Warriors let railbelt game slip away

Frontiersman

NORTH POLE - When opportunity knocked, the Wasilla High football team responded in the first quarter, but in the end it was destiny and the North Pole Patriots that won out.

Despite jumping out to a 20-7 lead in the first quarter, the Warriors let a key Railbelt victory slip through their hands Saturday in North Pole, as the Patriots rallied to give prep football coaching legend Buck Nystrom his 150th career victory, 32-20.

According to a report in the Fairbanks Daily News Miner, Nystrom missed the milestone victory after suffering some heart trouble early Saturday morning, and most certainly early in the game against the Warriors. He has had surgeries in 2002 and 2003 for arrhythmia and wears a pacemaker, said he spent part of Saturday afternoon in the emergency room at Fairbanks Memorial Hospital after his defibrillator discharged three times while he was goose hunting.

Nystrom told the News Miner that his heart's rhythm was off late in the game but his pacemaker corrected it. He spoke briefly to his team after the game but he then immediately went home with his wife.

His health concerns limited celebrations following the milestone 150th career win in 31 seasons of coaching in Alaska; the past six years at North Pole and 25 at Eielson.

Nystrom, whose career record is 150-88, has been coaching high school football in Alaska longer then any other active coach. Palmer's Rod Christiansen ranks second in coaching tenure, being at the helm of the Moose for 16 years.

The Warriors got off to a fast start as senior quarterback Hunter Scholtz capped the Warriors opening drive with a 13-yard touchdown around the Patriots defense with 6:02 left in the first quarter. But the Patriots scored a little more than a minute later when quarterback Steven Wright hit Ricky Culver for a 24-yard touchdown pass. What followed was a wild 36 seconds for the Warriors, as they added 13 points to their lead.

Jeff Champion returned the ensuing kickoff 90 yards for a score with 4:24 left.

On the first play after the ensuing kickoff, North Pole faced first down and 10 yards to go at its 43-yard line when Culver ran for nine yards but was stripped by Warriors defensive back Jeremiah Collins at the Wasilla 48. Collins then returned the ball 52 yards with 4:04 to go in the quarter, giving the Warriors a 20-7 lead.

Patriots starting tailback Todd McCormick was knocked out of the game late in the second quarter with a knee injury, but before he left he ran in from 13 yards out to cut into the Warriors lead. He rushed for 112 yards on 12 carries before leaving the game.

After grabbing the big lead, McCormick's touchdown deflated the Warriors' sails.

&#8220We came up pretty flat after that and we stayed flat,” Wasilla head coach Jim Shetter. &#8220And Buck (Nystrom), being the coach he is, capitalized on C-gap responsibilities, and it came down who wants it more and executing plays. They (North Pole) did a good job of that.”

An open Culver spun and collected a 21-yard touchdown pass from Wright with 7:17 left in the third, and exactly 5 minutes, 2 seconds later, back up running back Ray Barbaza outran a cluster of Warriors on a sweep to the right to put the Warriors ahead 25-20.

Barbaza capped his 10-carry, 72-yard night with a 6-yard touchdown run with 1:16 left in the game, courtesy of a huge hole by the Patriots linemen.

The 32-20 game score gave the Patriots a come from behind Railbelt Conference win.

The Warriors looked to the passing game to regain the lost momentum but the Patriots intercepted four balls in the fourth quarter.