Alva ups record to 8-1 with 43-13 win over Tonkawa

The Alva Goldbugs hosted the Tonkawa Buccaneers in a very important district game Friday. If Alva won, they'd be second in the district rankings and get to host a district playoff. The teams came into the contest with matching win-loss records. Both were 3-1 in district play and 7-1 for the season.

The Buccaneers concentrated on shutting down Alva's primary ball movers, Dalton Hess and Davion Murrow. But that strategy didn't stop the Goldbugs who used their depth of talent to score. Alva led 13-0 going into halftime and finished with a decisive 41-13 victory.

Tonkawa's senior quarterback Rustin Martin was a worthy opponent who seemed to be everywhere, even on the special team action. His rushing game was strong but he connected on only 3 of 18 passing attempts. In comparison, Goldbug quarterback Mitchell Meyer, a junior, was successful in 11 of 19 passing tries.

Alva upped the score to 21-0 before Tonkawa put points on the board in the third quarter. The Bucs managed to come within eight points in the third at 28-13, but the Goldbugs shut them down as they continued to run up the score.

Low Scoring First Half

The end zones didn't see much action in the first half of the contest as the two teams took each other's measure. Tonkawa's kickoff was short, and Alva started the game on their 38 yard line. Meyer ran, passed and handed off the ball for a succession of first downs to the 11 yard mark. After two incomplete passes, Meyer ran the ball in for the first touchdown, and Cameron Gordon's extra point kick was good. The Goldbugs led 7-0.

The Buccaneers made two first downs running and topped off by an Alva penalty. Their next drive stalled out on three incomplete passes and a brief two yard run.

The Goldbugs took over on their 36 yard mark and made a couple of first downs. Then the drive stalled. On the third play, Meyer dropped back wanting to pass and was sacked. Facing a 4th and eight, Meyer had to punt.

Tonkawa had only two minutes left in the quarter. Alva was called for off-sides but it was Buccaneer quarterback Martin's turn to be sacked for a loss. Tonkawa punted, and Alva gained possession with only seconds left in the first period.

In the second quarter, Meyer rolled out his passing game. He connected with T.W. Beiswanger for a first down, and then threw to Murrow to come within three yards of the goal line. From there it was a short pass to Murrow in the end zone and the second Goldbug TD. Gordon's kick was off to the left, and Alva led 13-0.

That score held for the remainder of the half as the teams exchanged possession of the ball. Tonkawa was 14 yards from pay-dirt at one point, but Alva fell on a fumble to take over.

With a couple of minutes left in the half, a punt by Tonkawa bounced off a Goldbug and was grabbed by a Buccaneer. That possession didn't help Tonkawa as Alva allowed only three yards in four plays.

Alva took over with 1:26 left in the half. After the Goldbugs made one first down, Meyer was sacked on the next play. He managed one more passing attempted that was tipped and fell incomplete.

Tonkawa Comes Out Fighting

The second half didn't start well for Tonkawa. In their first play Martin threw a pass that popped out of the receiver's hands, and Goldbug Jacob Faulkner recovered it.

Alva took over at the 37. Meyer faked a handoff to Murrow then took off running with the football clear to the end zone. That put Alva up 19-0. Meyer elected to go for two points and managed to nose the ball just across the line for a 21-0 lead.

Tonkawa started at their 22 yard line with a succession of plays that took them to the Alva 15. That's where they stalled out and turned the ball over to Alva.

The Goldbugs moved the ball back to the 26 on a Meyer run. Meyer handed off to Hess, there was a fumble, and the Buccaneers recovered at the 21.

Martin ran for six yards, then kept the ball and ran again for a 15 yard touchdown putting Tonkawa on the board. The extra point kick was good, and the score was 21-7.

The Goldbugs had a false start on the first play of the series that set them back five yards to the 31. Meyer ran the ball to regain the five yards. His passing try was incomplete, and on the third down Meyer was sacked for a loss of six. Alva punted the ball, and Tonkawa took possession.

With a couple of minutes left in the quarter, Martin ran for a first down in one play. Another Martin run put the ball in Alva territory at the 49. He handed to Camrin Pfluger who was taken down by Daniel Toone. On the next play Alva's Reece Martin was flagged for pass interference, giving the Bucs another first down.

Tonkawa was now at the Alva 34. Martin connected on a pass to Jayden Myer who scored the second Buccaneer touchdown. A bad snap on the extra point attempt left the score at 21-13 in Alva's favor.

With 0:43 left, the Goldbugs took the ball at the 44. A run by Murrow went nowhere. Meyer's pass to Beiswanger moved the Goldbugs to the 31 for a first down. From there Meyer sailed a touchdown pass to Beiswanger. In three plays, Alva moved the ball 56 yards for the TD. Gordon's extra point was good, and Alva led 28-13.

Icing the Win

With one quarter of play remaining Alva led by 15 points, still not a comfortable margin. The Goldbugs didn't let up the pressure. On the second play, the Goldbug's Martin tipped a pass which was then caught by Beiswanger for an interception.

From the 43 yard line, Meyer passed to Beiswanger for his second consecutive passing touchdown. A false start call on Alva set the ball back five yards, and Gordon's kick was no good. Alva led 34-13.

Tonkawa drove to the Alva 26 before being stopped. Alva took over and moved the ball back into Tonkawa real estate right up to the 15. In a reverse play Meyer handed off to Martin who rushed in for the TD. Gordon's kick was good, and the margin increased to 41-13.

With just under three minutes left, the Buccaneers simply ran out the clock to end the game.

Coach's Comments

"I am extremely pleased with the mental and physical preparation of these young men over the past week," said Head Coach Taylor Schwerdtfeger. "This was a huge game with huge playoff implications ... and our boys responded like a top 10 team in the state should.

"It was a very physical game and our defense played extremely well at times. Offensively when we are clicking we are hard to stop. Our big play capability with so many weapons at our disposal is a great asset."

In other district action, Chisholm beat Pawhuska 49-12. Hennessey bested Newkirk 29-14.

Stats

Alva racked up 428 yards in 48 plays and six touchdowns. The Goldbugs carried the ball 29 times for 212 yards and three TDs. They had one fumble. Passing accounted for 216 yards and three TDs.

Tonkawa was held to 253 yards. They carried for 205 yards, one TD and two fumbles. Buccaneer passing yardage totaled 48 with one TD and one interception.

In Goldbug individual stats, Meyer ran 15 times for 115 yards and two touchdowns. He completed 11 of 19 passing attempts for 216 yards and three TDs. Hess ran six times for 16 yards and one fumble. Murrow ran six times for 46 yards, caught five passes for 57 yards and scored one touchdown. Martin ran two times for 34 yards and one touchdown; he also caught one pass for 14 yards. Beiswanger caught five passes for 145 yards and two touchdowns.

Up Next

The Goldbugs will travel to Newkirk Friday for the final game of the regular season. "We will go on the road and face a much improved Newkirk team with upset on their mind," said Schwerdtfeger." We will go prepared to win another big game and bring it home for week one of the playoffs – something we have talked about doing since we took over this program.

"To have it come to fruition is simply incredible. Thank you to all the fans and community for your support this season, and we hope you will join us for the state playoffs on Ranger Field November 10th! This is a great time to be Goldbug!"