By MARK GLESINGER
Coach
The curtain came down for the 2021 football season for the Alliance 7th grade team last week with a pair of home contests. AMS hosted Chadron on Tuesday while Gering came to town on Saturday. The Dogs went 1 and 1, defeating Chadron and falling to Gering. Alliance ends their season with a 2 and 4 record. In the final b games for the year, the Bulldogs down both teams to end their season with 2 wins, 1 loss, and 2 ties.
Tuesday’s game with Chadron was a defensive battle. An early Alliance turnover put the Cards in good shape to score the game’s first points but Bulldog Braedan Clarke responded with an interception of his own on the Chadron goal line. The first points of the game then came when Chadron recorded a safety. End of the first Chadron lead 2 to 0. Defenses continued their strong play in the second period with both teams denied any scores. Chadron lead 2 to 0 at half.
In the third quarter, the Cardinals received the opening kick and kept the ball the entire period. Heading to the fourth, the score remained Chadron up 2 to 0. AMS’s defense then was up for the challenge, holding the guests on fourth down and regaining the ball. Strong runs by EJ Garcia and Trini Trejo gave Alliance hope in the final minutes. A Bulldog turnover was followed by a Chadron turnover as AMS grabbed the momentum. Another big run by Garcia put the ball down inside the 10. From there it was quarterback Mike Johnson hitting Riley Best for the game’s first touchdown. Trejo added the PAT, putting AMS ahead 8 to 2 with less than 2 minutes to play. An interception by Jaxon Poss sealed the game with Alliance winning 8 to 2.
Chad 2 0 0 0 2
AMS 0 0 0 8 8
Coach Mark Glesinger said, “It was a very evenly matched ball game. Both defenses were stout throughout the game. We were able to make a few more plays and hang on for the W.”
AMS was also victorious in the b game. In a 2 quarter battle, the Dogs down Chadron 16 to 8. A Clarke touchdown and PAT gave Alliance the early lead 8 to 0. Chadron answered back in the second, knotting the contest at 8. A Poss pass to Zach Childers gave AMS a chance late in the game. Poss then hit Kash Shrewsbury who scored from the 25 to give the Bulldogs the lead with seconds left. Poss added the point after as Alliance went on for the 16 to 8 win.
Gering proved to be too much in the finale. The visiting Bulldogs built an early lead and cruised to a 36 to 0 victory. Gering also downed AMS 30 to 8 in the first game of the year. AMS did win the b game 14 to 0 to end the season
Glesinger said, “It was a very enjoyable year. This team goes down as one of the best group I have coached in my 27 years at AMS. We are excited to see what these guys can do in the future. They have a lot of talent and potential.”