JSerra flag football edges Orange Lutheran to claim Trinity League title ...Middle East

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SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO — Explosive scoring plays by multi-sport athletes. An audible by freshmen for a stunning touchdown. And leaping catches followed by jubilant reactions.

JSerra’s girls flag football team showed again Thursday that its combination of athleticism, on-field intelligence and enthusiasm are tough to beat.

Three different players scored touchdowns as the Lions edged Orange Lutheran 21-20 to capture the outright Trinity League title and remain undefeated.

JSerra (23-0, 5-0), ranked No. 1 in Orange County and the nation by MaxPreps, completed a two-game sweep in league of the No. 2 Lancers (20-2, 3-2), the reigning CIF-SS Division 1 champion.

“The girls love each other,” said JSerra coach Brian Ong, whose team beat Orange Lutheran 18-7 on Sept. 30. “We have a lot of fun getting after it. If I describe (them) in one word, it’s hungry. These girls are hungry.”

“They set out with some goals, some big goals that are hard to achieve. We accomplished one of them today winning Trinity League, but we’re on to another goal of winning CIF, and it’s going to take a lot of work.”

JSerra sealed the victory with 1:43 left in the fourth quarter. The Lions took a 21-12 lead on 1-yard touchdown grab by Kai Beary on a pass from freshman Kate Meier and a leaping reception for the extra-point by freshman Ava Irwin on a toss from Ava Van Heerde.

After the conversion, Irwin jumped into the arms of Beary, a soccer goalie who is committed to Texas.

“I’m grateful,” Beary said of the Lions’ success. “We did good last year, and we went to CIF thinking we were going to win (Division 1). We’ve been good this season about being a little more humble and not getting in our heads.”

Orange Lutheran, led by quarterback Makena Cook and wide receiver Josie Anderson, pushed to the end. Cook tossed a 1-yard TD pass to Ruby Fuamatu with 6.7 seconds left and ran in a 2-point conversion.

But JSerra’s big plays were too much.

GG Szczuka, a running back who lined up at wide receiver, caught a 52-yard touchdown pass from Van Heerde in the middle of the second quarter as the Lions took a 7-6 lead.

Szczuka, who is committed to SMU for soccer, said she snagged the long pass from Van Heerde after it deflected off her face. Van Heerde displayed her strong arm from softball.

In the third quarter, JSerra answered an Orange Lutheran score with a 45-yard pass from Meier to Sterling Flores, a freshman center. Ong said his players called an audible for the long pass on fourth-and-4 that gave the Lancers a 14-12 advantage.

“We weren’t supposed to even snap the ball on that play,” Szczuka said. “It was crazy just because I don’t think (Orange Lutheran) was expecting it.”

Anderson finished with a school-record 25 receptions for 216 yards. The junior is committed to Pepperdine for soccer.

“We played much better,” Orange Lutheran coach Kristen Sherman said. “We gave up one drive and two explosive (plays).”

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