Northwood avenges first round PCL loss to Woodbridge with key road victory

Northwood players get ready to exchange handshakes with Woodbridge after Wednesday’s win. (PHOTOS: Tim Burt, OC Sports Zone).

Northwood moved ahead early in the fourth quarter then stopped Woodbridge’s late drive to capture a 13-6 victory over the Warriors in a highly-competitive and intense Pacific Coast League girls flag football game Wednesday at Woodbridge.

The victory helped Northwood (11-11, 9-2) avenge a first-round loss to Woodbridge. Portola (10-1) leads the league while Woodbridge (14-8, 9-2) and Northwood are tied for second place.

All three teams appear headed to the CIF playoffs.

“It was a fun game, competitive, we always go head to head with Woodbridge,” said Northwood Coach Harry Lee. “It was a hard fought game. All of our receivers stepped up big.”

Northwood quarterback Natalie Keith led the Northwood offense and also was a standout on defense.

“Natalie pretty much runs the offense and the defense,” Lee said. “She’s pretty much the leader on our team and she helped us get this win.”

Early in the fourth quarter, with the score tied 6-6, the Timberwolves drove from their own 32-yard line to the Woodbridge 3-yard line. Keith connected with Hailey Brennan on a TD pass and Brennan then took the snap and converted the PAT to put Northwood ahead 13-6.

Woodbridge, led by freshman quarterback Delia Stone, helped the Warriors get into Northwood territory on their last drive. But Northwood made a stop on fourth down with about a minute remaining to seal the win.

Keith also threw a 24-yard touchdown pass to Tessa Nguyen with 9:31 left in the second quarter to tie the game. The Timberwolves came up short on the conversion.

After a scoreless first quarter, Woodbridge got into scoring position on passes from Stone to Naiomi Tase. The Warriors then moved ahead 6-0, on a TD run by freshman Lauren Gagnier. The Warriors were unable to convert the PAT.

Woodbridge was able to move the ball the rest of the first half, but wasn’t able to extend its lead.

“It was a hard-fought battle between two good teams,” said Woodbridge Coach Mark Thompson. “Northwood is a good team, well coached and they’re playing tough this year. The quarterback is really intense, she’s really good. They just made more plays than we did today.”

Thompson was pleased with the play of Stone leading the offense.

“She’s a very dynamic player, we’re excited to see what she does in the future,” Thompson said.

The coach said other players stepped up too.

“Dyllan Harris is a key component to our team and Loghan (Everett) stepped up as a receiver making some really critical catches,” Thompson said.

“I’m really excited to see the growth of our team from the beginning to where we are now. They’ve gotten better every day, of course every team is getting better every days.”

Northwood is coming off a CIF Division 2 title last season in the first year of CIF-sanctioned playoffs for the sport.

Lee, the coach, isn’t looking too far ahead though this season.

“One game at a time, we want to finish the season strong so that if we do go into the playoffs, we can have the same journey as last year,” he said.

For full view, click on the photo:

—Tim Burt, OC Sports Zone; timburt@ocsportszone.com