Oxnard Speed Breaks Through Palos Verdes Defense in Final
Two long scores from Oxnard players erased an early Palos Verdes lead, resulting in an 18-12 defeat in the Division 1 girls flag football championship.
By Sanjay Caldwell ·
Palos Verdes built a 6-0 lead in the first quarter, but Oxnard’s speed dismantled the Sea Kings’ defensive strategy in the second half. The Yellow Jackets won the CIF Southern Section Division 1 girls flag football championship 18-12 at Huntington Beach High School on Saturday.
PV coach Bryan Tsudama said the team practiced specifically to keep Oxnard quarterback Ryanna Harris contained in the pocket. His defense initially executed that plan. Ava McGovern and Audrey Goeppner rushed hard enough to force Oxnard into an eight-yard combined loss on its first two plays. That early pressure forced a punt and gave PV the first possession of the game.
PV scored first on a 25-yard touchdown run by McGovern. The play started with a hook-and-ladder catch by Addie Eroen. The score put PV up 6-0 with 5:56 left in the first quarter. Ellie Correa noted that the offense aimed for short, quick passes to create momentum. That specific drive worked, but the rhythm slowed as Oxnard began to anticipate the pattern.
The game tied at 6-6 after the first half. PV’s offense stalled on a fourth-and-2 from the Oxnard 22-yard line. A pass from Correa to McGovern fell short of the first-down marker. The defense held Oxnard out of the end zone through the first two possessions of the second half, with Eroen and April Sanchez intercepting two passes. PV punted with 1:02 left in the half, handing the momentum to Oxnard.
Oxnard capitalized immediately. Starting at the PV 30, the Yellow Jackets needed four plays before Nona Moreno caught a 10-yard touchdown pass. The tie score set the stage for the second half, where PV’s offense consumed nearly eight minutes on its opening drive but stalled inside the Oxnard 20. A sack on the final play of that possession ended the drive with no points.
Two long scores defined the rest of the game. Harris fielded a punt at the PV 12 and ran 68 yards for a touchdown, giving Oxnard a 12-6 lead with 10:30 remaining. Later, Harris connected with Mariah Tutt over the middle. Tutt ran 61 yards for a touchdown, extending the lead to 18-6 with 5:11 left. Tsudama identified those two chunk plays as the reason for the loss, stating the team could not stop the big plays.
PV scored on its final two drives to keep the game within reach. Goeppner caught a 19-yard pass that moved the ball to the Oxnard 12. Two plays later, Ava Kordich caught an 11-yard touchdown pass, cutting the deficit to 18-12 with 2:56 remaining. The PV defense forced another Oxnard punt, setting up a final chance for the Sea Kings.
Correa led the offense down to the Oxnard 29 with 1:50 on the clock. The final pass fell incomplete, sealing the victory for Oxnard. Correa described the final drive as stressful, noting she did not realize how little time was left until the moments before the last snap.
