Even though Cavanaugh won Tuesday night's game against Lyons at Riehle West field, 13-6, the Lions can claim a small victory - they stopped the Choas' streak of consecutive shutouts at four.
With time running out in the second half, Lions quarterback Kim Murphy threw a 41-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Meghan Reagan to end the streak.
Despite ending their shutout run, the Chaos improved their record to 5-0 and remained the only unbeaten team in the women's Blue League.
Cavanaugh put the nail in the coffin just before halftime when Chaos defensive back Aislinn Doyle intercepted a Lions pass and ran it back to the 7-yard line before finally being tackled. Despite losing six yards on a sack by Bridget Trainor, Chaos quarterback Lisa Ruffer found receiver Tara Brown in the end zone to make the score 13-0 before half.
The first touchdown came on Cavanaugh's first possession of the game when Ruffer threw a 19-yard pass to Nancy Powaga.
After failing to score on fourth-and-goal late in the game, the Lyons defense stepped up and faced the vaunted Chaos offense. The Lions forced a punt and got the ball back inside their own 20-yard line.
After driving to midfield, Reagan caught the ball at about the Chaos 35-yard line, broke free from the Cavanaugh defenders and outran the rest of the defense to make the score 13-6.
Just before the half, Lyons showed some promising defense with an interception that Lyons defender Judith Kaczmarek ran back to inside the 10-yard line as time ran out.
In the game as a whole, there were two interceptions and seven sacks - three by Cavanaugh and four by Lyons. Lyons also was able to put pressure on Ruffer on every down, forcing unsure passes by Cavanaugh, and to contain the stellar Chaos running game effectively.
"This was the best game we've played so far this year," Lions coach John Harrington said. "It showed we have some serious talent. If not for a few bad breaks, we could have won."
Next week Cavanaugh will face Howard, while Lyons will take on Walsh.
Lewis 18, Badin 9
The Lewis Chicks started quickly and didn't let up as they soundly defeated Badin Tuesday night.
The Bullfrogs had no answer for Lewis quarterback Elisa Valdez as she threw for three touchdown passes.
"They were more aggressive," said Badin freshman Allison Lang. "They all seemed to want it a little bit more than we did."
Lewis' intensity was apparent throughout the game, not only on offense but on the defensive side of the ball as well.
The Chicks didn't allow Badin's offense to smell the end zone until late in the fourth quarter.
With only minutes left to play, Badin quarterback Katie Rose Hackney found wide receiver Meg Charlebois for a 15-yard touchdown.
The same two, in reverse order, hooked up for a three-point conversion as Hackney was on the receiving end of a wide receiver reverse throwback from Charlebois.
This cut the Lewis lead to 18-9, but the Bullfrogs couldn't muster any more points.
This result leaves Badin with little hope for the playoffs as the Bullfrogs are 1-3-1 with only one game left to play.
Lewis, on the other hand, has won two games in a row and is picking up momentum for the playoffs.
Walsh 19, Howard 0
The Walsh Wild Women, behind a stingy defensive performance, shut out the Howard Ducks Tuesday night at Riehle West Field.
Wild Women sophomore cornerback Julie Campbell accounted for two of three Walsh interceptions and ran one back for a touchdown to seal the score at 19-0 going into halftime.
"The defense played really well and just held the score to where it was after halftime," Campbell said.
Adding to an impressive effort by the defense, the Walsh offense was able to capitalize on two key turnovers that resulted in excellent field position.
Walsh quarterback Mary Sullivan ran for one touchdown in the first quarter and followed this early effort with a touchdown pass to C.G. Low in the second.
Sullivan was also able to connect with Marie Brenner and Laurie Wasikowski for several key completions on these scoring drives.
"Mary is really consistent and just makes big plays when we need them," Campbell said.
The outcome of this contest came as a huge disappointment for the Ducks, who were looking to end their season on positive footing with a victory.
Despite the loss, Howard sophomore linebacker Laura Plis commended her team's effort and was quick to point out the talent the Wild Women possess on offense.
"Our offense was really able to move the ball downfield in a couple of our drives and we really had some opportunities to put some points on the board but things just weren't going our way tonight," Plis said.
"[Walsh] has a really quick quarterback who is also a good passer."
The Ducks were able to drive the ball twice within the Wild Women 5-yard line but were unable to turn their offensive production into scores.
"We had a couple of tough breaks on offense with those interceptions coming off of tipped passes and were just unable to take advantage of some opportunities to score," Plis said.
Despite the tough season for the Ducks, the team is still hopeful looking ahead to next year. Howard ended the season without a win or an offensive touchdown, but showed remarkable improvement on offense throughout the course of the year.
"Regardless of how the scores look, our offense really showed its improvement tonight," Plis said. "They brought us to within striking distance twice and moved the ball.
"We're looking forward to next year with one of four seniors coming back and a lot of underclassmen who really came together and improved as the year wore on."
The Wild Women, meanwhile, look ahead to a difficult playoff schedule and seek to hang tough against a strong field of competitors.
"We're definitely optimistic about the playoffs and we're hopeful to prove ourselves," Campbell said.
