Scarsdale and Brewster rally to win Section 1 girls flag football titles
Scarsdale and Brewster went home with the hardware Saturday, winning Section 1 championships at Lakeland High School. Here is our game coverage:
Semifinals: Scarsdale, New Rochelle, Brewster and Tappan Zee keep flag football title hopes alive
DIVISION I
SHRUB OAK – The muted bus ride home is a thing of the past.
After falling short in the Section 1 title game a year ago, Scarsdale played with poise and celebrated a 21-8 win over New Rochelle in the Division 1 championship game Saturday at Lakeland High School.
There’s at least one more game to play.
“It’s a great feeling,” Raiders quarterback Ivy Boockvar said. “I’m so happy I get to keep practicing with this team. Hopefully we keep going, keep getting dubs and win states.”
A bumpy start was just a minor inconvenience.
Scarsdale came up with a fourth-and-goal stop to get the adrenaline flowing, but, a high snap on the ensuing play from the 7 went over the head of Boockvar and into the end zone for a Huguenots safety.
Oops.
The defense got another fourth-and-goal stop, but an indecisive Boockvar pass was picked off at the line by Yessenia Davis.
“We fell behind 12-0 in our semifinal game against Mahopac, and the fun thing about this team is even when things weren’t going well, the girls kept saying, ‘Next play. We only have to make one play.’ They got it done the other day and they got it done again today.”
The defense came through again, forcing a punt and five plays later Boockvar caught a 20-yard touchdown pass form Lilly Tessler.
Scarsdale routinely uses two quarterbacks and occasionally.
“There was a little bit of panic early, but we know what we do well so we put that behind us,” Tessler said. “We still had a whole game to play and we know how to come from behind. We did that in the last game. It’s really great to see the defense get the credit they deserve. They really provided a lot of momentum for the offense, which a lot of times has a lot of the pressure.”
Reese Newman came up with a timely interception early in the second half and brought it back 16 yards for the TD. New Rochelle gave up more ground on the next series when Emilia Gomez came up with a Pick 6, bringing the ball back 35 yards into the end zone.
The Huguenots were down 21-2 and struggling to get the offense rolling.
Brianne Foley did cap a six-play drive with a 1-yard touchdown run with 5:15 to go, but the Raiders used the clock smartly, avoided mistakes and made sure New Rochelle wasn’t able to steal the momentum.
What it means
Scarsdale is moving on to a regional final and will play the Section 9 champion at 5 p.m. on Thursday at Hen Hud. One more win puts the Raiders in the D1 state final four June 1-2 in Cortland.
Player of the game
Boockvar was omnipresent, making an impact on both sides of the line of scrimmage.
They said it
“We’re so much better,” Boockvar said of Scarsdale, which has been in the title game every year since flag football debuted in 2022. “We’ve always had athletic girls, but this year we really started to understand the concept of how to play. We’ve grown a lot of the last two years and it showed here.”
“We have a very, very good team and I’m just excited they finally got it done and I got to be a small part of it,” Newkirk said. “This is a great group of girls and I love them all to death.”
“We’ve lost this game two years in a row and eight of us play soccer together and we lost in the championship game there, so we really brought that experience in here,” Tessler said. “We know a lot of the New Rochelle girls. We play them all the time, so it feels really good to come out victorious.”
DIVISION 2
SHRUB OAK – Brewster is now officially a Section 1 champion.
Ava Fagin and Shay Rookwood lit up the scoreboard and Rebecca Anderson slammed the door, giving the Bears a 24-13 win over Tappan Zee in the Section 1 Division 2 championship game Saturday at Lakeland High School.
Brewster won the unofficial title when the sport debuted three seasons ago and fell in the title game last spring.
“This means so much,” Anderson said. “We’re all so happy and proud of each other and ourselves.”
The Bears trailed 13-6 at the half but posted a shutout in the second half.
“We’re usually not down, so that part was hard,” Fagin said. “We just had to get together and figure it out because we haven’t been there before. It was pretty difficult for a minute, but we did it.”
The playmakers from both sides were ready for the spotlight.
Fagin hit Rookwood for a 12-yard touchdown nine minutes in, but the Dutchmen answered with urgency. Eve Girardi and Nina Vasquez connected for a pair of TDs before the intermission, leaving Brewster in a hole.
“We were struggling at first and maybe a little upset, but we’re supportive of each other and calmed each other down,” Anderson said. “That’s what really helped us. And that support we get from the sideline is really huge. That’s why we were so pumped up.”
Sofia Rosamilia caught a 15-yard Fagin pass for a touchdown on the opening drive of the second half, cutting the deficit to 13-12. The next score was set up by a Kiley Brooks interception and return. Fagin went back to Rookwood for the 6-yard TD.
That’s where Anderson took over.
Girardi was a force, but the Bears sophomore came flying off the line, registering three straight tackles. She forced a Tappan Zee punt and four plays later, Fagan was running 11 yards for the game’s final score.
“We’ve had a couple of games that were tight, but this team is just really tough,” Bears coach Matt Cunningham said. “They don’t get flustered. We have great senior leadership and having Ava, she is something else.”
What it means
Brewster moves on to the regional final and will play Section 9 champion Saugerties at 7 p.m. Thursday at Hen Hud High School. The winner heads for Cortland to play in a NYSPHSAA semifinal.
Player of the game
Rookwood had a pair of touchdown receptions and kept the pressure on Girardi in the second half, registering four needed stops in the process.
They said it
“I was so mad,” Anderson said of her critical two tackle, one sack defensive series. “I was stressed out and trying to get in there.”
“Rebecca and Shay had the biggest impact ever,” Fagin said. “We couldn’t have won this game without them. (Girardi), we couldn’t stop her. She’s just a really good player, so we needed that defense. … It’s amazing to win this year because it’s the first time we have regionals.”
“The sport has grown exponentially,” Cunningham said. “It’s unbelievable how talented these girls are across the board. We have 26 teams now in Section 1. Every year we’ve had to get better and recruit more girls. It’s more competitive, but that’s what makes it fun.”
This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: lohud Section 1 girls flag football championships
