If Sunday's game between Badin and Lewis was any indication of the type of women's interhall football that is going to be played this year, fans are in for a treat. The Chicks defeated the Bullfrogs 8-6 in a defensive battle on a cool, cloudy afternoon.
Lewis was led by senior quarterback Erin Nasrallah. The scrambler with a rocket arm connected on a 20-yard touchdown pass and the ensuing two-point conversion midway through the first half to put the Chicks up 8-0. Badin took over and promptly went three and out against a stingy Lewis defensive secondary that kept the football away from the Badin receivers.
But the Bullfrogs were not about to croak. After a key fourth-down stand by their defense, Badin's offense took over on their own 25-yard-line. With time running down in the first half, they completed a couple of big passes to move the football deep into Chick territory. However, they couldn't punch the ball across the goal line and the score remained 8-0 at intermission.
The beginning of the second half was marked by miscues as Badin threw an interception on their second play from scrimmage. Lewis took over and immediately gave the ball right back to the Bullfrogs when Nasrallah threw her first interception of the day.
Both teams' offenses stalled on their ensuing drives as the defenses controlled the game. Lewis was forced to punt with about seven minutes remaining. After a long Bullfrog return, Badin only needed a couple of passes to score their first touchdown of the season.
But Lewis' defense didn't relent on the two-point conversion attempt. The Chicks swatted away the Bullfrog pass and the score stayed 8-6.
The Lewis offense took the field and ran out the clock.
"It was good to get back into the swing of things," Nasrallah said. "We have come a long way since our first practice and I was confident on our chances coming in."
The four-year starter at quarterback also gave credit to her team's defense.
"They were the key to this game," Nasrallah said.
It was a physical ballgame with a couple of personal foul penalties for excessive tackling and blocking. The excessive tackle was especially crucial. It came on a quarterback keeper by Nasrallah around right end and resulted in Lewis converting a key third down.
Badin captain Lindsay Wind was not pleased.
"I was disappointed today about some of the calls," Wind said.
However, she was also upbeat about her team's play.
"This game was a litmus test for the season. We are a very fast team and our quarterback's arms are fantastic," Wind said.
The senior center said that she was looking forward to Badin's game against Lyons next Thursday.
Both teams showed a lot of potential on the offensive and defensive side of the ball. The play of both quarterbacks was strong and the low scores speak to the strength of the defenses.
Though her team came out on the losing end, Wind was optimistic about the future.
"We will see them in the playoffs," she said.
Cavanaugh 13,
Welsh Family 8
The game was a match between two of the top two team's from last season.
Cavanaugh and Welsh Family both wanted to establish themselves as "the team to beat." However, it was a close match that wasn't decided until the last two minutes of the game, with the Chaos hanging on for a 13-8 victory.
Early in the first half Cavanaugh took advantage of their first possession and scored with a 10-yard completion to captain Jennifer Nokes.
However, all it took was two minutes for Welsh Family to come back with a 50-yard pass to Lauren Pease. Welsh Family scored the touchdown but missed the one-point conversion to make the score 7-6.
But it was Cavanaugh who came back strong late in the first half with a game turning interception by Kerri Bergen to position the team for another touchdown and make the score 13-6.
To come out with the win, Cavanaugh needed to rely on their defense to stop a strong Welsh Family offense led by a couple of critical completions by Pease. After a couple controversial calls, Welsh Family was on the 5-yard line with two minutes left in the half.
However, Welsh Family could not take advantage of the opportunity.
The team did however sack Cavanaugh's quarterback Lisa Ruffer for the safety with 10 seconds left to make the final score 13-8.
However, Ruffer was more than satisfied with the defensive team's overall performance.
"We would not have had the opportunities we had today if it was not for them," she said.
Kerri Bergen, a defensive lineman who had an interception in both halves felt that the team was "energized and ready to play" after last year's title loss against Pasquerilla East.
Although Welsh Family did not come up with the win, the team remains relentless.
Sophomore quarterback Melissa Sands believes the team "ran and drove the ball "really well," and has "a lot of things to improve on ... but there is a whole season ahead of them."
Sophomore Lauren Pease is sure they "can play with the best teams out there." Welsh Family is certain the team can rebound after this week.
