Mustangs upset Dons

“We had an OT battle with Burlingame last week that we lost,” Capuchino head coach Andre Kelley said. “We’re getting better.”

Aragon came into the game with one loss on the season to an undefeated Carlmont team during the first week of the season. The Dons were tied with Mills entering Wednesday — and with the Vikings knocking off Terra Nova — Aragon suddenly finds itself in third place.

The game had an ebb and flow to it, with teams alternating between moving the ball and going three-and-out, which Aragon did on its first drive.

On the Mustangs’ first possession, they had some success moving the ball. Quarterback Natalia Ortiz found Lily Thomas for a 10-yard gain and Ortiz came back for an 11-yard gain to Nadia Keishk for a first down. Ortiz connected with Thomas for another 11-yard gain before, eventually, Capuchino had to turn the ball over the down.

But the Mustangs took advantage of the early confidence, especially Ortiz.

“In the beginning (of the season), I kept throwing interceptions,” Ortiz said. “I’m just more calm and I’ve been working with my dad (on throwing the ball).”

Ortiz had her best performance of the season. She was 9-for-11 for 86 yards in the first half alone and finished the game completing 72% of passing, going 13-for-18 for 136 yards.

The only thing missing for Ortiz was the touchdown pass that gave the Mustangs a 7-0 lead just before halftime. After a pair of Aragon drives stalled out, Cap took over at its own 20-yard line with 2:18 left in the first half. Phoenix Pinon and Thomas had catches of 17 and 12 yards, respectively, for a first down at the Aragon 37.

Thomas would lead the Mustangs in catches and receiving yards, finishing with five receptions for 76 yards. Keishk had four catches for 30 yards and Pinon three for 22.

The Mustangs eventually faced a fourth-and-6 from the 26-yard line when Ortiz took the snap, tossed a pitch to Avery Montroni, who found Alana Koenig for a 26-yard touchdown strike with 25 seconds left in the half.

“We have a lot of talent,” Ortiz said. “We just had to put it together.”

The Dons nearly answered before the halftime buzzer, when quarterback Kathryn Ramseyer found Janelle Jee for a 30-yard gain down to the Mustangs’ 30, but an interception from Cap’s Kaitlyn Staff ended the threat.

The Dons finally managed to push the ball over the goal line on their first drive of the second half. Remseyer starred on the drive: she completed a 10-yard pass to Jee on the frist play, rushed for 14 yards on the second, and added an 19-yard run later in the drive. Her 14-yard scamper took the ball down to the 1 before Maya Yoo swept into the end zone for the score, cutting the Cap lead to 7-6.

The Dons, however, failed to convert on the extra-point to still trail by 1.

Capuchino had its biggest play of the game on its next play from scrimmage when Ortiz hit Thomas on crossing pattern that she turned into a 30-yard gain, however, the Mustangs turned the ball over on downs inside the Aragon 20.

Neither team could muster much offensively the rest of the way. Capuchino’s Zia Baliu continues to be one of the best flag pullers in the league, as she notched three more “sacks” against the Dons.

“She’s our best flag puller,” Kelley said. “I noticed it during tryouts.”

Remseyer’s was Aragon’s main weapon. She rushed for 52 yards on nine carries, while also completing 9-of-15 passes for 108 yards.

It could have been a lot more, however, but the Dons’ receivers suffered a case of the dropsies at the wrong time.

“[We] weren’t catching today. Balls were just bouncing off us,” Aragon head coach Barbara Beaumont said. “Cap was a tough team.”

Mills 9, Terra Nova 0

In a sport that is based around throwing the ball, the Vikings are one of the few teams that commits to the run.

But that doesn’t mean the Vikings can’t throw the ball. They put together a balanced attack against the Tigers and then relied on their defense to post their fifth shutout in eight games.

“It’s a passing game and people sprinkle in the run,” Mills head coach Erik Anderson said. “We try to run and sprinkle in the pass.”

Like it’s done most of the season, Mills managed to moved the ball between the 20s, but struggled to put the ball in the end zone. The Vikings picked up an initial first down on its first drive before turning the ball over on downs.

But they got the ball right back on one of the most spectacular interception you will see. On a pass toward the left sideline, Mills’ Brooke Phimsoutham jumped up, stuck her arm up to full extension, and made a suction-cup, one-handed pick.

The Vikings couldn’t take advantage, however, and turned the ball over downs.

After the teams exchanged punts, Mills finally got its offense rolling and hit pay dirt just before halftime. Lina Vaka rumbled for 15 yards on the first play. Facing a fourth-and-1, quarterback Luna Mengel-Yoshimura found Kalyssa Chu for a 1-yard completion and a first down.

But Chu broke free and charged down to the 2-yard line for a 37-yard gain. On first-and-goal, Mengel-Yoshimura hit Vaka on quick pass for the touchdown with 38 seconds left in the half.

Mills had another long drive in the second half, but came up empty, turning the ball over on the Terra Nova 5-yard line. The Vikings got a bit lucky on the next play, however, as the Tigers fumbled the ball into the end zone on a pitch play.

In flag football, a fumble is instantly a dead ball and because it was in the end zone, it was a safety for the Mills and a 9-0 lead.

The Vikings’ bid for a second touchdown was thwarted on their next drive, as Terra Nova’s Shannon Hagemann intercepted a pass in the end zone.

The Vikings, as a team, completed 11-of-22 passes for 137 yards. Mengel-Yoshimura amassed 134 yards of total offense, passing for 95 and rushing for a team-leading 39. Chu added 32 yards on five carries, while Vaka was the leading receiver, finishing with four catches for 47 yards and the score.

Terra Nova managed 46 yards of offense in the loss.