On the chilliest night of the season, the Dons welcomed the Berean Christian Eagles to Acalanes stadium. It was senior night and the Dons rolled out the red carpet and a giant blue “A” to celebrate their six seniors. This years seniors are #37 Addison Mandell, #44 Brooke Rardin, #14 Julia Munter, #10 Lesley Trowbridge and #15 Maya Shoenhair. Special shout out to Shoenhair who is the first 3 year varsity player in the history of the program (starter all three years!) . The girls got to walk through the giant “A” with their families and were given bouquets of white roses. And, being the classy folk that the Acalanes Dons are, bouquets of flowers were given to the five seniors on the visiting Berean team.
The Dons were coming off a tough stretch of games where they dropped two of their last three to powerhouse programs Clayton Valley and the still undefeated Las Lomas Knights. The Dons still boasted an impressive 12-2 overall record and the #2 ranking in the North Coast Section for division 2 schools. The Dons were looking to get hot before the start of the NCS playoffs in two weeks. The game started with a bang! On the very first play from scrimmage, junior quarterback Ines Coyne pitched the ball to sophomore sensation Isabelle Agnost around the left side. Two Eagle defenders converged on Agnost who unleashed a vicious spin move that left both grasping at air. Three more defenders swooped in, talons bared. Agnost juked and swerved and the Eagle defenders outstretched hands came up empty. The Eagle’s last defender had the angle on Agnost and a 6 yard head start. She probably needed a 10 yard head start. Agnost turned on the jets and flew past the last pair of outstretched hands for the highlight reel 66 yard touchdown. On the point after, Coyne fired a crisp pass to first team all league wide receiver Shoenhair who snatched it out of the air to put the Dons up 7-0 after two plays.
The Dons stellar defense quickly asserted itself. Early flag pulls by dynamic linebacker duo Avery DeMent and Stella Beuchotte stifled the Eagles offense. Prime Time June Natal pitched in with an early tackle and after a short drive the Eagles were forced to punt. On the Eagles second possession, DeMent decided she had not been to the endzone in awhile and wanted to pay a visit. On 3rd and 6, the Eagles quarterback faced heavy pressure from rusher Malory DeCredico. Under duress, the quarterback lofted a pass into the right flat. DeMent made a leaping, two handed catch over her head cut towards the near sideline and outraced a gaggle of Eagle’s players to the endzone for the touchdown. The point after was no good and the Dons were out to a quick 13-0 lead.
After the hot start by the Dons, both teams’ defenses settled in and the game became a defensive struggle. The Eagles biggest scoring threat came in the third quarter. After a long pass play to reach the Dons 17 yard line, the defense had to step up to keep the Eagles out of the endzone. On first down, Munter and Coyne corralled the Eagles runningback for no gain. On second down, the Eagles QB threw a pass down the right side line. The ball was tipped by Coyne for the incompletion. On 3rd down the Eagles QB scampered for 10 yards but was stopped short of the endzone with a nice flag pull from Natal. On 4th and goal from the Dons 10 yard line, pass-rusher DeCredico put an end to any hopes the Eagles had of putting points on the board with a sack of the Berean QB to force the turnover on downs.
The 4th quarter would see the Dons defense continue to stifle the Eagles offense. When the clock hit zero the final score was Dons 13 Eagles 0. This was the Dons’ 13th win of the season and their eleventh shutout in 15 games. Next up for the Dons is the season finale against that team from Moraga on Monday night. Last year the Dons beat their crosstown rivals 21-0 so you know their former middle school classmates will be looking for revenge. The Dons will be ready. Fear the BLUE!!!