It was a huge week for fans of Cincinnati sports teams. The
Bearcats, the Reds, the Cyclones, and the Bengals all made news this week.
Let’s start with the Bearcats. On Friday, the University of
Cincinnati Bearcats played host to the Bulls of South Florida. After cruising
to a 20-3 lead in the first half, quarterback Gunner Kiel left the game with
what appeared to be a rib injury. Prior to leaving the game, Kiel was having an
excellent performance as he not only threw for 196 yards and a touchdown, but he also ran
one in himself. Backup quarterback Munchie Legaux came in and closed out the
game as the Bearcats defeated the Bulls 34-17.
The Cincinnati Cyclones are the next topic of discussion as
they played their home opener on Saturday night against the Kalamazoo Wings.
After grabbing a 2-1 lead, the Cyclones collapsed as the Wings scored seven
unanswered goals in route to an 8-2 shellacking of the Queen City hockey team.
Curtis Valk led the Winds with three points. Wade Megan and Andrew Yogan netted
the only two goals for the Cyclones. The team looks to bounce back as they take
on the Quad City Mallards next weekend.
Even though the baseball season is in its final week, the
Cincinnati Reds are still making some noise as three players were named as gold
glove finalists. Center fielder Billy Hamilton, shortstop Zack Cozart, and
second baseman Brandon Phillips are all in the running to win gold glove
awards.
Hamilton was simply incredible in center field as he made
many phenomenal plays all year. The most recent one that comes to my mind is
the homerun robbing catch he had against the Milwaukee Brewers. You can see
that play here.
Cozart routinely dazzled at the shortstop position as he flashed the leather on
a daily basis for the Reds this past season, and despite injuring his thumb
just before the All-Star break, Phillips did what Phillips does best and that
is make incredible defense look ridiculously easy all year. Should these three players
win Gold Gloves, it will be the first for Hamilton and Cozart and the fifth for
Phillips.
The Cincinnati Bengals will conclude this post. On Sunday,
the Bengals played host to the Baltimore Ravens. Baltimore was one of the
hottest teams in the NFL and entered the game with a 5-2 record. After the
Bengals were shutout the week before by the Indianapolis Colts, you would have
thought the sky was falling in Cincinnati; however, the Bengals rewarded those
who remained faithful to Who-Dey Nation with a monumental win over the Ravens.
The game was a thriller as these two rivals went toe to toe
with first place in the division on the line. The Bengals grabbed the lead early
and held it until late in the game when the Ravens capitalized on two turnovers
and snatched a 24-20 lead. As the cameras showed people heading to the exits of
Paul Brown Stadium, the Bengal believers who remained were treated to one of
the most thrilling endings to a game this season.
After starting the drive with two incompletions, the Bengals
offense got hot as key catches by mighty Mo Sanu and Greg Little put the
Bengals in prime position to reclaim the lead. Quarterback Andy Dalton took it
in for the score from 1.5 yards out on fourth and goal with 57 seconds
remaining in the game to make it 27-24 in favor of the Bengals. After an 80-yard
touchdown bomb was wiped off the scoreboard due to offensive pass interference
when Ravens reciever Steve Smith pushed off against Bengals safety George Iloka, the Ravens
were faced with a fourth and 20. The defense then stood tall and sealed the
deal as the Bengals beat the Ravens 27-24 and reclaimed the top spot in the AFC
North. You can watch the game highlights here.
It was a big week for Cincinnati sports as the Bearcats beat
the Bulls of South Florida, the Cyclones had their home opener, three members
of the Redlegs were named Gold Glove finalists, and the Bengals regained first
place in the division. I love being a Cincinnati sports fan!
Go Bearcats, go Cyclones, go Redlegs, and Who-Dey!
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