If you’re a fan offense and lots of passing, then last night’s game between ADM and Creston was the game for you. The two teams combined for 946 yards of total offense in a game that took just over three hours. In the end, however, a wildly entertaining game went to the Creston Panthers, 50-35, in their homecoming game.

Creston scored the first 17 points of the game on a 34-yard field goal three minutes into the game, a 22-yard touchdown run by Seth Maitlen with 1:37 to go in the first quarter, and a 33-yard strike from Panthers quarterback Alex Nielsen to Brice Briley 50 seconds into the second quarter.

ADM (2-4, 1-3 District) got on the board less than a minute later on a two-yard touchdown run by Jonathan Reel, who then added the extra point to cut Creston’s lead to 10.

With 8:42 to go in the first half, Nielsen struck again but this time on the ground, faking a handoff and scampering in from 27 yards out. Conner Pals added the extra point, and it looked as ADM may be in for a long night. Instead, the Tigers responded less the two minutes later on a 22-yard pass from Weiland to Jake Sloss, the senior’s team-leading fifth touchdown reception of the year. Reel’s extra point was good, bringing the deficit back to within 10 points at 24-14 Creston.

Pals added a 24-yard field with 1:53 to go in the half, setting up perhaps the most dramatic play of the game. With one second to go in the half, Weiland heaved a Hail Mary ball down the middle of the field. The ball was tipped off the hands of Joe Sloss and a pair of Panther defenders before finding  Jaxon Sloan in the end zone for the touchdown. With Reel’s extra point, ADM entered the locker room down just six, 27-21.

Creston (5-1, 4-0 District) took the opening kickoff and scored another touchdown to go up 34-21. ADM responded on a 14-yard touchdown pass from Weiland to Blake Crannell, and the teams traded touchdowns to make it 41-35 Panthers with 1:12 to go in the third quarter.

The final play of the third quarter proved to be the most costly for ADM, as McClain Haines picked off Weiland and ran it back for the score. Creston’s two-point conversion attempt was no good, but a 23-yard field goal by Pals with 3:43 to go in the game set the final margin of 50-35.

Weiland threw for a career-high 369 yards on 27-of-48 passing with three touchdowns and five interceptions, and added 48 yards rushing on nine carries. The Sloss twins each had over 100 yards receiving on eight catches: Joe Sloss had 175 yards while Jake sloss had 101 yards and the aformentioned touchdown.