The Westchester Lady Comets flag football team advanced to the CIF City Section Division II quarterfinals after defeating the Stern Titans 26-7. Comets junior quarterback Tyler Giddens was happy to see her teammates have fun while they compete.
“Because we do work as a team, that if one person has an attitude, it just spreads. It’s like a virus,” Giddens said. “You have to learn how to sometimes take leadership in positions but you also have to know that you have to let people have fun too.”
Freshman Bellamarie Luster scored one touchdown in the effort. Senior Vaniya Yoakum earned the second touchdown of the game.
“We have to make sure that we’re always in the right play. We got to make sure that we don’t run before the play is called,” Yoakum said. “Sometimes the quarterback, [Giddens], she likes to throw the ball a lot, but we got open.”
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Junior Dionii Scott put the Comets on the board in their first possession of the game, ensuring that they never trailed.
“We came a long way. We had a lot of freshmen come in, so we had to work with it,” Scott said. “They actually became a good part of the team.”
Westchester finished third in the Western League after Venice and University. The Comets split their two-game series with both teams. Ultimately, Westchester lost three games during the season.
“Some challenging moments for us was losing some games, it really hurt,” Scott said. “The games we lost, we knew we could do more but we just didn’t give it our all that game. That’s what really hurts the most.”
Along with having a young team, this was the first year that Giddens played at quarterback. The support from her teammates and lessons from her coaches helped her thrive.
“You know how to throw but you don’t know how to throw until you get in the game,” Giddens said. “With the help of my coaches and the girls too because even when I have a bad throw, they’re still going after the ball.”
Coming into the game against Stern, Yoakum knew she wanted to secure the victory for herself and her teammates.
“It’s my senior year, I need to make a reputation for my self,” Yoakum said. “We come a long way and we’re starting to love each other, work with each other more and it’s going great.”
