Liberty Bell quarterback Derek Alumbaugh – No. 33, in a scrimmage earlier this season – has been a prolific scorer for the Mountain Lions this year.
By Don Nelson
Friday night’s (Oct. 23) homecoming game will be just the second contest on its own field this year for the Liberty Bell High School football team, but the opponent will be familiar.
And Liberty Bell may look all too familiar to the visiting team.
Last week, the Mountain Lions went on the road to play Yakama Nation and scampered to a 70-48 win — the second time Liberty Bell has rung up that many points in a 5-1 season, its first in the eight-man football format.
Yakama Nation will finish the home-and-away series Friday when it travels to the Methow Valley for what might be called a rematch if the first game had not been so lopsided. Liberty Bell played most of the second half last week with its backup players, said coach Steve White.
But White isn’t taking anything for granted, and assumes that Yakama Nation will come better-prepared. “You never know what they’re going to change,” the coach said.
The visitors will likely wish they could change Liberty Bell’s starting quarterback, Derek Alumbaugh, into a Halloween pumpkin. Alumbaugh ran for four touchdowns and passed for another in the Mountain Lions’ win last week.
Andrew Reggiatore added two touchdowns — one running, and one returning a kick. Braden White picked off a Yakama Nation pass and returned it for a touchdown, White said.
After taking a battering last year against larger schools with more players, the returning Liberty Bell players asked last summer if the school would consider switching to eight-man ball so it could be more competitive and the kids could have more fun.
So far, White said, both wishes are coming true. The only drawback is that because it doesn’t play in a regular league, Liberty Bell isn’t eligible for the playoffs.
Friday night’s game kicks off at 7 p.m. The Mountain Lions will finish the season with three straight home games. On Oct. 30, they host Wellpinit, and the final game of the year will be against Waterville on Nov. 6.
