Coming off a lopsided loss to Dos Pueblos on Tuesday, the Santa Barbara High flag football team regrouped and pulled off a signature victory over rival San Marcos on Thursday night.
The Dons overcame a 6-0 halftime deficit with second-half touchdown receptions by Shea Gannon and Alexandra Arnold to defeat the Royals for the first time since the inaugural flag football season in 2023.
With the win, Santa Barbara improved to 6-1 overall and staked its claim as an early favorite in the Pacific View League. San Marcos dropped to 8-3 overall.
The game was a defensive struggle early, but San Marcos freshman Isabella Bazylewicz flashed her game-breaking ability by hauling in a 57-yard touchdown pass from Victoria Aldana with 7:26 remaining in the second quarter. Aldana rolled to her left on the play and lofted the ball downfield as Bazylewicz broke away from the Dons’ secondary.
Santa Barbara drove the ball down the field as the first-half clock ticked down, but a potential 19-yard touchdown pass from Laila Hernandez to Shea Gannon was ruled out of bounds, and the Dons’ drive fizzled.
In the second half, the Dons forced a quick three-and-out before quarterback Laila Hernandez led a scoring drive capped by a touchdown pass to Shea Gannon. Hernandez then connected with Sophia Olmedo on the conversion to give Santa Barbara a 7-6 lead.
A San Marcos turnover near the end of the third quarter set up another Dons scoring opportunity. Hernandez later found Alexandra Arnold for an 18-yard touchdown early in the fourth quarter, extending the lead to 13-6.
San Marcos had a chance to tie the game late after an interception by Bazylewicz, but Santa Barbara’s defense held firm. On fourth down, sophomore Vanessa Esparza broke up a deep pass near the end zone to secure the victory.
Dos Pueblos, 46; Pacifica, 0
The chargers opened the scoring with a long punt return touchdown from Hazel Burgess. Ruby Streatfield then connected with Brooklyn Hedricks for a 2 point PAT conversion to give the chargers an early 8-0 lead. The Chargers scored twice more before halftime with Ava Taiji connecting with Gracie Baker for a touchdown and Streatfield connecting with Kindah Ahmad-Reda. Streatfeild added a rushing touchdown in the second half and threw a second touchdown pass, this time to Jane Gibson. Taiji also added another touchdown passing to Alina Seidel.
On the defensive side, Hedricks had three interceptions, including a pick 6. Vivi Hanning-Yu also added an interception. Makyla Watt had multiple sacks and several QB hurries.
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