Franklin Admirals (4-0) kept their undefeated streak intact, Independence (1-3) struggled to score and Ravenwood (3-1) split a pair of games in second week of the flag football inaugural season at Ravenwood Sunday afternoon.
“We have several really good athletes,” said Franklin head coach Donnie Webb. “It is all about just getting the ball in space. They played really well on defense today and pulled flags.”
“We just took one play and possession at a time to make sure each side was good and did their job,” said Franklin senior quarterback Hannah Harvey.
“Obviously we are disappointed in the way it turned out today,” said Ravenwood head coach Will Hester after the team’s loss to Franklin. “We have a long way to go before May the 7th to get better.”
“I thought the girls were really competitive; we just need to work on executing and mastering our plays,” said Independence head coach Andre Flowers.
Ravenwood flag football shuts out Eagles to start the day
On the first drive of the game, Ravenwood got on the board with a rushing touchdown by senior quarterback Sarah Kate Rath to give the Raptors a 7-0 lead on a made conversion.
Ravenwood senior Ally Brown tallied her first interception of the day to keep Independence scoreless on their first drive.
However, Independence sophomore Alydia Lyte returned the favor by intercepting Ravenwood to impede their progress with a little over a minute remaining in the first half.
Independence was unable to score before halftime, so the Raptors had the advantage at the break 7-0.
In the second half, Lyte picked off Ravenwood again to stall their first possession and record her second interception of the game.
“She (Alydia) had a good game and was in the right position at the right time,” said Coach Flowers. “She has great ball skills.”
The Eagles drive stalled on an interception by Brown, her second of the game, to keep the score at 7-0.
Ravenwood scored on their next possession of the second half with a touchdown pass from senior quarterback Kennedy Riggs to Rath for their first connection of the game. The missed conversion made the margin 13-0.
With a little under two minutes in the game, Riggs dialed up her second touchdown pass to Rath to extend the Raptors lead to 20-0.
“They are a combination that is hard to handle,” said Coach Hester.
Independence had one final possession before the end of the game, but were unable to score, as Ravenwood won in shutout fashion 20-0.
Brown finished with three interceptions against the Eagles in the victory.
“She (Ally) is a natural back there,” said Coach Hester. “It is very similar to the position she plays in soccer. She is able to do some really special things.”
Franklin flag football collects solid start in game against Independence
The Franklin Admirals started out fast, scoring on their first possession with a touchdown pass from senior Hannah Harvey to senior wide receiver Abby Pillow to give Franklin the advantage 7-0 after the made conversion.
Independence’s drive was stopped on an interception by junior Emma Nihill to keep the score at 7-0.
Both defenses answered each other for the remaining of the first half, collecting pass breakups and turnovers on downs to keep the score at 7-0 at halftime.
Early in the second half, the Admirals stretched their lead on a deep strike by Harvey to Pillow, hooking up for their second touchdown of the game to give Franklin a 13-0 advantage.
“Hannah does a good job of running our option on offense,” said Coach Webb. “She is really enjoying this and wanting to get better.”
Both defenses continued their success with pass breakups, as neither side could get on the board.
With a little under four minutes in the second half, Franklin senior Eliza Paisley tallied her first interception of the day to keep the score at 13-0.
The Admirals stood tall on defense and pitched a shutout winning 13-0 against Independence.
Franklin flag football keeps undefeated season alive against Ravenwood
It was a defensive struggle in the first ten minutes of the game that showcased batted balls for incompletions, turnovers on downs, and an interception by junior Lyla Gardner as the score remained tied at zero.
With a little over five minutes remaining in the first half, Franklin quarterback Hannah Harvey hit junior wide receiver Emmie Maumus on a long touchdown pass to give the Admirals a 6-0 lead after a missed conversion.
“Emmie is a tough one,” said Coach Webb. “She got knocked down on one of the interceptions by Ravenwood and then she popped right up. After that, she caught the pass and scored.”
“We did a lot of drills with routes at practice,” said Harvey. “We have some great coaches.”
At one minute remaining in the first half, the Raptors failed to score on a 4th and goal opportunity.
Franklin’s next drive came to a halt after Ravenwood’s Ally Brown tallied her fourth interception of the day on the final play of the half to keep the Admirals off the board, trailing 6-0 at the break.
Both teams were aggressive at the beginning of the second half, trying to put points on the board, but could not make something happen.
Ravenwood had a turnover on downs as Franklin’s defense broke up a pass with ten minutes remaining to keep it at 6-0 Admirals.
Later in the second half, Brown tallied her fifth interception of the day for Ravenwood to keep the score tight 6-0.
With 5:30 remaining in the game, Ravenwood was intercepted by senior Charlotte Menko to stop the Raptors drive and hold the advantage 6-0.
Ravenwood was able to stall the Admirals drive with a little under three minutes remaining in the game on a failed fourth down attempt as the score remained 6-0.
The Raptors were driving in the red zone with a little under two minutes remaining, until Eliza Paisley picked off Ravenwood for her second interception of the day to keep the score at 6-0.
“She (Eliza) is a great athlete,” said Harvey. “She reads the play and knows how to find interceptions.”
Franklin was unable to score on their final possession due to strong defense by Ravenwood, causing many deflections and stops on rushing plays.
Ravenwood tried to muster a game winning drive with 19 seconds remaining. Franklin’s defense was stingy on the first play, not giving Ravenwood much to work with on the ground.
Ravenwood called timeout to set up for one final play with four seconds remaining. The Raptors completed the pass, but were well short of the end zone. Franklin survived and tallied their second shutout of the day, 6-0.
“They did a great job of following what we tried to do in practice,” said Coach Webb. “Several girls did a great job of pulling flags today.”
Franklin will travel to Brentwood next Sunday to take on Brentwood and Summit.
“I just want them to keep having fun,” said Coach Webb.
“I hope to see us with the same drive we have been sticking with so far,” said Harvey. “I want to continue to work together and have the same energy with each other.”
Independence will travel to Centennial next Sunday to take on Centennial and Nolensville.
“I want to see us line up faster and continue our competitiveness, but make sure we execute plays at a faster pace,” said Coach Flowers.
Ravenwood will travel to Page to take on Page and Fairview next Sunday.
“We have got to continue to get better,” said Coach Hester.
