MILWAUKEE - How do you lose six arenafootball2 games in a row?

Mistakes.

A 50-yard Laron Ragsdale interception return put the Quad-City Steamwheelers behind 14-0 for a second straight week, and relative Q-C newcomer Josh Taylor's decision not to fall on a squibbed Milwaukee field-goal attempt stole the visitor's best early chance to make up that two-score deficit during the Wheelers' 60-41 loss on Friday.

Milwaukee took a 41-21 lead into intermission thanks to Brandon Payne's score off an interception, and the Wheelers were halfway home to a loss.

The defeat extended a franchise-record Steamwheelers skid to six games and dropped them to 4-8 overall, a step closer to the second losing season in Q-C history.

"We just had a spell there where we didn't play very well,'' coach Troy Biladeau said. "We were behind and we couldn't catch up."

The Steamwheelers fell behind Milwaukee (5-7), to fourth in the Midwest Division standings, and also dropped behind the Iron in the American Conference playoff race.

They stand 11th in the chase for eight playoff spots.

This is only the third time in franchise history the team has been four games under .500. They started 0-4 in 2006 and were 2-6 that season as well, when they finished 7-9.

Brian Zbydniewski threw five touchdowns and ran for another.

Jesse Schmidt had a pair of touchdown receptions to extend his season total to 45. He needed only 24 yards to set a new franchise record for receiving yards in a season and got that and more.

Statistics were not available. after the game.