With the silhouette of Mount Diablo backlit by a moon filled sky, the Dons took the field to face Carondelet in flag football on Tuesday Night. The game was played at De La Salle whose field has been home to national champions and launched the careers of several NFL players. The Dons were hoping to improve their record to 2-0. The Cougars had a large, disciplined squad and looked sharp in their all black uniforms, much to the delight of their raucous home crowd.
The first quarter was a defensive struggle with neither team allowing the other’s offense room to operate. Avery DeMent, last week’s leading tackler for the Dons, continued to terrorize the center of the field with her flag pulls. Santana Tamayo stood out early with several flag pulls in the Carondelet backfield resulting in negative yardage for the Cougars. Rushers Mallory DeCredico and Stella Mason applied constant pressure to the Cougars QB resulting in several sacks. Yali Avrahami, a blitzing linebacker, added a sack early in the game. Carondelet’s defense was equally as formidable in the early stages, refusing to allow the Dons to gain yards on the ground or in the air. Offensively, Carondelet struck first with a long pass play on a wide receiver screen. The Cougar receiver raced down the right sideline for a 30 yard gain, taking the ball deep into Dons’ territory. However, the Dons defense would bend but not break. The Dons forced a turnover on downs near the goal line and the first quarter ended in a 0-0 stalemate.
During the second quarter, the first cracks started to appear in Carondelet’s defense. Junior quarterback Ines Coyne used her scrambling ability to get the Dons into the redzone but on a third and short, Coyne launched a long pass into the left corner of the endzone which was intercepted by a Carondelet defender for a touchback. The Dons’ defense came to the rescue however and forced a quick 3 and out. The 4th down punt was fielded by return-man Maya Shoenhair at her own 35 and she had a nice runback to set up the offense on the Cougars half of the field. A few plays later, Coyne hit Shoenhair with a strike over the middle. After a quick shake and bake, Shoenhair turned on the jets, leaving Carondelet defenders in her wake, romping into the endzone for a 35 yard touchdown. The point after was another strike from Coyne to wide receiver Amelia Riley to put the Dons up 7-0. Carondelet had one last chance in the first half. The Cougars tried to go deep against the Dons disciplined secondary and the pass was intercepted by defensive back Eloise Greeson. The score remained 7-0 heading into the half.
The dam burst in the third quarter as Acalanes’ speed and experience rose to the occasion. Early in the third quarter, sophomore running back Isabelle Agnost took a pitch from Coyne on an option left. One Carondelet defender missed her flag and that was all it took. Agnost cut back towards the center of the field, curved and swerved around several more defenders, before leaving the last remaining defensive back in the dust for a 62 yard score. The point after was no good and the Dons now led 13-0. The Dons defense once again forced a 3 and out and the special teams received the ensuing punt on the Carondelet half of the field. The offense drove the ball into the red zone and on a 3rd and goal, Coyne found DeMent over the middle for a touchdown, DeMent’s first score of the year. The point after was a completion from Coyne to Shoenhair and the Dons now led 20-0. The Dons defense continued its relentless stranglehold on the Carondelet offense. Defensive backs June Natal, Greeson, Shoenhair and Leah Roth, swarmed the Cougar receivers, batting down multiple pass attempts over the course of the game. On this occasion they forced another 3 and out. This time the punt was fielded by Agnost near midfield who returned the punt all the way down to the 8 yard line. A short time later, Coyne handed off to Agnost who scampered in for her second touchdown of the night. Coyne ran the ball into the endzone on the point after and the Dons now led 27-0. The final drive of the 3rd quarter led to yet another touchdown for the Dons. The drive was almost completely Coyne using her quickness to elude defenders for short to mid-size gains. Coyne scrambled into the endzone, her second TD of the night, and ran in the point after to put the Dons up 34-0.
With the game well in hand for the 4th quarter, reserve players gained valuable experience. Natal got her first playing time at quarterback and looked quick and elusive running the option with running backs Noelle Dobies and Roth. The Dons were able to run out the clock and keep Carondelet out of the endzone for the remainder of the game.
When the final whistle blew, the fully electronic jumbotron showed a score of 34-0 in favor of the Dons who improved to 2 – 0 for the season. What started off as a defensive struggle ended in a decisive win for the Dons. The experience and discipline of coaches Mike Ivankovich, Joe Escobar and their staff, allowed the Dons to remain patient, wait for their opportunities and exploit their opponents inevitable mistakes. Next up for the Dons is a home game against the Freedom Falcons of Oakley on 9/4. Go Dons!
No robots participated in the writing of this article.