A walk-off touchdown pass from Julia Geis to Jaclyn Jones in the second overtime period lifted Blessed Trinity over Milton 19-13 in the Class 7A state championship at Georgia State’s Center Parc Stadium in Atlanta in the final flag football game of the day.
“Unbelievable,” said Blessed Trinity head coach Brandon Harwell. “Just a great atmosphere, our fans just showed up and this was a phenomenal team in Milton.”
Blessed Trinity took a 7-0 lead on a 46-yard touchdown pass from Julia Geis to Jaclyn Jones with 14 seconds left before the half. Milton tied the game on a 6-yard touchdown pass from Lindsey Gergans to Nora Megenity and an extra point pass from Gergans to Alana Calhoun.
“I don’t want to look at my watch to see what my heart rate was,” Harwell joked about the nerves in the overtime periods. “But we were confident in our ability and we knew that we had really good players. We knew it was going to be a test but we felt good about our opportunity.”
In the first overtime period, Geis passed to Emma Elizabeth Hudkins on a 6-yard touchdown pass to take a 13-7 lead. Milton tied the game at 13 after a pass from Gergans to Allison Oneacre.
“I just cannot say enough about Milton,” Harwell said. “Coach (Clark) Nixon does a wonderful job and it is an amazing team and we knew it was going to be a real challenge for us today. I am just glad we came out on top.”
Southeast Bulloch 13, Harris County 0
Southeast Bulloch began its flag football program two years ago and after a 13-0 victory over Harris County in the A-4A championship, the Yellow Jackets are the first-ever back-to-back state champions in the sport.
“We have worked hard for this,” said head coach Marci Cochran, who has yet to lose a game as the coach of Southeast Bulloch. “We are 39-0 and it’s hard to do that. It’s been a great experience.”
It’s been a long road for coach Cochran and the Yellow Jackets as competition and the quality of play has increased across the board in the sport since its incarnation several years ago.
“It was tough,” Cochran said of her back-to-back title runs. “There are a lot of good teams. It was very hard. Everyone in the state has gotten so much better, as you can tell by the scores a little bit. The defense has stepped it up. It was just a dog fight in the state tournament, every game played.”
Against Harris County, Southeast Bulloch took a 6-0 lead on a 1-yard pass from Kaylee Haas to Alex Odom with 7:17 left in the first half. With 3:39 left in the game, Korine Talkington passed to Abigail Morgan on an 8-yard touchdown to put the game out of reach.
“Flag football is an awesome sport,” Cochran said. “I am so glad that I have the opportunity to coach it and these girls get to play in it. Now everybody in the state of Georgia is getting involved, so that’s really cool.”
Lithia Springs 14, Central-Carroll 0
After losing in the 5A-6A state title game last season 6-0 to Dodge County, Lithia Springs wanted another trip to the title game.
It became an obsession.
Over the next year, the Lions carved out a stingy defense that allowed just one touchdown all season and after its victory over Central-Carroll in the 4A-5A title game, Lithia Springs is a champion for the first time.
“It’s a great feeling,” said head coach Kendra Pleasants. “The girls have worked so hard all season long.”
Against Central, a 1-yard run from Navaeh Shedrick put the Lions up 7-0 with 12:57 left in the first half. Lithia Springs put the game away on a 26-yard pass from Rashiya Minnes to Jaden Graham with 1:43 left in the game.
Lithia Springs outscored their opponents 350-6 this season before the title game, a smothering defensive effort coupled with a high-powered offense.
“We stay disciplined,” Pleasants said. “That has been our motto all season long. Take it one game at a time and playing good defense.”
The lone touchdown was given up in a 25-6 victory over Villa Rica on Nov. 2.
“This trophy will be in my office,” Pleasants laughed. “The next one will be in the trophy case.”
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