Breen-Phillips remained undefeated as they beat league rival Welsh 13-0 at Riehle Fields Tuesday night.
Breen-Phillips quarterback Tracy Kazmerski ran for two touchdown, and senior captain Kelly Deckelman had two interceptions.
"Overall, we played great on offense and defense," said Kazmerski.
Coach Steve Mattingly was pleased with the victory.
"This was a big win for our team," he said. "We're very proud of our girls."
Breen-Phillips came out with intensity and scored on their opening drive as Kazmerski ran a quarterback draw, breaking tackles and in for a 20-yard touchdown. She then completed a pass on the next play to convert the PAT and make the score 7-0 in favor of the Babes.
Welsh moved the ball against Breen-Phillips on the following drive. Quarterback Melissa Sands delivered the ball on the money, but the receivers dropped many passes that could have changed the game.
"We dropped too many passes and missed pulls on defense," said Welsh captain Jaime McEldowney. "We cannot win if we play like that."
Welsh turned the ball over on downs, and BP took over near midfield. They got down to Welsh's 10-yard line after Kazmerski completed a 28-yard out pass. The completion set up Kazmerski for a 5-yard touchdown run, her second of the game. The 1-point conversion failed, but the Babes lead at halftime 13-0.
Welsh came out strong in the second half as quarterback Sands completed three consecutive passes and ran a 10-yard option to get into BP territory. On her fourth pass, however, the Breen-Phillips defensive line tipped the ball, and defensive back Deckelman intercepted it to end the threatening drive.
The Babes then drove down the field on a Kazmerski draw that almost broke for a touchdown. A couple plays later, though, she threw a deep pass that Welsh picked off near the end zone.
Welsh needed points on its final drive. They made one first down, but the BP defense held and Welsh turned the ball over after a fourth-down incompletion.
The Babes managed to run time off the clock, but they also could not convert on fourth down. This gave the Whirlwinds the ball deep in the Breen-Phillips end. On the second play of the drive, Deckelman intercepted Sands for the second time to seal the victory for Breen-Phillips.
"This is our division and we are in the driver's seat," Mattingly said. "We're the targets now."
"We made almost no mistakes the whole game," said Deckelman. "We came out strong and caught them a little off-guard, and we played consistent on both sides of the ball the whole game."
The Whirlwinds were disappointed with their mistakes.
"BP played very well and I give them credit a good game," Welsh captain McEldowney said. "They were well prepared for us. But we definitely beat ourselves, and there are no excuses. We're a better team than that."
Cavanaugh 12, Farley 0
Cavanaugh remained undefeated and improved to 4-0 on the season with a 12-0 win over Farley Tuesday night.
The Chaos came out with an impressive shutout over the Finest showcasing both their strong offensive and defensive abilities.
All it took was the opening minutes of the first half for the Chaos to prove how strong their defense was. Defensive lineman Kerri Bergen intercepted the ball during the first Farley drive. The interception was quickly turned into a touchdown by junior Jennifer Nokes to make the early score 6-0.
The Finest, however, battled back on offense and showed tremendous strength as quarterback Katie Popik made a last minute drive, including a 20-yard completion against a relentless Chaos defense.
The Finest defense then showed force as they stopped the Chaos at end the first half.
In the first couple plays to begin the second half, Chaos quarterback Lisa Ruffer was quick to prove why her team sees her as a leader. With the Farley defense performing at the same level as they did in the first half, Ruffer stepped up and led an 80-yard touchdown drive to make the score 12-0.
"She is an inspiration and has a lot of athleticism," said team captain Jessica Leibowitz. Teammate Bridget Cernee agreed and added that Ruffer's excellent pocket presence allows her to perform her best.
The Farley offense, however, did not shut down. Despite early troubles for the Finest, such as an interception by sophomore Lauran Williamson, the offense was quick to recover. The Finest offense was continually able to move the ball behind the play receiver Lizzy Coghill.
Coghill had several impressive plays during the second half, including a 40-yard punt return that allowed the Finest offense to drive the ball to the Cavanaugh 2-yard line.
The Finest were unable to convert, however as Chaos defensive lineman Lindsey Miller stopped the play and forced a turnover on downs.
The Chaos held the ball for the final minutes of the game to seal the 12-0 victory.
Despite the loss, the Finest were not discouraged by their performance.
"The game was within our reach," said team captain Angelina Zehrbach. "You just got to be on your 'A' game when you're playing the best teams."
