A late TD by Gering in the fourth period was just enough in a 22 to 14 win over Alliance in 8th grade football action Tuesday in Gering. With the loss, AMS falls to 1 and 4 on the season. The hosts went up 22 to 6 with under 4 minutes left to play before a big kick return by Alliance’s Dixon Bair made it a one possession game. Gering was able to recover the ensuing onside kick and run out the final minutes. The G Dogs led 14 to 0 in the second period but an Alliance touchdown close the gap to 14 to 6 at half.
Gering received the ball first and found success. The Bulldogs marched deep into Alliance territory. A fumble recovery by AMS’s Roy Torres inside the 10 kept the hosts off the scoreboard. Alliance had a three and out series and punted the ball back to the hosts as the period came to a close. Using a short field, Gering put 6 on the board on a 2 yard TD carry. The PAT was no good with Bulldog Aschen Fries having an interception on the attempt. Period #1 came to an end with a strong return by Bair and AMS down 6 to 0.
Big gains by Torres and Bair is how the second started. A pass from Bair to Fries pushed the ball across midfield. Facing a fourth and 6 from the 30, an Alliance reverse was stopped and Gering took the ball over on downs. AMS’s defense was stout on Gering’s next drive as the G Dogs were forced to punt. Another three and out by the Alliance offense followed and a blocked punt by Gering gave the hosts great field position. The G Dogs would score on a 20 yard TD pass with under a minute remaining in the half. Down 14 to 0, Alliance put together one last solid series. A couple of passes from Bair to Torres placed the on the 18. From there the visitors went into their bag of tricks as Torres caught a swing pass then threw to Tatum Devlin for an 18 yard TD strike. At half, Gering led 14 to 6.
Another nice Bair kick return is how the third started. Passes from Bair to Torres and Fries ensued as AMS got close. Unfortunately, a fourth down try was stopped, keeping the score a 14 to 6. The Bulldog defense got nice tackles from Jonathan Jacobo, Travis Pfannenstiel-Kaiser, Quinn Ferguson, and Torres to the Bulldogs in the hunt. The period closed with Gering getting stopped and the guests still down by 8.
From the 36, the following possession by Alliance resulted in another punt as the fourth period started. Bair had a nice punt to push the hosts back to the 40. Using a good combination of runs and passes, Gering drove deep into the Alliance’s territory. A big run on third down set the hosts up for their final score. Gering’s final tally came on a 12 yard TD carry with 3:54 left in the contest. The PAT was good. On the following kick, Bair returned it 86 yards to keep AMS in striking distance at 22 to 12. A run by Bair was next as the guests got within 8 at 22 to 14. Gering would jump on the onside kick and run out the final minutes. Final Gering 22 Alliance 14
ALL 0 6 0 8 14
GER 6 8 0 8 22
Alliance ends their year with a road game at Mitchell on Saturday