Penn entered Saturday as the defending state champion.
It left Grand Park with something bigger.
A standard.
The Kingsmen defeated Lawrence North 34-28 in the Indiana girls flag state championship Saturday in Westfield, completing an 18-0 season and winning their second consecutive state title.
For the second straight year, Penn and Lawrence North met with the championship on the line. For the second straight year, Penn finished on top.
This one required the Kingsmen to survive.
Penn beat previously undefeated Fort Wayne Snider 33-27 in the state semifinal before holding off Lawrence North by the same six-point margin in the championship. Twelve total points separated Penn from two opponents across its final two games.
The dominance that defined much of Penn’s season had to become something else Saturday. The Kingsmen had to close. They did it twice.
Driscoll Delivered on the Biggest Stage
Quinn Driscoll has spent two seasons building one of the strongest résumés in Indiana girls flag football. Her final game as a senior added another championship to it.
Driscoll threw five touchdown passes against Lawrence North — three to junior Alivia Dawson and two to Alexis Werner. Penn scored 34 points in the first half and built a 20-point advantage before Lawrence North turned the championship into a game again. The Wildcats responded with 16 unanswered points after halftime, forcing Penn to protect the lead instead of simply extending it.
Driscoll finished with 263 passing yards and added 118 rushing yards on 13 carries.
It was not the first major performance she produced Saturday. Hours earlier, Driscoll also threw five touchdown passes in Penn’s 33-27 semifinal victory over Snider. The Panthers entered state undefeated and nearly ended Penn’s title defense before it reached the championship game. Snider rallied late and took the lead, but Penn answered with a touchdown in the final minutes to advance.
There was no comfortable route through Saturday. Penn found one anyway.
Lawrence North Pushed the Champion Again
Lawrence North did not disappear when the championship started getting away.
The Wildcats were down 20 points at halftime and responded. That matters for a program whose championship roster includes young talent such as freshman quarterback Heavynne Beard.
Lawrence North had already eliminated Terre Haute South 33-26 in the semifinal, ending a Braves run that included postseason victories over previously undefeated Beech Grove and Evansville Mater Dei. Then the Wildcats got Penn. Again.
Lawrence North reached the championship game in both of Indiana’s first two statewide girls flag seasons. The Wildcats have not finished either with the trophy, but consecutive championship appearances have established them as one of the early powers in the sport.
Saturday also showed how narrow the distance has become. Penn did not cruise through Lawrence North. It survived it.
Penn Has Become the Early Standard
Girls flag football remains an emerging sport in Indiana. The state championship has only existed for two seasons. Penn owns both trophies.
That makes the Kingsmen the first program against which this era of Indiana girls flag will be measured.
Coach Jerimiah Maggart’s team finished 18-0 while averaging more than 34 points per game and allowing approximately eight. Those numbers explain why Penn reached Saturday unbeaten. The final two games explain why it finished that way.
Snider brought its own perfect record to Grand Park and pushed Penn to the final minutes. Lawrence North erased much of a 20-point deficit and made the championship a one-possession game. Penn still found the play it needed both times.
That separates a dominant regular season from a championship season. The Kingsmen could overwhelm teams when the margin was large. They could also function when there was almost no margin left. Saturday was the latter.
Penn will be recognized during the Indianapolis Colts’ November 15 game against Miami.
By then, the numbers will be settled.
Back-to-back Undefeated Seasons. Two seasons. Two state championships.
Indiana girls flag football is still establishing its history. Penn is writing the beginning of it.
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