Arlington flag football quarterback Isabella Ortiz throws a pass during practice as the Lions prepare for Tuesday’s CIF playoff game, the first in program history. As she prepares for the historic matchup, Ortiz wants to focus on slowing the game down to help calm her nerves that come with a game.
The Lions won 11 of their first 15 games, a dramatic improvement from the three victories they recorded last season.
The Lions struggled down the stretch. Arlington lost four of its next five games and tied the other.
The losing streak proved pivotal, testing the team’s confidence, said assistant coach Matt Magallanez.
“We weren’t the same team anymore,” he said. “Our confidence was shook playing some good teams and losing to some teams we thought were better than.”
Despite their late-season struggles, the Lions continued to compete against quality opponents, beat Lakeside twice and finished third in their league.
Still, they feel like the underdogs on campus.
Tuesday’s home game against Santa Fe at 5 p.m. marks the first CIF playoff appearance in program history, a milestone senior Phoenix Martinez said the team has worked hard to achieve.
“I think we deserve it,” she said.
Martinez has seen the program grow since her freshman year, when it was first introduced. Even after finishing her season with 1,217 rushing yards, 1,047 receiving yards and 18 touchdowns, she still can’t believe how far they’ve come.
“We’ve come a long way and definitely improved a lot since I joined the team,” she said.
Ortiz attributes the team’s success to having coaches who knew what they were talking about and the team’s excitement.
“Throughout the season we kept on giving good, decent teams a run for their money,” she said. “Seeing the energy and our chemistry together, I saw the potential in us.”
The pressure that comes with playing a CIF game makes Ortiz nervous, but experiencing it with her team reminds her how much fun it is to play.
Ortiz finished the season with 53 tackles, eight sacks and 13 interceptions on defense to go along with her 1,260 receiving yards on offense. Still, she feels like her performance doesn’t help change the narrative around campus.
“I feel like they underestimate us,” she said. “They just think little girls can’t play but they are some beast out there.”
sophomore Candence McKee, who plays on both sides of the field, credits the coaching staff’s constant motivation and work developing players with helping the team succeed.
“We did different routes, different drills, we put different people in different positions to see what their struggles were and what they thrived in, which is good,” she added.
McKee said the team didn’t use its perceived underdog status as motivation. Instead, the players focused on improving their game.
“We ignored them and played on without them carrying,” she added.
Her attitude is reflected by the numbers she put up. McKee finished the season with 1,785 receiving yards and 23 touchdowns.
With the playoffs approaching, Magallanez said the team must focus on what it can control.
“The reality is there is no time to dwell on the adversity of misery, you gotta go out and play,” he added.
For Arlington, Tuesday offers a chance to show just how far the underdogs have come.
