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September 28, 2007 > Sports > Ammons leads Brown to 12-7 win over Will Rice

Ammons leads Brown to 12-7 win over Will Rice

By Kushagra Shrinath | For the Thresher

With every sunrise over the Serengeti, the struggle for survival resumes. Every gazelle must beat the fastest lion, and every lion must beat the slowest gazelle.

At least, that is what Brown powderpuff coach Bryan Hodge told his team before it took the field last Saturday. Fortunately for Hodge, his players were able to make sense of that poor analogy, racing their way to a 12-7 come-from-behind victory over Will Rice in the Powderpuff Game of the Week.

Following a scoreless first quarter in which both teams failed to pick up a first down, a poor punt by Brown (2-1) gave Will Rice (1-1) great field position at Brown’s 35-yard line. Will Rice quickly capitalized, and on the second play of the next quarter, senior quarterback Cassie Moore scampered away from pressure for a 25-yard touchdown run.

Will Rice’s defense then stepped up, creating strong pressure up the middle and causing Brown junior quarterback Tori Gascoyne to underthrow a pass that was intercepted by Will Rice’s senior cornerback Lizzie Snyder.

But the Brown defense held fast and forced a quick three-and-out, allowing Gascoyne to make up for her lone miscue in the game. On a 2nd and 8 play at her own 23, she connected with sophomore wide receiver Jackie Ammons in stride on a slant route across the middle of the field for a 77-yard touchdown strike.

“We actually changed the play in the huddle,” Gascoyne, a junior, said. “Jackie said she had been open the last time we ran those routes, and she was wide open again.”

After Brown failed to convert the one-point try, Will Rice went in at halftime holding on to a slim 7-6 lead.

The second half started with Brown doing something that neither team had accomplished in the first twenty-four minutes — sustain a drive. Highlighted by Ammons’ 22 rushing yards, Brown went on a 10-play, 65-yard scoring drive that took up the bulk of the third quarter and culminated in an 11-yard touchdown pass from Gascoyne to junior running back Kristen Hild. After failing to get the two-point conversion, Brown took a 12-7 lead.

Brown’s defense then came through when freshman cornerback Jecca Steinberg intercepted Moore. Gascoyne and the offense immedaitely embarked on a 12-play drive that took more than 7 minutes off the clock, though it only went for 37 yards. On the drive, Brown converted three third-down plays and one on fourth-down before finally being stopped at Will Rice’s 12-yard line.

“We have to be able to stop the third and shorts — that’s really the key,” Will Rice head coach Roger Sharpe said. “We could stop them on third and long but once they got to third and short they could just run it up the middle.”

On its ensuing drive, Will Rice offense picked up 28 yards on a sweep by freshman running back Alexandra Espinoza. However, on the next play, Espinoza was flagged ten yards for preventing the Brown defender from pulling her flag.

Later in the drive, facing a 4th and 11 on Brown’s 39-yard line, Will Rice unveiled a trick play, as wide receiver Marie McKinnon took the direct snap coming off motion and ran a sweep to the left. But the Brown defense was not fooled and stopped McKinnon for no gain, ending Will Rice’s hopes for a victory.

Although Will Rice was able to run the ball effectively — Espinoza and Moore rushed for 94 yards — the Brown pass-defense played exceptionally well, allowing Moore only one completion in six attempts. Steinberg performed spectacularly, notching a sack in addition to her interception.

Ammons, who scored two of Brown’s three touchdowns in the team’s season-opening win over Weiss, continued her brilliant play, leading all receivers with 104 yards and a touchdown.

In other scores around the league, Jones (1-1) beat Hanszen (1-1) 13-6 and Weiss (1-1) shut out Baker 12-0. Lastly, Sid shut out Lovett (0-2) 14-0 to join Martel as the only remaining undefeated teams.

End of article

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