Kicking off the SALSTHON season, the annual Salesianum/Ursuline Flag Football Tournament took place once again at the Ursuline practice fields. The tournament was open to all grades at Salesianum and Ursuline and consisted of teams of 8. It was very successful, raising over $4,500 for SalaThon’s yet to be named beneficiary. It was a hot and humid Saturday morning that was far from perfect for football. Waking up early on their Saturday, numerous students competed to win the prized homecoming tickets. The boys from Broom Street had twelve teams present, while Ursuline represented with thirteen. Both schools saw faculty participate, as both Ursuline and Salesianum had one faculty team present. The tournament was a double elimination style with a fifteen minute game clock, and each game had referees that were Salesianum students. Each team had one quarterback with everybody else as a receiver or one optional center to snap. The other rules (blitzing, downs, snapping, etc) were agreed upon by both teams prior to kickoff, as well as a coin toss for possession.

Most of the games were close, including some going into overtime. Many underclassmen teams played well, while a couple of senior teams were eliminated early. Teams like “FORK” and “BMS 2:0” played well, advancing deep in the tournament before being eliminated. The day ended in a unexpected fashion, with three teams winning homecoming tickets. In the semifinals Chris McGrath’s “Big Dawgs” team and “Untitled, Unmastered” finished without a true winner. This was due to the quarterback of “Untitled, Unmastered” suffering an injury. Since they could not go on, “Untitled, Unmastered” received free homecoming, however, their day was done. This meant “Big Dawgs” would face team “Team” in the championship round.

 “Team” were the defending champions from last years tournament, looking to repeat. They were led by team captain and quarterback Kieran Monahan. Despite losing a few players from last years championship team, they advanced to the title game again. The championship was a fun and exciting game to watch. Right from the opening kickoff, it was obvious the two teams belonged there. Both teams traded touchdowns back and forth, unable to slow one another down.  After the 15 minutes were up, they were tied. By rule, there was a college-style overtime where both teams had a chance to score. The high scoring affair continued throughout the overtimes as each team scored in every possession. In fact, after five overtimes, the score remained tied. This led Mr. Jackman and student council to declare both teams winners, giving team “Team” and “Big Dawgs” free tickets to homecoming. It was a dramatic ending to beautiful day. Hopefully, next year will be the similarly exciting and valuable. It will surely be competitive as team “Team” will look for a three-peat into their senior year, and new teams will form to make the field competitive.