Palmer in search of first win

With the season already two weeks old, the Palmer Moose and West Valley Wolfpack still have something to prove.

Palmer (0-2) is still in search of its first win after a pair of early season nonconference losses. West Valley (1-1) found its first victory last week, but against a tough, but young Houston, small school squad.

The Moose and Wolfpack open the Railbelt Conference schedule tonight at 7 at Machetanz Field.

Palmer and West Valley share a similar storyline. Both teams are still looking for leaders, while adjusting to a new scheme on the offensive side of the ball. For the past several seasons Palmer and West Valley have been penciled in to finish near or at the top of the conference standings. Both teams had feared running attacks led by the likes of the Wolfpack's Ward Dobbs and Palmer's Mike Weber or Allen Franklin.

But Dobbs, Weber and Larijani have since left and each team is still looking for a horse to ride to the playoffs.

Palmer, led by quarterback Devon Conroy and running back Steel Tubbs, is running an offense different from its standard -- a two back set with shotgun formation. With the change, Palmer has been dealt with an understandable learning curve. The offense could allow Palmer to utilize speed on the outside, but in the first two games it has been the Conroy's legs, rather than his right arm, that has seen the most work. Conroy has 44 carries for 131 yards in the first two games.

Following a 14-0 loss to Eielson, Palmer head coach Rod Christiansen said winning the battle at the line of scrimmage has been the biggest test for the Moose.

"We are just struggling up front to block people," Christiansen said.

Another test for the Moose will be getting into the end zone. Palmer has been outscored 51-0 in its first two games.

West Valley head coach Jeff Patterson will not shy away from saying the Wolfpack intend to be a passing team. The Wolfpack have consistently thrown the ball and Patterson said that trend will continue, but West Valley passing attack remains stagnant. Quarterback Dustin Carlin has thrown 56 passes in two games but the Wolfpack receivers have dropped more balls than a drunk juggler.

With the passing game struggling, West Valley turned to a running back tandem of James McKinney and Dustin Baxtor against Houston. McKinney rushed for 77 yards on 16 carries, but it was Baxtor who trapped a win for the Wolfpack. Running predominately up the middle behind a pulling guard, Baxtor -- a quick and slender fullback -- ran for 148 yards on 11 carries. Baxtor had a gain of 55 yards and ran for a 43-yard touchdown on simple trap plays that tore open the interior of the

Houston defensive line.

Colony at Kenai

Colony's match with Kenai at Colony High School on Saturday, could pit the state's top large school team and the state best small school program. The Knights are arguably the best in the land of with a stellar senior class and easy shutout victories over South Anchorage and Soldotna, but Kenai is undoubtedly the best in 3A after a 50-0 win over Lathrop last week.

Kenai, the reigning 3A state champion, will give a very good Colony defense its first big test with a large dose of the running of Dakota Craig. The Kardinal running back ran for 187 yards and five touchdowns in the win over large school Lathrop, and has nearly 400 yards and seven touchdowns already this season.

The Colony offense has displayed a balance that led East to a state crown a year ago. The Knights have been potent through the air, led by the right arm of Rhett Magner and the hands of Justin Schwartbauer, and are explosive on the ground with a committee of running backs led by Shawn Olivera.

Wasilla at Skyview

Word is the Wasilla Warriors are considering changing their name to the Traveling Wilburys as the Warriors have logged more miles than an Alaska Airlines stewardess. Wasillla began the pre-season by traveling to Anderson for a "Remember the Titans"-like retreat and follow last week's turbulent trip to Kodiak with a trip to Skyview.

Last week Wasilla spent half their time on a bus or a boat on the Kodiak road trip, but arrived back in the Valley with its first win of the season. Despite a ride on the ferry that wasn't exactly as comfortable as a Carnival Cruise, the Warriors defeated the Bears 13-6. Zack Bennett, in relief of starting quarterback Pasha Angel, tossed a pair of short touchdown passes in the win.

Skyview didn't even face the Warriors, but played last week at Wasilla's Veterans Memorial Field. Its contest with North Pole was moved to the Valley because of poor air quality caused by the Fairbanks-area forrest fires. A neutral site was no advantage for Skyview as the Patriots marched over the Panthers.

Sitka @ Houston

Houston's Great Land Conference opener with Sitka was moved to Thursday to accommodate the Wolves' travel schedule. The game was originally scheduled for Saturday, but Sitka was unable to find a travel arrangement to get its athletes back to the island in time for the first day of school Monday.

Results of the contest were unavailable prior to press time. See Sunday's edition of the Frontiersman for complete coverage.

Houston was 0-2 going into Thursday's contest.