Edwardsville Girls Flag Football Team Finishes 16-1 After Narrow Sectional Tournament Defeat
With 31 victories across two seasons, Edwardsville’s head coach Taylor Hay has built a winning program that now looks ahead with several standout players expected to return.
EDWARDSVILLE — Edwardsville High School’s girls flag football team captured a regional championship with a 38-0 victory over Belleville East on Oct. 7, 2026, at the District 7 Sports Complex, highlighting an undefeated run that ended three days later in the state tournament. The Tigers were also Southwestern Conference champions in 2026.
The Tigers jumped on the Lancers early to secure the regional title before falling 26-19 to top-seeded Champaign Central on Oct. 10 at Belleville West High School. Junior quarterback Ella Wallace threw three touchdown passes in the loss, which ended Edwardsville’s state tournament bid. The Tigers finished with a 16-1 overall mark in girls flag football in 2026.
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Edwardsville head girls flag football coach Taylor Hay has been outstanding over two years, capturing 31 wins and only 3 losses. She will no doubt have a strong team in 2027 with key players like Ella Wallace and multi-purpose standout Serena Shapiro returning along with several other key players.
The regional championship followed two decisive postseason victories. Edwardsville defeated Alton 58-6 in an Illinois High School Association regional game Sept. 29 and shut out Peoria 32-0 on Oct. 5.
Wallace led the Tigers’ passing attack with 64 touchdown passes, a 67.4% completion rate and a 117.8 quarterback rating.
Sophomore Serena Shapiro led Edwardsville with 55.4 receiving yards per game, 15 total touchdowns and 13 receiving touchdowns. Senior Kennedy Gieseking caught 11 touchdown passes, while freshman Tatum Brown had eight receiving touchdowns.
Senior Sophia Antonini averaged 40.9 receiving yards per game and led the team with 10.7 rushing yards per game. She finished with 11 total touchdowns, including three rushing scores. Freshman Jada Donaldson averaged 40.4 receiving yards per game.
Defensively, junior rusher Jahzara Akkour recorded 31 sacks and 32 flag pulls for loss. Junior Olivia Wolz finished with six sacks, seven flag pulls for loss, and a team-leading 26 quarterback hurries. Junior Riley Coleman added five sacks and five flag pulls for loss.
Freshman Ava Sauerwein led the Tigers with six interceptions. Senior Maksine Straub had five, and Shapiro added four.
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