Bears outlast Knights

ANCHORAGE — The top two teams in the state combined for eight touchdowns in the first half of play, but Bartlett was able to keep up the pace in the second half, leaving Colony behind and eventually winning 59-41.

Running backs scored on three consecutive plays from scrimmage in the first half. Bartlett’s Elijah Lear ran one in from 28 yards out with 8:49 left in the first half. Bartlett kicked the ball out of bounds, so Colony started at their own 35-yard line. Colony running back Zane Virvilo exploded through the hole in the line and sprinted 65 yards to paydirt Noah Krozel forced a touchback on the ensuing kickoff, but Lear took the next play from scrimmage 80 yards to the end zone.

The score was tied at 28 at halftime as the heavyweight fight between the top ranked teams in the state had no clear leader until the second half.

“Those guys played their butts off over at Colony. They’re a well-coached team. I was really impressed with them and their offense, the quarterback is a stud,” Bartlett head coach Daniel Esparza said.

Hunter Cargill led all rushers in yards, but did not lead in scores. Cargill broke off a 49-yard run to start off the second half, capitalizing on a Colony turnover. Cargill had 220 rushing yards, one score, and carried for more than 10 yards on six of his 10 carries.

Colony had its own outstanding backfield to work with. Zane Virvilo answered Cargill’s score by finishing off the Colony drive with a 7-yard touchdown run after he’d done the dirty work on the drive, running for 42 yards on the play prior. The Knights benefitted from a facemask call just before the end of the third quarter that kept the drive going, but failed to secure another first down. Already up ten points, Bartlett got the ball back to start the fourth quarter and put the backfield to work. Cargill and Lear stormed to consecutive first down run plays and Lear scored from nine yards out to push the lead to 18. The Colony offense that had matched Bartlett’s potency during every step of the first half, struggled to maintain scoring drives in the second half.

“They were going to go out and they were going to give it what they had every play. We talked all season long about how the heart of this team is next level, defensively especially. That was shown today,” Colony offensive coordinator Matt Jaronik said.

The Bartlett defense forced a three-and-out from Colony on the next drive. Two plays after Colony had forced Bartlett to turn the ball over on downs on the next drive, Matuu Ah Sam came racing through the hole and stripped the ball from Virvilo all in one motion. Ah Sam took the ball to the house, and with it, Colony’s hopes of an undefeated season.

“Execution, I would say. I think we had everything in the second half that we did in the first half,” Jaronik said. “We hung with them. I’m not disappointed in them at all. They took advantage of opportunities that we missed.”

The Knights were able to tack on another touchdown, McPhail’s second receiving score of the game, with 30 seconds left.

Colony falls to 3-1 and will play West Anchorage next weekend. Bartlett remains undefeated at 4-0 and will play Chugiak.