Shock host Dusters

One game at a time – that’s the phrase the Spokane Shock have exhausted this season.

It’s also suited them well.

They’ve won 17 games and lost one. They’ve defeated four different teams three times in one season. They’ve reached the point where one more win will earn them a shot at playing for the franchise’s second arenafootball2 title in three years.

One more victory – over the seventh-seeded Amarillo Dusters tonight at the Arena – and the Western Division champions will win the National Conference title and move on to host the ArenaCup championship game on Aug. 25.

“It’s something we’ve been working towards all season. It was a goal of ours right from the beginning,” Shock linebacker Kevin McCullough said. “We’ve taken it one game at a time all season. We know what we need to do, and we’re not going to look past any teams.”

Which is a good strategy heading into a game against an upset-minded team like Amarillo (10-8). The Dusters’ first appearance in a conference championship game comes on the heels of two straight upsets on the road.

In the opening round of the playoffs, Amarillo dethroned the last year’s ArenaCup champion and this year’s No. 2-seeded Tulsa Talons and last week in the conference semifinals the Dusters upended the third-seeded Bossier-Shreveport BattleWings.

“Hey, this is pro football and it’s more about playing well at the end of the season,” Amarillo coach Chris MacKeown told the Amarillo Globe.

“We started out well then kind of slumped. But we got hot late and it’s carried over into the playoffs. Good teams in a league like this can lose seven or eight games and still be good enough to contend for a championship.”

Dusters quarterback Julian Reese has also had a strong postseason showing. He passed for 232 yards and six touchdowns last week and hasn’t thrown an interception in Amarillo’s two playoff games.

Jim Lukowiak, Amarillo’s leading receiver, had two touchdown catches in the fourth quarter against the BattleWings, including a 21-yard grab with 11 seconds remaining in the game to put the Dusters up by two touchdowns. He finished the night with a game-high 10 catches for 129 yards and five touchdowns.

Lukowiak was also one of the top receivers this season in the af2. He finished the regular season third in receptions (124) and receiving touchdowns (38) and fourth in receiving yards (1,602).

The Shock are also coming off of a commanding victory after shrugging off the Central Valley Coyotes last week with an 83-63 victory over their division rivals. The 83 points scored by Spokane tied a league record for most in a postseason contest.

Extra points

Fourth-seeded Tennessee Valley hosts No. 7 Manchester in the American Conference championship game today at 5:30 Pacific time. … Today’s game will not be televised because of NBC’s coverage of the Olympics. Tickets are still available for the game.