The bright lights of Monday Night Football came to Acalanes this week and what transpired in the closing seconds will surely go down as one of the most unbelievable finishes in Dons flag football history. The Benicia Panthers came to town in a battle of unbeatens, the Panthers with a record of 2-0 and and the Dons with a record of 3-0. In addition to being unbeaten, the Dons have yet to give up a touchdown in their 2025 campaign. The air was warm and still, the stadium was aglow and the path to victory would be long, difficult, sudden and spectacular.
The Acalanes defense would continue their dominant start to the season in the first quarter. The defense forced an early 3 and out on the Panthers’ opening drive. Return-man Maya Shoenhair received the punt around her own 30 yard line and returned it 22 yards past midfield to set up the offense with great field position. On 3rd and 6, junior quarterback Ines Coyne found Shoenhair for a 10 yard gain and a first down. On a 3rd and 2, Coyne scrambled for 7 yards and another first down. The Dons were now deep in Benicia territory. However, the Panthers’ defense rose to the occasion and forced an incomplete pass on 4th and 7 resulting in a turnover on downs. On the ensuing drive, the Benicia offense made little progress. Rusher Mallory DeCredico had a huge early sack forcing a 3rd and 19. A short pass was stopped by the team leader in tackles Avery DeMent and Bencia was forced to punt again. Defender Santana Tamayo, who finished the game as the Dons’ leading tackler, contributed an early sack and was a huge part of shutting down the Panthers offense early. The quarter came to an end with the score tied 0-0.
In the second quarter, the defensive stalemate continued. Benicia had prepared very thoroughly and seemed to have an answer for every play the Dons ran. On the defensive side of the ball, DeCredico continued to terrorize the Panthers quarterback. DeCredico’s pressure forced an errant pass on a Benicia 4th and 7 resulting in a turnover on downs. Late in the half, the Panthers were driving but safety Leah Roth intercepted a pass at her own 6 ending the scoring threat. Going into the half the game was still knotted at 0.
Remember when I said the road to victory would be long and difficult? The third quarter was no different from the first half. The Dons put together one nice drive. On a 3rd and 5, Coyne ran for a first. The drive continued and on a 4th and 7, Coyne used her legs again to get 15 yards and another 1st down. However, on 4th and 9 deep in Benicia territory, the Panthers forced a turnover on downs. The lone offensive highlight for the Panthers was a sweep to the left by their running back. The running back was able to turn the corner and race down the near sideline for a 40+ yard gain. The Dons defense recovered and eventually stopped the Benicia threat. The quarter came to an end…still tied 0-0.
On to the 4th! Benicia’s drive continued with a costly personal foul call against the Dons. The Panthers were threatening. Defensive back Roth came to the rescue on a 4th and 5 knocking down the pass attempt and forcing a turnover on downs. On the ensuing Benicia drive, DeCredico had another huge sack, her 3rd of the game and Benicia was forced to punt. The 4th quarter would go on like this and it seemed as the clock wound down that the game was destined for overtime. But fate is fickle. The Dons got the ball deep in their own territory with very little time remaining, ran a few plays and called a timeout with 3 seconds left. The stage was set.
What happened next was one of the most unbelievable plays in Dons’ history. With the score tied 0-0 and 3 seconds left in regulation, the Dons had the ball at their own 25 yard line, the endzone a distant blip on the horizon. Benicia lined up with 3 deep safeties and brought a blitz, rushing two. Coyne handed the ball to sophomore running back Isabelle Agnost on a run to the left. The two rushers, focused on Coyne, were quickly out of position. All night, a Benicia linebacker had a bead on Agnost, specifically tasked with shutting her down and it had worked. Would things be different this time? Agnost raced towards the near sideline with the linebacker in hot pursuit. In a stroke of coaching genius, Ivankovich and Escobar had wide out June Natal, who was lined up on the near side, change her route to an in-breaking route, blocking the linebackers’ path for the first time all night. The Benicia defender watched helplessly as Agnost turned the corner behind Natal’s block. Now in full flight, Agnost cut back towards the middle and like Moses parting the Red Sea, an alley opened up across the field. All three Benicia safeties had the angle on Agnost. It did not matter. Agnost raced past with her hair on fire, turned toward the endzone and flew across the goal line for a 55 yard score with no time on the clock. The referees’ hands went up and the crowd went wild. The entire Dons team streamed into the endzone in celebration. When the wild rumpus subsided, the scoreboard showed a final score of Dons 6 Benicia 0. The Dons remained unbeaten and the defenses’ consecutive scoreless streak was extended to 4 games.
After 4 quarters of defensive dominance by both teams, the entire game came down to one last play, a clever coaching adjustment, the perfect block and one mad dash for the endzone. Agnost’s run was unbelievable and unexpected but it was the defense that continued to be the driving force behind the Dons’ success. DeCredico finished the game with 5 tackles and 3 sacks. DeMent added 6 tackles and a pass defensed. Tamayo led the team with 7 tackles and added a sack. Roth had a huge interception to stop a scoring threat. Not to be left off the defensive stat sheet, Coyne had 2 tackles and a pass defended on defense. Next up for the Dons is an away game at College Park. Go Dons!
Artificial intelligence could not have hallucinated such a finale!!