by Los Angeles, CA — The LA KISS (3-3) were firing on all cylinders and got back to the .500 mark with a 66-27 win against the Portland Steel (0-5) in front of 9,236 fans at the Honda Center on Monday night.
“I’m very happy for the LA KISS and our football team,” said Head Coach Omarr Smith. We got a well-needed win. We played well in certain areas and we didn’t in others, but it’s really hard to get a win in this league. I’m glad we were able to get a win under our belt in front of the LA KISS fans. It was an important game for us.”
LA KISS quarterback and “Under Armour Offensive Player of the Game” Nathan Stanley (Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma) was dominant.
He completed 23 of 31 passes for 233 yards and seven touchdowns. Donovan Morgan led the LA KISS trio of receivers with eight receptions for 65 yards and four touchdowns. Brandon Collins recorded seven catches for 75 yards and two touchdowns, while DJ Stephens added a touchdown and had five receptions for 65 yards.
Portland Steel quarterback Darron Thomas threw for 259 yards and three touchdowns, completing 25 of 49 passes and threw five interceptions. Tom Gilson led the Steel receivers with 10 receptions for 78 yards and two touchdowns. Tyrone Goard tallied six receptions for 61 yards and Jared Perry added a touchdown.
Josh Victorian led the LA KISS defense with nine solo tackles and two interceptions, one of which he returned for a touchdown. Fredrick Obi added seven and a half tackles and one interception return for a touchdown. The “Riddell Defensive player of the Game” Dan Buckner tallied 7.5 tackles, one forced fumble, and a 47-yard interception return touchdown. For the Steel, Mike McMillan recorded six tackles and one interception. Robert Hayes added two sacks.
The LA KISS won the coin toss and deferred possession to the second half and the Steel started with the ball. On the fifth play from scrimmage, Victorian intercepted the Thomas pass and returned it 36 yards for a touchdown. Kevin Goessling’s kick was good and the LA KISS led 7-0 with 12:05 remaining in the quarter. Darron Thomas connected with Perry for a 29-yard touchdown. Ernesto Lacayo made the point after, which evened the score at seven. The LA KISS capped off their first drive of the game with a four-yard pass to Morgan. The point after was no good and the LA KISS led 13-7, which was the score at the end of the first quarter.
The Steel’s first drive of the second quarter ended when Dan Buckner forced Rashaad Carter to fumble. Victorian recovered the fumble and the LA KISS had the ball on their one-yard line. Four plays later, Stanley found Collins for a 27-yard touchdown. Goessling connected on the point after attempt and with 10:56 left in the quarter the LA KISS led by 13 points. On the ensuing possession, Thomas intercepted a pass intended for Gilson and the LA KISS regained the ball on the six-yard line. The LA KISS capitalized on the turnover when Morgan caught a 20-yard touchdown pass from Stanley. The kick was good and the score was 27-7.
On Portland’s next possession, Thomas hit Gilson for a four-yard touchdown. The kick was good, which cut the LA KISS lead to 13 points with 37 seconds left in the half. The score was 27-14 at the half.
On the first possession of the second half, the LA KISS scored on the third Stanley to Morgan touchdown of the game. After a failed point after attempt, the score was 33-14 with 10:21 left in the quarter. After a Steel turnover on downs, Stanley hit Stephens for a 23-yard touchdown. Goessling’s kick was blocked and the score was 39 to 14. Then Thomas connected with Gilson for a 14-yard touchdown. A successful point cut the KISS lead to 18. At the end of the third the LA KISS led 39-21.
Collins caught a 10-yard touchdown from Stanley to start the fourth quarter. The PAT was good and the score was 46-20. Mitchell returned the ensuing kickoff 55 yards for a touchdown and the score was 46-27. The Steel were at the three yard line in scoring position when Dan Buckner intercepted Thomas’ pass and returned it 47 yards for an LA KISS touchdown, which was the “AFL Highlight of the Game”. Then Morgan caught his fourth touchdown of the game after Victorian recorded his second interception of the game. On the final play of the game, Obi intercepted Thomas’ pass and ran it 52-yards for a touchdown. The final scoreboard had the LA KISS beating the Portland Steel by a score of 66 to 27. The 66 points scored is the second most in franchise history and only three points shy of the record set on June 14, 2014 against Portland.
Next week, the LA KISS will have their first of two bye weeks of the 2016 season. Then they will travel to Arizona to take on the Rattlers, who currently sit it in first place of the National Conference. The 6:00 pm game will be available to be streamed live on ESPN3 and WatchESPN.
Postgame Awards:
Under Armour Offensive Player of the Game: LA KISS QB Nathan Stanley
Riddell Defensive Player of the Game: LA KISS DB Dan Buckner
Lewis Small Player of the Game: LA KISS WR Donovan Morgan
Cutters Catch of the Game: 20-yard touchdown reception by LA KISS WR Donovan Morgan in the corner of the end zone with in the second quarter.
AFL Highlight of the Game: 47-yard interception return touchdown by LA KISS JLB Dan Buckner in the fourth quarter.
