Palmer topples defending state champs, move into semifinals

PALMER — Palmer’s touchdown during the final seconds of the first half may not have given the Moose the lead. But after turning the ball over four times during the first two quarters, Zeth Merrit’s touchdown pass to Cody Wells with 11 seconds left in the half was exactly what Palmer needed.

Sparked by that score, Palmer powered its way to 196 yards rushing and two scores in the second half to knock off defending state champion South Anchorage 25-22 during the large-schools quarterfinals at Palmer High School Saturday night.

“That was huge for us. That gave me a bunch of confidence after the first half I had,” Merritt said of the 17-yard touchdown throw to Wells.

The score pulled the Moose within a point and cut South’s advantage to 14-13. It also helped ease a tough first half for Merritt. The senior was picked off three times — one interception was returned 41 yards for a touchdown — and he also lost a fumble.

Palmer head coach Rod Christiansen praised the efforts of his senior quarterback and Merritt’s ability to bounce back after the turnovers.

“To be a leader you got to have amnesia,” Christiansen said. “You’ve got to move forward. It could be a good play or a bad play, but you’ve got to move forward. You’ve got another (play) to do.”

South Anchorage took a 14-7 lead with less than three minutes remaining in the second when Chris Scott took a tipped pass and returned it 41 points for the score.

On Palmer’s ensuing drive, Merritt rallied his team, completing four passes. The key play of the possession could have been Vincent Aumavae’s 18-yard catch that moved the Moose to the South 28-yard line. Under pressure and Aumavae battling double coverage, Merritt fired the ball into Aumavae’s chest to give the Moose a key first down.

“It was honestly kind of a gunslinger moment. I just tried to fit the ball in,” Merritt said.

Merritt also found Aumavae for gains of 4 and 9 yards, and capped the drive with a 17-yard strike to Wells, who muscled his way into the end zone to pull the Moose within a point.

Senior Ben Aumavae said Merrit’s play was a key to the win.

“Merritt got those picks, kept his head up and led us to victory,” Aumavae said.

Christiansen said during halftime the Palmer coaches stressed to the players that the Moose were still very much in the ball game.

“We turned it over four times, we’re down by one and they’re kicking to us,” Christiansen said. “Those are the positives we took from the first half, knowing we could move the ball and stop them.”

Palmer responded by owning the third quarter. The Moose opened with an eight-play, 63-yard drive and Merritt gave his team the lead with an 11-yard scamper into the end zone. South had only eight offensive plays in the third quarter, and missed a 39-yard field goal attempt in the heavy winds that swirled across Machetanz Field.

“We came out fired up, moving the ball well and marched down and got another score,” Christiansen said.

Tailback Vincent Aumavae and fullback Ben Aumavae combined for 143 yards rushing during the final two quarters. Vincent Aumavae rushed for 73 and Ben Aumavae added 70 during the final two quarters. Vincent Aumavae led the Moose with a game-high 110 yards on 26 carries. Merritt also added 53 yards and two touchdowns on the ground.

“The running game picked up in the second half, and the defense stayed with it,” Merritt said.

South’s lone second-half score came early in the fourth quarter. The three-play scoring drive came after a long Andrew West kickoff return. West moved his team to the Palmer 36-yard line. He capped the drive with an 8-yard touchdown run, and ran in the 2-point conversion to cut Palmer’s lead to 25-22.

But the Palmer defense held the slim lead, forcing a South 3-and-out on its next possession. South’s final shot came in the final minute, but the Wolverines could not get past their own 41-yard line.

Palmer moves into the state semifinals for the second consecutive year. South beat Palmer 25-7 in the state semis last season. Christiansen said it was nice for his team to win the rematch and beat the defending state champs.

“We spent a lot of time this week saying, not only can you play with those guys, but you can beat those guys,” Christiansen said.

Palmer moves on to face West Anchorage in the semifinals Friday at 7 p.m. at Anchorage Football Stadium.

Contact Jeremiah Bartz at 352-2273

or sports@frontiersman.com.

Palmer 25, South Anchorage 22

Saturday, Machetanz Field

First quarter:

Palmer — Merritt 1 run (Inukai kick) 6:16.

Second quarter:

South — Valdez 1 run (Imloch kick) 11:10.

South — Scott 41 interception return (Imloch kick) 2:57.

Palmer — Wells 17 pass from Merritt (kick blocked) 0:11.

Third quarter:

Palmer — Merritt 11 run (pass failed) 8:17.

Fourth quarter:

Palmer — B. Aumavae 13 run (pass failed) 8:59.

South — West 8 run (West run) 8:16.

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS:

RUSHING — South: Maisey 11-41, West 9-60, Valdez 7-61, Stephan 4-21, Hoover 2-6, Cook 2-2, Alsworth 1-5, Settle 1-3, Imlach 1-0, Light 1-(-2); Palmer: V. Aumavae 26-110, B. Aumavae 14-80, Merritt 10-53, N. Aumavae 5-24, Schneider 3-6.

PASSING — South: Valdez 5-13-0—72; Palmer: Merritt 6-13-3—98.

RECEIVING — South: Hudson 3-56, Stephan 1-13, Ottum 1-3; Palmer: V. Aumavae 3-31, Wells 2-51, N. Aumavae 1-16.