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Rockford Christian Life shuts out Christian Liberty

After last week’s loss to North Shore in which they turned in an incomplete effort, Rockford Christian Life came into Saturday’s contest at Christian Liberty looking for a more complete game.

Thanks to dominant rushing performances by seniors Jeff Polsean and Jamar Ellis, the Eagles scored in every quarter on their way to a 35-0 victory in Northeastern Athletic action.

“We wanted to not only set the tone early in this ballgame but sustain our effort,” said Christian Life coach Chuck Leonard. “We coasted a little bit in the second quarter and the boys knew it.”

Polsean ran 16 times for 186 yards and two touchdowns, including a 63 yard score on the first play of the second half.

Junior Marcus Silva gave the Chargers some momentum going into halftime with three strong runs but Polsean’s strong run after the break thwarted any possible comeback and pushed the lead to 28-0.

Christian Life’s front four contained Christian Liberty’s rushing attack, allowing only just over 2 yards per attempt, while Ellis provided plenty of fireworks on offense by catching two touchdowns and rushing for another.

“Defensively we played a better game,” Leonard said. “Offensively, we are looking for consistency but we thought our backs ran pretty well.”

Though they got shut out for the second consecutive week, the Chargers are focused on improving from week to week.

“We played as a team more this week,” said running back Dan Glad. “We weren’t just running around randomly. We came together. We still lost by a lot but it was a lot better than last week.”

With only 25 players on the roster, 13 of them underclassmen, Christian Liberty was simply out-manned against the NAC’s runner up in 2010.

“It’s close to impossible to sustain any energy,” Glad said. “We worked hard, but we can do better.”

Glad led the team with 46 yards from scrimmage, while junior Shawn Andersen and Silva rushed for 34 and 31 yards, respectively.

Christian Liberty coach Jim Calkins took solace in the fact that the team showed some flashes of excellence, most notably a difficult leaping catch by Nick Salmonson near the end of the game for 26 yards.

“They came together a little bit better,” Calkins said. “They still have work to do. They are playing their own positions a little bit better.”

For now, Christian Liberty can only look ahead to their next game, Friday night at Hope.

“We have to move the ball better,” Calkins said. “Our timing is a little off. When we are at full strength, our offense will be able to work a little bit better.”