INCLINE VILLAGE, Nev. — The North Tahoe Pop Warner Junior Pee Wee and Junior Midget Rams hosted the Sparks and Reno Wolfpack teams this past Saturday at Highlander Stadium.

Although the end result was not what was hoped for in the Junior Pee Wee contest, coach Scott Wilderman and the team took many positive lessons from the game. The offense was able to move the ball, but was bogged down by costly turnovers.

The Rams' defense played well, with a strong showing of good gang tackling. Sparks scored four big plays.

The Junior Midget Rams opened against the Reno Wolfpack, a longtime rival. They battled to a virtual standstill, as the Rams moved the ball into scoring position the first two drives, coming up short of the red zone, but pinning Wolfpack deep in their own territory.

A late second-quarter injury to quarterback Jack Clouthier slowed the offense in the second half. Three big plays in the second half for Reno sealed the fate of the Rams, despite an opening onside kick.

Many first-time players matured with the game experience and are eagerly awaiting Sept. 25 home game against Carson.

The Junior Pee Wee Rams played Carson on the road on Sept. 18. Key injuries hurt the Rams, most notably to olb/qb Joshua Wenke, which left the Rams exposed for Carson to exploit.

Mick Carey, 8, came off the bench to lead the offense to its first touchdown of the season. The rams improved on both sides of the ball and are looking forward to getting healthy and before taking on Fallon.

Saturday's games at Highlander Stadium start at 1 p.m. (Junior Pee Wees) and 3 p.m. (Junior Midgets).

— This article was e-mailed to Sports Editor Sylas Wright at swright@sierrasun.com.