Wildcats are victorious in football championship match vs. Crossroads

On November 9, the Wildcats won the league championship in flag football by defeating Crossroads High School at the VA. The win capped off an undefeated season in which the Wildcats dominated nearly all of their opponents.

The final score of the championship game was 19-0, as the Wildcats held Crossroads scoreless while racking up three touchdowns of their own. Cody Kermanian ’11 scored two touchdowns while Jason Welsh ’13 pulled down an amazing touchdown grab.  On the other side of the ball, Josh Simmons ’12 and Julian Gabbay ’11 applied constant pressure to the Crossroads backfield.

Cody Kermanian
Kermanian runs past a defender as Milken wins the Championship. Photo by Leigh Jacobson.

After the game, coach Jerry Martin received the traditional Gatorade douse. He has coached Milken to two championships and runner up finishes in the four year period since the league has come into creation. This was the first undefeated season in the history of Milken’s flag football team and probably the most dominant of the team’s existence. The team blew out every opponent with the exception of the season opener, which was a 13-7 victory over Vista Mar. Most of the team attributes the success to team defense and leadership.

“The key to our undefeated season was defense and senior leadership. In the end, it came together on the field and we proved ourselves in our final game,” Mitchell Aftalion, co-captain ’12 said.

Aside from defense and leadership, the Wildcats were solid on all fronts. Jonathan Neumann ’11, Matthew Khorsandi ’11, and Kermanian ’11, were jackrabbits, whose speed antagonized opposing defenses. In fact, Crossroads would punt the ball out of bounds in order to keep the football out of Khorsandi’s hands. Quarterback Charlie Heller ’12 was also very solid throughout the season.

“I need to thank my offensive line for watching my back throughout this undefeated season,” Heller said.

This year, the seniors made up a little less than half the team. Their leadership was essential and lifted the team’s level of play.

“This season, the senior squad stepped up this year. It was a great way to go out and we are really proud,” Michael Rosenzweig-Bock ’11 said.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I48i2nbOCSE[/youtube]

Video of the Wildcats’ triumph by Sam Furie