Dillard, Miami High flag football teams headed to state
There was no basketball in their hands this time. Instead, Dillard stars Genovea Johnson and Kayla Burrows were playing a little football.
Two months after helping leading their girls’ basketball team to a state title, the two combined again on Tuesday afternoon as they executed a perfect option pitch play for a 16-yard third-quarter touchdown. That turned out to be the only score of the game as the Panthers, in a defensive battle, knocked off Edison 6-0 in a Class 1A flag football regional final at Traz Powell Stadium.
The win advances Dillard (13-1) to the state final four for the first time since 2007 when they lost to Tallahassee Leon in the title game. The Panthers will take on St. Cloud Harmony in a state semifinal Saturday at 10 a.m. at Boca Raton High School.
“A good job being disciplined, staying in place, not letting any players get behind us and minimizing our mistakes today,” said Dillard head coach Enewetok Ramsey, who was the coach back in 2007 when they made it to the final. “It’s an awesome feeling to have an opportunity to advance to state again but the goal this time is to try and come back with the championship trophy, not the runner-up.”
After a scoreless first half that saw each team manage just one first down, Johnson, the team’s quarterback, led her team downfield on a long drive.
On third down from the Edison 16, she then ran a perfectly executed option play. When Edison defenders collapsed on her, she pitched out at the last second to Burrows, who strolled into the end zone untouched.
“They were overloaded on the right side so we saw there was a lot of room on the left and then it was just about the connection between the two of us,” said Burrows. “I knew she would pitch it to me and was ready to take it.”
Johnson added: “It’s just about trying to read the defense and then kind of communicate with each other. We played basketball together and won a state title so now we want to win one in flag as well and bring the prize home.”
The Red Raiders (12-3) had struggled on offense all game long but managed to finally put one last desperation drive together. On third down from the Dillard 14, it appeared they had tied the score when quarterback Lonesha Howell found Charkeria Cooper in the corner of the end zone for an apparent score. But Cooper bobbled the ball and couldn’t hang on.
Burrows recorded a sack on the next play to end the drive with three minutes left. Faced with a third and four at her own 26 with 1:45 to play, Johnson dove for the sticks on a sweep to the right and made the first down by a yard. The Panthers ran the clock out from there.
▪ Class 2A regional final: Miami High had a flair for the dramatic on Tuesday afternoon.
Hosting Cooper City at Curtis Park, the Lady Stingarees were down to their last breath. Trailing the Cowboys 7-6 with less than a minute left, quarterback Jaynah Rodriguez dropped back and found Shekinah Rachel for a 47-yard touchdown pass to lift MHS to a 13-7 victory and state final four berth.
Miami High will face Lake Worth Park Vista in a state semi on Saturday at 1 p.m. at Boca Raton High School. Park Vista defeated Davie Western 13-2 to advance to the state semi.
The Stings took a 6-0 lead in the second quarter on a 23-yard double pass play from Rodriguez to Samylia Ward to Colleen Bucknor.
This story was originally published May 8, 2019 at 12:42 AM.