On the field, Marissa Gallo was unstoppable, rushing for five touchdowns to take home MVP honors in leading her Brunettes team to a 34-18 victory in the second annual Blondes vs. Brunettes flag football game this weekend at Sweet Home High School.
Of course, the real winner was the Alzheimer’s Association of WNY. While final numbers won’t be made official until later this week, game co-chairs Kristin Crandall and Tracey Callisto both said the final tally would be over $30,000 to help benefit the 55,000 people living in Western New York with the disease.
“The real winner of course is the Alzheimer’s Association,” Callisto said. “In our second year the game grew in every way including participants, fans and most importantly, money raised. It’s a blessing to see that many people showing their support and we plan to keep growing this event every year.”
While the primary goals were to raise money and awareness for the cause, don’t think both sides weren’t pulling out all the stops to try and secure a win following a 12-12 tie in the 2009 inaugural game. Players from both sides were treated for bumps and bruises and a handful of women were sporting ice packs by the time it was over. Things also got testy on the field during several occasions, including plenty of post-whistle pushing and shoving as well as a healthy dose of trash talking.The biggest difference was Gallo, who scored all five of her team’s touchdowns, including four in the first half as the Brunette’s rolled to a 28-6 lead before the break.
“I just found some holes and openings and I was able to exploit them,” Gallo said. “The girls did a real good job of blocking and opening things up for me. Chrissy (May) did a real good job at quarterback for us and the coaches had us ready to play and win.”
The game featured former Buffalo Bills safety Jeff Nixon on the sideline to show support and several of the Buffalo Jills performed during halftime. There was also a beautiful balloon release prior to the game in honor of the memory of people that have succumbed to Alzheimer’s. The Sweet Home high school choir performed the national anthem before the game.
There were at least a couple of hundred people in the stands with many sporting signs supporting both teams and Alzheimer’s.
Crandall is happy with the direction the game is headed and already looking forward to the next one.
“The minute the game was over some of us were already thinking about next year,” she said. “We want this to continue to grow and get bigger every year and the girls are determined to make that happen. We’re already thinking about next year.”
If you missed the game but are still interested in helping the foundation tackle Alzheimer’s, you can make a donation by visiting the game’s official website right here.
