Service blitzes Eagle River in 60-21 match

ANCHORAGE, Alaska — On a beautiful day for a Week 6 football contest, Eagle River was matched up with Service at an Anchorage Football Stadium game Saturday at noon.

The Wolves are 0 and 4 in the Cook Inlet Conference, but were looking strong early in Saturday’s game. A 45-yard Kelechi Madubuko pass found Malcolm Bell put Eagle River out in front, 7-0.

Cougars backup Amu Aukustitino struck back with a beautiful throw to La'Michael Fernandez, who used a little fancy footwork near the endzone to complete his 68-yard trip. The PAT was blocked, however, leaving Service behind 7-6.

Aukustitino and Fernandez would strike again on the Cougars’ next possession, however, with Fernandez catching a 20-yard toss in the back of the endzone and opening up a 12-7 Service lead.

The game was sealed by the arrival on the field of Service’s starting quarterback, J.J. Christy. Despite a minor knee issue and close supervision from the sidelines, the junior made the most of his time and quickly hit Alan Busey in the scoring area, making the score 19-7 Cougars.

Service’s success wasn't all in the air, as Michael McCrae went for 300 yards and five touchdowns. Service posted a huge number in its 60-21 final score over Eagle River, and Cougars coach Jason Caldarera was quite pleased with his running back.

“He's an exciting player to watch right there, and those big guys up front do an incredible job creating those opportunities -- but run after first contact, it's hard to take that kid down,” Caldarera said.

Contact Charlie Sokaitis at csokaitis@ktuu.com