Quarterback Mary Sullivan went 12-20, throwing for 108 yards and two touchdowns to lead the Wild Women of Walsh Hall in a 20-0 victory over Lyons Tuesday night. Walsh preserves its undefeated record at 3-0 while Lyons drops to 1-3.
The win was not without some concern for Walsh. Late in the second half, Sullivan hobbled off the field with a hamstring injury. But after the game, she was walking fine.
"I'll ice it down and I'll be good to go for the next game," she said.
Any hopes for a comeback by Lyons were crushed early in the second half when Emily Williams intercepted quarterback Kim Murphy and returned the pick 20 yards for a touchdown. After the PAT, Walsh led 20-0 and kept it that way the rest of the game.
Lyons' best opportunity to score came on its final drive with 10 minutes left in the game. Murphy, who rotated quarterback duties with Lynn Truitt, found Shannon Brady for a 30-yard gain to the Walsh 30. Lyons then used a pair of runs and a Walsh penalty to get to the 8-yard line. But the Walsh defense held and forced a turnover on downs. The next drive for Walsh lasted eight plays and used all but 10 seconds of the remaining time.
Walsh's offense set the tone for the game on its second possession. Beginning on its own 9-yard line, Walsh drove 71 yards on nine plays, while using most of the clock in the process. On the drive, Sullivan went 3-of-5 passing, eventually finding Marie Brenner on a 5-yard shovel pass for the score. The PAT failed and Walsh led 6-0.
After stopping Lyons on its subsequent drive, Walsh started its next drive on its own 38 with 1:32 remaining in the half. Sullivan then completed four straight passes, including an eight-yard touchdown to Sarah Thomas as the half ended. The PAT made it 13-0 at the break.
All night, Walsh executed complicated shovel passes, options and double options with ease.
"Our team has been well-focused," head coach Brian Burkavage said. "The coaches were very well-prepared. We have some creative offensive minds who play more video games than real football. They come up with some interesting plays."
Lyons' defense was on the field most of the game because Walsh ate up so much of the clock when it had the ball.
"They make me proud," offensive coordinator Chase Gund said. "We played a lot better than Sunday. It's hard to score when you only have the ball four times."
Walsh co-captains Patty Rose and Mary Ellen Botta say part of the key to their success is a focus on the basics.
"We work on fundamentals and have fun," Botta said. "Walsh football equals fun."
Both Walsh and Lyons will battle Cavanaugh in their next respective games.
Cavanaugh 13, Badin 0
Late in the second half Tuesday, Cavanaugh quarterback Lisa Ruffer threw a seven-yard pass to wide receiver Elisa Suarez in the corner of the end zone for the Chaos' second touchdown of the day, cementing Cavanaugh's (3-0) win over the Badin Bullfrogs (1-2).
Earlier in the drive, Cavanaugh was backed up for a second and long following a sack by Bullfrog defensive lineman Katie Jackson, but Ruffer threw a 35-yard pass to give the Chaos first and goal on the Badin 10-yard line.
Badin's offensive ineffectiveness in the early part of the first half provided the Cavanaugh offense consistently good field position, and an interception returned for a touchdown by Lauren Manning gave Cavanaugh an early 6-0 lead.
In the first half, both defenses dominated. Badin stopped Chaos drives on fourth-and-goal twice early in the first half, denied Cavanaugh's extra point attempt after the Manning touchdown and had a shutout going against the Cavanaugh offense until late in the second half with the Suarez touchdown.
In their hopes to catch up with the Chaos, the Bullfrog offense had two promising drives ended by interceptions by Chaos defensive backs Lizzy Brown and Kerri Bergen.
"They stepped up when they needed to step up," Chaos head coach Hunter Craig said. "When they needed a score, they got one. When they needed a defensive stop, they got one."
Despite the turnovers, the Badin offense still performed well on the field, with good completions by freshman quarterback Katie Rose Hackney, solid yardage gained by tailback/wide receiver Courtney Rains and some clutch, as well as acrobatic, catches by receiver Lizzi Shappell.
"We played less than ideal, but it was against a good team," Badin captain Meg Charlebois said. "We just didn't catch the breaks."
But in the end, the Bullfrogs failed to convert a crucial fourth down in the closing minutes of game, giving Cavanaugh the ball back with enough time to kneel down and let the clock run out.
On Sunday, Badin will play Howard and Cavanaugh will play undefeated Walsh.
Lewis 6, Howard 0
With just minutes left to play, Lewis came through with two big plays to deny Howard its first win of the season Tuesday.
Senior quarterback Elisa Valdez hit Katie Klune for a touchdown with less than three minutes left in the second half. Lewis' conversion attempt failed, but Becky Rambo stopped Howard on its following drive with the game's first interception to seal the win for the Chicks.
Lewis' score was the first of the game, a contest marked by strong defensive play and sloppy offense, with both teams suffering from penalties, dropped passes and receivers slipping on the evening dew.
Neither team mustered a drive that even came close to the end zone during the first half. The offenses, though unsuccessful, did not turn over the ball at all, neither fumbling nor throwing interceptions, and staying conservative by punting on fourth down.
"I was really proud of how they pulled it off in the end; it was a heck of a win," Lewis coach Jay Murphy said.
Evan Walsh, head coach of the Ducks, said he also was "extremely" proud of his team, especially his coaching staff and his seniors, Callie Whelan, Renee Alessi and Sheena Ketchum.
Howard was disappointed at falling to 0-3, but is determined to improve, and Lewis was glad to even out its record at 2-2.
