Lightning Football News...

Lightning Looking for 6th Straight Win!

The Joshua Springs Lightning begin the 2009 CIF 8-Man Division II playoffs this Friday, Nov. 13th, at Lightning stadium against the Immanuel Christian Crusaders from Ridgecrest, CA. The game is set to start at 7:00PM and should be a great game. The Lightning finished the regular season 6-3, 3-0 and the winners of their 6th straight Agape League Championship. The Crusaders finished 5-4 and 3rd place in the Hi-Lo League.

The last time these two teams met "Pistol" Pete Johnson was the Lightning QB and Lightning asst-coach Tom Robinson was a freshman on that Lightning team. Yes, we have to go back 10 years to 1999 when the Lightning dismantled the Crusaders 57-6 in their only meeting ever.

This game looks to be a lot more challenging for the Lightning. The Crusaders look very strong on paper bringing in a balanced offense that can pass and run well. The offense has produced an average of 46 pts per game. Crusader QB Justin Smith has connected for 1529 yd's and 29 TD's through the air while RB Caleb Meyer has rushed 129 times for 1159 yd's and 15 TD's. Smith's main target is Trevor Logan who has 51 catches for 757 yd's and 17 TD's.

The strength of this year's Lightning team is its defense which has only allowed 14 pts a game while playing nine top ten teams in nine games. The Lightning defense made it through the toughest schedule in 8 man football finishing 6-3 holding all six of those teams to 7 pts or less. The Lightning defense has 24 team sacks with DE Jono Sullivan leading the pack with 7 sacks. All of the teams the Lightning played this year made the playoffs and have a combined win-loss record of 48-28; on the other side of the coin, the Crusaders only played four teams over 500 and the combined win-loss total of all their opponents was 27-33. The Lightning defense will be ready for the Crusader Offense Friday night.

If the Crusaders have a weakness it may be their defense who has allowed 42 pts per game. The defensive leader is Bryce Johnson who has 91 tackles and 1 sack on the year. The team overall has 12 sacks on the year and 6 interceptions.

Looking at the Lightning offense QB Zack Ontiveros has been heating it up the last few weeks as the Lightning averaged 44.6 pts per game. RB Tyler Carlisle, who has 158 rushes for 966 yd's, will give the Crusader defense more they want to handle when the Lightning bring their play action offense on the field. Also creating a threat for the Crusader defense will be RB Greg Lindblum, RB Chris Barnes and Tight Ends Josh Leichtner and Levi Garrido. Any one of these players can score quickly and make it hard for any defense to stop them all. The Lightning offense may not look as strong on paper as the Crusaders but consider the schedule of both teams and the Lightning look to have an edge on offense as well.

Come to the game early and enjoy the Joshua Springs experience; a nice BBQ Tri-Tip sandwich, the rocking pep band and the best Cheer Squad in the division. You'll have a great time. CIF ticket prices will be in effect: Adults $8 and Students $5.

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