Cape captures unified flag football state championship

After three straight seasons that ended in the semifinals of the state tournament, the Cape unified flag football team won the top prize, beating Caesar Rodney 46-34.

Battling on Black Friday for the first time, the No. 5 Vikings had to navigate a brisk wind, chilly temperatures and an eight-point deficit at halftime to topple the No. 2 Riders Nov. 28. Adversity is nothing new for the burgeoning squad. 

“We have so many kids that come out,” said coach Drew Messick. “They all were at every practice [and] they did what they're supposed to. They all played two games, and then we took the best for the playoffs. This year, our best got us the championship.”

Rosters are limited in the post-season. With the smaller squad, the Vikings topped No. 4 Mount Pleasant and No. 1 Indian River to reach the state championship game. 

Senior Grant Conway led the charge Nov. 28 with four touchdowns, four two-point conversions and two interceptions in the championship.

“We've made it to the semifinals every single year, and we ended up falling up short,” Conway said. “It means a lot to these guys especially, and they're really excited to be out here. That's the whole reason why I do it ... to be out here with these guys, and they have so much fun. This means so much to them, and it's just great to see them happy.”

Junior Jaxon Benton scored the first touchdown for the Vikings, answering a Riders score and helping Cape tie things at 8-8. His relentless pass rush made things difficult for CR, and while he never seemed to be out of breath in the game, he was out of words after.

“I’m speechless about this game,” Benton said. “I didn't know we're gonna do all this, and make it this far… and we were the underdogs.”

Conway’s first touchdown followed Benton’s, giving the Vikings a 14-8 lead, but CR rattled off 14 straight points to edge out Cape 22-14 at half. Trailing in the final two frames is nothing new for the Vikings this season, particularly in the tournament.

“We knew they were going to be a good team, but my partners are great,” Messick said. “[Many are] lacrosse boys who've never won a championship, so this is special to them too. I'm just proud of everybody. We were down by eight this half, which I told our kids that this is nothing. We were down by 12 the last time.”

Conway’s second score trimmed the lead, but Cape couldn’t convert the two-point try. CR struck again, but Conway tallied his third score to cut the deficit to 28-26. 

Coming through once again for his teammates, Conway picked off a pass in the end zone before scoring on the ensuing drive to give the Vikings a 32-28 advantage. Conway’s partner in crime, Mason Trench, started the game off with an interception and made his mark on offense, creating a 38-28 cushion prior to Conway succeeding on a two-point try.

Zane Richardson was held out of the end zone, a rarity, but came through when his team needed him with a pass breakup late in the game.

“It was amazing out there,” Richardson said. “Coach said we've got to keep staying on to somebody when they get ready to go for a pass.”

After the pass breakup, Trench made an unbelievable interception by squeezing his bicep on a ball drifting to the ground. The senior iced the game with his second touchdown of the game. 

The Riders refused to go gently into the nippy November night and managed another score before the final whistle blew, igniting a Cape celebration over a 46-34 victory in the final game of the year.