East ate up clock, yardage and Service, 27-7, to reach state football title game

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Service’s Xavier Harris is knocked out of bounds before reaching the goal line late in the game. The ball came loose after he went out of bounds, so there was no fumble on the play. East beat Service, 27-7, to advance to the large school state championship football game. (Marc Lester / Alaska Dispatch News)

A north wind whipped across Anchorage Football Stadium on Saturday afternoon and turned a bluebird but brisk autumn afternoon even chillier, yet East High's offensive players did not have difficulty staying warm.

The T-birds were on the field so often, and for so long, in their 27-7 dismantling of Service that they generated ample body heat in the state large-school semifinal.

"I thought, 'Dang, we're out here the whole time,' " said East sophomore center Noah Johnson. "Then the defense is out there for four plays, and you're out there again."

East (8-2) ran 66 snaps from scrimmage to Service's 37. The T-birds possessed the ball for 36 minutes, 2 seconds, out of the 48 minutes played. They reeled off scoring drives that lasted 5:52, 4:41, 4:03 and 3:04, and featured a combined 37 plays.

So dominant was East that even a nonscoring drive to open the second half — the T-birds failed on a field goal attempt — featured 14 players, devoured 6:53 off the clock and marooned Service's offense on the sideline. Service had one third-quarter possession — four plays and out — and East owned the ball for 10:56 of the 12 minutes in the quarter.

East accumulated 341 yards total offense — 331 of it came rushing the ball — and held Service to 135 yards. Service's eight possessions included three cases of three-and-out and two of four-and-out.

"Our team just studied," said East's Alan Ala, a linebacker who occasionally plays running back. "We were ready, hungry and humble. We don't underestimate any team. We knew if we didn't come hard, we were going home."

The T-birds advanced to the state championship game for the first time since they won the title in 2003. They will face fellow Cook Inlet Conference member West (7-3), who they beat 16-0 in the regular season, Friday night at 7 at AFS. Defending state champ West of the CIC advanced to the championship game for the fourth straight year with Friday night's 28-27 win over Bartlett of the CIC.

"We know it's going to be a challenge because they're a high-caliber team," Ala said.

[Unstoppable Soldotna won its fifth straight medium-school title and state-record 49th straight game]

[Eielson delivered its third consecutive small-school state championship]

[And Chugiak capped a remarkable run to win the Cook Inlet Conference flag football championship]

Service (5-5), which rebounded from a last-place conference finish a year ago to reach the semis and has a load of players returning next season, could not sustain enough offense to lend its defense a break. By the time the Cougars reached the end zone — quarterback Xavier Harris scored on a 1-yard run — 3:14 remained and East owned a 27-7 lead.

"The defense was on the field a lot," said Cougars coach Jason Caldarera. "They definitely outplayed us today. Hats off to them."

While East's offense furnished its own heat in cold conditions, its defense spent most of the game on the sidelines, in part because it was so strong and efficient. The T-birds held the Cougars to six first downs.

"I was getting cold," Ala said. "Thanks to coach for putting me in on offense."

Ala carried six times for 40 yards and scored on a 13-yard run to end the third quarter and push East's lead to 21-0. He supplemented a running game that leaned on Johnny Afuvai and Josh Malnoske. Afuvai rushed 12 times for 107 yards and a touchdown, and Malnoske racked 104 yards and two touchdowns on 24 carries.

That clock-eating ground game worked East coach Jeff Trotter's game-plan soundly. The T-birds, Trotter said, aimed to bleed the clock to keep Service's offense off the field and also to wear down the Cougars' defense.

East quarterback Sam Logoleo rushed 13 times for 41 yards, and he also picked off a pass. Saturday was his third game since replacing senior Carson Washburn, who suffered a broken collarbone in the penultimate game of the regular season and underwent surgery. In Logoleo's debut at quarterback, he occasionally struggled with snaps, and with footwork and timing. Saturday, Logoleo orchestrated the offense much more fluidly.

"He's been doing a great job building chemistry with the line," Washburn said.

Logoleo's progression has helped the T-birds regain their rhythm, and Saturday that delivered long, yardage-eating, time-consuming drives that moved them one game from glory.

"It made us feel unstoppable," Johnson said.

Service 0  0  0  7  — 7

East 14  0  7  6  — 27

First Quarter

East — Malnoske 1 run (Reed kick), 5:37.

East — Afuvai 22 run (Reed kick), :42.

Third Quarter

East — Ala 13 run (Reed kick), :00.

Fourth Quarter

East — Malnoske 1 run (kick blocked), 5:11.

Service — Harris 1 run (Cuellar kick), 3:14.

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING — Service: Harris 8-27, Norman 6-26, Harvin 2-5. East: Afuvai 12-107, Malnoske 24-104, Logoleo 13-41, Ala 6-40, Poleo 4-25, Schlemmer 1-6, Collins 1-4, Paulsen 1-0.

PASSING — Service: Harris 5-10-0–44, Villanueva-Kaeo 3-11-1–33. East: Logoleo 1-3-0–10.

RECEIVING — Service: Harris 3-33, Fromm 2-30, Heloca 1-7, Norman 1-6, Harvin 1-1. East: Mata'afa 1-10.