SMITHSBURG, Md. – They are known as Jenna Todd and Jen Malott to the Smithsburg flag football team.
But Williamsport is probably identifying the two players in the Leopards’ defensive backfield as Chaos and Mayhem.
Todd and Malott combined to be the roadblocks to any offensive progress as pass defense grounded the Wildcats on Saturday in a 44-0 pasting in the Class 2A-1A West Section I semifinals.
Todd intercepted two passes and returned a punt – all setting up Smithsburg touchdowns – and added three pass defenses to muddle the airways for Williamsport. Malott grounded the Wildcats with another interception and tough play to further disrupt the Wildcats’ offense.
“We’re kind of the eyes on the field for everybody,” Malott said. “We communicate a lot, but no one gets behind us. That’s our motto. Anybody that goes deep, they’re immediately ours. It’s our job to literally get interceptions, deflect balls and make sure that they don’t get touchdowns.”
Smithsburg made sure anything beyond the line of scrimmage was a no-fly zone for Williamsport.
Six of Williamsport’s 10 possessions ended with interceptions. The other four possessions resulted in two punts – one Todd returned to set up Smithsburg’s first touchdown – a turnover on downs and the end of the first half.
“Basically, we just wanted to show up because we knew that even though they weren’t necessarily our best (competition), we wanted to give them 110%, because our next game will be the biggest game of our season,” Malott said.
That next game is against arch-rival Boonsboro for the West I title and a trip to the state quarterfinals. The Warriors, a 30-0 winner over Clear Spring last Thursday, reached the state final in 2024, before flag football became an MPSSAA-sanctioned sport.
That’s why taking care of business impressively was a high priority for Smithsburg.
“That’s what we are with our defense,” said Smithsburg coach Charles “Sleepy” Burnett. “We want to get takeaways to give us more opportunities. It’s also a momentum builder. The momentum swings when an offense is trying to score and we take away the ball.”
Smithsburg held a 24-0 halftime lead and pushed it to 38-0 by the 8:00 mark of the third quarter.
In reality, the game started rather innocently. Each team was forced to punt after their first possessions. The second time around is when Todd started asserting herself.
Todd returned Williamsport’s second punt for 14 yards to set up the Leopards offense on the Wildcats 33. The drive lasted two plays – both runs by quarterback Rileigh Romberger. The second went for 7 yards for the first score.
Smithsburg failed on the conversion but led 6-0 at the 3:28 mark of the first quarter.
The Leopards got the ball back two plays later on Todd’s first interception of Williamsport quarterback Jordyn Mills, putting the ball at the Wildcats 29.
On the second play, Romberger found Todd with a 14-yard pass for the Leopards’ second score and a 12-0 lead.
Williamsport’s next drive ended with another Todd interception, this one halting an 11-play possession. Todd, the center on Smithsburg’s girls basketball team, used her tall frame to go up and pluck the ball like a rebound.
“I like to think (everything is) a 50/50 ball, so both the defense and the offense have a chance to catch it,” Todd said. “And when I just go up there and try, I’m like, it’s my ball. I just have to have that mentality.”
That ignited a seven-play drive that ended with Romberger finding Malott on a swing pass to the right that turned into a 13-yard TD pass and an 18-0 lead with 4:29 left in the half.
Malott joined the interception parade after her score to set up a 32-yard swing pass from Romberger to Melyssa Bard for a 24-0 lead, just 53.3 seconds before the half.
From there, Smithsburg was unstoppable.
Romberger dumped a pass to Malott on the third play of the second half, which went for a 56-yard touchdown for Malott. Two plays later, Isabella Hebron snared a Williamsport pass over the middle and returned the interception 19 yards for a touchdown.
Romberger hit Todd on the conversion for a 38-0 lead, just four minutes into the second half, to ignite the running clock for the rest of the game.
Reagan Furajter immediately ended the Wildcats’ next possession with a first-play interception, Smithsburg’s sixth and final one of the game.
Smithsburg got its last score with 2:30 remaining on Romberger’s 12-yard touchdown pass to Todd.
The Leopards quickly turned the page, immediately focusing on the next meeting with Boonsboro.
“It’s big because it has state implications,” Burnett said. “Now it’s Class 2A-1A and it’s a big deal. It’s the first time the (MPSSAA) is having a state championship in flag football, so you got to win or you go home.
“Boonsboro is always a tight game. They’ve gotten us a couple of times, but hopefully we’ll be ready. We’ll work hard for two days of practice or until whenever they schedule the game, but we’ll be ready.”
