The word of the week for the Alliance seventh game football team as they concluded their season was “finish.” AMS did just that, posting home wins over Chadron on Tuesday and downing Gering on Saturday. With the victories, the Bulldogs end their season with a 6 and 0 record. Alliance also found success in their B games as well. They finished their year with a 4 and 0 record.
Tuesday’s game with Chadron started with a good kick return by Ontoniel “Smiley” Valdovinos which gave Alliance great field position. From the 44 yard line Bulldog Caysen Robertson got AMS on the scoreboard first with a long touchdown run on the game’s first play. Coy Childers added the PAT as the Dogs surge ahead 8 to 0. Childers was strong on defense. His tackle for a loss denied Chadron a first down on the Cardinals first drive. Another t.d. run by Robertson pushed the margin to 14. The scoring run went 33 yards.
Chadron was turned away on their next series with Coy and Jett Childers combining on a fourth down sack. The period ended with AMS ahead 14 to 0. In the second period it was the Cards scoring first on a 40 yard t.d. run. Right before half it was Alliance’s turn.
A long pass covering 25 yards from quarterback Jay Shelmadine to receiver Jackson Devlin got Alliance close. The play went 25 yards. AMS then went to Valdovinos who raced 28 yards on a reverse play. The drive and the half ended with a 8 yard touchdown from Shelmadine to Creighton Fritzler as the teams went to half with Alliance up 20 to 6.
Chadron got the ball first in the third and held it the entire period, marching deep into Alliance territory. The guests were turned away and the quarter ended with AMS still ahead by 14. On the ten yard line AMS called on Robertson who raced down the Alliance sideline for a 91 yard score. Behind nice blocks from Devlin and Wyatt Stabnow Coy Childers added the point after.
A key tackle by Fritzler stopped the next drive by the Cards as the Dogs got the ball back. Nice runs again by Robertson and Childers got AMS close. The game came to an end with a 2 yard touchdown by Robertson. Final Alliance 32 Chadron 6.
Chadron 0 6 0 0 6
AMS 14 6 0 12 32
Due to lack of players from Chadron there was no b game.
Coach Mark Glesinger said, “A very well played contest. We were able to get off to a fast start and control the game. Chadron had the ball the whole third quarter which was frustrating but we were able to keep them off the board.”
The year came to a close with a rematch with Gering. Alliance had down the Bulldogs earlier in the season in a contest played in Gering. The guest got the ball first and were stopped on a fourth down try from midfield. Starting from the 50 Alliance got nice runs by Robertson and Devlin to get close. A screen pass from Shelmadine to Robertson covering 33 yards was good for the game’s first score. Coy Childers added the PAT.
On Gering’s next series the Bulldogs used a long reverse play and a long pass to get on the scoreboard. Following a successful point after the game was tied at 8. Both teams would fumble on their next drives with Shelmadine recovery for Alliance. The period concluded with a 52 yard run by Robertson which Alliance close. The second quarter began with a Gering interception. Childers would then sack the Gering quarterback causing a fumble which was recovered by Demitri Brooks-Varga. Robertson would then score from the 14 yard line pushing the Alliance lead to 14 to 8. A good pat kick by Robertson increased the margin to 15 to 7. Gering answered right back with another score, slicing the lead to 15 to 14. A pick by Alliance’s Will Zurn finished the half with AMS up 15 to 14.
Both defenses remained stout in the third. Another sack by Childers and tackle for loss by Fritzler kept Gering from scoring. A fumble recovery by Devlin ended the Gering next series and the period came to close with Alliance still up by 1. Another sack by Childers would stop the next Gering possession as the game remained tight. The final score of the game came in the final 3 minutes as Stabnow interception a Gering pass and raced 42 yards for an Alliance score. Another Gering pick, this time by Robertson, gave the ball back to the Dogs. Alliance was turned away but Gering was forced to use all their timeouts, leaving the guests little time for their final drive. A pass break by Fritzler finished the Gering drive and Alliance was able to run out the clock. Final Alliance 21 Gering 14
Gering 8 6 0 0 14
AMS 15 0 0 6 21
In the b game, Alliance’s Tanner Salcido raced 30 yards on the opening series before the Dogs turned the ball over on downs. Gering answered with a long run with Shelmadine and Trayson Best stopping the Bulldogs from a potential score. The half ended with a stop by Alliance’s Keegan Marsteller and the score tied a 0 to 0. Gering was turned away on the first drive on the third quarter as Alliance would enjoy great field position. Nice runs by Devonte Taylor got the Dogs close. A 9 yard t.d. by Childers concluded the drive. A good kick by Robertson gave Alliance the lead at 7 to 0. The contest ended with turning the ball over on downs and more nice runs by Taylor. Final AMS 7 Gering 0
Gering 0 0 0 0 0
AMS 0 0 7 0 7
Glesinger said, “Kind of thought Gering would give us a battle and they did. We had 3 interceptions which were key. Our defense has been solid all year and we needed that again. Very proud of all our players. It was the seventh grade’s first undefeated season since 2008 when we went 4 and 0. It was fun to see the St. Agnes kids contribute. We have 9 boys in seventh grade and all went out and were good leaders for the team. On a personal note Saturday’s game was my last as a seventh grade coach. I am hanging it up after 28 years. Thanks to all for your support!”