Sep 25, 2021

Red vs Blue

Any time that two Dome-minded teams take the field against each other can be must-see football. Jamestown will seek to do so at the AA level but managed to get on the board first against their AAA hosts.

After an opening series fumble & a three and out by Shanley, Jamestown's Jackson Walters connected with Brode Hillstrom for the 43 yard score.

Shanley cut it to one with their next chance when Adam Leininger finished the 91 second possession with a score. Jamestown maintained the lead with a blocked extra point however. The next three possessions only served to consume clock but the streak was snapped when Deacon quarterback Michael Rostberg started going to work.

He picked up a big first down on the ground then found John Gores for three straight conversions through the air to put them deep inside the red zone. Then the other half of the 1/2 punch gave Shanley their lead as Aidan DeVine crossed the line.

Jamestown was stymied into a turnover on downs which further opened the door for Shanley to take control. Rostberg showed a bit of Wentz magic in evading a would-be sack early in the next drive, which this time ended with Gores holding the ball in the end zone.

With less than two & a half minutes remaining til the break, the Jays were in a tough spot, but couldn't quite run the clock out. A lateral to DeVine got them to the 16 and John Gores got the payoff again to put Shanley ahead 26-7 into the break.

Unbeknownst at the time but that's when the game changed.

Instead of their big junior coming back for the third quarter, Shanley had to go with his backups the rest of the way due to a shoulder injury. It created the opportunity that Jamestown's defense needed.

After forcing an opening turnover-on-downs, Walters engineered a drive to the two, highlighted by a big shot to Devin Beach. With the pressure on, the quarterback finished the drive himself. The momentum continued to swing in their favor when Jakob Schempp got an interception from his backside.

But just as quickly the pendulum swung back in Shanley's direction when Brady Boyle picked off the next play. And so the defenses had their way until Shanley's Chayton Sowka-Porter got in on the offensive night with less than four minutes to go in the game. It was the capper to a drive that was nearly foiled by a fumble a few plays earlier.