Senior Collin Alvesteffer scored four touchdowns in the game against Northview last Friday, September 16. Photo by K. Alvesteffer/R. LaLone.

By Maddie Nichols, student reporter

The Cedar Springs Red Hawks took on the Northview’s Wildcats for their fourth game of the season, the first in their own stadium this season, and also the school’s homecoming game.

With a huge student section pushing for a win, senior Collin Alvesteffer started the game with a pick six within a minute and a half of the first quarter. The kick was good and the Hawks found themselves up 7-0 with 10 minutes and 57 seconds left. Cedar held off the Wildcats with tackles by juniors John Todd and Nate Patin, as well as senior Austin Basso. Alvesteffer got another touchdown, with 5 minutes and 8 seconds remaining, while Dustin Shaw had a successful kick giving the Hawks a 14-0 lead.

Thirty seconds into the second quarter, Alvesteffer ran in for another touchdown, leaving Cedar up by 21 points. Only 10 seconds later, senior Jacob Hooker scored a touchdown with 11 minutes and 12 seconds remaining of the first half, making the score 27-0. Northview finally got on the board with a long run and touchdown with 3 minutes and 34 seconds left on the clock, making the score 27-7. Runs by seniors Hooker and Basso led to a touchdown by sophomore Lucas Pienton, with a little under 2 minutes remaining. The halftime score was Cedar up 33-7.

After the Homecoming Queen and King announcement, the sideline cheerleader routine, and the marching band performance, lightning struck and the game received a thirty-minute delay. Fans were asked to leave the stands during the delay.

Alvesteffer got his fourth touchdown shortly after the beginning of the second half, increasing the Hawks’ lead to 41-7.

In the fourth quarter, Northview made a long run and got a touchdown after a penalty was called on Cedar Springs, with 9 minutes and 20 seconds left of the game. With the score 41-13, the Northview fans got riled up to make a comeback and pushed their team to get another touchdown, which they did, with 5 minutes and 15 seconds left in the game. The two-point conversion was no good, making the score 41-19. A long run by Lucas Pienton led to a touchdown by junior Darius Barnett, 3 minutes and 30 seconds left in the game. The two-point conversion was good making the score 49-19. Tackles by sophomore Ryan Ringler and junior John Todd closed out the game with the final score being 49-19.

Cedar Springs is now 2-0 in conference and 3-1 overall. Their next game is Friday, September 23, when they host Grand Rapids Christian (4-0) in the MLive Game of the Week.

Red Hawks take down the Zeeland West ball carrier. Photo by K. Alvesteffer/R. LaLone.

By Maddie Nichols

This past Thursday, August 25 , the Cedar Springs Red Hawks varsity football team traveled from Cedar Springs to Zeeland West to compete with the Dux for their first game of the season. The intensity, offensively and defensively, from both sides stayed consistent throughout the whole game. However, in the end, the Red Hawks fell short with a final score of 14-9.

The first quarter may have finished without scoring from either side, but senior Collin Alvesteffer had some major tackles that led to shutting down the Dux’s offense. Going into the second quarter, the combination of tackling from Alvesteffer and Junior John Todd took Zeeland down. With two minutes left of the first half, senior Dustin Shaw had a successful 22-yard field goal attempt, concluding the second quarter with the Red Hawks up 3-0.

After a long 10 minute drive from Zeeland West in the third quarter, the Red Hawks were left to hold the Dux at the 1-yard line. The Hawks give up the touchdown after a second attempt making them fall behind 8-3.

Right away in the fourth quarter, Collin Alvesteffer made a 34-yard touchdown to up the score 9-8. Both teams fought hard during the rest of the game. Great tackles from senior Austin Basso held back the Dux until the Red Hawks lost them defensively and the Dux got a touchdown after their fourth attempt, with 1 minute and 43 seconds left of the game. After a failed two-point conversion, the score was 14-9, Dux up by 5.

The Red Hawks came back with a strong offensive drive. With great efforts from John Todd, Collin Alvesteffer, and sophomore Ryan Ringler, the Hawks kept possession of the ball and got to the Dux 18-yard line. A 5-yard penalty against the Dux gave Cedar Springs more hope towards getting into the end zone. With only 2.8 seconds left on the clock, the Red Hawks fell short with an incomplete pass, concluding the game with a Hawk loss, 14-9.

Tonight, Thursday, September 1, the Red Hawks travel to Sparta to take on the Spartans at 7 p.m. Next week Friday, September 9, they travel to Greenville.

Cedar Springs sophomore Collin Alvesteffer (center) receives the 2014 Season MVP award from WZZM13 and sponsor Mercy Health during last Friday’s edition of “On your sidelines.” Brent Ashcroft, left, and Dan Harland, right, are the show’s anchors. Photo by K. Alvesteffer

By Judy Reed

The Cedar Springs Red Hawks Varsity Football team had a great season, going 9-2 and winning the OK-Bronze Conference Championship outright. They won their first playoff home game at Red Hawk Stadium, against Forest Hills Northern, and were defeated by Muskegon in the district regional the following week. They scored an average 35 points per game.

One of the sparkplugs that fired that success was sophomore quarterback Collin Alvesteffer, who was equally efficient on both offense and defense. He received a great honor last week when he was voted by fans as WZZM13’s 2014 Season MVP. WZZM listed 10 nominees for the award, and fan voting online narrowed it to three. Fans then voted again, and Collin came out on top. He was given the award on their final “On your sidelines” show of the season last Friday evening.

Collin was selected as a MVP of the week earlier in the season, and also voted to MLive’s defensive dream team. That’s a lot of attention for a 15-year-old. The Post asked how he was dealing with all the attention.

Collin Alvesteffer scored both touchdowns against the Muskegon Big Reds. Photo by K. Alvesteffer.

“It’s all exciting, but I just try to focus on the team’s success instead of my own,” said Collin. The attention was not something he was expecting. “I knew I was not the best football player that we had, so figured they would get all the attention,” he added.

Football is in Collin’s blood. He started playing flag football at ages 4-6, and then Rocket at age 7. He’s continued to play ever since.

The Post asked him if he did anything special to prepare for this season. “I just tried to become the best player and teammate that I could,” he remarked.

And it seems to have paid off, not just for him but the whole team. “We had excellent team work and effort in practice and during the offseason,” he explained, when asked why he thought the team did so well.

Collin knows his success was made possible by those around him.

“I want to thank my teammates and coaches for always pushing me and making me better,” said Collin. “But most importantly, I want to thank my Mom and Dad, because they support me no matter what and are my biggest fans.”

Collin’s Mom, Kelley Alvesteffer, won’t argue with that. “Collin has always excelled at football and I have always been proud of him for that. However, this year he learned that it is not about him. He learned to play for the team—not for himself. He learned good sportsmanship and learned to be truly humble.”

Congratulations to Collin, and we look forward to seeing what the Red Hawks can do in 2015!