By JAY BEARD/For the Reporter

MONTEVALLO – The Montevallo Bulldogs held off the Holt Ironmen 51-48 on Sept. 12 after an offensive shootout.

After the Dawgs went up 14-0 midway through the first quarter, the Ironmen went to work, tying the game late in the first half with an 11 yard fourth down conversion.

With 1:36 left in the first half , Montevallo’s Zac Oden and Kerry Mack performed a 68 yard tip drill, putting the Bulldogs up 21-14.

The excitement didn’t last long. Exactly 25 seconds later, Holt answered with an 80-yard touchdown of their own.

The Ironmen took the lead 26-21 early in the second half, but then gave it back when Montevallo’s Kerry Mack ran it in from 28 yards out.

After trading interceptions, Holt gave up a safety while attempting to punt deep in their own end zone.

Penalties proved costly for the Ironmen. A 15-yard penalty on the Bulldogs next possession brought the ball down to the Holt 7-yard line, making it an easy 6 for Montevallo’s Michael Arnold, putting the Bulldogs up 37-26 with 5:43 left in the third.

After trading a couple of touchdowns, the Ironmen made a fourth quarter comeback, making the score 51-48 with a 3-yard run and a successful two-point conversion with 58.7 seconds left in the game.

The Ironmen attempted an onside kick, but the kick was unsuccessful.

The game proved to be a hard fought win for the Bulldogs, a win that the team can learn from, Montevallo head coach Andrew Zow, said.

“Having a hard fought game like this is great,” he said. “We need that. Hopefully it’s a character builder and we want to get better every day. I think tonight we got a little better.”

Montevallo has time to make improvements. On Sept. 19, the DAwgs will travel to Sipsey Valley for its second region game of the season. Sipsey Valley is 0-4 this season and the Dawgs look to extend their winning streak to four games in a row for the first time since 2005.