The players on Glenwood and Rifle’s Three Rivers Youth Football Association’s third and fourth grade teams proved you don’t have to be big to hit hard.

All they needed for a good game between each other was desire and a goal.

Sunday’s Division I (third and fourth grade students) championship game provided plenty of both as the two evenly-matched teams fought to a deadlock after Glenwood posted a 7-0 lead in the first quarter.

---

---

Cam Avery’s nine-yard touchdown run was the only score in the game.

The TD came with 8:16 left in the first quarter.

---

---

Avery’s run capped a four-play, 64-yard drive after the opening kickoff.

The big play of the drive was Kenzie Kuhn’s 48-yard catch from quarterback Kevin Flohr on Glenwood’s first offensive play. The pass, the only one Flohr connected on in the game, took the ball to the Rifle 15 from Glenwood’s 37 yard-line.

Avery scored three plays later for the lead. Michael Patton added extra point when he ran over from the two.

It wasn’t planned that way, but the burden of maintaining the team’s slim lead for the game’s remaining 32 minutes was left to Glenwood’s defense to handle.

And the Demon D accepted the challenge with zest.

Rifle gained a measly 14 yards of total offense and spent most of the game on its side of the field.

The few times Rifle mustered an attack, a Demon defender would pop up and crush it.

Glenwood made life miserable for Rifle quarterbacks Taylor Burner and Rian Creech all afternoon.

Burner, Rifle’s starter, was sacked twice and had a pass intercepted before an injury forced him to the bench in the second quarter.

Creech had similar problems.

In just under three quarters, Glenwood sacked Creech four times.

Rifle was just as good on the defensive end.

It forced Glenwood into a drive-ending turnover and kept the Demons off the scoreboard the rest of the contest.