game get away from them early, as they had trailed 14-0 at the end of the first quarter. Off to a slow-start, QB Bo Mills was running a controlled game and the Tigers rushed for a remarkable (in this day and age) 175 yards off 38 attempts. He also completed 18 of 28 pass attempts.

The revered Tigers’ defence had held the Phoenix in check for the remainder of the game after giving up big drives early on- Kelly throwing short touchdown passes to Rice and Little.

The Tigers came back in the second, with a Lovell field goal and Mills’ pass to Bradley. It was 17-10 at half-time. In the third, the Phoenix scored another field goal and a Kelly pass to Hart, countered by a Bo Mills scoring toss to Hamilton. With it 27-17 going into the fourth quarter, the Tigers rallied, scoring a field goal and a 27 yard run by FB Robbie Slater evened the score.

This remarkably close game could have gone the other way. Late in the fourth quarter the Phoenix turned the ball over, with them in field goal range. The Tigers had the ball, but defender Tim Watts tipped a Bo Mills pass right into the path of Midfielder Jeff Holliday. Holliday returned it 21 yards. Adelphia QB Matt Kelly then orchestrated the final clock-sapping drive to set up the chip shot field goal and the championship.