Team TBT reaches adult flag football semifinals

ANNA MARIA – The first game of the adult co-ed flag football playoff season started off with a close one between the TBT and Shady Lady squads. In the end, after two halves of play, quarterback Matthew Briley and the TBT team moved on to the semifinals after the 26-20 win against Shady Lady last Thursday night.

Despite the three passing touchdowns by QB Connor Haughey, team Shady Lady could not find the endzone for the tying score. Haughey found Jonathon Soultatos, who had a total of six catches in the game, for two scoring plays.

In addition to his 12 TD points, Soultatos made two critical point-after attempts, keeping the Shady Lady team in the mix the entire game.

Shady Lady teammate and youngster Shawn Balvin, graduating to the adult league after a long stint lighting up the gridiron in the youth leagues at The Center, had his own touchdown, with six receptions in the game.

While on defense, Balvin threatened the TBT offense with two interceptions. Jasmin Muldoon and Limarcus Waller made their important offense contributions for Shady Lady with catches from Haughey, keeping the team on the field with positive yardage.

In the 26-20 win, Briley’s scoring targets were Nick Cinelli, Yandy Rocamora and Jeremy Rodriguez, with touchdown catches for each of them.

Cinelli and Rodriguez added two additional points to the scoreboard with extra point conversions. On offense for TBT, Javier Rivera had solid hands with three yard-gaining catches from Briley.

The defensive game of team TBT may have made the difference in the playoff game. Rocamora’s sack on Haughey caused a loss of yardage and forced the Shady Lady offense to switch to quick and option plays.

Cinelli’s interception on a Haughey throw diminished any positive momentum Shady Lady was trying to build.

With the win, TBT returns to play another day in the semifinals. Also moving on to the next round of the playoff is WTBL, Solid Rock Construction and Moss Builders. The four-team showdown leads to the final game of the season when another squad can be called champions.

The adult flag football championship game will be played on Thursday, March 17 at 7:30 p.m.

In other adult co-ed sports action, semifinal action for adult indoor soccer is slated for the 17th at 6:30 and 7:30 p.m. in The Center gymnasium, with the Championship scheduled immediately after at 9 p.m.