Woodcreek flag football hands Trojans first loss

Woodcreek's varsity flag football team utilized the big play to defeat Oak Ridge, 18-0, on Thursday night. The Timberwolves got in front, got a lead and sealed it off with a touchdown late in the fourth quarter, as they improved their record to 3-2 on the season, while handing Oak Ridge its first loss, 4-1. On the game's second play from scrimmage, Summer Hennessy took a handoff from Amaya Grant, took it around the left end and sprinted 58 yards for the touchdown. On Oak Ridge's first possession, Grant picked off a Gemma Almont pass and returned it to the two-yard line, but the Trojans defense held before Luci Lampe intercepted a pass. Neither team did much the rest of the first quarter and early on into the second until Hennessy made her second big play of the night with an interception deep in Oak Ridge territory. That led to Woodcreek's second touchdown, a 42-yard pass from Grant to Emily Cser to put the Timberwolves us 12-0. Oak Ridge's Ilyana Lampe picked off a pass late in the half, giving the Trojans a chance to score. Almont heaved a bomb down to Laurel Smart at the goal line, but the ball was deflected out of Smart's hands and the scored remained 12-0 as the halftime buzzer sounded. Oak Ridge's defense held tough, as Siena Maher intercepted two passes in the second half, but the Trojans offense couldn't do much against a tough Woodcreek defense. Grant, in only her second game playing quarterback, then put the game out of reach with a 68-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter. "She's doing well at quarterback," Woodcreek coach Malcolm Thomas said. "She likes it, enjoys it. She likes to have the ball in her hands. It's different than what she's been doing, because usually she's the one that catches the passes, but with the rule changes, it's harder to throw the ball that far down the field when you're playing teams with fast rushers." Oak Ridge, playing without their starting quarterback Maya Scipio, struggled offensively all night. "We got off to a rough start by giving up a long touchdown and then having a turnover," Oak Ridge head coach Eric Cavaliere said. "Then we got down 12 points and with these new rules, 12 points is a healthy gap and it's hard to score. We played well defensively for 98 percent of the game, but on three plays we forgot how to pull a flag." Woodcreek was happy to win a second game in a row for the first time this season. "The number-one thing we haven't been doing is that our energy has been low," Thomas said. "It started with the West Park game. As soon as they scored their first touchdown you could just feel the energy drop. "We tweaked some things. Making the switch at quarterback; Amaya is really dynamic and she can throw the ball, but she can run it too. That's something that you need more than a passer. "But the No. 1 thing is the girls had energy today. I told them if we play with that kind of energy every game, we're going to be tough to beat because we're a super talented team, but sometimes we get in our own head." While the Timberwolves open up league play on the road Monday at Ponderosa, Oak Ridge opens on Tuesday against Folsom. "We were coming off a nice win against Vista," Cavaliere said of Tuesday's 13-6 win. "It was a hard-fought game that probably came down to turnovers. They had two and we had none. They're a good team that challenged us and helped prepare us for league."