Glenelg Varsity Football: Tackling the Game One Step At a Time

By Sarah Kang

The Glenelg Varsity Football team, one of the strongest teams in Howard County, had an outstanding season with limited unfortunate losses. Despite these losses, on October 25th at 7:00 in the evening, the team celebrated an unforgettable Senior Night, as well as a victorious win over Wilde Lake High School, ending the regular season strongly.

Red, black, and white decorations flew in the evening sky as the Seniors were announced, walking across the turf with their family members. Cameras were seen in all directions snapping photos of the football team’s class of 2020 as their smiles were gleaming. Full of joy, Senior Matt Searight proclaimed, “I was so shocked when I saw how beautifully decorated the bleachers were. I really appreciate all the hard work everyone put in to make Senior Night so amazing.” The decorations and posters that filled the Colosseum were as incredible as a large number of students and parents pouring into the bleachers cheering and applauding for their Gladiators as loud as thunder.  
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The football team dominated with a 35-16 victory; however, at the beginning of the game, it was hard to predict who would win. During the first quarter, both schools were trying their hardest to find methods to score. Jostling and colliding with one another, Glenelg and Wilde Lake fought over possession and were both having a difficult time executing game plans, until Senior Drew Sotka, with 43 seconds left in the first quarter, scored the first touchdown. In addition, the Shield’s own David Toronto made an after-touchdown point, causing the score to be 7-0. This was just the beginning of the unforgettable game. 

As the game progressed, the Wilde Lake Wildcats began to focus and scored their first field goal in the second half; the score was now 7-3. Junior Kevin Doughty expressed, “I started to feel a little worried when the opposing team regained their focus and started playing better. We really needed to improve our game if we wanted to win.” With sweat dripping down their faces and the pressure building, the Glenelg Gladiators created many successful plays, and scored a field goal and another touchdown, leading the score to be 14-3. Soon, the Wildcats began to catch up. 

The bleachers were roaring and the sun was setting as the Wildcats intensified the game by creating a score of 14-16. The Gladiators were slowly falling behind. Senior Tommy Kern stated, “I noticed from the start of the whistle that something was a little off. We were not scoring, which was creating a negative impact on our game. I know that our team can play so much better, but I guess we were just not focused enough.”  Soon enough, as the Gladiators fixated on working together to complete passes, keep possession, and, of course, achieve touchdowns, the score drastically increased. After an intense game, the Gladiators took home the win with a 35-16.

After a pressure-filled intense Senior Night game, Glenelg achieved the win against the Wilde Lake Wildcats. As the regular season had come to an end for the Gladiators, they will now be heading off to playoffs. In order to prepare for their first playoff game, the team has decided to practice having a championship mentality and consistently working together on the field. Junior Robbie Tolbert said, “at practice, we are really trying to work on improving our communication with each other on the field as well as creating connecting passes.” As they make their way to their upcoming playoff games, be sure to come and support your Gladiators!