Pasquerilla East moved to 4-0 for the season and handed Ryan its first defeat Sunday, winning their matchup 33-20.
Pyros captain and sophomore receiver Noelle Gooding, whose 33-yard fourth-down catch set up her team’s first touchdown, said she was very impressed by her team’s performance in the win.
“Our whole team worked really well together today.” Gooding said “Ryan was a super-tough opponent, but offense or defense, every aspect of our game was just on-point. We had a couple of great picks during the game which was a huge plus for us, [and] we had some great throws from our quarterback, [senior] Macy Mulhall and some great catches.”
Pasquerilla East senior running back Nicole Ameli, who Gooding said did a “fantastic job,” had three touchdowns, including a late 71-yard run down the sideline where she outpaced the Ryan defense to seal the win for the Pyros.
Gooding said contributions from the entire team were vital to the win.
“It was a whole team effort today. There wasn’t one particular play or player who made it the way it was.” Gooding said “From the coaches to the players and fans, everyone gave 100 percent. Just overall, it was a great day.”
Despite seeing her team’s undefeated run come to an end, senior safety and Ryan captain Tatum Snyder took some positives from the game, she said.
“I think we did a good job of keeping our heads in the game and giving everything we had,” Snyder said. “We weren’t able to get what we wanted going, although we did what we could. Our line played great. We made some good throws and good catches.”
Snyder said with more opportunities to prepare, her team should be more successful in the rest of the season than they were Sunday.
“We weren’t able to practice this week because of the weather, so we learned that practice is key,” Snyder said. “We’ve got to be ready to play when we get here, but otherwise we’ve learned that we are a great team.”
Although the Pyros remain undefeated at 4-0, Gooding said her team will continue to take the season one game at a time and not let its record affect its performance.
“We’re just going to keep our heads down and go into our next two games … like they’re any others,” Gooding said.
Following a game against Breen-Phillips on Monday, Pasquerilla East will play Pangborn on Sunday at LaBar Practice Fields. Ryan will have a week to regroup before playing Breen-Phillips on Sunday at LaBar.
