On Saturday, the curtain came down on the season for the Alliance Middle School football 7th grade squad with a road contest against Mitchell. Getting big performances from Bo McCune, Dreyton Perez and Vincent Burger, the Dogs finished their season with a 44 to 14 victory and ended 4 and 2. Alliance jumped out to a nice lead in the battle and were never threaten. AMS scored the game’s first 24 points in getting the W. The game was played in Mitchell and there was no B ball game.
Defense was strong for the Dogs early in the opening seconds with Alliance’s Hunter Jensen making a key stop on the Tiger’s first series. Starting from the 33, the offense took it from there. Big gains by McCune and Perez march the ball into Mitchell territory. A 23 yard TD pass to Burger from McCune made it 6 to 0. Perez was good for the PAT. Mitchell again was denied on their second drive as AMS got the ball around midfield. Perez would score again, this time the play covered 57 yards as the Dog lead grew to 14 to 0. A pass to Perez for the extra point made it 16 to 0 right before the end of the first period. The quarter came to an end with another scoreless possession by the hosts and the Bulldogs up 16 to 0.
AMS went to the air for their third TD. A 56 yard TD pass from McCune to Perez extended the Alliance cushion. End Ashton Weingart caught the PAT as the Dogs surged ahead. The drive was set up by a nice defensive effort by McCune who stopped the Tiger’s attempt on fourth down. Both teams would go without a score in their next drives. A 36 yard TD run by Mitchell in the closing stages of the half made it 24 to 8 at halftime.
Burger nice kick return is how the third started for the guests. It took AMS just one play to increase their advantage as Perez found the end zone from the 34. The point after was denied and the Bulldogs went ahead 30 to 8. The rest of the stanza had both teams getting points. After the Tigers were turned away, the Bulldog offense got big plays from Perez and Weingart to get close. From the 3, it was quarterback Brandon Bishop scoring to make it 36 to 8. Mitchell countered with a 63 yard touchdown that made the board read Alliance 36 Mitchell 14. A long run by Alliance’s AJ Garcia was the highlight of the Dog’s next possession but a Bulldog turnover stopped the drive. The hosts were then foiled in their last drive on the period with a strong hit by Alliance’s Nehemiah Valdez and a fumble recovery by Jaden Estevance Acosta. Heading to the fourth, AMS was in control 36 to 14.
On the first play of the last period, the Dogs scored again on a 64 yard TD pass from McCune to Burger. A good run by McCune for the extra point made it 44 to 14. Solid tackles on D by Alliance’s Rhett Stabnow and Weingart prevent any tallies by the Tigers midway thru the period. A pair of passes from Bishop to Acosta highlighted the Dog’s last attempt but the drive ended without any points. Final Alliance 44 Mitchell 14
ALL 16 8 12 8 44
MIT 0 8 6 0 14