BY GENE NARDI
On Wednesday, April 20, the Seminole Ridge High School girls flag football team hosted Pahokee High School and shut out the Blue Devils 33-0 to cap senior night with a victory.
The win also puts an exclamation point on the Hawks’ season. The team remains unbeaten at 11-0 entering postseason play.
Hawk quarterback Madeline Harding led the way, throwing for five touchdowns. The Hawks started off in traditional fashion, scoring on their first two drives. Harding hit Kaci Sleeth on a 10-yard score, and then Yazmin Salguero for a short 3-yard touchdown to put the Hawks up 14-0 with two minutes left in the first quarter.
The Seminole Ridge defense threw down a potent assault on the Blue Devil offense, limiting them to just one first down in the first half.
In the second quarter, Harding found Sleeth again through the air for a 12-yard touchdown pass to extend the Hawk lead to 21-0. Near the end of the first half, Harding connected with Christine Schergen on a 10-yard score to put the Hawks up 27-0 at halftime.
In the second half, Seminole Ridge relied on its defense to carry the distance. The Hawks’ relentless defense shut down the Pahokee offense, and Cheyenne Baird’s quick rushing ability racked up five sacks that were key.
Harding found Ellie Centeno for the Hawk’s final score of the night that put the team ahead 33-0. The Seminole Ridge defense continued to dominate the Pahokee offense, and limited the Blue Devils to just one first down in the second half.
The margin put the contest out of reach for Pahokee, and the game ended at the two-minute mark with the score still 33-0.
Harding recorded five touchdown passes, Sleeth added two scores, and Baird had five sacks for the defense. Salguero, Schergen and Centeno combined for three scores.
With the win, Seminole Ridge ends the regular season undefeated at 11-0, and remains the state’s top-ranked team. The Hawks are the No. 1 seed entering postseason district play this week.
The Hawks look to defend their state title and make a run at back-to-back state titles. Last season, the Hawks defeated Robinson High School 12-0 for the state championship.
ABOVE: Hawks receiver Yazmin Salguero is on her way for a touchdown.
