For 49:07 of the New York State Class C Flag Football Championships, the Pioneer Panthers were held scoreless. They fell behind early, 6-0, to the Owego Free Academy River Hawks, and then were frustrated by bad luck, penalties and an offense that could not find its rhythm.
But the Panthers regrouped, finally tied up the ball game with :53 left, and then won an overtime shootout to take an unbelievable, come-from-behind 13-12 victory, and bring a state crown back to Yorkshire.
ABOVE: Coach Edwards addresses the Panthers defense.
It was the first state championship for a Flag Football team from Section 6, and the first team state title of any kind in the Panthers' nearly 60-year athletics history.
The Panthers, coached by Chris Edwards and assisted by Addie Edwards, Lissa Landahl, and Pat Souder, defeated Depew, 14-0, on May 24 to win the Section 6 crown, then took the Far West Regional 12-6, over Finney (Section 5) on May 31.
They earned a trip to the state Final 4. They downed Plainedge (Section 8), 7-0 on Saturday, June 7 at Homer High School, then stuck around Central New York to face an Owego team (Section 4) on June 8 that had been ranked tops in the state all season. The game site was Cortland High School.
ABOVE: Jayden Leederman rushes the football against Owego.
After trailing 6-0 for much of the championship game, Pioneer quarterback Ellie Edwards finally broke through in the final minute with a 15-yard pass to Abby Mason to tie the score. The conversion failed, and the overtime period ensued. Each team would get at least one series each to score from the opponent's 20-yard line.
Pioneer got the ball first and a few plays later, Edwards and Mason hooked up again for both the TD and conversion. While Owego was able to answer with a touchdown on their possession, the Panthers were able to stop the River Hawks' conversion, and the final was 13-12.
ABOVE: The season had a happy ending for Coach Edwards and the Panthers.
This was the first year the New York State Public High School Athletic Association (NYSPHSAA) has awarded crowns in three different Flag Football classes, with Class A, Class B, and Class C all up for grabs. It was only the second year of state playoffs for the sport.