From left to right, Jamestown's Abriel Monaghan, Chrissa Wall and Kaylee Leeper celebrate the Red & Green's 6-0 victory over Lancaster in the Section 6 Division 1 quarterfinal playoffs Wednesday at Strider Field. , Grayson Bloomquist.Pajama photo: Tim Frank
Three weeks ago, when Lancaster visited Strider Field in a Division VI Division 1 flag football game, Jamestown lost by a shutout.
The final score for the day was Legend 33, Red & Green 0.
Wednesday night was a different story.
Senior Ella Propheter connected with junior Kaylee Leeper on a swing pass late in the first half, and the latter brought it home for a 49-yard touchdown. In the regional quarterfinals held at Strider Field, No. 3 Jamestown held off No. 6 Lancaster, 6-0, and this score remained for the remainder of the game.
The win means a semifinal will be played Friday at No. 2 Orchard Park, which advanced last night with a 32-15 win over No. 7 Sweet Home.
Jamestown's Ella Prophet appears to fend off a Lancaster defender during Wednesday's Section 6 Division 1 flag football quarterfinal playoff game at Strider Field.Pajama photo: Tim Frank
Jamestown head coach Steve Profetter certainly wanted to play another home game, but he was happy to learn that the Red & Green's season would continue for at least a few more days.
“The girls realized (at their first meeting with Lancaster) that they had made a mistake, so we asked them to fix it, and they did it. ” Coach Profetter said.
And after seeing how Jamestown (6-4) played, Coach Profetter was satisfied.
“We're really proud of the girls and their attitude,” he added. “It’s a never-quit attitude.”
As was the case this spring, Ella Prophet and Reaper sparked a victory over their Erie County rivals.
Ella Prophet completed 5 of 16 passes for 74 yards, rushed 11 times for 69 yards, collected 14 flag pulls and recorded a pass breakup.
“We didn't have our best game (against Lancaster last month),” she admitted. “We were confident that we could play really well (this time). Our girls prepared very well.”
Leeper had 11 rushes for 36 yards in what Coach Profetter described as a “great night.” He caught three passes for 70 yards and a TD. Collect 5 flag pulls and his 5 pass breakups. Then, late in the game, he intercepted a pass deep in Jamestown's half, stopping Lancaster's scoring threat.
“We asked her to run downhill and that's what she did, and she made some good moves and got to the end zone,” Steve Prophet said. .
Also contributing to Jamestown's defensive shutout were senior Dainise Crews and sophomore Abby Brandow, who each had five flag pulls.
Official statistics for the Legends are not available, but quarterback Julie Benham linked up with Alexa Wolf, Makayla Sand, Katie Kruszkowski, and Caroline Hellenbrook throughout the game, but a poor score inside Jamestown territory in the closing minutes. The snap resulted in a turnover. Ella Prophet took one snap and found 14 yards of running room before the flag was drawn as time expired.
The winner of Friday night's game advances to the divisional championship to be played at Highmark Stadium in Orchard Park. The game is scheduled for Monday at 5 p.m.
“Our goal at the beginning of the season was to get to the sectional finals and we're knocking on the door,” Coach Profetter said. “We're 0-0 now. If we win 1-0 on Friday night, we'll go down the tunnel (at Highmark Stadium on Monday).”
