Once again, the Galena High School Pirates faced rival, East Dubuque in the first round of football playoffs and came up victorious. Beating a rival is always a good feeling and the players are still excited about this win. “It’s the best feeling in the world, and I hope that we can keep on rolling,” quarterback Austin Long said. Winning this game means that the Pirates will host the Stockton Blackhawks at home on Saturday, November 9.

The game was filled with blocked punts, quarterback sacks, great tackles, and touchdowns; but that’s just on Galena’s side. “Considering I sacked Jared [Crenshaw] the first time that he dropped back to pass. It felt pretty good,” Ryan Bussan said. “I think he knew at that point that it was going to be a long day for him.” The Pirate defense showed up and was ready to play; the score proves this fact.

Going into halftime, the score was only 6-0 but there was more success in store for the Pirates. Two more touchdowns were scored in the second half; one in the third quarter, and one in the fourth. “Going into this game, I was 100% sure we would win. There was no question about it,” said Chris White. The Pirates had to be confident to pull this one off.
The huge rivalry with East Dubuque made the fans ready to go as soon as the boys took the field to warm up. “We knew a lot of the players we were up against and the fans got a lot more fired up,” Chris White said. Fans are always there to support, either in presence or in spirit. It seemed that there were more Pirate fans than there were Warrior fans. This is one rivalry that no one wanted to miss.

“No matter who you play, it feels great moving on to the second round,” Coach Freed said. Stockton is known for their aggressive line and have a lot of talent in other areas. They are unique and will put up a fight against our Pirates. Just like East Dubuque, the defense will have to be on top of their game yet again.

“Playing at home definitely gives us an advantage; it feels a lot better than playing on the road,” Austin Long said. The boys hope to have as much fan support as possible to help cheer Galena on for another win.

The East Dubuque win was a huge confidence booster for Galena as they play Stockton this coming week. “We know this isn’t the biggest win of our season,” said Ryan Bussan, “Every game gets bigger from here on and it starts with Stockton.”

“This is a good opportunity for our program to take the next step,” Coach Freed said. “It’s going to be a big challenge but it’s one that everyone is looking forward to.”