HAGERSTOWN, Md. — Wednesday’s objective was simple for the Boonsboro flag football team.
Just go out and take care of business against South Hagerstown.
Harmony Redding handed out her business card to make sure the Rebels knew the Warriors’ intentions.
Redding jetted deep downfield and caught quarterback Mylee Hartman’s perfectly thrown deep ball for a 57-yard touchdown on the third play of the game to start Boonsboro on its way to a 48-6 win over South at School Stadium.
The reason that play was Redding’s calling card is because it’s one of the constants of Boonsboro’s offense.
“That’s our play all day long,” Redding said. “That’s our play every single time to start the game off like that and go hard. Every single time someone catches something like that, it sets the whole tone right there. “Honestly, we always try to end a game early.”
Redding then caught a two-point conversion to give the Warriors the early 8-0 lead with 10:41 remaining in the first quarter.
“I always watched the (defensive) girl on my right or the deep corner on the left,” Redding said. “I saw Trinity (Savage) wasn’t really moving as much. She moved to the left, so I took my chance, and went right up middle, and it was right there. And (Hartman) put it right there, too. I couldn’t do it without my quarterback.
“I’m just glad I got my team up. Their quarterback, Trinity, is really fast. So, I’m glad I got (the Warriors) up and ready to go.”
Hartman, Redding’s quarterback, totally controlled Boonsboro’s offense as the Warriors scored seven touchdowns in the game, using her legs and arm to keep the Rebels picking their poison all night. She ran for three scores and threw for the other three.
The Warriors scored the final 40 points in the final 40 minutes of the game to put the game out of reach quickly. Hartman threw for four touchdowns and ran for three more to facilitate Boonsboro’s offense and start a running clock.
“This was one of those games, I didn’t want it to turn into a negative thing where we started going the wrong direction,” Boonsboro coach Chad Hartman said. “That’s why I was kind of said, ‘Let’s put the foot on the pedal. Let’s keep moving forward. Let get ready for the next three games.’”
This matchup had all the makings of a trap game.
The contest started nearly an hour late because a marathon JV football game preceded the contest.
Boonsboro enters the game as a two-time state finalist. South has a fledgling program trying to establish its footing.
The Warriors could have taken the game for granted … and kind of stepped into the trap early.
“I’m glad we won, but at first it was, like, a little iffy,” Redding said. “We were joking around. We weren’t locked in, but I think our game went really good and I’m glad we won.”
South made the game “iffy” on its 6½-minute first possession.
Savage spearheaded a 12-play, 66-yard drive with her perpetual motion quarterback play. She moved the Rebels downfield, mostly using her legs for six carries for 36 yards, including a 3-yard TD run. The drive was aided by two Boonsboro penalties.
But the Rebels failed on the conversion and trailed 8-6 with 4:13 remaining in the opening quarter.
“That’s what I talked to their coaches about. I mean, when you come to South, you know you’re going to run into some very athletic girls who are fast and can move around the field very well,” Chad Hartman said.
“Early in the game, you saw what happened. Our cornerbacks were biting in and she was getting the outside. That’s how she’s going to beat us all the time. We made some adjustments. Once we made those adjustments, we were able to corral her a little bit, but she’s just a phenomenal athlete.”
Mylee Hartman displayed her talents as well.
Boonsboro answered South’s score with the ensuing possession, capped by a six-yard touchdown pass to Brooke Wilhide. Then, the pair hooked up on the two-point conversion pass to give the Warriors a 16-6 lead to end the first quarter.
The Warriors made it 28-6 at the half as Hartman ran in from the 2 with 3:04 remaining and from the 1 with :18.3 left before the intermission. Boonsboro failed on both conversions, but scored on all four first-half possessions.
Katie Ransom scored a touchdown with 4:51 remaining in the third quarter on a 15-yard pass from Hartman for the 34-6 lead to start the running clock.
“Most teams have a quarterback that’s either fast, like Trinity, or have a quarterback that can sit in the pocket and throw the ball deep,” Chad Hartman said. “Fortunately, we have a girl that can do both.
“If you respect (her arm) and you back your safeties up and try to take away the deep ball, we’re going run against you. If you come in to take the run away, we’re going to throw a couple downfield and try to get you deep. So, luckily, we have that capability with our quarterback.”
Boonsboro picked up the final two scores in the fourth quarter as Mylee Hartman ran a 12-yard keeper and followed with a two-point pass to Sarah Mohler with 6:30 remaining for a 42-6 lead.
Then, Hartman hit Wilhide on a 9-yard strike as time expired to cap the scoring.
Boonsboro’s defense’s contribution to the win came in the form of three interceptions – two by Hartman and the third by Ransom – to stall the Rebels. Two of them came in the fourth quarter.
It ended up being a good day of work for the Warriors.
“In a non-disrespectful way, right?” Chad Hartman said. “I know the records that are right now. I know the teams to beat. I know what my team’s got to do. We have a tough stretch coming. We have Urbana on Saturday. We have Clear Spring, a good team this year, and then we have Frederick.
“This is a game that I thought we should come out and just take care of business.”
