PHOENIX (AP) -- Nick Davila threw eight touchdown passes and the defending champion Arizona Rattlers advanced to their third straight ArenaBowl by beating the Spokane Shock 65-57 on Saturday night in the National Conference championship
The Rattlers, seeking their fourth Arena Football League title, will face the Philadelphia Soul on Friday night in Orlando, Fla., in a rematch of last year's title game. Philadelphia beat Jacksonville on Saturday to win the American Conference.
Davila completed 24 of 42 passes for 294 yards. Maurice Purify had six catches for 104 yards and two touchdowns, and Tysson Poots caught nine passes for 96 yards and three scores.
Erik Meyer threw seven touchdown passes and also had a scoring run for the Shock, and Bran Thompkins caught 11 passes for 184 yards and five touchdowns.
Meyer and Thompkins got Spokane's offense going early, with Meyer scoring on a quarterback keeper and then finding Thompkins for a 45-yard touchdown pass on the next drive. Davila matched Mayers' first score with a touchdown pass to Poots, but the Rattlers' second possession ended on a Jeremy Geathers sack, and Meyer closed out the first quarter with another touchdown pass to Thompkins to make it 21-7.
The Rattlers caught a break on their opening drive of the second quarter, fumbling twice but recovering both times, and fullback Odie Armstrong took advantage with a touchdown run to get Arizona back with a score. The Meyer-to-Thompkins connection again came through for the Shock, though, with the pair tallying their third touchdown pass of the night to give Spokane a 28-14 advantage.
And after Arkeith Brown returned the ensuing kickoff 56 yards for a touchdown to keep the Rattlers within seven, Meyer found Thompkins in the end zone for the fourth time in the first half to keep the pressure on Davila and the Rattlers.
And they responded. Davila found Poots for a touchdown for the second time in the half to get the Rattlers back within seven, and from there on, it was all Arizona, as the Rattlers ran off 37 consecutive points.
Coming out for the second half down 35-31, the Rattlers took control, with Davila finding Purify for a 44-yard catch-and-run to give Arizona its first lead at 38-35. The defense then stepped up to cool off the previously red-hot Meyer, who threw four straight incompletions for a turnover on downs. Davila capitalized with a scoring toss to Rod Windsor from 28 yards out, and after Jeremy Kellem forced a fumble on the Shock's next possession that was recovered by Kerry Reed, Davila found Purify in the end zone to make it 51-28. The Shock offense, which had been so hot throughout the first half, stayed cold throughout the remainder of the third quarter, as Kellem intercepted Meyer to end yet another drive with a turnover.
Davila and Poots started off the fourth quarter with the Rattlers third straight touchdown off a Shock turnover, extending the lead to 58-28. After scoring four touchdowns in the first half, Thompkins finally found the end zone early in the fourth quarter to stop the bleeding for Spokane. Davila and Reed answered on the ensuing possession, though, to get the margin back up to 30 and cap off a remarkable 45-7 run that ultimately put the game out of reach.
The Shock wouldn't go down without a fight, as Adron Tennell scored two-straight touchdowns with the help of an onside kick and Kamar Jorden scored on a two-point conversion after Tennell's second score to get Spokane within one possession. The Rattlers recovered the ensuing onside kick, though, to finish off the win and earn their second straight trip to Orlando.
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