AJ Mccarron #10 of the St. Louis Battlehawks throws a pass against the DC Defenders during the first quarter in the game at Audi Field on April 28, 2024 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Greg Fiume/UFL/Getty Images)
St. Louis Battlehawks (3-1) at D.C. Defenders (2-2)
Sunday, Apr. 28, at 12:00 PM ET (11:00 PM CT)
Audi Field, Washington, D.C.
Attendance: 16,058
Broadcaster: ESPN
Announcers: Kevin Kugler (Play-by-Play), Robert Smith (Analyst), and Brock Vereen (Sideline Reporter)
The D.C. Defenders returned home to Audi Field for their week five contest versus the St. Louis Battlehawks. Historically, the Defenders have played very well at home, with a 10-0 all-time record in games played at Audi Field.
While the Battlehawks went 0-2 against the Defenders last XFL season, Anthony Becht’s squad has been rolling lately on a three-game winning streak. Both DC-STL matchups last year came down to one possession.
The fans at Audi field are always lively, and this game was no different. The Defenders have never lost at home, so the home field advantage should be in play. Right?
Paxton Brooks kicked off for the Defenders and Blake Jackson returned the kickoff 59 yards to the D.C. 25-yard line. St. Louis Battlehawks quarterback A.J. McCarron handed to Jacob Saylors for a 4-yard gain, and then went back to Saylors for 9 more yards on the ground, and a first down. On first down, McCarron was strip sacked and D.C.’s Malik Fisher recovered the ball on the D.C. 17.
Defenders quarterback Jordan Ta’amu passed short right to Ellis for no gain, and then handed to Cam’Ron Harris for a 3-yard gain. On third down, a Ta’amu pass was intercepted by Brandon Sebastian at the D.C. 44-yard line.
McCarron threw an incomplete pass, and then passed to Jahcour Pearson for a 7-yard gain. On third down, McCarron’s pass fell incomplete, and then McCarron connected a 23-yard pass to Hakeem Butler to move the markers to the D.C. 14.
McCarron’s pass intended for Kemari Averett was not caught, and then he handed to Jacob Saylors for no gain. On third down, McCarron threw a rocket to Butler in the end zone for a 13-yard touchdown. The two-point conversion was good on a 5-yard pass to Marcell Ateman, to make the score 8-0 for the Battlehawks.
Chris Rowland returned the Andre Szmyt kickoff to the D.C. 43. Ta’amu handed to Zaquandre White for no gain, and then passed to Kelvin Harmon for a 4-yard gain. On third down, Ta’amu was sacked for a 15-yard loss and the Defenders were forced to punt. Unfortunately, the punt was blocked and recovered by Qwynnterrio Cole on the D.C. 7-yard line.
McCarron handed to Wayne Gallman for a 2-yard rush, and then passed to Saylors for zero yards. On third down, McCarron was sacked for a 14-yard loss, and the Battlehawks settled for a 37-yard Szmyt field goal to make the score 11-0 for St. Louis.
Rowland returned the Szmyt kickoff to the D.C. 40. Ta’amu was pressured and threw the ball away to the sideline, and then attempted a pass to Rowland, but the ball was intercepted by Kameron Kelly of the Battlehawks and returned to the D.C. 38. Chris Rowland was shaken up on the play.
McCarron handed to Gallman for 2-yards, and then went back to Gallman for 5 more yards. On third and 3, a pass to Saylors was stuffed for a 1-yard loss, and the Battlehawks settled for a 51-yard Szmyt field goal to make the score 14-0 for St. Louis.
Rowland was back on the field and returned the Szmyt kickoff to the D.C. 38-yard line. Ta’amu handed to White for a 2-yard gain, and then passed incomplete to Vyncint Smith as the first quarter ended.
On third down, Ta’amu was pressured and had to throw the ball away. The Defenders punted and the ball was returned by Pearson to the St. Louis 30. McCarron passed to Butler for an 8-yard gain, and then passed 29-yards to Pearson to move the markers to the D.C. 32.
A pass to Saylors fell incomplete, and then a screen pass to Saylors was good for a 12-yard gain. McCarron handed to Gallman for a 15-yard run to the D.C. 5, and then handed to Gallman again for a short gain. An illegal shift penalty against St. Louis moved the ball back 5 yards.
On first and goal from the 10-yard line, McCarron could not connect a pass to Butler in the end zone. Then, a false start penalty pushed St. Louis back another 5 yards. A handoff to Saylors was good for an 11-yard run, and then on third and goal McCarron floated an incomplete pass through the end zone. The Battlehawks settled for a 22-yard Szmyt field goal to make the score 17-0 for St. Louis.
The Szmyt kickoff was returned by Rowland to the D.C. 40. Ta’amu handed to Harris for a 6-yard gain, and then passed to Keke Coutee for no gain. A roughing the passer penalty gave the Defenders 15-yards and a first down. Ta’amu handed to Harris for 7 yards, and then went back to Harris for 7 more yards, up to the St. Louis 25-yard line, but an offensive holding call wiped out the gain.
Ta’amu passed 18 yards to Alex Ellis, and then handed to White for a 3-yard gain. A false start penalty moved the ball back 5 yards, and then Ta’amu could not connect a pass to Smith near the end zone. On third and 12, Ta’amu scrambled for 10 yards but was hit when he slid. The Battlehawks’ Cole was penalized for unnecessary roughness (illegal use of a helmet) for a 15-yard penalty.
From the St. Louis 4, and handoff to Harris gained 3 yards, and then and other run by Harris gained no yards. On third down, Harris launched himself over the pile for a Defenders touchdown. The two-point conversion failed when Ta’amu was sacked. The score was now 17-6 for St. Louis.
Blake Jackson returned the kickoff to the St. Louis 46. McCarron handed to Saylors for a 1-yard run as the two-minute warning was announced.
McCarron launched a pass downfield that fell incomplete. On third and 9, he completed a pass to Saylors, 3-yards short of the first down marker, and the Battlehawks chose to gamble on fourth down. A pass to Butler was incomplete and the ball was turned over on downs. St. Louis head coach Anthony Becht wanted to challenge the play, but he had no time outs remaining in the half.
Ta’amu handed to White for a 4-yard gain, and then passed 10 yards to Rowland to move the markers. A handoff to White made 7 more yards, and then a 6-yard pass to Smith moved the chains to the St. Louis 26. Another pass to Smith gained 10 yards, and then a 15-yard pass to Harmon scored a D.C. touchdown. The two-point conversion failed.
After the kickoff, McCarron took a knee to end the half with the score 17-12 for St. Louis.
To begin the second half, the Szmyt kickoff went into the end zone for a touchback. Ta’amu handed to Harris for a loss of 2 yards, and then a pass fell incomplete. On third down, Ta’amu rushed 12 yards but his knee went down short of the first down marker. The Defenders chose to punt.
The punt was returned to the St. Louis 14 by Pearson. McCarron passed to Butler for a 7-yard gain, and then a handoff to Saylors lost 2 yards. On third down, McCarron was swarmed and sacked The Battlehawks were forced to punt.
Rowland returned the punt to the St. Louis 41-yard line. Ta’amu passed to Smith for 8 yards, and then handed to White for a 10-yard gain on the St. Louis 29. Another handoff to White lost a yard, and then a pass to White fell incomplete. On third and 10, a Ta’amu pass to Harmon was dropped, and then a 48-yard Matt McCrane field goal attempt hit the upright and was no good.
From his own 38-yard line, McCarron handed to Saylors for an 11-yard gain, and then handed to Saylors again but he lost a yard. McCarron scrambled for 3 yards, and then passed incomplete. The Battlehawks were forced to punt.
Rowland had a good return after the punt, but a holding penalty brought the ball back to the D.C. 2-yard line. Ta’amu rushed for one yard, and then completed a pass to Harmon for a 7-yard gain. On third and 2, a run by Harris was just short of the first down marker. The Defenders opted to punt.
Steven Mitchell returned the punt to the D.C. 30-yard line. McCarron’s pass to Butler was batted down by Michael Joseph, and then a handoff to Saylors only made 2 yards. On third down, a pass to Ateman gained 6 yards. On fourth and 2, the Battlehawks opted for a 39-yard field goal to make the score 20-12 for St. Louis.
Chris Rowland returned the Szmyt kickoff to the D.C. 30-yard line, and a late hit penalty tacked on 15 yards. Ta’amu scrambled for 4 yards, and then an offensive holding penalty backed up the Defenders 10 yards. On second and 16, a screen pass to White gained a yard as the third quarter ended.
On 3rd and 15, the ball was stripped from Ta’amu’s hands by Pita Taumoepenu and was recovered by Willie Harvey on the D.C. 36. McCarron passed 7 yards to Pearson, and then handed to Saylors for 5 yards. Another handoff to Saylors made 3 yards, and then a 14-yard pass to Butler put the ball on the D.C. 7.
McCarron handed to Gallman for a 6-yard gain, and then went back to Gallman for a one-yard run and a St. Louis touchdown. The two-point conversion failed when McCarron was sacked. The score was now 26-12 for St. Louis.
The Hofrichter kickoff went out of bounds, giving D.C. the ball at midfield. Ta’amu passed to Harmon for 10 yards and a first down. A 10-yard pass to Coutee moved the chains again, and then a handoff to Harris was good for 6 yards. Another run by Harris made 3 more yards, and then a handoff to White was stopped for no gain. On fourth and 2, a handoff to White was well short of the first down marker turning over the ball on downs.
From his own 20-yard line, McCarron passed deep to a well-covered Butler, and he made the catch and ran 80- yards for the touchdown. The two-point conversion failed, making the score 32-12 for St. Louis.
Rowland returned the kickoff to the D.C. 36-yard line. Ta’amu passed incomplete to Smith, and then his second down pass was picked off by Mike Rose and returned to the D.C. 10-yard line. McCarron handed to Saylors for a 10-yard run and a Battlehawks touchdown. The one-point conversion was good on a 2-yard pass to Butler, making the score 39-12 for St. Louis.
Roland returned the kickoff to the D.C. 48-yard line. Deondre Francois entered the game as quarterback, and consecutive handoffs to White made 1 yard, 6 yards and 2 yards. On fourth and 1, White lost a yard to turn over the ball on downs.
Manny Wilkins came in as quarterback and handed to Gallman for 1 yard, and then ran the ball himself for 6 yards. Another handoff to Gallman lost 2 yards and the Battlehawks punted.
Rowland returned the punt to the D.C. 12, and Francois passed incomplete to Rowland, and then a false start penalty set the Defenders back 5-yards. Another pass to Rowland fell incomplete, and then D.C. took a delay of game penalty. On third and 20, a handoff to White lost a yard, and the Defenders were forced to punt. The punt was blocked and recovered by Cole on the D.C. 10-yard line as the two minute warning was announced.
Manny Wilkins handed to Gallman for a 1-yard gain, and went back to Gallman for no gain. On third down, a Wilkins quarterback sneak scored another Battlehawks touchdown. The one-point conversion failed, making the score 45-12 for St. Louis.
With 0:36 on the clock, the kickoff was caught by White and returned to the D.C. 37. A handoff to White was good for 2 yards, and then the Defenders let the clock run out.
The final score was St. Louis Battlehawks 45, D.C. Defenders 12.
Box Score
Score by Quarter
TEAM 1 2 3 4 T
STL 14 3 3 25 45
DC 0 12 0 0 12
ST. LOUIS BATTLEHAWKS
St. Louis Battlehawks Passing
# PLAYER C-A YDS TD I C% RTG
10 McCarron, AJ 14-24 213 2 0 58 160.4
St. Louis Battlehawks Rushing
# PLAYER ATT YDS TD LNG AVG
15 Saylors, Jacob 12 52 1 11 4.3
30 Gallman II, Wayne 10 31 1 15 3.1
05 Wilkins, Manny 2 11 1 6 5.5
10 McCarron, AJ 2 1 0 3 0.5
St. Louis Battlehawks Receiving
# PLAYER NO YDS TD LNG TGT YAC
88 Butler, Hakeem 6 147 2 80 9 75
15 Saylors, Jacob 4 17 0 12 5 20
01 Pearson, Jahcour 3 43 0 29 3 27
03 Ateman, Marcell 1 6 0 6 2 0
22 Mitchell Jr., Steve 0 0 0 0 2 0
80 Averett, Kemari 0 0 0 0 1 0
St. Louis Battlehawks Defense
# Player (Starter) TotTk Solo Sack TFL Int BrUp FF
27 Rose, Mike (MLB) 11 5 0 1 1 1 0
32 Cole, Qwynnterrio (FS) 8 4 0 0 0 0 0
56 Feeney, Travis (DE) 7 6 0 0 0 0 0
48 Garrett, Chris 5 4 0 1 0 0 0
09 Payton-Jones, Chris (CB) 5 5 0 0 0 0 0
06 Williams, Lakiem 5 1 0 0 0 0 0
96 Smith, Kobe (DT) 4 2 0 1 0 0 0
20 Bolden, Nico 3 1 0 0 0 0 0
52 Jackson, Antwuan 3 2 0 0 0 0 0
93 Pesefea Jr., T.J. 3 0 0 0 0 0 0
07 Taumoepenu, Pita (DE) 3 3 2 1 0 0 1
51 Harvey, Willie (LB) 3 1 0 0 0 0 0
02 Kennedy, Keylon 2 1 0 0 0 0 0
22 Mitchell Jr., Steve 2 1 0 0 0 0 0
26 Wells, Carson 2 1 0 0 0 0 0
38 Sebastian, Brandon (CB) 2 1 0 0 1 1 0
98 Akinmoladun, Freedo (DE) 2 1 0 1 0 0 0
15 Saylors, Jacob 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
23 Kelly, Kameron (DB) 1 1 0 1 1 1 0
85 Kapp, Jerome 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
24 Hill, Lavert (CB) 1 1 0 0 0 1 0
18 Bradley, Ja'Marcus 1 0 0 0 0 0 0
29 Askew-Henry, Dravon 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
St. Louis Battlehawks All Purpose Yards
Player Tot Rush Rec KOR PR IR-FR TDs
Butler, Hakeem 147 0 147 0 0 0 2
Jackson, Blake 114 0 0 114 0 0 0
Saylors, Jacob 69 52 17 0 0 0 1
St. Louis Battlehawks Punting
Punter NO YDS AVG LNG I20
Hofrichter, Sterling 3 125 41.667 49 1
St. Louis Battlehawks Kick Returns
Returner NO YDS AVG LNG TD
Jackson, Blake 3 114 38 58 0
St. Louis Battlehawks Punt Returns
Returner NO YDS AVG LNG TD
Mitchell Jr., Steve 1 27 27 27 0
Pearson, Jahcour 2 12 06 11 0
St. Louis Battlehawks Field Goals
Kicker Time Dist Result
Szmyt, Andre 1st-3:37 37 GOOD
Szmyt, Andre 1st-00:45 51 GOOD
Szmyt, Andre 2nd-8:08 22 GOOD
Szmyt, Andre 3rd-1:20 39 GOOD
TOTAL 4-4 LONG OF 51
D.C. DEFENDERS
DC Defenders Passing
# PLAYER C-A YDS TD I C% RTG
10 Ta'amu, Jordan 12-23 101 1 3 52 77.3
08 Francois, Deondre 0-2 0 0 0 0 0
DC Defenders Rushing
# PLAYER ATT YDS TD LNG AVG
11 White, Zaquandre 15 33 0 9 2.2
10 Ta'amu, Jordan 4 26 0 11 6.5
03 Harris, Cam'Ron 11 25 1 7 2.3
DC Defenders Receiving
# PLAYER NO YDS TD LNG TGT YAC
13 Harmon, Kelvin 4 37 1 15 6 18
89 Smith, Kaden 3 25 0 10 4 15
18 Ellis, Alex 2 18 0 18 2 8
81 Coutee, Keke 1 10 0 10 1 3
12 Rowland, Chris 1 10 0 10 5 0
11 White, Zaquandre 1 1 0 1 2 4
86 Smith, Vyncint 0 0 0 0 2 0
DC Defenders Defense
# Player (Starter) TotTk Solo Sack TFL Int BrUp FF
15 Joseph, Michael (CB) 11 7 0 2 0 1 0
57 Hines III, Anthony (LB) 7 4 0 1 0 0 0
90 Scott, Niles (DT) 5 4 0 0 0 0 0
32 Johnson, Isaiah 4 3 0 0 0 0 0
33 Harris, Trent 4 3 0 0 0 0 0
36 Swearinger, D.J. (SAF) 3 2 0 0 0 0 0
09 Anderson, Deontay 3 2 0 0 0 0 0
92 Fisher, Malik (DE) 3 3 3 2 0 0 1
20 Conley, Gareon (CB) 2 2 0 0 0 0 0
07 Bellamy, Davin (DE) 2 1 0 1 0 0 0
05 Northrup II, Reggie 2 0 0 0 0 0 0
25 Baker, Deandre 2 1 0 0 0 0 0
06 Gardner, Ferrod 2 1 0 0 0 0 0
55 Sanogo, Momo (LB) 2 0 0 0 0 0 0
91 Johnson, Dennis 2 1 0 0 0 0 0
72 Barnes, T.J. (DT) 2 0 0 0 0 0 0
80 Barry, Trae 1 0 0 0 0 0 0
47 Brooks, Paxton 1 0 0 0 0 0 0
86 Smith, Vyncint 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
12 Rowland, Chris 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
48 Mintze, Andre 1 0 0 0 0 0 0
10 Ta'amu, Jordan 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
13 Harmon, Kelvin 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
24 Kelly, Anthoula (CB) 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
39 Ramirez, Santos (SAF) 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
89 Smith, Kaden 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
DC Defenders All Purpose Yards
Player Tot Rush Rec KOR PR IR-FR TDs
Rowland, Chris 184 0 10 154 20 0 0
White, Zaquandre 40 33 1 6 0 0 0
Harmon, Kelvin 37 0 37 0 0 0 1
DC Defenders Punting
Punter NO YDS AVG LNG I20
Brooks, Paxton 3 137 45.667 52 1
DC Defenders Kick Returns
Returner NO YDS AVG LNG TD
Rowland, Chris 7 154 22 31 0
White, Zaquandre 1 6 06 6 0
DC Defenders Punt Returns
Returner NO YDS AVG LNG TD
Rowland, Chris 3 20 07 13 0
DC Defenders Field Goals
Kicker Time Dist Result
McCrane, Matthew 3rd-8:19 48 MISS
TOTAL 0-1 LONG OF 0
GAME COMPARISON
STAT STL DC
Total Yds 280 163
Pass Yds 185 79
Rush Yds 95 84
Penalties 6-60 6-45
1st Downs 13 12
3rd Downs 2-11 2-13
4th Downs 1-2 0-2
Total Plays 53 57
Avg Yds/Play 5.3 2.9
Avg Yds/Completion 13.2 6.6
Avg Yds/Rush 3.7 2.8
Sack-Adj Rush Yd(Avg) 123 (5.3) 106 (3.8)
Red Zone 4-8 2-2
Time of Poss 29:48 30:12
Turnovers (Def Pts Off) 1 (0) 4 (25)
Fumbles-Lost 1-1 1-1
Sacks (Def Yds) 2.0 (22.0) 3.0 (28.0)
TFL (Def Yds) 6 (24.0) 6 (29.0)
Alt. Kickoffs 0-0 0-0
