Recent Shock wins spurred by potent offense

Two weeks after a humbling home loss to Bakersfield, the Spokane Shock have put together convincing back-to-back road wins helped by an emerging offense.

It’s not the Xs and Os, coach Chris Siegfried said. It’s execution and the luxury of multiple offensive threats.

“The way Bakersfield came in and stuffed us was a wake-up call for our offense,” Siegfried said. “I’ve challenged the guys to step up and they have in a big way.”

Alex Neist, continuing a trend of responding with a big outing after the team adds a quarterback to the roster, passed for 336 yards and six touchdowns as Spokane handled Central Valley 68-54 Saturday in Fresno. The win came on the heels of a 58-29 rout of Everett.

“I really haven’t changed what I’ve done in six years (of coaching),” Siegfried said. “I don’t see me changing. I didn’t invent the game and I’m not trying to reinvent it. When you have the right players for your particular system, you’re going to be successful.”

Spokane’s balance was on display Saturday. It’s customary for arenafootball2 coaches to designate a receiver as an offensive specialist, but Siegfried has elected not to the last two games.

Charles Frederick had his best game of the season with six catches for 114 yards and two touchdowns. Kevin Beard had six catches, Chris Stallworth added four and Antwone Savage collected three TD receptions.

“All the receivers have been huge for us,” Siegfried said. “It’s never just the slot receiver or the back-side receiver. It’s somebody new every week and this last game they were all very productive. We have a balanced attack and teams can’t just shut down one receiver.”

Spokane has six receivers with multiple TDs and five with at least 14 catches this season.

The West Division-leading Shock (6-1) return home to face Quad City (2-5) at 7 p.m. Saturday.

Pesky arachnids

Three Shock players are being treated for apparent spider bites.

“Before the game two of the guys’ (linemen Neil Purvis and Christian Harmeyer) arms swelled up and if we didn’t get them some medication they wouldn’t have been able to play,” Siegfried said. “We don’t know where they got the bites.”

It’s believed lineman Rico Ochoa also was bitten by a spider. He started showing symptoms after the game.

Fan Fest

Spokane is hosting Shock Fan Fest beginning at 3:45 p.m. Saturday in the Arena’s main parking lot. The event is free and will include live music and family friendly entertainment. There will be a separate beer garden for fans 21 and older.

The Arena doors open at 5:45 for the 7 p.m. game. The first 5,000 fans will receive Shock thunder sticks. About 3,500 tickets are still available.

Notes

Backup quarterback Derrick Crudup missed Saturday’s game to be with his mother, who was undergoing an operation in Georgia. Crudup has returned to Spokane and his mom is apparently doing fine. … Kyle Rowley, acquired recently in a trade of reserve quarterbacks with Bossier-Shreveport, made the trip but didn’t play. … Lineman Jerome Stevens was ejected from a game for the second time this season. “The Central Valley kid took some cheap shots and unfortunately Jerome retaliated and that’s what the officials saw,” Siegfried said. “I highly doubt it warrants being suspended because it was so minor.” … Former Shock quarterbacks J.J. Raterink and Brian Zbydniewski both saw time for Bossier-Shreveport in Saturday’s 67-32 loss to Memphis. Raterink was 17 of 28 for 148 yards and Zbydniewski 4 of 5 for 30 yards.