Kingsway uses big plays to win WJFL flag football title (2024)

Junior Katey Mason was thinking big play right before she made the biggest one of the Kingsway flag football season.

Taking a pitch from quarterback Ava Valente, Mason dashed 43 yards for a touchdown that broke a 6-6 tie during Kingsway’s 13-6 win over Egg Harbor Township in the West Jersey Football League championship at the Eagles’ NovaCare Complex.

Kingsway completed an 11-1 season and avenged its only loss of the year with a 19-6 semifinal win earlier in the afternoon against Mastery Camden. During the second game of the regular season, Mastery Camden defeated Kingsway, 19-17.

Egg Harbor Township (7-3) advanced to the final with a 25-8 semifinal victory over Absegami.

Mason took the pitch and turned on the jets, blazing down the right side, eluded one diving tackler and midway through her run and at that point she was off to the races. The winning score came with 4:40 left in the second half.

“I was running down the field and I just took advantage and juked the girl out and took it in for the touchdown,” Mason said.

The Dragons went a step further than last year when they fell 6-0 to the semifinals at the same venue to Mastery Camden.

“It’s just such a great thing for me and my team,” Mason said. “We’ve been working so hard all season and we’re like a family and for us, this is all we wanted.”

And EHT showed its drastic improvement by testing Kingsway to the limit. During the regular season, EHT lost to Kingsway, 36-0.

“We were hoping we could get to this game because quite honestly, we were on our home field and got embarrassed that first game (against Kingsway),” EHT coach Cameron Bell said. “And I told the girls, don’t remember that, we will get better and we did.”

While there wasn’t much scoring, this was a game of spectacular big plays. The only scoring in the first came on on 42-yard touchdown pass from Ava Valente to Audrey Donaldson.

What appeared to be a simple out pattern, turned into a touchdown when Donaldson caught the pass about 10 yards from the line of scrimmage and outran everybody to the end zone.

“It was crazy, I just ran as fast as I could and I really didn’t think much,” said Donaldson, who also caught a one-point conversion pass after Mason’s touchdown. “I just knew I had to get there, to get the touchdown for my team.”

EHT would tie the score at 6-6 on the game’s most spectacular play, a 62-yard punt return by sophom*ore Brielle VonColln.

Catching a punt on the run, VonColln burst through the middle, made an eye-popping spin move about 15 yards into her return and then darted toward the end zone.

VonColln missed time this season due to injury, but she showed what she could do when healthy.

“She is just an outstanding athlete,” Bell said.

Besides the teams, the biggest winner was the sport of flag football and the Eagles are playing a major role in helping it grow.

Besides the four teams from South Jersey, there were four from Southeastern PA. Archbishop Wood was the Pennsylvania winner.

Afterwards, Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts spoke briefly, congratulating both teams and encouraging the youngsters to continue having success in flag football.

It capped a big day for not only Kingsway, but the sport of flag football which continues to rise in popularity.

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Marc Narducci can be reached at hssports@njadvancemedia.com