Varsity Girls Flag Football lost 19-13 to Palo Alto High School on Monday, Oct. 13. Facing PAHS for the third time, the Matadors noted showing significant improvement, tying the Vikings 6-6 in the first quarter and 13-13 in the second. However, the team fell behind in the last two quarters, ending the game with a six-point difference.
Junior and fullback Isobel Schweigert felt that the heavy rain throughout made playing particularly difficult, specifically pulling PAHS’ flags and catching the ball, which impacted their performance in the second half. Additionally, Schweigert notes the team was missing several key players, which complicated their gameplay.
“It was intense throughout the whole game,” Scheiwert said. “But I felt uplifted at halftime because in the past two times we played PAHS, we were losing at halftime. This time, we felt like we were still in the fight.”
Head Coach David Sciplin believes that, despite this loss, the Matadors have had a strong season so far, winning eight out of the 11 games played. With PAHS being the only team MVHS has lost to in this league, Sciplin notes that the Matadors have often been close to beating PAHS at a consistent 6 point disadvantage. However, he feels that the team played well.
“I was hoping for more of a defensive stance,” Sciplin said. “We missed some of our calls, and if we were to tighten this up a little bit, things may have been a little bit different — but the team played well overall. The weather just made it even more difficult.”
Schweigert feels that she and the team were able to bond throughout this game, which helped her establish a closer team dynamic. Especially with the majority of the team being freshmen, Schweigert believes it will be easier for them to develop closer relationships.
“The second we started warming up, we were like, ‘This is going to be a fun day,'” Schweigert said. “We were listening to ‘Umbrella’ by Rihanna, and it was so fun. There is a lot of room for growth, but I think that from this season, we all just started to bond as a team. And that’s what I’m taking away from this game and the season in general — we’re all just really good friends.”
