RIO RANCHO, NM—Daquan Neal ran for five touchdowns and the defense came through with a clutch fourth quarter stop as the Bay Area Panthers escaped with a 34-32 win over the Duke City Gladiators.  

Neal's final score capped a 20-0 second half run as the Panthers rallied from a 24-14 halftime deficit to take a 34-24 lead with 12:50 to play in the fourth quarter.   During the stretch, the defense recorded two stops on a pair of missed field goals by Ernesto Lacayo.   

"We knew we could play more physical football.  We knew we got off to a slow start and we had to contain a very mobile quarterback to keep him from extending plays," said Bay Area Head Coach Rob Keefe.  "We executed well in the second half and fortunately had the ball last to end the game." 

The Gladiators (1-11) closed to within 34-32 when Hasan Rogers connected with Gourney Sloan on a 10-yard touchdown pass and Lacayo converted a two-point drop-kick with just over 10 minutes to play. 

After Neal lost a fumble at the Duke City 21, the Gladiators took possession with a chance to take the lead.  However on 4th and 2 from the Bay Area 16, linebacker Darin Hungerford blitzed and sacked Rogers with 3:40 remaining.   

"It was a matter of time before it clicked for us up front and on the back end," said Keefe.  "We had to contain that quarterback and we came in more under control in the second half.  I think that was a big difference for us on defense."

The Panthers (10-2) were able to run out the clock after Neal battled for four hard-fought yards on 4th and 3 from the Duke City 12-yard line.  Neal left the game and Felix Harper took a knee on the remaining snaps to finish the game.  

"We get everybody's best and we knew they were going to play us tough," said Keefe.  "They made some coaching changes with high-level coaches and they were going to get the best out of their players."  

With the league's worst record, Duke City began the week by overhauling the coaching staff.  Head Coach Fred Griggs was replaced by indoor coaching veteran Kerry Locklin.  

Neal completed 14 of 20 passes for 118 yards and added 85 yards on the ground on 19 carries.  His five rushing touchdowns were one shy of the franchise record of six by Justin Rankin in the 2023 Western Conference Championship Game win over Northern Arizona.  

"Daquan put the team on his back.  He's a great leader who leads by example.  He works very, very hard," said Keefe.  "He doesn't want to lose and he knows he's the starting quarterback.  With that comes a lot of responsibility.  The ball was in his hands to win the game and he did everything we asked him to do." 

JT Stokes and Joshua Tomas both caught five passes to share the team lead in that category.   

The 34 points scored were the fewest since April 28 when the Panthers left San Diego with a 33-32 win.   

Bay Area remains one game in front of Vegas for the top record in the Western Conference.  The Panthers and Knight Hawks will square off next Saturday, June 29 in Henderson at 6:05 p.m.