Avengers Get First Home Win

Their offense clicked, their defense came up with stops at key moments and the Avengers earned their first home victory in three tries this season, leading from wire to wire in an 81-70 victory over the expansion Austin Wranglers in an Arena Football League game at Staples Center.

Quarterback Tony Graziani threw eight touchdown passes, including seven to offensive specialist Chris Jackson. Henry Douglas ran back a kickoff and a missed field goal out of his own end zone for touchdowns early in the third quarter for the Avengers (5-3). Austin also is 5-3.

Leading, 61-48, early in the fourth quarter, the Avengers put the game away on Greg Hopkins’ interception deep in Austin territory. He returned the ball to the Wranglers’ two-yard line.

Graziani’s two-yard scoring pass to Hopkins gave the Avengers a 69-48 lead.

The Avengers built a 34-27 lead by halftime thanks, in part, to Ben Kelly’s diving deflection of John Kaleo’s pass for Tacoma Fontaine in the corner of the end zone that thwarted an Austin drive late in the first quarter. That key stop enabled the Avengers to maintain a 14-6 lead.

Each team scored on its first play of the game, with Kaleo’s 45-yard touchdown pass to Fontaine countering Graziani’s 31-yard strike to Hopkins. The Avengers blocked Tony Dodson’s kick, had a 7-6 lead and would stay ahead throughout the first half.

The Avengers scored on each of their next five possessions until Remy Hamilton missed a 28-yard field goal on the last play before halftime. Graziani set up the field-goal attempt with a 29-yard pass to Jackson with one second left in the half.