Pioneers rally to beat ’Dogs; Lions devour Hammers

The Pioneers were able to dig deep for three consecutive second-half scores to go up 30-20 before the hosts could recover.

By JERUSALEM POST SPORTS STAFF
Jerusalem Lions_311 (photo credit: Or Haim)
Jerusalem Lions_311
(photo credit: Or Haim)
It was a tale of two extremes in Week 8 with the pair of contests producing vastly different results as the Kraft Family IFL season hit the mid-way point.
On Thursday night in Yokne’am the Dancing Camel Tel Aviv Pioneers overcame a 14-point second-half deficit to escape with a tense 30-26 road victory to improve to 3-2 for the campaign.
The next morning at the Tel Aviv University, the Big Blue Jerusalem Lions pounded the expansion Leo Bloom’s Herzliya Hammers 58-6 behind a enthralling six-touchdown performance from quarterback Itay Ashkenazi and a dominant defensive effort all around.
The Lions, who now sit at 4- 1, retook a share of first place in the South Division with the end-to-end victory and next face their city rivals, the Papagaio Jerusalem Kings, in a Thursday derby in the capital.
“This was the way we want to play every week,” exclaimed Big Blue receiver Idan Yaron, who earned a Mike’s Place Player of the Game award with four TDs and 115 yards through the air.
Kasey Stewart led the Lions on the other side of the ball with eight tackles, an interception, a fumble recovery and a sack, although Matthew Markman and Avigdore Moore each made stand-out plays throughout the encounter.
On Thursday, the Underdogs jumped out to a 20-6 lead on scores from Niv Medlinger, Leonid Rezinsky and Erez Regev and it looked as if they were on their way to their first victory since 2009.
However, the Pioneers – led by three touchdowns from running back Jarrod Walerstein – were able to dig deep for three consecutive second-half scores to go up 30-20 before the hosts could recover.
A late Medlinger TD paved the way for a dramatic finish before Dancing Camel held on for a third straight win.
Ron Moscona led the defense with a three-interception showing to capture a share of the Mike’s Place Player of the Game award with Walerstein.
For more information about the IFL and tackle football in Israel, please visit www.ifl.co.il