Duncan Shackelford called out his Chugiak Mustangs last week for lack of effort. But now the coach is just calling them the Cardiac Kids.For the second consecutive week, the Mustangs survived with another one-point victory.

This one came down to a missed extra point as the state's No. 2 team upset No. 1 Service 14-13 Friday night before a standing-room-only crowd at Anchorage Football Stadium."We're the Cardiac Kids," he said after his Mustangs remained unbeaten at 3-0. The nickname is fitting: Chugiak has won three games by a total of five points.

Powered by passionate defenders who stopped one of the state's most dangerous quarterbacks, Chugiak -- knocked off the No. 1 spot this week after squeaking by East 7-6 in Week 2 -- may earn state supremacy once again.But the Mustangs have said they could really care less about the ranking. All they wanted was the "W.""Incredible," said Dan Paulson, Chugiak's 6-foot-5, 310-pound senior lineman. "It was a hard win and we worked hard for it."Last week it was East kicker Joe Wilson whose extra point deflected off the left upright gave Chugiak the win. This week it was Service kicker Amanda Dotten whose extra point in the fourth quarter bounced off the right post.

"Too close for comfort," said Kyle "Moose" Johnston. "We need to quit doing this."The teams gave the packed house a spectacular Cook Inlet Conference showdown on the turf.Leo Aukusitino's 2-yard touchdown run pulled Service within one with 10:41 remaining in the final quarter after the missed PAT. But Service came back, showing it wouldn't fall without a fight.Chugiak punted on its next possession with 7:20 left, placing the Cougars on their own 20-yard line.Quarterback Cameron Allen gave Chugiak's backfield trouble all night, completing 18 of 30 for a career-high 269 yards. He had 140 passing yards in the first half, including a 42-yard touchdown strike to Cameron Drones, tying the game 7-7."We had to fly to the ball," Paulsen said about Allen's air attack.But after completing 10 of 13 in the third, Allen went 0 for 2 in the fourth.Service had fourth-and-18 in its own 12 with 6:20 to go, but got an automatic first down when officials called a roughing the kicker penalty.Chugiak forced Service into giving the ball to Aukusitino, who with plays of 14 and 24 yards, eventually helped put Service inside Chugiak's 30.But on fourth-and-2, Chugiak then stopped Allen's rushing game too. He choose an option right and was knocked out of bounds -- a foot short of the first down with 2:21 left.Seconds later, Johnston's 14-yard gain gave Chugiak a first down and sealed the victory.

Chugiak's sideline erupted with cheers of "Moooooose!"The Mustangs took an early 7-0 lead on Nathan Oliver's 4-yard run when Neil Miyaoka fumbled the opening kickoff.Then Moose put Chugiak ahead 14-7 just before the half on a 3-yard blast up the middle after Aukusitino fumbled on Chugiak's own 7.In the second half, Moose left the field with leg cramps."Moose played one hell of a game on two calves that looked like balloons," Shackelford said of his senior fullback who finished with 37 yards on five carries. "He's just one mentally tough kid."He wasn't the only Mustang in pain. Senior Jake Huston left with a severely bloody nose, and others sported blood stains on their white jerseys."When we run out of fullbacks, my offense gets real anemic," Shackelford said.Chugiak's athletic trainer tended to Moose, who was agonizing in pain. He played both ways -- fullback and outside linebacker -- and the cramps didn't keep him from sealing the win in the final drive."I didn't want to sit out," he said. "It was so close."As for the Cougars (2-1), the loss was a tough blow for what began as one of the program's best starts in years."It hurts," said Allen.Coaches always talk about how they'd rather be lucky than good. The Mustangs were both on Friday.

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