MOUNTAIN LIONS

LOSE 33-30 ON

LAST  SECOND FG

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Special to Sacramento Sports News

    SACRAMENTO, Calif. (Oct. 1, 2011) - A last-second 39-yard field goal earned the Omaha Nighthawks a dramatic 33-30 victory over the Mountain Lions in front of 17,612 fans in Sacramento behind an impressive night from quarterback Jeremiah Masoli and the visitors' up-tempo offense.
    The game had been tied at 30-30 and looked to be heading to overtime, but with Omaha facing third and 10 from their own 35, Masoli found a wide-open Chad Jackson, who took the ball all the way down to the Mountain Lions' 30-yard line. Omaha elected to let the clock run down to two seconds remaining and Jeff Wolfert hit the game-winning 39-yard field goal as time expired.
   The win was the first in the professional coaching career of Nighthawks head coach Joe Moglia and lifts his team to 1-1 and a tie with the United Football League defending champion Las Vegas Locos in second place in the standings. The 2-0 Virginia Destroyers lead the way, while Sacramento drops to 0-2.

    The game's momentum swung constantly between the two opponents and Omaha had trailed 30-23 with seven minutes to play before driving the length of the field to tie the contest with Shaud Williams' second touchdown rush of the night.
    Masoli completed 27 of 42 pass attempts for 283 yards, while Williams rushed 9 times for 32 yards and crucially for two touchdowns. John David Washington rushed for 114 yards and a touchdown in a losing effort for the Mountain Lions, while Ryan Colburn hit 18 of 29 pass attempts for 3 touchdowns.
    The game was tied at 10 at halftime with turnovers dominating the early stages. Nighthawks defensive back Ricardo Colclough intercepted Mountain Lions quarterback Ryan Colburn's pass on third and 14 midway through the first quarter to set up Omaha at Sacramento's 44-yard line. Masoli returned the favor three plays later by overthrowing his receiver, allowing Sacramento's Jon Busing to get the game's second interception.
    On the ensuing drive, Omaha defensive end Claude Harriott got to Colburn in the backfield and forced a fumble his team recovered at the Mountain Lions 43-yard line.
    Omaha capitalized on the turnover and marched down the field with the help of a facemask penalty and scored on a Shaud Williams one-yard run to give Omaha a 7-0 lead with two and half minutes to play in the opening quarter.
    Sacramento got on the board with a 23-yard field goal after the Nighthawks missed a 52-yarder of their own. After Sacramento earned good field position because of the missed kick, Colburn hit Reggie Williams for a 30-yard gain down the right side and was roughed on the play, putting the ball on Omaha's 12-yard line.
    On the first play from scrimmage after the Mountain Lions field goal, Will Poole recovered a fumble at the Nighthawks 23-yard line. Sacramento then drove down to Omaha's five-yard line. On a broken play, Colburn found Kenny Moore in the back corner of the end zone for a touchdown to make it a 10-7 game.
    Jeff Wolfert's 54-yard field goal tied the game at 10 for Omaha with a minute to play in the first half. Both teams had struggled to covert on third downs, combining to 3-of-14 in the opening half.
    Wolfert added another long field goal on the opening first of the second half, hitting a 56-yarder with 10:21 left in the third to give his team a three-point lead.
    On Sacramento's ensuing drive, the team marched down the field for a score, culminating in Washington's 1-yard scoring run. On Omaha's next drive, Wolfert added his third field goal, a 42-yarder to bring his team within one.
    But the Nighthawks could not figure out a way to stop Colburn, who hit Reggie Williams again for a 36-yard play deep down the left side of the field to set up his 11-yard touchdown toss to fullback Galen Stone. The extra-point was blocked, making it a 23-16 game with 13:34 to play.
    Reserve cornerback Manny Collins intercepted Masoli on his own 44-yard line on Omaha’s next drive, giving back the ball while down a score. But this time, Colburn was the one to return the favor by throwing an interception two plays later that Nighthawk Stuart Schweigert returned to the 38.
    Noel Devine then scored on a 1-yard run to tie the game at 23 with just over nine minutes left.
    On the following drive, Colburn converted a third and 14 by scrambling out of the pocket to his left, then cutting up field for the first down for an improbable first down. Two plays later, Colburn barely escaped a sack and hit tight end Dominique Jones for a 50-yard touchdown heave with seven minutes to go, making it 30-23.
    Omaha responded by driving the length of the field in less than three minutes, scoring on Williams' draw from the nine-yard line. His second scoring catch tied the game at 30 with less than five minutes to play.
    Cory Ross, Sacramento's feature running back and 2010 UFL offensive player of the year did not dress after suffering a hamstring injury earlier in the week.  Return to Features Page