For the second week in a row, the Alliance football team had their hands full with an undefeated squad. The Bulldogs never gave up, but fell to the 8 and 0 Sidney Red Raiders 48 to 14 Friday night in a game played in Sidney. Just last week, Chadron remained perfect in notching a victory over AHS. The Dogs now see their record drop to 1 and 7 for the year. Alliance got touchdowns from running back Trini Trejo and EJ Garcia, but lost their seventh game in a row.
AHS received the ball first and found the going to be tough. Three straight plays netted just a few yards and the Dogs had to punt. Starting at the 33, the Raiders used some big gains in the rushing game plus a few successful passes to march into Alliance territory. On fourth and 2 on the 25, the Raiders picked a first with a 4 yard gain. Sidney finished off the 10-play series by scoring from the one. With 6:22 showing on the clock, the Raiders lead 7 to 0. Another Bulldog three and out of the following drive gave the ball back to the hosts. This time though it was the Alliance defense with a big play. Facing a fourth and short, Sidney went for it and was turned away on a tackle for a loss by Bulldog Nason Thompson. A pass from quarterback Jay Shelmadine to Trejo would gain 15 yards on a third and 17 play on the next Alliance possession but the Dogs decided to punt on fourth down. Beginning at the 41, it was the Raiders going to their air game for the game’s next score. A 14 yard completion was followed by a 45 yard td strike that put the Dogs down 14 to 0 with 2:06 left in the quarter. Disaster would then strike for the Bulldogs on their next series with an interception return by the Raiders for their next tally. The pick 6 covered 28 yards and with 42 seconds remaining in period one, AHS trailed 21 to 0. Alliance then got a nice kick return by Espen Lanik covering 23 yards and the quarter came to end with the Dogs down by 21.
Period 2 began with another Alliance turnover as Sidney got the ball right back on the 40 yard line. It would take the hosts 10 plays to increase their margin. Alliance’s Caysen Robertson and Lucas Weber slowed the Raider possession with a tackle for a lose but a 14 yard touchdown pass by the Red Raiders made the score 28 to 0 with 8:21 left in the half. The offensive struggles for AHS continued on their next drive. A Raider interception and return for a score put the score at 35 to 0 with 8 minutes to go in the period. The pick 6 went 21 yards. Another Bulldog three and out ensued as the Raiders got the ball back at midfield. It would take the hosts just 4 plays to increase their lead following a 23 yard td run. With under four minutes left in the half, the Dog deficit now stood at 41 to 0. The half closed with AHS getting their first 1st down on runs by Trejo and Garcia. After 2 quarters of action, Sidney was up 41 to 0.
The third period started terribly for Alliance. Sidney returned the opening second half kick 79 yards for their seventh score of the contest. At the 11:47 mark, AHS now trailed 48 to 0. A running clock was used for the rest of the game. On the Dog’s first series of the third, Alliance found some success. A big run by Garcia went 29 yards and Alliance ventured into Sidney territory. But another INT by the Red Raiders brought the threat to an end. Robertson then got the ball right back for the Dog offense as the freshman recovered a Raider fumble. Starting at the 26 yard line, it would take Alliance just a couple of plays to reach the goal line. Trejo scored on a 17 yard run that got the Dogs on the board. The point after try was good on a halfback pass from Trejo to receiver Jori Matulka. With 5 minutes left in the quarter the scoreboard read Sidney 48 Alliance 8. The period came to a close with another nice tackle by Robertson and the Raiders leading by 40.
Sidney would drive deep into Alliance territory on their next drive. The series went over 10 plays and ate up most of the running clock. A stop of fourth down by Bulldog Coy Childers inside the 20 gave Alliance one more chance. Big gainers of the ground by Trejo and Garcia moved the ball past midfield. With 35 seconds, Garcia went in from the one yard line for the Bulldog’s second tally. The point after was no good. Sidney would get into victory formation and end the game with a 48 to 14 victory.
ALL 0 0 8 6 14
SID 21 20 7 0 48
Stats Alliance rushed the ball 35 times for 158 yards Trejo had 20 carries for 72 yards and 1 score
Garcia had 11 tries for 75 yards and 1 score Shelmadine completed 5 passes with Lanik catching 4
AHS ends their year at home on Friday with a homecoming contest with Ogallala.