IYMSportsRadio.com Players of the Game - Week 7

New York Sharks broadcasters Pat Brown and Dave Maxwell named running back Janea Wilkerson and wide receiver Anaïs Sumnicht as the IYMSportsRadio.com players of the game. Janea scored her first career touchdown in the second quarter and liked it so much that she scored another touchdown in the fourth quarter.

Anaïs was also named player of the game for making some tough catches that help set up some more scores.

Coming Up : Boston Militia

Even though the New York Sharks (3-1) are only at the half-way point of the season, their next game is probably the biggest of the year.  If New York has any hopes of making it to the playoffs, they will have to defeat their long time nemesis the Boston Militia (4-1).

The Sharks have already lost to the Militia once this year so another defeat at their hands would mean that New York would have to win their remaining 3 games while Boston would have to lose their last 2 games.  It might be possible for the Sharks to win out the rest of the season as 2 of those games will be against teams that are playing less than .500 ball.  The other game would be a tough one against the undefeated D.C. Divas but the Sharks did defeat them last year, 19-13.  On the other hand, Boston will be playing the Philadelphia Liberty Belles and D.C. Divas.  The Divas did beat Boston on opening day, but it is unlikely that the Militia would lose to a below .500 team at home.  Also the Militia has never lost 2 games in a row, let alone 2 games in a row at home.

The first meeting between these two teams, the Militia overwhelmed the visiting Sharks, 28-7.  New York's only score came at the end of the game when the outcome was no longer in doubt.  The Sharks will also have to play better on defense as Boston had many time-consuming drives and the New York secondary allowed another long touchdown pass going for 75 yards.

On the positive side, the Sharks played the first game without running back Kathy Holloman, tight end Wanda Williams, linesmen Vivian Alberty and Seleta Harrison.  These veterans should add more spark to the team, but the Sharks will need to play their best to compete with the former national champion Militia.

Like all of the other games between these two old foes, this should be a hard-hitting affair.  The game will be played at Moore Catholic High School in Staten Island this Saturday.  Kick-off time is 3pm (EDT).  If you can not make it to the game in person, you can still follow the action on IYMSportsRadio.com.

You can also discuss the game live with other football fans as well as members of the broadcast booth on our Facebook page.

Gameday : Liberty Belles at Sharks - Week 4

Staten Island, New York, May 15, 2011
The game between the New York Sharks (3-1) and the Philadelphia Liberty Belles (2-3) was a big one. Even though it marked the half-way point of the season for both teams, a loss would practically knock one of them out of playoff contention. Each team was trailing their respective division leader and needed a win to stay in the playoff hunt.

The Sharks usually play their games on a Saturday, but due to a late scheduling change, New York was playing their first football game on a Sunday. In the past the team has played on a Friday and a Monday, but never on a Sunday.

The Sharks brought out some sporting star power to the game as former WNBA star Kym Hampton sang the national anthem, and former New York Jets star Ken Schroy performed the coin toss. He didn't help the Sharks on the coin toss as Philadelphia won the toss but it worked out well in the end as the Liberty Belles deferred to the second half, so New York was going to receive the opening kick-off.

The Sharks started their opening drive pretty conservatively on the running of Kathy Holloman and short passes to Val Halesworth. It took New York 10 plays to gain only 20 yards. On the eleventh play they opened it up a bit with quarterback Karen Mulligan connecting with wide receiver Lauren Pringle for a nifty 38 yard pickup. Pringle almost made it into the endzone but was tackled at the 3-yard line. On the next play running back Odessa Jenkins picked up 2 yards to put the ball right on the goal line and from there Mulligan sneaked the ball across for the touchdown. It was a very nice opening drive that took 13 plays to get 41 yards in 7 minutes. It was only marred by a low snap on the extra point attempt. Kicker Joy Dollison quickly picked up the errant snap but she was quickly smothered by the Liberty Belles. Nonetheless, the Sharks were ahead 6-0 in the first quarter.

The visitors could do nothing when they had the ball and quickly were forced to punt. It looked like New York was getting ready to march down the field again after a nice 24 yard pass reception to Jen Blum that put the Sharks in Philadelphia territory. But this time the Liberty Belles put out an all-out blitz in which they got to Mulligan and caused her to fumble away the football.

The turnover seemed to wake-up Philadelphia as they grinded out yards on the ground until they got a first down on the New York 2-yard line. The big play was on a fake handoff by quarterback Mikaelyn Austin who then ran to her right, turned the corner and ran down the sideline. When she gained 13 yards to the Sharks' 27-yard line, Austin pitched the ball back to Jeanette Hibbs who picked up 14 more yards.
With Philadelphia knocking very loudly on the Sharks door front, the visitors quickly shot themselves in the foot with a holding penalty that pushed them back 10 yards and the closest they would ever get on the drive was to the 3-yard line before they turned the ball over to New York on downs.

Still it wasn't all for nought as the Sharks were stuck deep in their own territory and were quickly forced to punt. Putting on a strong rush of the punter, the Sharks' kick only went 9 yards. Philadelphia was getting a second chance with the ball sitting on the New York 18-yard line. They did not waste this opportunity and scored on a touchdown pass from Austin to Hibbs. The play was not picture perfect as the quarterback was lined up in shotgun and the snap bounced off her hands. She quickly picked up the ball and ran to her right as the designed play was falling apart. But as she ran to her right, the Sharks secondary came in to defend the run. This left a wide open Hibbs in the endzone which Austin hit for an easy score. Hibbs then kicked the extra point to give the Liberty Belles the lead 7-6 with 7:35 left in the second quarter. This was the first time ever that a team from Philadelphia has had the lead over the Sharks.

After the two teams swapped turnovers, the Sharks got the lead back. Again it was a big pass play that set up a hometown score. Earlier in the game Mulligan had thrown a nice pass to Lauren Pringle that could have led to a touchdown but she dropped the ball. The second time around, Pringle caught the ball and ran all the way to the Philadelphia 1-yard line for a 41 yard gain. On the next play Holloman punched the ball in and New York was back on top, 12-7. Because of the missed extra point before, the Sharks went for the 2-point conversion but the pass was knocked away to prevent a pair of points with 4 minutes left to go before the half.

On the ensuing kick-off, Dollison's kick hit the turf in front of the Liberty Belles returner at the 23 and bounced up high and up field, away from the returner. Sharks Charron Sutton ran down the field and was able to recover the kickoff for the Sharks. It was a great break for New York but they could not capitalize as the closest they got down field was to the Philadelphia 29-yard line. Dollison tried to kick a 45-yard field goal but the kick was short and to the left.

The Sharks defense quickly shut down the Liberty Belles offense and New York got the ball back with 2 minutes left to go in the half. Instead of trying run out the clock with the lead, the Sharks played aggressive trying to get another score but after a couple of first downs, they were forced to punt with 45 seconds left. This strategy backfired as Philadelphia's Hibbs returned the punt 43 yards to the New York 20-yard line. Then with only 18 seconds left, Austin connected with Maureen Pfender in the endzone to put the Liberty Belles in the lead. Another Hibbs extra point pushed the visitors lead to 14-12.

Even with only 18 seconds left, the Sharks played aggressively for a score but it ended on an interception by linebacker Jennifer Rosario.

At halftime, Sharks head coach Darnell Stapleton spoke to his team with fire and brimstone. The Sharks were making too many mistakes on offense and defense. They were only down by 2 points but they missed on too many scoring opportunities and the defense gave up too many chances.

The speech lit a fire under the Sharks and it showed at the beginning of the second half. Philadelphia received the ball to start the second half but was stuffed by the New York defense. On a third and long play, the Liberty Belles went to the air but the ball found it's way into the hands of Darleen Hall who returned the errant pass 30 yards to the 13-yard line. This was the second career interception by Hall against the Liberty Belles. The last one she returned 80 yards for a touchdown and was then a team record.

From the 13-yard line, Mulligan handed the ball off to Jenkins who powered her way in to the endzone. Dollison split the uprights and the Sharks were back in front 19-14 with 12:17 left to go in the third quarter.
This year the Sharks defense has played well shutting down the opposing team's offense, but the secondary suffers from lapses time to time. And they suffered another lapse as Austin connected with Pfender again, but this time for a 70-yard touchdown reception. This was the third touchdown the defense has given up of over 50 yards. Hibbs made it 3 for 3 on extra points and the Liberty Belles took the lead back in the beginning of the fourth quarter.

With the fate of the season now resting on less than 15 minutes of play, the Sharks turned to Jenkins. Sticking to the running game, Jenkins was given the ball and she ran either off-tackle or bounced to the outside to grind out gain after gain. But after 9 plays, the Sharks changed gears and Mulligan went looking for Lauren Baden down field. The throw from the Liberty Belles 21-yard line was on target but the Philadelphia defender got her hand up to tip the ball. Baden had to reach back but she grabbed the bouncing ball and then fell into the endzone for her first career touchdown. New York went for the 2-point conversion and Mulligan threw a short pass to Jenkins. Jenkins was quickly covered by the Philadelphia defense at the 5-yard line but broke her tackles to make it into the endzone to give the Sharks a 27-21 lead with 7:20 left to go in the game.
The Liberty Belles now had their backs to the wall. They desperately needed a victory to stay close enough to the D.C. Divas if they wanted to make the playoffs for a third year straight. They went to the running game of Hibbs and Carr and was able to grind up yards against a wavering Sharks defense. Philadelphia moved the ball to the New York 30-yard line when Mother Nature intervened. A loud clap of thunder was heard throughout the area and the referees quickly moved players and fans indoors for safety with 3:43 left in to go in the game. Within minutes the sky opened up and it was pouring rain.

The game was delayed until the lightning and thunder had passed. It took about 30 minutes before the referees resumed the game. There was no more signs of thunder and lightning but it was still pouring rain. The field was turf so there was no problem with mud, but there were large puddles of water around the field. This played in the Sharks favor as the very first snap of the wet ball after the delay was fumbled by Philadelphia for a 2 yard loss. This made it third down and 9 yards to go for a first down. Staying on the ground, Hibbs was able to pick up 4 yards but the Liberty Belles still needed 5 more yards for a first down. So on fourth down, Philadelphia was forced to go to the air and with the Sharks rushing the quarterback, Austin made a desperation throw but the wet ball only went a few yards in the air and was picked off by Sharks Nikki Joseph. The interception sealed the deal for New York and the some of the players celebrated after the final whistle by doing rain angels in the pools of water around the field.

New York played a character building game. They weren't very consistent, made many mistakes and kept giving up the lead but in the end they were able to focus as a team and pull out a nice come from behind victory.

The Sharks will host the Boston Militia (4-1) next Saturday at Moore Catholic High School in Staten Island. This could be the biggest game of the year for the New York as it is practically a must win situation for them if they wish to make the playoffs. Kick-off will be at 3pm (EDT). If you cannot make it to the game, listen to Pat Brown and Dave Maxwell describe all of the action on IYMSportsRadio.com.

	1	2	3	4	Final
Philadelphia Liberty Belles	0	14	0	7	21
New York Sharks	6	6	7	8	27

Scoring Summary

First Quarter
NY - (07:11) Mulligan 1 yard run (Run failed)
Second Quarter
PHA - (07:35) Hibbs 18 yard pass from Austin (Hibbs kick)
NY - (04:01) Holloman 1 yard run (Pass failed)
PHA - (00:18) Pfender 20 yard pass from Austin (Hibbs kick)
Third Quarter
NY - (12:17) Jenkins 13 yard run (Dollison kick)

Fourth Quarter
PHA - (14:44) Pfender 70 yard pass from Austin (Hibbs kick)
NY - (07:20) Baden 21 yard pass from Mulligan (Jenkins pass from Mulligan)

Shark Greatness

All New York Sharks fans knew that their players were great, but now we have proof. A great philospher once said, "How can you say someone is great who's never had his picture on a bubble gum card?" On the Sharks website, we now have posted current e-trading cards of your favorite New York Sharks player.

So for all you doubting Thomas's and fussbudgets just go to any New York Sharks' player webpage and see their e-trading card.

As for those that never heard of the quote from Lucy Van Pelt, see the YouTube video below:

Football Sunday

The New York Sharks (2-1) will be playing football for the first time on a Sunday as they host the Philadelphia Liberty Belles (2-2) this weekend.  Most women's football games are played on Saturday and there has been a few Sunday games, but the Sharks have never played on this day. In 2003 the Sharks did play on a Monday against the host Tampa Bay Terminators.  It was a weekend trip to Florida in which the Sharks played 2 games in 3 days. They had defeated the Miami Fury on a Saturday by the score of 20-6 and then took a bus to Tampa Bay to defeat the Terminators 36-0.  Interestingly enough, the 6 points the Sharks gave up against Miami were the only points the team gave up during the regular season.

This is an important game for both teams. The Sharks need a win to remain in the hunt for the playoffs.  Last weekend the Sharks had a bye week while the Boston Militia (3-1) shutout the New England NightMare 62-0 to move ahead of New York by 1/2 game.  For the Liberty Belles this is a bigger game. They are 2 1/2 games behind the D.C. Divas in the Northeast Division with only 4 games left on their schedule.  A loss by Philadelphia for all intents and purposes eliminates them from the playoffs for the first time since they joined the WFA.

This will be the second time the Sharks and Liberty Belles have met this season.  They opened the season with a game in Philadelphia in which the Sharks prevailed 34-20. Running back Odessa Jenkins went wild rushing for 195 yards on 25 carries and scoring two touchdowns.  Wide receiver Lauren Pringle also helped out with two touchdown receptions, one of them on a 40-yard pass play from quarterback Karen Mulligan.  Lifetime,  the Liberty Belles are 0-3 against New York.

The kick-off for the game will be at 3pm (EDT) at Catholic Moore High School in Staten Island, New York.  It will be Women in Sports Day as we focus is on adult groups empowering women. Taya Wyss, Board Member of the Fins Up! Foundation, will be flipping the coin for the Sharks and be the guest host up in the press box. The second round of the PUNT and PASS CONTEST will be at held halftime. The Sharks are not forgetting our empowering mothers! (Mothers Day is on Sunday, May 8th) Shark players will be announced with their mom's. National Anthem will be sung by former WNBA star Kym Hampton.

If you cannot make it to the game, you can still follow all of the hard hitting action as Pat Brown and Dave Maxwell will describe all of the action on IYMSportsRadio.com. The broadcast will start at 2:30pm.

Shades of Blue

Staten Island, New York, April 30, 2011
100 is a nice round number.  It is also a very large number.  It is a number that represents longevity.  For today it represents all of that and it represents the number of football games that New York Sharks linebacker Darleen "Blue" Hall has played in. 100 is also a number that represents quality, you don't get to play in 100 games unless you are good.

Darleen first started playing with the New York Sharks in 2000. She quickly earned her nickname because she had dyed her hair blue.  In 2002 she helped the Sharks win the national championship.  She stayed with the team through 2004 before she moved out west.  She played for the Portland Shockwave for a few years before moving again and playing with the Kentucky Karma, Louisville Nightmare, and then with the Chicago Force in 2009 and 2010.

In 2011, Darleen moved back to New York city and re-joined the New York Sharks. Welcome back, Darleen. Here's to your 100th game and for many more in the future.

"I know there are others out there that may have reached a hundred, Jen Blum and Val Halesworth I am sure, but there are not many out there... I guess this is what makes this feel like a part of women's football history.  I grew up thinking I would never even get to play 1, let alone 100.  Even that first season, here we are so many years later out there still doing this and so many other female athletes can say that they have played in 1 game, or two, or dozens, or even 100..."

"When you are on the field all that matters is what is across from you at the line of scrimmage. For 60 minutes the world is shut out and there is only you, your teammates, and the passion to win and push yourself mentally and physically in a way you never thought possible.
I will never forget that first game when all I played was kickoff, but just being on the field made me feel like a football player." 
 

"Or game 3 in Oklahoma City, on a muddy field, where I got to go in with two minutes left and I made an interception when I still was not sure what a free safety was..."

"The other moments that seem like dots in a time line would be winning a ring with the Sharks in 2002, an 80 yard interception return for a touchdown in 2003, receiving the Sharon Pascale Award my last season with the Sharks in 2004 when it was Sharon who taught me so much of the game and believed in my ability to play, playing at halftime during a New York Giants game in the Meadowlands, what it felt like the first time I played in a jersey other than the Sharks in 2005 and it took a while for that feeling to go away, being handed a Defensive MVP Award in 2006 and 2008 and a Team MVP award in 2008, the game I played a week after my mother died in 2007 where for three hours I was able to take it out on someone without getting arrested-scoring a defensive touchdown and being able to hold it up for her in the end zone, playing with the Portland Shockwave in a scrimmage against the Seattle Majestics on Qwest Field, 2008 playing in the All-Star game in Texas with future Chicago teammates, not knowing I would be along side them again in 2009, also in 2009 when after 10 seasons my dad finally got to see me play against the Detroit Demolition because he was the one throwing me pass after pass in the backyard when I was a kid- it is still the only game he has ever seen (thanks Chicago Force), between 2009-2010 where I was unable to really settle into 1 team, and 13 MVP gameballs later here we are in 2011 when all I can say is that walking out on that field in Philly on April 2nd with a Sharks jersey on wearing #27 (thanks Joy) felt like coming home, ending up where it all began, it was where I belonged and it made my 100th that much sweeter last week."

"I know most of these moments will only mean something to me in the end and I will look back on them as one of the most important things I accomplished in my life... I love that there are so many of us playing this game, and playing it well with a passion and desire that I feel like so many men forgot somewhere under all the glitz because the only glitz we will ever have is simply being able to play the game. The real game, the one we grew up watching and dreaming of being able to play- not two hand touch, not flag, not powder puff, not somewhat-contact in underwear and a bra- hard nosed, gritty, sometimes ugly full-contact football."

-Darleen Hall

Gameday : NightMare at Sharks

Staten Island, New York, April 30, 2011
The New York Sharks (2-1) were happy to finally come home and play their 13th home opener, the most in women's football. After a tough loss against division rival Boston Militia, the Sharks were looking to getting back to their winning ways against another division foe, the New England NightMare (0-3).

It was a beautiful day on Staten Island with blue skies and game time temperature at 70 degrees. In some ways this could have been seen as a bad omen as the Sharks usual home opener forecast is rain, but not today. The bad omens were reserved for New England.

The game started with the NightMare losing the coin toss and things just got worse for the visitors. Starting with the kick-off, New York returner Odessa Jenkins caught the kick on a short hop and then split up the middle of the field. She got some key blocks and then it was off to the races and she ran it all the way in for a touchdown. Joy Dollison kicked the extra point to give the hometown team the lead of 7-0 with only 15 seconds ticking off of the game clock. The 81-yard return was the longest in Sharks history but that was really a no-brainer as it was the only kick-off returned for a touchdown in the Sharks long history. Unfortunately for New England it wasn't the last.

The Sharks defense was able to shut down the NightMare for the rest of the first quarter but their offense struggled at first. But as the quarter drew to a close, New York orchestrated a nifty 80 yard, 12 play drive. There was a mix of pass and running plays but the star of the drive was the return of running back Kathy Holloman. Holloman who had missed the first 2 games of the season was playing in her first game of the season and was able to move the ball ending with a 4-yard touchdown run. Dollison continued to be perfect on her extra point attempts and the Sharks now led 14 -0 as the first quarter ended.

The next time the Sharks got the ball, they had it for a lot less time but they still were able to score none the less. Again it was Jenkins who was the star as she took the handoff and ran towards the middle but then took a quick cut to her right before breaking it open for a 48 yard touchdown score. Another Dollison kick and New York extended their lead to 21-0 with 11:56 left in the first half.

Jenkins wasn't yet done for the half. When the Sharks got the ball back it was only the soles of Jenkin's yellow shoes that the New England defense saw as she busted loose again. This time she ran 63 yards for her third touchdown of the game. Dollison's streak of successful extra points was stopped as the long snap was high and bounced off of holder Val Halesworth's hands. Dollison picked the ball up and tried to run it in but was quickly tackled. In any case the Sharks had a very comfortable 27-0 lead going into halftime.

New York continued to keep scoring in the second half. This time using a mix of nice running plays by Bella Bluhm and short passes to Laura Baden and the Sharks were on the board again. The drive went 59 yards in 9 plays, the scoring coming on a Karen Mulligan keeper for the final 4 yards. Rookie receiver Anaïs Sumnicht got her first catch of her career in the drive, a 7 yard pickup. Dollison got back on track and split the uprights to give the home team a comfortbale 34-0 lead.

This was the NightMare's third game of the season but they still had yet to get on the scoreboard. That changed on their next possession. While the New York defense has played well this season they have had a tendency to give up some big plays and that is what happened here. Running back Lorie Lindo broke a big run up the middle for 39 yards. She might have scored except for a touchdown saving tackle by Jenkins. Then with the ball on the New York 13-yard line, quarterback Yvonne Howard threw a short pass to her left for a wide open Lindo who caught the pass at the line of scrimmage. She then ran towards the corner of the endzone and was hit by Halesworth. Lindo had enough momentum for the ball to break into the endzone for New England's first score of the season. On the extra point attempt, Jenkins got into the middle of the action again. This time she broke in and blocked the kick to keep the score 34-6.

You would think that Jenkins would be pretty tired at this point, having scored 3 long touchdowns this afternoon. Well, she wasn't done just yet. On the ensuing kick-off, Jenkins' yellowshoes were back in action, this time returning the kick-off 74 yards for a touchdown. In the past 13 years, the Sharks have never returned a kick-off for a touchdown but now in the span of 45 minutes, Jenkins had done it twice. Dollison's extra point attempt was good and the Sharks got their lead back to 40-6 as the third quarter ended.
In the fourth quarter Holloman scored the last New York touchdown of the afternoon. It was a 25 yard run and her second touchdown of the day. Dollison kicked her sixth extra point of the day to make the score 48-6.

With the game clock winding down, the NightMare put together one last drive for the endzone. Relying mainly on the legs of Lindo, New England had a 11 play, 54 yard drive for the score. Howard was able to run it in for the final 4 yards for the score as time ran out on the field. The Sharks might have prevented the score as a quarterback sack by Ruth Martinez and Olga Alcantara pushed the NightMare back for a big loss but on the next play a pass interference got back the yards and then some to set up the score.

It was nice to come back home in front of the home town fans with a victory The win put the Sharks in a 3-way tie for first place with Boston and North Eastern. It was also the 100th game for Sharks' Darleen "Blue" Hall who got the defensive game ball.

The Sharks have a bye next week before they then take on the Philadelphia Liberty Belles in a re-match of the season opener. New York is looking for a repeat over the Liberty Belles and this time the game will be at home in Staten Island, kick-off will be at 3pm (EDT). If you cannot make it to the game, we will be broadcasting live on IYMSportsRadio.com.

	1	2	3	4	Final
New England NightMare	0	0	6	6	12
New York Sharks	14	13	14	7	48

Scoring Summary
First Quarter
NY - (14:45) Jenkins 81 yard kick-off return (Dollison kick)
NY - (00:00) Holloman 4 yard run (Dollison kick)
Second Quarter
NY - (11:56) Jenkins 48 yard run (Dollison kick)
NY - (02:00) Jenkins 63 yard run (Run failed)
Third Quarter
NY - (06:52) Mulligan 4 yard run (Dollison kick)
NE - (04:15) Lindo 13 yard pass from Howard (Kick failed)
NY - (02:02) Jenkins 74 yard kick-off return (Dollison kick)

Fourth Quarter
NY - (05:41) Holloman 25 yard run (Dollison kick)
NE - (0:00) Howard 4 yard run (Pass failed)

Coming Up: New England NightMare

The New York Sharks (1-1) will be hosting their 13th season opener this weekend. This is the longest streak in women's football. They will be playing divisional foe the New England NightMare (0-2) at Moore Catholic High School in Staten Island. Game time is 3:00pm (EDT).

The Sharks are looking forward to coming home as they come into this game tied for second place with the Boston Militia (1-1). In their last game against the Militia in Boston, the Sharks were beaten decisively 28-7. The New Yorkers hope to re-group with some home cooking and playing a struggling New England club.

The NightMare were 2-6 in their inaugural season last year but their sophomore year is not going so well. They have lost both of their games played so far and have yet to score. Their last game in Philadelphia resulted in a 52-0 loss. But before the Sharks assume a notch in the win column, the NightMare lost to the current first place and undefeated North Eastern Nitro (2-0) by the slim margin of 13-0.

Still the Sharks have to like their chances playing their first game in front of their fans and the return of running back Kathy Holloman. The former University of Connecticut track star adds another weapon to the Sharks backfield to go along with Odessa "Yellowshoes" Jenkins. Holloman was a big cog in New York's playoff run last year but was literally knocked out of the playoffs with a concussion against the Pittsburgh Passion. She has yet to play this year as she had prior commitments.

Besides the football game, the Sharks will be honoring their mother's and grandmother's before the game and at halftime, they will be holding a Punt, Pass, and Kick contest for girls aged 8-17.

If you cannot make it to the game, you can still follow all of the hard hitting action on IYMSportsRadio.com. Pat Brown and Dave Maxwell will provide the call with the pre-game show starting at 2:30pm (EDT). You can contact the broadcast booth by joining in the discussion of the game on our Facebook page.

Gameday : Sharks at Militia

Somerville, Massachusetts, April 16, 2011
It was a dark and stormy night, and while the rain clouds didn't burst until after the game, the Boston Militia (1-1) rained on the visiting New York Sharks (1-1). The game started with overcast skies, temperature in the low 40's and wind gusts over 10 mph. Boston won the coin toss and elected to receive.
The Sharks were looking forward to this game. A win against a division rival would greatly increase the Sharks chances of getting to the playoffs but they were also looking to get some revenge against a team that knocked them out of the playoffs last year. And to top it all off, the Sharks were riding a 4 game losing streak to the Militia.

The game did not start off well for the visitors. On the first play from scrimmage, former Shark and now running back Chante Bonds for the Boston Militia dropped a sideline pass for no gain, but New York was called for off-sides and that put the ball at the Boston 42-yard line. From here Boston kept running the ball against New York as they marched down the field. Another off-sides penalty on the Sharks and the Militia were deep in New York territory. Boston quarterback Alison Cahill then went to the air and found another former Shark Adrienne Smith open for a 19 yard gain to the Sharks 16-yard line. Cahill tried to go to the air on the very next play but New York linebacker Darleen Hall chased the quartrerback out of the pocket and to the right sideline. From there Cahill was able to scamper down the sideline and just made it into the endzone for the first score of the game.

The Militia drew first blood and made it look easy. It only took them 8 plays to cover 63 yards and they never got into a third down situation. Ashely Snyder kicked the extra point and the score was 7-0 in favor of the home team with 9:36 left in the first quarter.
New York tried to answer right back by coming out throwing. Quarterback Karen Mulligan hit wide receiver Lauren Pringle for a nice 13 yard gain, but then had 3 incomplete passes that forced the Sharks to punt.

Boston put on a good rush during the punt and Sharks punter Joy Dollison had to rush her kick. That plus she was kicking into a strong wind, the ball only went 10 yards, giving Boston the ball on their own 39-yard line.

Again Boston stayed on the ground and methodically moved down the field. Once they got into Sharks territory, Cahill again went to the air for a 30 yard pick-up. Cahill then handed the ball off to Bonds who ran up the middle for a 16 yard touchdown. It was another 8 play drive by the Militia and after another Snyder extra point, the Sharks were down by two touchdowns at the end of the first quarter.
As Yogi Berra would say, it was deja vue all over again as Boston scored on 8 plays on their very next drive. This time all 8 plays were on the ground as the Militia front line just pushed the New York defensive line around as backs Donaldson and Stacey Tiamfook picked up multiple double digit gains on their carries. The scoring play was a quarterback sneak by Cahill from the 2-yard line. After the extra point, Boston had a pretty commanding 3 touchdown lead with 7:01 left in the first half.

The game was quickly sliding away and it didn't make matters any better when the Sharks fumbled the ball back to Boston, giving the Militia a first down at the New York 34-yard line. But this time the defense was able to keep Boston out of the endzone. The Militia did try for a 40-yard field goal attempt but the windy conditions blew the ball short and to the left of the goalposts.

With the first half coming to a close and New York down by 3 scores, the Sharks were desperate to put up a score. Relying on the arm of Mulligan and running back Odessa Jenkins, the Sharks were able to march down the field into the Boston red zone. But time was running out, the Sharks were on the Boston 6-yard line but there was only 24 seconds left in the half. Mulligan threw a pass to a wide open Val Halesworth but she was only at the 5 yard line. She thought she had some running room and ran back to the middle of the field towards the endzone instead of heading for the sideline. She was tackeld at the 2-yard as time quickly ticked away. New York quickly rushed to the line of scrimmage and Mulligan was able to spike the ball with 0.5 seconds left on the clock. With the clock stopped, the Sharks were able to get their field goal unit onto the field, but the wind affected this kick as well and it went wide right as time expired.

The Sharks made some adjustments in the second half and played much better, but being down by 3 touchdowns was too much. On offense, New York was able to move the ball mostly through the air but when they got into the red zone, they just could not punch it in for the touchdown. And being down by 3 touchdowns, they had to forego the field goal attempts.

The defense played much better but they did have one lapse. Similar to a play in Philadelphia, the secondary let a wide receiver get behind them and like in Philadlephia, the opposing team's quarterback burned the Sharks. This time it was Smith who went deep and scored on a 73 yard pass play. Snyder kicked the extra point and the Militia pushed their lead to 28-0.

It looked like New York might get shutout when they got the ball on their own 25-yard line with less than 2 minutes left to play in the game. With nothing to lose, Mulligan came out firing. She threw for 9 straight plays and connected on 5 of them. The big play was a 33 yard gain to Jen Blum on a 4th down and 14 yards to go. Mulligan threw a perfect pass down the right side line that Blum made a nice grab before being forced out of bounds at the Boston 15-yard line.

Mulligan then hit Pringle with a pass down the middle to the 2-yard line, but Pringle fought her way the last 2 yards to get the New Yorkers on the scoreboard. Joy Dollison spllit the uprights for the extra point and the Sharks avoided getting a zero for the game. The final score was 28-7 in favor of the ladies from Beantown.
This was another tough loss at the hands of the Boston Militia. Boston dominated most of the game and this stretched the Sharks losing streak to 5 games against Boston. Before this losing streak, the Sharks had beaten a Boston team 9 times in a row.

The Sharks have a week off before they finally head home to play their 13th home opener on April 30th. The Sharks are back in Staten Island as they will play the New England NightMares (0-2), kick-off is at 3pm (EDT) at Moore Cathollic High School. If you can't make it to the game, you can still follow all the action on IYMSportsRadio.com as Pat Brown and Dave Maxwell describe all of the action. Plus you can join us in talking about the game as we will comment live from the broadcast booth during the game on our Facebook page in the discussion section.

	1	2	3	4	Final
New York Sharks	0	0	0	7	7
Boston Militia	14	7	0	7	28

Scoring Summary
First Quarter
BOS - (09:36) Cahill 21 yard run (Snyder kick)
BOS - (01:42) Bonds 12 yard pass from Cahill (Snyder kick)
Second Quarter
BOS - (07:01) Cahill 2 yard run (Snyder kick)
Fourth Quarter
BOS - (07:13) Smith 72 yard pass from Cahill (Snyder kick)
NY - (00:21) Pringle 15 yard pass from Mulligan (Dollison kick)

History: Boston vs. New York

There are no two cities with a bigger sports rivalry than New York and Boston. This past weekend, Fenway Park was jammed full from the populace of Red Sox Nation as the hometown team took on the hated New York Yankees. Despite an 0-6 start, the boys from Beantown took 2 out of 3 games and Red Sox fans started climbing back on to the bus. The rivalry between these two great cities doesn't stop with just baseball, the Bruins-Rangers, Patriots-Jets, and Celtics-Knicks also bring packed stands. Well, maybe not so much with the Knicks.

The rivalry even transcends into women's football. Starting back in 2000, the New York Sharks played their first regular season game against a team from Boston, the New England Storm. The game was a hard-fought battle that was tied 8-8 at the half. The Sharks took the lead on a 40-yard touchdown run by running back Nathalie Jufer and the defense made it stand up for the rest of the game for a New York victory on the road.

It didn't take long for Boston to get its revenge as the two teams met again the following weekend in New York. This time the Storm prevailed 3-0. It was a bizarre field goal as the visitor's kicker missed the first time but the Sharks were called for a penalty. Boston kicked again and missed again, but New York was called for another penalty...again. Well the third time was the charm and that gave the win to Boston.

The two teams met again in the playoffs that season up in snowy New England. The Sharks tried their best but fell short 10-7. The Storm then went on to play the Houston Energy for the WPFL Championship Game, but lost.

From 2001 until 2006, the rivalry cooled off. During that time the team from Boston changed names, changed ownership, changed leagues, and changed players many times. The Sharks dominated the New Englanders during that stretch going a perfect 9-0 with 7 shutouts. They outscored Boston 255-18.

But starting in 2006 the games with the now Boston Militia started to be more competitive. Boston was still on the short side of the score but they were getting a few points of their own. It wasn't until 2008 when Boston got their first victory over New York in 8 years by the score of 28-14.

That game seemed to be a watershed moment as Boston has won 4 games in a row against New York. Their last victory was last year as Boston knocked New York out of the playoffs in the IWFL Divisional Playoff game.  This Boston went on to the IWFL Championship Game and won.

This week the rivalry starts up all over again as the New York Sharks take on the Boston Militia up in Massachusetts this saturday, April 16th.  The Sharks are coming off a solid victory over the Philadelphia Liberty Belles while Boston came away with a loss from the D.C. Divas.  This should be a good game as both teams are fighting for the WFA North Atlantic Division title.  If the Sharks can hand the Militia their second loss of the year, the Boston women will be in a hole as big as Boston's boys of summer.

Kick-off between these two old foes will be 6pm (EDT) at Dilboy Stadium in Somerville, Massachusetts. If you can't make it to the game, you can still follow all of the action live as Pat Brown and Dave Maxwell will call the game on IYMSportsRadio.com.

Game Day: Sharks at Liberty Belles

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, April 2, 2011
The New York Sharks (1-0) kicked off their record setting 13th season against an old foe, the Philadelphia Liberty Belles (0-1). The Sharks had played against the Liberty Belles eight seasons ago when both teams were in the IWFL. They played twice that year and New York shut out the Liberty Belles, 48-0 and 58-0. This time the Sharks were playing a Philadelphia team that went undefeated during the regular season last year to win their division in the WFA.

It was a nice cool April evening as the team's kicked-off. The Sharks lost the coin toss and the Liberty Belles elected to receive the ball. Philadelphia had a decent kick-off return and started their drive on their own 40- yard line. The home team looked a bit tentative on offense and quickly went 3 and out and were forced to punt.

The Sharks caught a break on a short punt that took a very favorable bounce for the visitors and New York started their possession on the Liberty Belles 40-yard line. New York's offense also started off quite tentatively and after 2 running plays they had only picked up 2 yards. On third down, New York went to the air and quarterback Karen Mulligan threw deep to the right sideline for wide receiver Lauren Pringle. Pringle caught the ball at the 15-yard line but had one foot out of bounds for and incomplete pass. The Sharks new head coach Darnell Stapleton then decided to roll the dice and go for it on a fourth and 8 yards to go. He thought it was a good bet as his defense had stopped the Philadelphia offense cold on the previous possession.

On fourth down, Mulligan again went to the air and again went looking for Pringle on the right side of the field. It was basically the exact same play and this time Pringle caught the ball at the 10-yard line and ran into the endzone uncontested. Place kicker Joy Dollison then came into to kick the extra point and New york had quickly drawn first blood to take a 7-0 lead only 3:37 into the game.

On the Liberty Belles next possession they got a nice 19 yard run by running back Jeanette Hibbs. She was able to get into New York territory but then Philadelphia's quarterback Mikaelyn Austin missed handing the ball off to runner Diamond Jones and the Sharks recovered the fumble.

New York could not capitalize on the turnover even though they were able to move the ball to the Philadelphia 32 -yard line. Again the Sharks tried to go for it on fourth down but this time the Libery Belles made the stop. But any high they got from the stop quickly turned to a low as the home team fumbled the football away again. This time Hibbs got hit at the line of scrimmage by safety Odessa Jenkins and linebacker Darleen Hall recovered the bumbled ball.

Starting in excellent field position on the Liberty Belles 35-yard line, Mulligan quickly connected with receiver Jen Blum for a 5 yard gain. Blum was on the receving end of another pass and New York had a first down at the Philadelphia 30-yard line. Gearing up for the pass, the Liberty Belles blitzed on the next series of plays. Their aggressiveness caused the Sharks drive to stall. It was now fourth down on the home team's 27-yard line and the sharks braintrust decided to go for it again. The over eager Belles went off-sides and put the ball on the Philadelphia 22-yard line. It was still fourth down, but this time coach Stapleton shouted for the field goal unit to take the field.

A New York Sharks field goal is a rare thing. It has been attempted less than 5 times over the past decade and only once have they made one. But coach Stapleton confidently sent out his place kicker Dollison and she calmly booted a 39 yard field goal to extend the Sharks lead by 10 points with only seconds remaining in the first quarter.

In the middle of the second quarter, the Sharks defense forced Philadelphia to punt again after only 3 plays. On the punt, Jenkins picked up the ball on the New York 25-yard line and ran to her left. She was met quickly by the Liberty Belles defense but Jenkins shedded the tackle and ran across the field to the right side. There she found a hole with the help of a block by Toni Salvatore. Salvatore got the worst of the hit as she was stunned, but it freed Jenkins all the way to the Philadelphia 40-yard line. From there it only took one play as Mulligan found a wide open Pringle down the middle for a touchdown. Dollison hit her second extra point of the evening to give New York a 17-0 lead.

It looked like the Sharks could coast to an easy win as the defense continued to shut down the home team. But Philadelphia made a big adjustment and went with a trips formation. The Liberty Belles would line up three receivers to the left but then put one of them in motion. Twice they did this and each time they handed the ball off to Kimberly Colyar who ran to the right and she picked up gains of 12 yards both times. Philadelphia tried to change things a bit by handing the ball to Hibbs for a run up the middle but she was stopped cold for a 1 yard loss. Still lining up in the trips formation, the Liberty Belles went to the air as Austin rolled to her right and threw to a wide open Hibbs who caught the ball on the 5-yard line and walked into the endzone. Kick Hibbs split the uprights and the Liberty Belles were back in the game with 3:19 left in the half.

New York answered right back as Jenkins was handed the ball and she just ran right up the middle and it was like Moses parting the Red Sea. She ran 74 yards in to the endzone and after another Dollison extra point, the Sharks regained their 17 point lead with 2:19 left in the half.

On their last possession the Philadlephia offense seemed to have found something that worked and they kept right at it. Staying in the trips formation they marched down the field in less than two minutes. A big personal foul against the Sharks helped too and it all culminated with a 1 yard run by running back Jennifer Rosario to put Philadelphia back on the board again. A Hibbs extra point and the home team was now only down by 2 touchdowns at halftime.

New York started the second half with the ball. On this drive, Jenkins showed why she was the league's MVP last season. The Sharks starting from their own 44-yard line, the just kept giving the ball to Jenkins. She banged out gains of 12 yards, 4 yards, 3 yards, 6 yards, and 16 yards. There was a short pass to Val Halesworth for a 7 yard gain, but then it was back to Jenkins to pick up the final 3 yards for the score. A Dollison kick and the score was now 31-14 with 9:37 left in the third quarter.

New York tacked on another 3 points when Dollison connected on her second field goal of the evening. It had taken the Sharks 9 years to get their first field goal ever in 2008 and in the span of only 30 minutes, Dollison had made two. This made the score 34-14 with 3:34 left in the third quarter.
Looking at a 3 touchdown deficit, the Liberty Belles opened up their offense and came out throwing on almost every play. They did not have a whole lot of success but were able to put up one final score when Colyar caught a 9 yard toss from Austin but then split the New York defenders down the field for a 57 yard touchdown reception. Philadelphia went for the two point play but the pass was dropped in the endzone and that was the last score of the game.

The New York Sharks started off a new season in a new league and with a new head coach and came away with that old familiar feeling of a win. Coach Stapleton was congratulated by his players with a ceremonial ice water bath from a Gatorade bucket. This was a nice win as the Sharks did not know what to expect from the WFA teams. Philadelphia was a playoff team last year and New York was able to hold their own and on the road.

The New York Sharks will travel north to New England to take on their divisional rival Boston Militia (0-1). The Sharks are looking for payback as Boston knocked New York out of the playoffs last season in the first round of the playoffs. Boston will be looking for their first win of the season as they lost a hard fought battle in D.C. Kick-off will be at 6:00pm (EDT). If you cannot make it to the game, listen to Pat Brown and Dave Maxwell describe all of the action over the Women's Football Network on IYMSportsRadio.com.

	1	2	3	4	Final
New York Sharks	10	14	10	0	34
Philadelphia Liberty Belles	0	14	0	6	20

Scoring Summary
First Quarter
NY - (11:23) Pringle 38 yard pass from Mulligan (Dollison kick)
NY - (00:44) Dollison 39 yard field goal
Second Quarter
NY - (09:16) Pringle 40 yard pass from Mulligan (Dollison kick)
PHA - (03:19) Hibbs 28 yard pass from Austin (Hibbs kick)
NY - (02:19) Jenkins 74 yard run (Dollison kick)
PHA - (00:54) Rosario 1 yard run (Hibbs kick)
Third Quarter
NY - (09:37) Jenkins 3 yard run (Dollison kick)
NY - (03:34) Dollison 31 yard field goal
Fourth Quarter

PHA - (11:47) Colyar 57 yard pass from Austin (pass failed)

Meet Tiffani Barbour

his season will mark the eighth year that the New York Sharks will be broadcasting their games over the Internet.  All of their games, at home and on the road will be broadcast over the Women's Football Network on IYMSportsRadio.com.  Starting this saturday at 5:30pm EDT with the pre-game show, Pat Brown and Dave Maxwell will be describing all of the exciting women's football action as the Sharks will take on the Philadelphia Liberty Belles in Pennsylvania.  A new addition for this year is   features reporter Tiffani Barbour.  She will provide personal and in-depth stories on the people that are a part of the New York Sharks family.

Tiffani comes from a strong entertainment background.  She has been performing professionally in theaters across the country and around the world for over 15 years. Born and raised in Baltimore, she began her acting career at the Arena Players Inc. the oldest black community theater in the country. After years of touring, and the injuries that can occur, she decided to focus her attention on broadcasting. As an avid entertainment and sports junky this seemed to be a natural fit. Tiffani recently graduated from the Connecticut School of Broadcasting, where she was introduced to the NY Sharks and immediately wanted to be a part of it. After suiting up regularly in high school as a goalie for both lacrosse and field hockey, Tiffani knows the importance of women in sports.  For more about her, visit her website at: www.tiffbarbour.com.

WFA Game of the Week

The website Football Gameplan has selected the New York Sharks vs. Philadelphia Liberty Belles game as their game of the week.  The Sharks will be opening up their 13th season on the road at Philadelphia.  This should be an exciting game as the Liberty Belles won their division last year.

Historically the Sharks are undefeated against the Liberty Belles with a perfect 2-0 record, but the last two times these teams met was 8 years ago when both teams were in the IWFL.  Since then many things have changed for each team, but both teams were playoff bound last year and they feel that this year will be the same.

Emory Hunt of Football Gameplan gives his keys to the game and picks a winner.  You can watch his comments below:

Welcome!

Welcome to Sharks Talk, the official on-line magazine of the New York Sharks, NewYork City's only professional women's football team.  The New York Sharks are the longest and winningest team in women's football.  The team started in 1999 as an off-shoot of the Long Island Sharks, a women's flag football team.  The Sharks were challenged by a women's all-star team from the mid-west and not having played a game of tackle football before, the underdog Sharks defeated the all-star team, 12-6.

We will be offering up-to-date information about the team here as well as feature articles on the players, coaches, and other teams the Sharks will compete against.  For more information on the team, please visit our website at: www.nysharksfootball.com or follow us on facebook and twitter.