TAFT U15 on their road to the Championship game, again!

The TAFT Under-15 boys ended their regular season with a win over the Vaasa Vikings 58-0. During their perfect regular season they would outscore their opponents by an average of 53-11. This gave them the top seed and a home playoff game against the Seinäjoki Crocodiles. 

This semi-final would prove to be a far different game than the first matchup between the two teams, where TAFT won easily. The Crocs came with a great gameplan, a fired-up attitude, and an upset in mind.

Neither team was able to score in the first quarter as the defenses dominated. Midway through the second quarter, QB Arttu Partanen would find Eemeli Tuovinen open on a deep pass and TAFT would take the early lead 8-0. Thus it remained until halftime.

In the third quarter, TAFT would score again on the same Partanen-Tuovinen connection. The extra point was no good but TAFT was up 14-0. The TAFT defense, lead by Patrik Palvas, Valtteri Forsman, Jesse Nousiainen and Antti Kekkonen, would force punt after punt by the Crocs. Early in the 4th quarter TAFT would extend their lead to 20-0 as Partanen found Viljo Lempinen alone in the corner of the end zone on third and goal. 

No lead is safe as the Crocs have a breakaway runner who scored six TDs in the previous week's game. After having been contained by the TAFT Defensive line of Ville Sivonen, Jasper Lindqvist, Santeri Saastamoinen and Jere Vierikko for three and a half quarters, he would bust free on back-to-back drives to get the Crocs back into the game 20-14.

 With about four minutes left in the game, the Crocs would stop TAFT on downs inside their own 20 and take possession of the ball. On four straight plays, TAFT would rise to the occasion and stop the Crocs on the Crocs 25 yard line. With just over two minutes left, TAFT would run the clock down and finally turn the ball over on downs with just 17 seconds left, on the Crocs own 5-yard line. The Crocs tried a Hail Mary but Lempinen intercepted the ball at midfield and TAFT would hold onto the tight, hard-fought victory and a trip to the Championship game.

TAFT would like to thank the Crocs for a great battle and congratulate them on their season.

The TAFT U-15 boys are making their fourth straight trip to the Championship game. They lost the first two but were the National Champions last year. They would like to repeat that feat again this year. Standing in their way is the Big Red Machine, the Helsinki Roosters. The Roosters dominated the Espoo Wolverines, 32-8, in the other semi-final. 

Please come out and cheer on the Boys in White on September 7, at 18:00, in Tikkurila as they look to keep ahold of the National Championship trophy!

Text: Mark Collier

Photos: Laura Helminen