The game went down to the wire, but, in the end, it was Siegfried's well-rounded attack that pulled through with a 10-6 victory over Alumni.
After taking the lead midway through the first half, Siegfried gave up a touchdown and had to overcome not only a strong defensive effort by Alumni but also frustrating calls in order to score again late in the game.
"We did really well. It was just as we planned," Siegfried quarterback Bill Bingle said. "Mental mistakes hurt us a bit but we came through."
John Nowak put Siegfried on the board with an 18-yard field goal and the Ramblers went into halftime ahead 3-0. Early in the second half, Siegfried looked to punt from their own 15-yard line.
After the snap, punter Eric Cherney saw Alumni's defensive line fast approaching and, knowing his punt would be blocked, unsuccessfully attempted to throw the ball for a first down. Alumni gained possession deep in Ramblers territory and was able to capitalize on the opportunity by giving the ball to running back Alex Roodhouse.
Roodhouse made several good runs, ultimately breaking into the end zone for a touchdown. Alumni's first extra point attempt was wide, but it was called back after Siegfried was penalized for roughing the kicker. On the second try, a botched snap forced Alumni to look for the two-point conversion, but Siegfried's good coverage kept the score 6-3. Siegfried worked its way down the field thanks to clutch plays by Bingle and several of his receivers.
"We know we have a potent offense. We really used all of our weapons today," Bingle said after six different receivers made receptions in the game.
Bingle connected with receiver Jon Kaup on fourth-and-four to keep the Ramblers' hopes alive.
A clipping penalty pushed them back, but Kaup and sophomore Marques Bolden made some big receptions to overcome the deficit and move the Ramblers to just within the 10-yard line. On first-and-goal Bingle scrambled to the right until Mike Wahl got open and the two connected for the winning touchdown.
"It was awesome. Bill made a great play," Wahl said. "He's the best quarterback in the league."
Alumni, unfortunately, goes home empty-handed and disappointed.
"I think it took us too long to get things going. When we finally did get our offense going we ran out of time," Alumni senior Chris Seponski said. "Siegfried is a good team; their quarterback and receivers do a good job."
With a number of seniors on the team, Alumni was not ready for their season to end.
"We went to the championship last year so we wanted to put in more of a fight this year," Seponski said. "We have the talent; things just didn't go our way."
