On Thursday October 6th, Midlo seniors and juniors battled it out in an intense matchup for the annual Powder Puff game. The juniors and seniors met on the football field to warm up before starting the game. As students rushed in to fill the bleachers, the senior class decided to intimidate their opponent by running a lap around the junior team. Seniors met with their coaches: Ivan Jackson, Calvin Fuller, Chris Cassidy, Jack Swope, Jermani Brown, Donald Brown, Bobby Stout, Bryce Mann and Taylor Davis to discuss strategies before taking the field. Juniors took a place on the bench to talk about their offensive game plan with their coaches: Kyle Daniluk, Nick Pyrbyla, and Mac Whitten. Juniors let the clock run down for over a minute before finally sending their offense line onto the field.

Junior quarterback Olivia Harriman threw many great passes. Harriman handed the ball off to her running back Nicole Czyzewski, who gained yards for the junior team, ultimately resulting in a 1st down. However, after four attempts to progress the ball down the field, the juniors were unable to get the ball to the end zone. With the seniors now in possession of the ball, center Mackenzie Fuller snapped the ball back to quarterback Natalie Webster for their first offensive play. With a run by Webster and a catch by Apryl Bradt, the seniors gained some yardage but not enough to get points on the scoreboard. At halftime, teams were tied 0-0.

During halftime, juniors BJ Beckwith, Finlay Raphael, Owen Buleza, John El-Jor, Daniel Doh, Greyson Hall, Sai Poluri, and Hunter Pate danced to “JuJu on that Beat,” which excited the crowd and got them ready for the second half.

During the second half, seniors gained possession of the ball, and quarterback Natalie Webster made a gain of 15 yards for a senior first down. With the help of her offensive line, Alexa Battle, Mackenzie Fuller, Rachel Sabine and Lauren Elmore, Webster ran the ball over the end line, resulting in a touchdown for the seniors. The quarterback exclaimed, “As soon as I made the touchdown, the first thing that popped into my mind was ‘Bow down, Juniors!’” The juniors made a few attempts to move the ball but were unable to get it into the end zone, resulting in a victory for the seniors. Senior coach Ivan Jackson gloated that his team dominated on offensive and defensive, saying, “Our defensive line did a good job with the pass rush, and our girls also executed well. I’m proud of our dual-threat quarterbacks Natalie Webster and Patterson Levitch for doing a great job throwing and running.”

Senior victory meant a tough loss for the juniors. Player Margaret Weinhold notes, “I was disappointed that we lost after all our hard work, but it was a really great experience.” The team will return next year as seniors with one last chance to capture the win. Until then, the 2016 powder puff game will be remembered as a hard-fought battle between the girls.