SACRAMENTO, Calif. – Sophomores Monet Zauner and Elizabeth McNearney each scored "pick six" interception touchdown returns to propel St. Francis varsity and junior varsity, respectively, in a Sierra Foothill League girls' flag football doubleheader against Granite Bay Wednesday evening.

Zauner's return lifted the Troubie varsity to a 6-0 win, improving the team's overall record to 18-5 and league mark to 7-4. McNearney's pick six began a comeback from an 18-0 halftime deficit en route to an 18-18 tie against the Grizzlies. The SF jayvees move to 12-2-2 for the year with a 7-2-2 SFL record.

In a game largely showcasing defensive stands, Zauner pulled seven flags, broke up six passes and finished with three total interceptions. She also led the offense with six receptions for 33 yards. Alexa Randall and Colleen Medina also had picks, with Medina leading all Troubies with eight deflaggings. 

Zauner's touchdown ended the scoreless tie with 4:14 remaining in the fourth. Granite Bay had taken over just three yards shy of midfield on a punt return, then center Avery Harris broke three defenders before Medina finally stopped her at the SF 26-yard line. On the next play, Zauner pounced on a ball near the Troubie sideline, just inside her own red zone, then sprinted 62 yards to paydirt for the go-ahead score.

The previous Zauner picks came late in the first, but the ensuing SF possession ended on a three-and-out. She later snared an interception on a fourth-and-short midway through the second, gambling on an interception and resulting in a first-and-3 on the Troubie 17. The shorter first down paid off, allowing quarterback Jade Abalateo a few extra plays with which to move into GB territory, but the drive stalled with a punt.

Tayli Paeu-Lindgren swatted a pass, then Randall followed with a PBU of her own to keep Granite Bay off the board for the final 100 seconds of the first half. Then Medina owned the first Grizzly series after the break: coming up with three stops before intercepting a third-and-19 conversion attempt with 7:00 left.

Still, Medina's takeaway resulted in no points. Randall's reception with a defensive holding penalty moved the ball to the GB 24, then Abalateo's run brought SF into the red zone for the first time in the contest. A moving screen penalty marched the Troubies outside the 20 for a first-and-goal from the GB 22, only for Harris to end the drive with an interception.

Zauner nearly picked off the next GB play, but Randall grabbed the second to immediately put the Troubie offense back on the field with 3:50 to go. Both teams continued to trade defensive stops until Zauner's third INT altered the scoreboard for good.  

Tayli Paeu-Lindgren posted her second sack of the game to force Granite Bay to surrender on downs on its own 11-yard line, but St. Francis failed to capitalize on the short field. The Troubies actually lost eight net yards on the drive while the Grizzlies used their timeouts well enough to afford themselves one final possession with 52 seconds with which to work. GB went to receiver Maddie Benedyuk three times, with only the third completing, but Medina was there to pull the flag with no time remaining.

The varsity defensive battle followed a remarkable comeback for St. Francis JV, which trailed 18-0 at halftime before scoring three unanswered touchdowns: McNearney's 20-yard pick six with 5:15 in the third, a Chloe Hoertsch 1-yard sneak at 6:55 in the fourth, then Hoertsch's 10-yard connection with Anna Votaw just after the two-minute warning in the fourth.

St. Francis appeared to score on two other occasions, with one official signaling in the affirmative but the two other officials overturning the call. The first instance came midway in the third after a Kiley Pratt interception gave St. Francis a first-and-goal on the GB 15. Two players later, Hoertsch reached the ball toward the goal line as her flag was pulled. The second came on the possible go-ahead after Votaw's equalizer, but Seliani Tapuosi popped the flag with Hoertsch's outstretched hand just inches shy of the goal plane.

Pratt finished with four stops to lead the Troubies defensively. Reese Litherland threw for three touchdown passes in the first 15 minutes of play, with two such strikes finding Zadie Newby. But GB's scoring ended there, with Pratt's pick and subsequent tackle for loss ending two different drives in the second half.

Wednesday's game was originally scheduled for Tuesday, but moved back by a day after the rainfall rendered the school's grass field unplayable. This means both SF teams will turn around in less than 24 hours for the regular season home finale against Del Oro at 3:45 p.m. (JV) and 5:15 p.m. (varsity) at Jesuit.  

Thursday's varsity game also serves as Senior Night, in which the Troubies will honor 10 graduates-to-be prior to the game: Abalateo, Nevaeh Gavino, Lauren Herbelin, Medina, Abbey Pavelchik, Holland Sperber, Annie Swanson, Lucia Vicio, Amelia Zaragoza plus team manager Cassandra Salvucci.