By Andrea Holtz
In case you have missed it, the Nordonia High School Girls Flag Football Team are in the middle of a five-game winning streak. The Knights went into game action Sunday with a 3-1 record and faced Notre Dame-Cathedral Latin to start their day. After trailing 15-0 due to giving up two early touchdowns and a safety, the Knights battled back under the Senior leadership of Quarterback, Kami Kirchenbauer. As the time was winding down in the first half, she threw a touchdown pass to Junior, Addie Beattie, who was open in the endzone. After missing the extra point conversion, the Knights went into halftime trailing 15-6. The Knights started the second half on offense and wasted no time getting back into the game. Kirchenbauer threw a beautiful 30 yard pass to Junior, Charlotte Naymik, which resulted in a TD. NDCL fought back and scored a touchdown and a two point conversion giving them a 23-12 lead. On the Knights next offensive series, Naymik took a handoff and ran 40 yards for her second touchdown of the game. Senior, Audrey Tyukodi, caught a pass in the endzone from Kirchenbauer for a one point conversion. With the Knights down 23-19 with only minutes left in the game, Freshman Kenzie Ekis came up with a huge interception to put the Knights in position to score.
On the next play, Beattie took a handoff and ran straight into the endzone to put the Knights ahead 25-23. After a missed extra point conversion, the defense was asked to come up with a big stop. Junior, Madisyn Reville, sealed the victory for the Knights with an interception. After running out the clock, the Knights moved onto their next game against Glenville. The defense started exactly as they left off the game before when on the third play of the game, Sophomore, Olivia Beery, got an interception and ran it back to the two yard line. On the first offensive play, Kirchenbauer connected with Tyukodi for the touchdown.
The Knights went up 7-0 after Kirchenbauer threw a one point conversion to sophomore, Ella McCabe. On the next offensive series, Kirchenbauer connected with Beattie for a touchdown giving the Knights a 13-0 lead. Glenville battled back and after a long run, scored a touchdown making it 13-6 Knights. That would be the last score of the game for Glenville as the Knights defense kept them contained the remainder of the game. Kirchenbauer connected with Naymik for another TD and then on the next offensive series for the Knights, Naymik had a 45 yard touchdown run. After completing a two point conversion to Tyukodi, the Knights finished their day with a 27-6 victory over Glenville which leaves them at 5-1 for the season. Head Coach, Steve Holtz, praised the team’s relentless effort and competitive spirit, noting how impressed he was with the intensity the players brought to the field. He expressed pride in their consistent improvement each week and remains optimistic that this momentum will carry them into a strong playoff push in their inaugural season.
