Flag football: Ossmo scores twice, helps Maine South advance to state semifinals
Maine South junior Nellie Ossmo had already put together a solid season heading into Friday’s flag football state quarterfinal game against Glenbrook South.
Against the Titans, though, she took her game to another level.
Ossmo, who came into the contest with 448 receiving yards and 6 touchdowns, found the end zone twice as the Hawks won 20-0.
She scored on TD passes of 13 and 7 yards from quarterback Aribella Spandiary to lead Maine South to the victory at Willowbrook’s John A. Fischer Field.
The junior finished with 7 catches overall for 63 yards.
“Coming into this game, our confidence level was good,” said Ossmo. “We just came in and kept the morale up.”
Maine South will play Chicago Perspectives, a 14-13 winner over Edwardsville, in the state semifinals at 10 a.m. Saturday.
The Hawks avenged a 19-0 loss to Glenbrook South earlier in the season in Central Suburban South play.
“We just had to beat them,” said Ossmo of the Hawks’ mindset. “That was our goal. Honestly, I think it was the fact the we were so confident coming in (that turned the tide).”
It was a tough loss for Glenbrook South, who came into the game with a 17-2 overall mark.
The Titans will graduate 17 seniors off this year’s roster, according to coach Tom Godbout.
“All credit to Maine South tonight,” said Godbout. “They just flat-out outplayed us and that’s the way it goes sometimes. They played an amazing game.”
“A lot of our seniors were the original players who started this program, and I love all of them. They were all a big part of what we were doing here, and they built this program into what it is.
“We’ve had a lot of success due to them, and it’s really going to be hard to say goodbye to them. They’ve really given their hearts and souls to this program.
A couple of big sacks from Maine South senior Ella Rice and an interception by classmate Amelia Fernandez gave the Hawks a huge defensive boost in the first half.
The first score by Ossmo came with 11:52 remaining in the second quarter to put her team up 6-0.
The second touchdown catch by Ossmo came later in the second quarter to send Maine South to halftime up 13-0.
The Hawks (24-3) scored again in the third quarter on a 32-yard touchdown catch by Fernandez, then played stellar defense the rest of the way to close out the win.
Glenbrook South senior Val Wilke led the way on offense for the Titans with five catches for 87 yards.
For Maine South, Spandiary threw for 143 yards. Teammate Rice recorded five sacks.
“This (victory) is fantastic, it feels so good,” said Hawks senior center Maria Korovilas. “We’ve had a rivalry with Glenbrook South since our first year, and it’s so amazing to get to this point.”