Flag Football qualifies for State Championship with 12-1 season record

Your Lady Trojans Flag Football team punched their ticket to the first ever High School State Championship this past Saturday at the North Texas Championship Tournament! The top two teams would advance to State, and our girls proved they belonged on that stage.

"We went into Saturday as the underdogs, but this team has shown all season long that heart, toughness, and belief can take you a long way." - Crystal Perez, Head Coach

Our first game was against Paschal. We started off a little slow, and I think nerves played a part in that, but once our girls settled in and found their rhythm, there was no stopping them. The offense got rolling and the defense locked in as we beat Paschal 29-6 to advance to the semifinals against the defending State Champions, Arlington Martin.

Arlington Martin came out strong and set the tone early, scoring on their first drive to take a 7-0 lead. Their defense stopped us on our opening drive, but our defense answered immediately with a stop of their own. Then came one of the biggest plays of the day. Emma connected with Lynn Blue on a pass, and Lynn took off making four defenders dive and miss her flag while picking up a huge gain. A few plays later, Emma found Kennedie in the end zone for the touchdown to tie the game 7-7.

Our defense stepped up once again and shut Arlington Martin down to give the ball back to the offense. Emma then threw another touchdown pass, this time to Lynn Blue, giving us a 14-7 lead. Arlington Martin fought back and scored late in the second half, but our defense came through again by stopping the extra point attempt, keeping us ahead 14-13.

Arlington Martin’s defense came up with another stop late in the game, giving their offense one final chance with under two minutes remaining. Once again, our defense rose to the moment and shut them down. With great advice and clock management from Coach Gillmore on the sidelines, we were able to use the remaining time to our advantage and secure the huge 14-13 victory over the defending champions to advance to the Championship game.

In the Championship, we faced a very talented Rockwall Heath team and came up short. It was our first loss of the season after entering the game with a 12-0 record. Rockwall Heath was the better team that game, but our girls learned a lot from the experience and never stopped fighting.

The biggest win of the day is that your Lady Trojans are STATE BOUND and will compete in the first ever High School State Championship on June 13th! We could not be more proud of this team, their toughness, resilience, and the way they continue to represent Newman Smith. TOGETHER AS ONE! 💚💛