Mobile Christian Flag Football Blanks Northside Methodist 34-0 for First Playoff Win

MOBILE, Ala. — Mobile Christian flag football, a first-year program that opened the season with a string of losses, won its first playoff game Tuesday night, as Cierra Luckey scored three touchdowns in a 34-0 home win over Northside Methodist in the first round of the Alabama High School Athletic Association’s Private A-AA bracket.

The game ended in the third quarter under the 30-point advantage rule when Luckey ran a reverse around left end 35 yards for the final score. The Leopards, 2-5 in the regular season, will play Montgomery Catholic next Tuesday, Nov. 10, in the second round.

Coach Myshun McAlpine, soaked by a water cooler after the win, said the night meant a great deal to a program that has been building from scratch.

“This is big because, man, because we started so slow,” McAlpine said. “You know, loss after loss after loss. And for these girls to come out and play like this, it means a lot to Mobile Christian and this organization that we’re trying to build up here at this program.”

How the Leopards scored

Mobile Christian led 22-0 at halftime. Quarterback Sara Frances Dudley had a hand in two of the three first-half touchdowns, one on offense and one on defense.

• First quarter: Dudley threw a 40-yard touchdown pass to Kai Wright, and a two-point conversion made it 8-0.
• First quarter: Luckey scored on a 4-yard run. The two-point try failed, leaving it 14-0.
• Second quarter: Dudley intercepted a pass and returned it 70 yards for a touchdown. The two-point conversion made it 22-0.
• Third quarter: Luckey scored on a 2-yard run at the 3:34 mark, making it 28-0.
• Third quarter: Luckey’s 35-yard reverse minutes later made it 34-0 and ended the game.

Dudley also picked off a second pass on Northside Methodist’s next possession and returned it 32 yards, but the Leopards could not turn that takeaway into points before the half.

From a sign-up sheet to the second round

Mobile Christian’s season nearly did not happen. South AL News reported in October that the program began when athletics director Payton Wasden circulated a sign-up sheet to gauge interest. More than 30 students initially responded, but the roster settled at 13 players.

The team has no seniors. At that point in the season, it had one junior and three sophomores, including Dudley and Wright, with the rest of the group made up of freshmen, eighth-graders and seventh-graders. Some players did not know the rules when practice began, so coaches studied the rulebook and showed the team video to teach the game.

The Leopards play in Private School, Region 1, along with McGill-Toolen and St. Michael. They nearly upset McGill-Toolen in their region opener, losing 18-14 on a touchdown with 32.7 seconds left.

McAlpine said the team on the field Tuesday bears little resemblance to the one that played the first game.

“It seems like a completely different team,” he said. “It is a completely different team.”

Asked what has impressed him most, he pointed to the daily work of learning the offense and defense, and to how players have handled defeat.

“Just coming out, in and out of practice and learning the offense, learning the defense that we want to run, and just being consistent week in and week out, that’s been the biggest thing,” McAlpine said. “… You know, just because we lose doesn’t mean we lost for real. It’s showing now. … This win will give us a lot of confidence.”

Montgomery Catholic up next

McAlpine expects a strong opponent in the second round but said he has no doubts about his players.

“We know that we’re going to play a good Montgomery Catholic team,” he said. “But like I said, if we show up and play, I believe in my girls. I believe we can beat anybody.”

The state finals are scheduled for Dec. 1 at Hancock Whitney Stadium on the University of South Alabama campus in Mobile. This is the first year the AHSAA has crowned separate public and private school champions in flag football, with four titles at stake.

Other first-round flag football scores

Here are other first-round results from Tuesday involving area teams:

Private A-AA

• McGill-Toolen 21, Glenwood 0

St. Michael had a first-round bye and will next face McGill-Toolen.

Class 6A

• Opelika 7, Alma Bryant 2
• Auburn 49, Baker 0
• Carver-Montgomery 32, Mary G. Montgomery 0
• Enterprise 34, Robertsdale 0

Fairhope and Daphne had first-round byes. According to the bracket, Fairhope will play Enterprise and Daphne will play Auburn on Nov. 10.

Class 5A

• Blount 20, Homewood 18
• Hueytown 27, Baldwin County 20
• Theodore 34, Helena 14

Class 1A-4A

• Brewbaker Tech 34, Vigor 0
• Holtville 24, LeFlore 0
• Marbury 18, Satsuma 6