In an inaugural sports season, everything’s new. Too new. It’s constant learning and growing — often painfully — because it takes time to develop any measure of success.
The Bakersfield Christian High girls flag football team, playing a sport that is making its debut this fall, will be measured a lot for what transpired Saturday at its on-campus football stadium.
The Eagles hosted a one-day, five-team tournament, their inaugural event and the team’s first home games after playing the past 13 this season all on the road. They were joined by Los Angeles Windward, Madera, Paso Robles and Lompoc.
The result? Bakersfield Christian defeated Paso Robles 20-14 in the championship game, concluding a four-game day for the Eagles, who improved their record to 9-8.
The Eagles faced only two teams, Paso Robles and Lompoc. BCHS won its opener 26-6 over the Bearcats and then lost 19-13 in overtime to the Braves. BCHS avenged the loss in a 27-0 victory over Lompoc in a semifinal to earn its title shot.
“It feels really good,” BCHS head coach Nathan Munson said after the final. “We’re used to having a long day because we’ve been traveling and playing all of our games on the road.”
The visiting Bearcats had to play an extra game after an 0-2 start against BCHS and a 26-7 loss to Madera. Since every team was guaranteed three games, Paso Robles (6-7-1) rallied with playoff wins over Windward, 13-6, and 6-0 in its second go-around with Madera to reach the championship final.
Ultimately, though, the day belonged to the tournament hosts. Fielding a roster with only two players with any flag football experience, Munson was able to get Eagle student-athletes who play other sports such as basketball, soccer, softball and one on the cheer team to play together and compete in something new.
“We’ve all been learning to trust each other and trust the work we’ve all put in,” Kalaya Miller, a senior standout who was named the tournament’s most valuable player, said. “We’ve struggled at times but we’ve maintained that trust and pushed on.”
In the title game, just as she did in the Eagles’ previous tournament games, Miller was a spark.
When Paso Robles had to punt on its first possession of the game, the kick went to Miller, who ran down the left side of the 80-yard field and scored on a 43-yard punt return. The extra-point pass by freshman Bella Soliz was incomplete.
BCHS took a 13-0 lead early in the second quarter on a 5-yard touchdown pass from Soliz to Miller. Soliz and Ellie Herdon connected on the extra-point pass. That score held up until Paso Robles quarterback Ava Voight threw a 17-yard touchdown pass to Julia Cox and Voight then threw to Amayah Buenrostro for the extra point.
Buenrostro then intercepted a Soliz pass, giving the Bearcats the ball at the BHCS 37. A pass interference call against the Eagles and an 18-yard pass play from Voight to Cox set up Paso Robles to take the lead. Voight threw a 4-yard touchdown pass to Kate Harrington. Voight’s point-after-touchdown pass to Genesis Gavilanes made it 14-13 with three minutes left in the third quarter.
BCHS started at its own 15. A 10-yard run by Soliz and a Paso Robles penalty was followed by a big throw from Soliz to Abby Elizalde, who caught the ball after it was tipped by Paso Robles defender Lila Colegrove, and got to the Bearcats’ 6-yard-line. The Eagles ran two plays in which the ball was hiked directly to freshman Tatum Martin and she had the option to throw or run. She got 3 yards on her first run and scored from 3 yards for what became the game-winning score with 11:15 left. Soliz ran in for the extra point.
Both teams had drives that stalled in the fourth quarter, but on Paso Robles’ last drive, Voight’s pass was intercepted by Elizalde. The Eagles drove to the 3-yard line and ran the clock out.
“This tournament win means a lot to us,” Miller said. “It’s the first year for us and my one and only year since I’m a senior. I wanted to make it a good one.”
BCHS has one more home game, against Madera-Matilda Torres, set for 6 p.m. Tuesday.
