ATLANTA — Before the start of the season, North Oconee flag football head coach Nicole O’Mara talked with senior quarterback Catherine Cooper.
“I’ve built this schedule for you,” she said of the difficult lineup the Titans would face in the regular season. “You’ve got to face some adversity.”
The Titans made the championship game the previous two seasons, but lost both times. O’Mara wanted to ensure that would not happen again.
To do so, she scheduled harder regular-season opponents to prepare the Titans for the playoffs, including Greenbrier, which won its third straight state championship Monday, and Blessed Trinity, which made the Division 4 championship. The Titans lost 20-18 against Greenbrier but beat Blessed Trinity 25-20.
The extra adversity paid off, as the Titans won their first flag football championship with a 31-6 victory over Whitewater in Tuesday’s Division 3 title game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
Cooper had a big game with five passing touchdowns, and sophomore Kallie Mashburn made an impact on both sides of the ball with two interceptions and a 24-yard touchdown catch.
The Titans were shut out in their past two championship appearances, losing 18-0 to Greenbrier last year and 14-0 to Southeast Bulloch the year prior. North Oconee was able to outlast Southeast Bulloch 21-20 in the semifinals this year, ending the Yellow Jackets’ attempt at five-straight state championship titles.
“They whooped us in the first state championship,” Cooper said of Southeast Bulloch, “so just to overcome that hurdle, that’s incredible.”
Whitewater shut out three of its four playoff opponents to reach its first championship game but was unable to slow down the well-prepared Titans.
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