29-10! Senior Mustangs keep the B League trophy for another year

Senior Mustangs hoist the Jerry Dawson Cup
J. Davis  photo

Josh Davis, Pincher Creek Voice
with thanks to Faith Zachar for additional information

On the evening of September 21, the Pincher Creek senior Mustangs took to the Matthew Halton field, ultimately winning their game against Coaldale’s Kate Andrews Pride, and earning the Jerry Dawson Division B league championship trophy for the second year in a row. This fourth consecutive win this season marks the halfway point in the Tier 4 Championship of Southern Alberta High School Football for the Mustangs. They were in great form, winning the game 29 – 10.

J. Davis  photo

The Mustangs started off the game right, scoring two touchdowns early in the first quarter, though missing both opportunities to make conversions. They then denied the Pride’s own touchdown attempt, intercepting the ball in their own goal area to earn a single point. Coaldale stepped up their game in the second quarter, scoring their own touchdown, and making the kick for an extra point. Mustangs' #27 Liam Nazarek was injured near the end of the first half, and taken to the hospital with a possible concussion. The Mustangs earned one more point at the end of the first half, bringing the score to 14 – 7.

C. Davis  photo

The tumultuous third quarter was highly contested by both teams, with no points scored, players from both teams hobbling off with minor injuries. The score remained unchanged until the start of the fourth quarter, when the Kate Andrews Pride scored a field goal, bringing the score up to 14 – 10. Even this effort was not enough for the Pride, however, and the Mustangs made two more touchdowns in that final quarter, again missing both conversion attempts. They ended the game with a 28 yard field goal, made by #10 Cord Delinte, making the final score 29 – 10.

2012 Division B Champions
Pincher Creek Senior Mustangs
C. Davis  photo

The Mustangs certainly deserved this fourth game in their winning streak, with excellent defensive skill displayed by #17 Stephen Hochstein, #30 Kory Geddes, and #57 Lane Crawford. All attempts at long passes were prevented by the team’s defensive backs. On the offensive front, the touchdowns were made by #90 Braden Barber, #30 Kory Geddes, #18 Justin Albert, and #10 Cord Delinte.

J. Davis  photo

For their own part, the quick and lean Kate Andrews Pride played with heart and determination, fighting hard along the line of scrimmage. Their linebackers closed quickly. Quarterback #13 Aaron Hernandez made several short passes, but had trouble with the Mustang rush.

“We haven’t lost a game yet” said Head Coach Peter Brannen of his team’s success thus far. “We’ve played two very good teams the last two weeks. They both are ranked about Provincial top ten in our tier, tier four. Our guys are starting to show that they’re a force to be reckoned with.”

“Our guys were well mentally prepared tonight,” Coach Brannen explained. “They didn’t get flustered. They were focused, and that’s been one of our strategies, to keep our guys focused on their jobs, on their tasks, and let the score take care of itself.” That strategy seems to be working very well for the Senior Mustangs, demonstrated by their 4-0 winning streak in this season’s series.

* Football Alberta chose last week's Senior Mustangs 5-0 over the Willow Creek Cobras as their game of the week for this age group.  Apparently nobody has ever held the Cobras to zero before.  You can read about that game by clicking here.