Raiders Beat the Vikings 26-6

Matt Epperson races into the endzone for a 29-yard first quarter TD.

As I mentioned a few weeks ago, I have been tormented by the name VIKINGS for many years.  Despite my own Nordic heritage, teams named the VIKINGS - and the colors purple and gold in general - have been my nemesis dating back to high school.  In my hometown of Puyallup, just outside of Seattle, there were two high schools: Rogers High (my school) and Puyallup High (you guessed it, the purple and gold Vikings.)  Both schools were football powerhouses, but for some reason Puyallup had "The Streak" of 13 consecutive victories against my high school when I entered school there.  They had 8 straight years of quarterbacks head to the (also) purple and gold Washington Huskies (Billy Joe Hobart, Damon Huard, Brock Huard) so you can imagine as a quarterback in the area, I grew up in the shadow of this dynasty.  I lost to Puyallup 3 times as a starting QB, my brother twice.  

It was just a hump I could never get over... UNTIL NOW!  

Yes, I never thought I would have to go to Europe, but I can now say that I have beat the Vikings.  Never mind that it was Vienna and not Puyallup.  Like John Elway winning the 1997 Super Bowl, I can now say that my career is complete!  (In a definite tongue-in-cheek way.)  Here's Christie's full game report for raiders.at:

            The SWARCO Raiders (3-2) used big plays and stifling defense to overpower the Vienna Vikings (2-3) for a big 26-6 home victory Saturday at Tivoli Stadium.  The win avenges a week three loss to the Vikings, and is the club’s second win in a row. 

 

            The SWARCO Raiders opened the scoring in the first quarter when receiver Matt Epperson slipped behind the defense for a 29-yard touchdown reception from Jason Johnson and a 7-0 lead.  On the next drive, Johnson found a streaking Andy Pröller down the middle for a 50-yard touchdown and a 13-0 advantage. Unsportsmanlike conduct and many undisciplined errors cost Vienna, but the Vikings answered by driving to midfield where quarterback Christoph Gross scrambled and found Daniel Kovacs for a 43-yard score.  The extra point was blocked keeping the score, 13-6. 

 

            Midway through the 2^nd quarter, the SWARCO Raiders were dealt a blow when tailback, Florian Grein, was ejected from the game for retaliating against Viking defensive linemen when being punched continuously under the pile.  The SWARCO Raiders offense continued to move the ball but twice turned it over inside the 15-yard line, preventing the club from adding to its 13-6 lead.

 

In the 2^nd half the silver and black’s defense took over the game, swarming Viking ball carriers and creating numerous turnovers.  Markus Krauser made a acrobatic interception at the goal-line ending one Viking drive while Phillip Margreiter blind-sided the Vienna quarterback to force another fumble.  Margreiter finished the game with seven total tackles while Krauser and linebacker Florian Hueter each recorded eight. 

 

The SWARCO Raiders aerial attack moved the ball into scoring position at the beginning of the 4^th quarter, where running back Daniel Schuster attempted to pound it in from the 2-yard line.  The ball was popped loose, but a fortunate bounce recovered by receiver, Jakob Dieplinger, in the endzone gave the SWARCO Raiders a 19-6 lead.  With rain threatening, the silver and black kept the ball on the ground down the stretch, utilizing fullback Emanual Marksteiner up the middle.  Marksteiner finished with 12 carries for 41-yards, including a 1-yard touchdown plunge for the final margin.  Jason Johnson finished the game 14-25 passing for 265 yards and 2 touchdowns.  Andy Pröller had 4 catches for 100 yards and Matt Epperson finished with 4 catches for 80-yards.