Maritime Women’s Football League (MWFL) week 2 recap

This past week in the Maritime Women’s Football League (MWFL) saw the Moncton Vipers pull out an impressive win over the Fredericton RV World Lady Gladiators to register their first win of the season. Meanwhile, the Saint John Storm won their game versus the Halifax Xplosion due to forfeit to remain undefeated in regular season play.

Here are the results from Week 2 action:

Moncton Vipers 34, Fredericton RV World Lady Gladiators 7:

At Rocky Stone Field in an early evening matchup on Saturday, the Moncton Vipers scored their first win of the season by defeating the Fredericton World Lady Gladiators 34-7.

Offensively for the Vipers, Tara Keohan led the way for the victors with 113 rushing yards on five receptions, one rushing major and two passing touchdowns. Tina Hetherington chipped in with one touchdown and three receptions while Justine Barter scored one major and 60 rushing yards.

Quarterback Jenny Miller threw for 124 passing yards and registered six completions in the game. For the entire game, the Vipers offense amassed 336 yards.

The Vipers defensive game was equally successful on the day as the unit racked up 67 tackles (including three for a loss), one sack, one fumble recovery and an interception. Tina Theriault had twelve tackles and a fumble recovery while Marie-Noelle Beaulieu amassed eight tackles in the game. Keohan contributed defensively as she caught an interception while Shelby Merrithew had a sack and Karen Newcomb chipped in with seven tackles.

“The key to success for this game was to stay calm and play as a team,” summarizes Vipers acting head coach Jenny Miller in her postgame assessment. “As you can see many players contributed to the win.”

“We came out strong and made sure to not lose momentum.”

In particular, Miller was impressed with the stellar play of game MVP Keohan.

“Tara Keohan stepped up big and posted great stats on both sides of the ball,” comments the Vipers head coach. “She is a smart strong player and can turn any situation into positive yards.”

“A true team player, she leads by example and gets the most out of those around her.”

As for the Lady Gladiators, Quarterback Alex Black scored in the first quarter as she dove into the end zone. She was also good on her conversion attempt but this would be their only score of the entire game.

With this win, the Vipers are now 1-1 on the season while the Lady Gladiators are also 1-1 after the loss.

Even though the Vipers looked impressive in the win, Miller says there are areas where the team can still improve.

“We are going to focus on our execution and on field chemistry,” says the Vipers acting head coach. “We are going to build on our weaknesses and continue to grow our strengths.”

The team hopes to carry the momentum from their victory into their upcoming game against the Halifax Xplosion.

“Our goal is to keep going forward with the team dynamic and focus on our team goals,” adds Miller. “We expect a good fight from the Xplosion as no team in this league should be taken lightly.”

“The calibre of play in the MWFL is extremely competitive and teams must be prepares for each game.”

The Moncton Vipers look for their second straight win as they will tackle the Halifax Xplosion on Saturday June 9th, 2012 at Wanderer’s Grounds. Kickoff is 4:00pm. Meanwhile, the Fredericton RV World Lady Gladiators look to get back on track and into the win column when they face the Saint John Storm on Saturday June 9th, 2012. The game will be played at Scotia South at 4:00pm.

Saint John Storm 30, Halifax Xplosion 0 (FORFEIT):

The Saint John Storm was awarded their second win of the season. Due to the injury bug and low numbers for the game, the Halifax Xplosion was unable to field a team.

With the forfeit win, the Storm is now 2-0 while the Xplosion are basement dwellers in the standings with a 0-2 record.

Storm defensive coordinator Larry Harlow says the team did get the opportunity to watch the Vipers game against the Lady Gladiators. Both teams put on an impressive showing, especially the Vipers who came out on top with the win.

“It was a well-played game and very close at half,” explains Harlow. “The Vipers however took it up a notch in the second half and dominated both sides of the ball.”

“Tara Keohan from the Vipers had some big run backs to give Vipers the field position and Jenny Miller directed the offence with some great play calling.”

With an unexpected week off, the Storm’s focus now turns to their game this week against the Lady Gladiators.

“Missing a week for Saint John will be huge; you can’t replace games for getting players ready to play,” comments the Storm’s defensive coordinator. “Saint John will have to play at their best to keep Fredericton down in this game.”

“Saint John will rely on their veterans to step it up and lead by example through physical play. Saint John versus Fredericton is always a classic and they are going at it back to back weeks.”

The Saint John Storm looks to keep their undefeated record intact when they face the Fredericton RV World Lady Gladiators on Saturday June 9th, 2012 at Scotia South. Game time is 4:00pm. As for the Halifax Xplosion, they will play the Moncton Vipers on Saturday June 9th, 2012 at Wanderer’s Grounds. Start time for the game is 4:00pm.

(Photos/logo courtesy of the Maritime Women’s League (MWFL) facebook page and website.)