Claire Kuntz
During Homecoming week, the AHA football team played the SMB Wolfpack, a team made up of Minnehaha Academy, St. Paul Academy, Hope Academy, and Blake. The game got off to a slow start and no points were scored in the first quarter. Despite the lack of scoring in the first quarter, the AHA student section kept the energy up and their spirits high with their powerful and riveting chants. With seven minutes left to go in the second quarter, senior Emmett Anderson ran the ball in for a touchdown. After the first touchdown, the Stars got a quick turnaround and gained the ball once again. Anderson scored another touchdown within 2 minutes after his first, though the celebration didn’t last long as the Wolfpack returned the kick to make the score 7 to 13 in favor of the Stars. The Wolfpack threw a 53-yard pass for a touchdown with 53 seconds left to go in the second quarter. The half ended at 14 to 13, with the Wolfpack in the lead.
Coming out of halftime, the energy was strong. However, it was not strong enough to stop the Wolfpack from returning another kickoff as they came into the third quarter, which made the score 13 to 21. About a minute later, senior Aiden Nygren ran in a touchdown to make the score 19 to 21. With about 8 minutes left in the third quarter, senior Daniel Devine got an interception off of a screen pass. Unfortunately, the Stars’ possession was quickly taken away just a couple minutes later by an interception by the Wolfpack. AHA then stopped the Wolfpack’s drive and gained back possession. With 5 minutes left in the third quarter, senior Gavin Coughlin was thrown a beautiful ball and dashed to the end zone, making the score 25-21 Stars.
In the beginning of the fourth quarter, the Wolfpack marched down the field and charged in for a touchdown. The Wolfpack took the lead once again at 28-25. With seven minutes to go in the last quarter, Stars’ Anderson scored his third touchdown of the game to make the score 32 to 28. Afterwards, the Stars went for an onside kick in hopes of recovering the ball. The Stars came up with the football, with senior Will Souba to thank for a significant recovery. Anderson was then thrown the football and darted into the end zone for yet another touchdown. The Stars made the kick for a quick extra point, the score now 39 to 28 for the Stars. Following the kick, the Wolfpack quickly came to a 4th and 10. Recognizing their last chance to stay in the game, the Wolfpack went for a first down. However, they were instantly rejected with a big sack from Devine, turning possession over to the Stars with just over two minutes left on the clock. As the clock ran down, the Stars lined up in victory formation and kneeled for the final seconds to secure an AHA Stars win.