Laura White is an ASU Cronkite School of Journalism student assigned to cover Verrado High School for AZPreps365.com

BUCKEYE – The Sandra Day O’Connor flag football team dominated on defense with five interceptions and held Verrado scoreless, 44-0, in Vipers' home opener. 

“We prepared all week for this and the breaks didn't go our way, to be straight up honest,” Vipers coach Terry Barnes said. 

Verrado kept the Eagles out of the end zone in the first quarter, but the Eagles responded in the second and took a 16-0 lead heading into halftime.

“We executed pretty well,” Eagles coach Robert Latona said. “We had to make a couple adjustments at halftime and they caught on real quick and were able to keep them out of the end zone.”

Verrado moved the ball at times but had trouble establishing a rhythm offensively. They also threw five interceptions. 

“We played well in spots of the game,” Barnes said. “But you know, you turn over the ball five times, that's rough to come back from.”

The Vipers struggled with staying focused once they started to fall behind. 

“The biggest challenge for me was keeping the girls locked in,” Barnes said.

And O’Connor capitalized off of it. The Eagles took off after halftime, scoring 14 points in both the third and fourth quarters. 

“It was just a bad night straight up,” Barnes said.

The lopsided result highlighted areas for improvement for a program that has otherwise seen consistent success in recent seasons.

“We haven't been beaten like this in probably three years,” Barnes said. “So this is definitely a learning building block for us.” 

The emotions were raw for Verrado after the final whistle, with disappointment showing across the sidelines.

“I know this is definitely not our full potential,” said Abigail Vazquez, the Vipers' senior running back and defensive back. “This is not how we play. So I think we're all kind of upset.”

Her words captured the mix of frustration and determination that the players carried with them as they walked off the field.

“I know that we're not going to let it bring us down,” Vasquez said. “We're going to use it as a building block. We're going to continue to get so much better.”

Junior Madison Kesel anchored the defense with a team-high seven flag pulls, while Vazquez added six stops and broke up a pass.

Although the game ended as a shutout win for the Eagles, Latona was quick to reflect on his high standards for the program. He emphasized that even in a dominant performance, there were still plenty of areas that needed attention.

“We still made a lot of mistakes on defense,” Latano said. “So we're still a little ways away. I’m picky and I demand a lot.” 

Verrado (1-1) will travel to Carl Hayden (0-1) on Thursday at 6 p.m. Sandra Day O’Connor (2-0) will host Highland (2-0) on Thursday at 6 p.m.