Grit and glory:  two words that describe Wahlert Catholic powder puff football. This year’s juniors and seniors sharpened their nails and tied their flags extra tight. While the day was fairly chilly and dark, fires were igniting on the field right at kickoff.

“I feel they gave total effort and all around showed out,” said Isaac Walsh, ‘19, who was one of the seniors’ coaches.

Sophia Rupert, ‘19, who made a glorious 50-yard run for a touchdown, was going all or nothing on the field. After the loss to the senior class last year, Rupert wanted to make a comeback.

“We had to do whatever it took to win; we weren’t gonna let their heads get any bigger,” Rupert stated.

Early on in the game, following Rupert’s touchdown, suspicions arose on the junior team concerning the seniors’ flags. Libby Wedewer, ‘20, went chasing Rupert down the field to grab her flag only to find out that the flag wouldn’t come out.

“I had a pack chasing me,” exclaimed Rupert. “I felt a yank on my flag and lost a shoe half way in the run, but the grind don’t stop so I just kept going. I would feel bad if every girl on that field didn’t have as tight of flags as we did,” Rupert said matter of factly.

This, however, infuriated the juniors. Cheating wasn’t their way to play and their determination to dig deep and beat the seniors only grew.

“By the end when we were getting angry about the tied flags, the refs started telling us to tie our flags to make the game even,” said Wedewer. “There were some arguments to say the least.”

While the competitiveness was at an all time high, both sides agreed they really just wanted to have fun.

“It was a fair game for the most part,” Wedewer emphasized. “There were a few ups and downs during the game, but we were all just trying to have fun. Some were more competitive than others, but that’s what made it fun.”