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It was theirs, and then it wasn't.
Then it was. And finally, when the clock ran out, it wasn't.
A 15-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Gino Guidugli to wide receiver Dwayne Eley Jr. with three seconds left and a subsequent 2-point conversion pass to wide receiver Jared Jenkins lifted the Milwaukee Mustangs (5-8) to a 63-62 victory against the Pittsburgh Power (3-10) in a back-and-forth Arena Football League game Saturday night at Consol Energy Center.
The result left coach Derek Stingley scratching his head.
"It was a tough game," he said. "We just gave up some big plays at the end of the game that cost us."
The teams traded leads several times in the closing seconds. With 2:39 left in the fourth quarter and the Power up, 54-48, the Mustangs recovered an onside kick. Three plays later, a 40-yard touchdown from quarterback Guidugli to Andrae Thurman put them in front, 55-54.
With one minute to go, the Mustangs tried another onside kick. The Power recovered and needed just 11 yards to take the lead.
A handoff to fullback Tyre Young cost the Power 2 yards. A pass to wide receiver P.J. Berry got that back. Another pass to Berry got them to the1 with a new set of downs.
Quarterback Bryan Randall's run on the next play netted a touchdown with 23 seconds left. Geoff Boyer's drop kick, the first in the league since 1997, gave the Power a 62-56 lead.
But there was just enough time on the clock for the Mustangs to pull out a win.
"It was a feeling of helplessness. We can't score if we're not on the field," Randall said. "It's one of those things where they got us on that drive."
Randall completed 18 of 29 passes for 215 yards and six touchdowns equally divided among wide receivers Berry, Mike Washington and Oderick Turner.
Berry led the receivers with 94 yards, and his touchdown in the second quarter was a one-handed grab while he was falling to the turf.
Berry was visibly upset after the game.
"What's our record again? 3-10?" Berry said. "3-10. I never envisioned that. Any loss is bad, but one like this really hurts."
First Published June 17, 2012 12:00 am
