Highland Dominates UofA Girls Flag Football Tournament

Wednesday night saw 17 girls flag football teams from both the valley and Southern Arizona battle it out at UofA. 

Here are the games we covered during pool play and bracket play.

Pool Play

Campo Verde vs. Chandler 

The first pool play game of the day saw the defending 5A champions, the Campo Verde Coyotes, and the upcoming Chandler Wolves battle it out. 

From the jump, the game was a shootout. 

The Wolves struck first on the opening drive of the game. 

2027 athlete Ariana Martin rolled out to her left and lofted it up to 2028 wide receiver Jacqueline Gonzalez for the touchdown. 

The Coyotes would also march down the field. 

After getting near the goal line, 2028 running back Miriam Edgeston burst up the middle of the field for a score. 

Chandler responded quickly, however, as Martin threw her second touchdown pass of the contest. 

The game continued to be a classic shootout. 

Scoring on a one-play touchdown, Moreno launched a ball to 2028 athlete Claire McMahon.

Both teams scored two more times before the game concluded.

For a second and third time, Martin and Gonzalez connected for touchdowns to put Chandler up. 

The Coyotes pulled out the tricks to get back in the end zone. 

Moreno would launch the ball once again to McMahon, but instead of her scoring, McMahon pitched it back to her teammate, who scored off the play. 

Then, on the final play of the game, Moreno made multiple defenders miss to score a rushing touchdown.

After both teams traded touchdowns, the game would conclude in a 25-25 tie. 

Highland vs. Corona del Sol 

The Highland Hawks and Corona del Sol Aztecs matched up for the last pool play game of the night. 

Entering the game, Highland was 2-0 after defeating Highland and Marana. 

The Hawks looked to go 3-0 during the pool play portion. 

On the first play of the game, 2028 quarterback Lacie Nemchick launched a 40-yard bomb to 2029 athlete Ela Witcher for the touchdown. 

Not too long after scoring the touchdown, the Hawks' defense also pulled through. 

2028 athlete Ella Mutters read the Aztecs' offense perfectly to snag an interception. 

Mutters is a new addition to the Highland Hawks after transferring in from Campo Verde this past season. 

Highland capitalized on the turnover to add to their lead. 

Instead of using her arm this time to score, Nemchick danced her way around defenders to score a rushing touchdown. 

The Hawks scored once more to put the game out of reach. 

Nemchick dumped it off to 2027 running back Aylleen Murillo, who did the rest with her legs to score the touchdown. 

Highland would win 19-0 and obtain the first seed in bracket play. 

Bracket Play

Hamilton vs. Gilbert 

In the first round of bracket play, the Hamilton Huskies dueled the Gilbert Tigers.

The two-time defending 6A champions, the Hamilton Huskies, got on the board first. 

2029 quarterback Athena Vasquez found 2027 wide receiver Markiah Riley on a deep bomb.

Riley extended her arms to make the crucial catch for the touchdown. 

Not only did the offense look efficient, but the Huskies' defense also prevented Gilbert from gaining any momentum. 

Hamilton forced a turnover on downs four times during the game. 

Later in the game, Hamilton added to their lead. 

The duo between Vasquez and Riley produced one more touchdown to give Hamilton a 13-0 lead late in the game. 

When she wasn’t throwing touchdown passes for her team, Vasquez was also making an impact on the defensive end. 

Vasquez wound up snagging an interception after making one of the best catches of the night. 

Even though the score was 14-0, Gilbert was able to find a positive play late in the game.

2027 athlete Jasmine Guerrero snagged an interception in the end zone after the ball bobbled between multiple players. 

Ultimately, though, Hamilton won 14-1 and advanced to the semifinals. 

Highland vs. Hamilton

After facing each other during pool play, the Highland Hawks and Hamilton Huskies squared off one more time in the semifinals. 

The game was close the whole way. 

Highland gained momentum early as they scored on their opening drive. 

In what was one of the strongest connections of the night, Nemchick threw a strike to Witcher on the left sideline for a 40-yard touchdown. 

Both sides stalled on offense as the score remained 7-0 for a while. 

The defenses for both teams were elite and kept forcing turnovers on downs. 

Later in the game, Hamilton got on the board to keep it close. 

All the way from the 20-yard line, Vasquez called her own number and scampered into the end zone. 

Highland came through on the PAT attempt, though.

The Hawks' secondary shut down Hamilton for the PAT attempt and allowed them to hold onto a 7-6 lead late in the contest. 

The Huskies ended up getting one more chance to take the lead.

The Hawks ended the comeback attempt, though, as they didn’t allow Hamilton to get the first down. 

Highland would win the close game 7-6 and move into the championship match. 

Highland vs. Marana

The highly anticipated championship was between the Highland Hawks and the Marana Tigers. 

For the entire game, Highland dominated on both sides of the ball.

Marana started with the ball, but it quickly became the Hawks'. 

Highland snagged an interception on the first play of the game to set the tone. 

Then, like they did multiple times already during the day, Nemchick and Withcer connected on a one-play touchdown. 

The Hawks' defense kept creating turnovers. 

Mutters snagged an interception to once again give the Highland offense the ball back.

Highland kept capitalizing on the turnovers. 

After marching down the field quickly, Nemchick dumped it off to Highland 2029  athlete Alyha Morgan for the easy score. 

It was still all gas, no brakes for the Hawks.

On their third offensive drive of the game, Nemchick rolled out right and delivered a perfect pass to Witcher, who took it to the house. 

Highland then snagged two more interceptions to make it four total on the game.

Nemchick also threw two more touchdown passes to cap off her great performance. 

One of them was to Highland 2027 center Bella Blum, while the other was to 2028 athlete Sky Thayer. 

The Hawks dominated in the championship game as the final score was 37-0. 

From the start of the tournament to the end of the day, Highland was dominant.

Highland finished the day 6-0 and as the champions of the UofA flag football tournament.