Arizona Republic
Phoenix Rising FC, coming off two consecutive draws, lost on the road Friday night, falling 5-1 to Memphis 901 FC.
Memphis built a 2-0 lead in the first half on goals by Akeem Ward and Carson Vom Steeg. Phoenix showed more aggression in the second half with better chances, but couldn't score before Memphis extended its lead.
Vom Steeg scored again in the 55th minute to make it 3-0. Phoenix fell behind 4-0 when Mo Traore scored just three minutes later. Rising's Dariusz Formella finally broke through for Phoenix in the 65th minute, but by then the game was out of reach. Memphis finished the scoring with a goal from Nighte Pickering in the 81st minute, making it 5-1.
The Rising (5-6-6, 21 points) are in sixth place in the USL Championship Western Conference. They continue their road swing next Saturday at 6 p.m., at San Antonio. Memphis (7-4-6, 25 points) is in third place in the West.
Rising play to draw in El Paso
Phoenix Rising FC (5-5-5) played to a 1-1 draw on the road against El Paso Locomotive FC on Saturday, earning a point in the USL Western Conference standings.
Rising winger Panos Armenakas scored in the 82nd Minute on a pass from Fede Varela to tie the match. Phoenix fell behind 1-0 on a goal by El Paso's Eric Calvillo in the 13th minute, knocking in a rebound after a Rocco Rios Novo save.
The Rising is in 5th place in the Western Conference with 20 points, while the Locomotive (3-3-9) remains in last place, with 12 points.
Phoenix returns home to host the Charleston Battery on Saturday at 7:30 p.m., at Phoenix Rising Stadium. The Rising defeated Charleston last November to win the USL Championship league title.
—azcentral sports
Rattlers defeat Jacksonville on road
The Rattlers took care of business on the road Saturday, blowing out the Jacksonville Sharks 62-41, before turning their attention to their biggest road trip of the year.
They take on the San Diego Strike Force next Saturday with an Indoor Football League Western Conference playoff spot on the line.
The Rattlers (6-4) are tied with San Diego (6-4) for the fourth and final playoff spot from the conference in the Indoor Football League. The top four teams from the Eastern and Western conferences qualify for the playoffs.
There still is a lot of season left, but the Rattlers need to prove they can beat a team with a winning record.
Their last five wins have come against Jacksonville (1-8) twice, Tucson (2-7), Duke City (1-8) and Iowa (3-7).
They began the season with a win in Prescott Valley against Northern Arizona, which sits in third place in the Western Conference at 7-3.
The Rattlers have lost at hone to San Diego 55-45 on April 14.
"We'll enjoy the win (Saturday night) and start getting ready for San Diego (on Sunday)," Guy said after Saturday's win in Jacksonville.
Guy said he thought all of the breaks when the Sharks way in a tight first half. The Rattlers had a holding call on the last play of the first half that took away a field goal. The Rattlers recovered their onside kick but was called for offsides.
"There were too many personal foul calls," Guy said.
In the second half, quarterback Dalton Sneed made some big throws for touchdowns, and the Sharks were held to just one second-half score.
"I went in at halftime and just told the players we need to settle down and just start executing and we will blow the game open," Guy said. "Our offense was explosive and created big plays. I thought our players did a good job of having poise in the second half."
The Rattlers, still plagued by injuries, especially on the defensive side, brought in two new defensive linemen during the week. Guy thought they got stronger as the game went on.
—Richard Obert
Rattlers can't look past Jacksonville
The Rattlers have a huge Western Conference showdown next week in San Diego in a battle for an Indoor Football League playoff spot. But they can't look past Jacksonville on Saturday at 4:05 p.m., in a road game.
The Rattlers (5-4) are tied with San Diego for the fourth and final playoff spot from the Western Conference. The Jacksonville Sharks (1-7) are in last place in the Eastern Conference.
Two games ago, the Rattlers trailed Jacksonville 9-0 early before dominating the second half in a 55-35 victory, their biggest margin of victory in a season filled with adversity.
Last week, the Rattlers, riddled by injuries the first half of the season, got back Corey Reed Jr., at receiver, and he had his best game, catching three touchdown passes from Dalton Sneed in a 55-53 win over winless Duke City.
"We're focused on this game," coach Kevin Guy said. "We control our own destiny. We just need to keep working, keep playing hard. We're getting better and better every week."
Jacksonville ranks last in the league in scoring offense (33.8 points a game) and and second-to-last in scoring defense (49.1). The Rattlers are averaging 47.7 points a game, and giving up an average of 46.9 points.
The Rattlers lost two more defensive linemen to injuries last week. They were working out new defensive linemen in practice during the week. "I like the direction that we're going," Guy said. "The locker room is tight."
Cardinals sign S Taylor-Demerson
The Cardinals announced they have signed rookie safety Dadrion Taylor-Demerson to a four-year contract, leaving only running back Trey Benson as the only unsigned player from their 12-man draft class.
Taylor-Demerson, a fourth-round pick out of Texas Tech, was a second-team All-Big 12 selection last season after playing in 14 games and finishing with 43 tackles, seven passes defensed and a career-high four interceptions.
He played in 60 games overall and became just the second player in school history to lead the team in interceptions in three straight seasons.
—Bob Mcmanaman
Casa Grande boxer improves record
Super welterweight Jesús Alejandro Ramos of Casa Grande improved his pro record to 21-1 with a ninth-round technical knockout of Venezuela native Johan Gonzalez Saturday night at T-Mobile ArRamos' fight was part of the Canelo Alvarez-Jaime Munguia event. Cinco de Mayo weekend is a traditional major fight night in Las Vegas.
"I was looking forward to this. I wanted to show different aspects to my game. I showed defense. I showed that I could carry my power all the way through," Ramos said after his win. "I just showed that at 23 (years old), I have veteran tactics, veteran stuff and I'm just happy to be back.
Gonzalez (34-3) had never lost a fight in which it was stopped before going the distance. Ramos had said he needed an impressive win to get back into the top contender ranks for a shot at a championship. He'd lost his previous fight, which was his first loss as a pro.
Another Arizona product, WBC interim light heavyweight champion David Benavidez, puts his 28-0 record and his title on the line against Oleksandr Gvozdyk on June 15 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. That fight was recently announced and will be on Prime Video pay-per-view.
—Jose M. Romero
Boxer Jesus Ramos, from Casa Grande, to fight in Vegas
Casa Grande's Jesús Alejandro Ramos hopes to move back into top contender status when he faces Johan Gonzalez in a super welterweight bout at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas this Saturday.
Ramos (22-1) is coming off his first professional loss, on Sept. 30 of last year to Erickson Lubin in Las Vegas. For the Gonzalez fight, he is not on the main card and will appear in a preliminary bout before the fights on pay-per-view that lead up to the main event, Canelo Alvarez vs. Jaime Munguia in a battle for the undisputed super middleweight title.
Ramos is has fallen out of some top-10 contender rankings after the loss to Lubin, one that came via unanimous decision after it went the full 10 rounds. He looks forward to his chance to get back to more respectability in a weight division that has some big names but several champions.
"This fight ... I have to make a kind of like, I wouldn't say statement, but I have to win impressively," Ramos said Monday. "Show that I belong with those names, so that I'm up there with all of those guys."
Ramos, 23, said losing was a "blessing in disguise" and helped him re-evaluate himself and his career.
"I've grown as a person ever since then. As an athlete, as well as a fighter, everything has been a lot better ever since that fight. Of course, I was down for a couple of weeks after the fight, but I have a great team with me, and I have great people around me as well," Ramos said. "I started reading books, I started, you know, just becoming a more positive person and connecting in a more positive manner. And that's why I looked at that fight as something positive."
Fans can watch Ramos-Gonzalez on Saturday afternoon for free on the Amazon Prime Video app or atAmazon.com/PBC.
Cardinals announce signing of three undrafted free agents
The Arizona Cardinals appear ready with a full roster for offseason workouts, and after that, training camp.
The team on Monday announced it had agreed to contract terms with three rookie free agents who went undrafted last week, North Carolina defensive lineman Myles Murphy, North Carolina State long snapper Joe Shimko and Colorado wide receiver Xavier Weaver.
Murphy(6-4, 309) played in 52 games over the past four seasons at North Carolina and made 38 starts, amassing 99 tackles, 17 tackles for loss, seven sacks, four passes broken up and one fumble recovery. Murphy started all 13 games and was an honorable mention All-ACC selection last season.
Shimko(6-0, 233) snapped in 62 games over the past five seasons at N.C. State and won the Patrick Mannelly Award following the 2023 season as the nation’s top long snapper. He was named second-team All-American in each of the past two seasons. He finished his college career perfect on all 607 snaps.
The Cardinals released long snapper Matt Hembrough in a corresponding move, leaving Shimko and veteran Aaron Brewer as the only two long snappers on the roster at present.
Weaver(6-0, 169) played last season at Colorado after spending the first four years of his collegiate career at South Florida. He appeared in 49 total games and had184 receptions for 2,643 yards and 14 total touchdowns. Last year at Colorado, Weaver earned honorable mention All-Pac-12 honors after finishing with 68 receptions for 908 receiving yards and four touchdowns. He added 15 rushing yards and two touchdowns on the ground.
-Jose M. Romero
Shannon Brooks leads Rattlers over Iowa Barnstormers
The Rattlers built a 28-7 lead in the first half, but needed a first down in the final minute to put away the Iowa Barnstormers 49-47 Saturday night at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines.
Running back Shannon Brooks, activated after missing the last two games due to an arm injury, caught a scoring pass and ran for three TDs, including a 46-yarder late after the Barnstormers had closed the game to 42-40.
Quarterback Garrett Kettle ran 10 yards for a first down with 39 seconds left that ended any hopes of the Barnstormers (0-4) pulling off a comeback win.
"Glad we won but we are still developing and trying to get healthy," coach Kevin Guy said. "We never want to undermine a win. But we have a long way to go."
The Rattlers activated injured quarterback Dalton Sneed, who was out since the first game of the season. He warmed up but he watched Garrett Kettle help the Rattlers (2-3) snap a three-game losing streak. Kettle completed 9 of 11 passes for 113 yards and a TD and ran for a score in building a 28-7 lead in the half, before the Barnstormers got within 28-13 with a touchdown with three seconds left in the half. He had more than 40 rushing yards.
Guy said Sneed is still day-to-day, as the Rattlers return home to play Jacksonville next Sunday at Desert Diamond Arena.
After rookie quarterback Kyle King, making his first start for Iowa, threw a TD pass to get it to a one-possession game in the third quarter, Kettle hit Brooks for a scoring pass to make it 35-20 with 9:23 to play in the quarter. Kettle's 13-yard TD pass to Jamal Miles on the final play of the third quarter gave the Rattlers a 42-28 lead.
