The girls’ flag football team beat the Burlingame Panthers 14-0 on Wednesday evening.
The Bears had a powerful start with senior defensive back Samantha Ruiz blocking the Panthers’ handoff. On just the second play, senior linebacker Elise Koo intercepted a pass that gave the Bears a first down at the 15-yard line.
Senior quarterback Mae Kunihiro capitalized on the early turnover by sending a ball over to junior halfback Juliana Pandolfo to secure the first touchdown of the game. M-A’s attempt to gain another point was blocked by the Panthers’ defensive linemen, leaving the Bears up 6-0 with 10:18 left in the quarter.
The Panthers’ offense tried to bounce back with a 10-yard run to get a first down. However, their effort were thwarted by Pandolfo, who knocked the ball down for a stop, and then followed up with an interception to return possession to the Bears.
M-A continued to dominate offensively thanks to a run from Kunihiro that gave them their second touchdown of the game. The Bears then attempted a two-point conversion, but Kunihiro’s pass was incomplete, keeping their lead at 12-0 with 3:35 left in the first quarter.
The Panthers started their drive at the 26-yard line, but the Bears’ defense remained relentless, as senior linebacker and receiver Ryland Caelius immediately intercepted the ball.
Kunihiro, sophomore wide receiver Cassidy Thomas, and junior halfback Emma Loose worked together flawlessly to gain yardage and push downfield. Despite their best efforts, they were unable to score before the clock ran out, ending up 12-0.
The Bears started the second quarter at first and goal with senior Alex Alvarado at quarterback after Kunihiro suffered a minor ankle injury on second down.
On fourth down with 10 yards to go, the Bears took a timeout. Once back on the field, Alvarado sent a good ball to Thomas just short of the goal line, which turned the ball over to the Panthers.
The Panthers took over possession on their one-yard line, and strong defense from Ruiz allowed the Bears to get a safety, bringing the score up to 14-0 with 7:38 left in the second quarter.
Caelius intercepted a Panthers pass for their fourth interception of the game. As the Bears started back on offense, they were flagged for offensive holding on first down, causing them to receive a 10-yard penalty. M-A couldn’t get any yardage, and on fourth down, senior punter Allie Orzechowski launched the ball into the end zone for a touchback.
The Bears’ defense shut down the Panthers yet again, with senior linebacker Bailee Van Loben Sels leading the charge by pressuring the Burlingame quarterback. The Bears ended the half still up 14-0.
M-A began the third quarter with the ball at their 14-yard line, but a series of incomplete passes forced Orzechowski to punt into Panther territory, giving them the ball at the 38-yard line.
The Bears’ defense stayed secure, as Caelius snagged another interception on the fourth down. Even so, M-A continued to have trouble offensively, with Burlingame forcing another punt to turn over possession.
Koo, Ruiz, and Pandolfo maintained a tight defense, keeping the Panthers from advancing more than ten yards forward. Finishing up, the Bears ended the third quarter maintaining their 14-0 lead.
The fourth quarter started with M-A turning the ball over on downs. However, strong defense and teamwork stopped any Burlingame advancement and quickly flipped possessions.
Despite not scoring, the Bears had good handoffs between Kunihiro and Thomas, allowing them to gain yardage. With less than four minutes to go, junior defensive back Miya Yu intercepted a Panthers pass on second down.
The clock eventually ran out, and the Bears ended the hard-fought game with a winning score of 14-0.
“I think we definitely went into it with a little bit more anxiousness, and we ended up with a win, but we worked really hard and practiced the entire week to do well,” Caelius said.
“We had a bye week the week before, so we were preparing for this team specifically. We learned their plays and learned how to play defense around that,” Kunihiro said.
“We all put our hearts into this game, and we made sure we worked as a team,” Thomas said.
The Bears will head over to Burlingame to play the Aragon Dons on Wednesday at 3:30 p.m.
