Tippecanoe Valley’s band welcomes in the Unified Flag Football team at last weekend’s regional. Valley will be playing this weekend for a chance at a state championship. (Photos by Mike Deak)

AKRON – There’s a certain pride representing your school, your community, your peers. Tippecanoe Valley’s Unified Flag Football program is taking that to a whole new level this weekend.

The football team will take part as one of the final four teams at this weekend’s IHSAA Unified Flag Football State Finals. The vibe on campus has been surreal for a school that gets behind its own, and the team has been thrust into a spotlight unbeknownst to it just a month ago when it came together for the first time.

The football team is the first to be in a position to play for a state title since Valley’s girls basketball program made its historic run to the state finals in 2015. Coupled with the current success of the tackle football Vikings playing this Friday at Southwood for a shot at the Three Rivers Conference championship, football is a hot topic in the halls at Valley.

“The school and community have been awesome this week,” said Valley head coach Jeff Shriver. “Our players were recognized at the school board meeting Monday night. It has been a special week for our young women and men. The players have been getting a lot of attention in the hallways, but they are focused on the task at hand.”

The 4-0 Vikings are fresh off a regional championship over a very athletic Griffith side. Playing at times in a driving rainstorm at Death Valley this past Saturday, the Vikings scored on its first four possessions to stun Griffith. The speed of Tanner Trippiedi on a pair of long catches, as well as a swarming defense that caused two turnovers in Griffith’s first three possessions set up the Vikings quickly in the first half.

Cheyenne Barngrover takes a handoff from Drew Thompson during Valley’s 30-12 regional win over Griffith.

A 24-0 lead at the half filtered into a 30-12 victory, pushing Valley into the northern slot of the state bracket, set to face Noblesville in the first state semi-final. Shriver, who served as Valley’s tackle football head coach on three different occasions in the past decade, has gone into full football mode heading into the weekend.

Shriver noted Noblesville is built much like Griffith was coming in, basing its offense on speed and misdirection.

“We have seen some film on Noblesville, they are fast and they score a lot of points,” offered Shriver. “They like to stretch the field vertically with the long ball and horizontally with the reverse and fake reverse. They have some great team speed in No. 4 Miguel Mojica and No. 3 Kenneth Morataya. Offensively, Cade Heller can do it all. We saw him run, pass catch and even play some center. Defensively, they are the best overall team we have (seen). They play hard and fast on defense.”

Valley has used its deep passing game to its advantage, with quarterback Drew Thompson gaining confidence each week in his reads and deliveries. While Trippiedi is Valley’s go-to, especially in blitzing situations, Connor Frentzel and Nate Heckman have both caught huge passes in the run to state. Tyler Nine played great defense in the secondary against Griffith, and both Cheyenne Barngrover and Ariana Wright have played big roles in the offense. Payton Mills and Cade Brouyette have also played well on both sides of the ball.

“Drew has really matured as a quarterback. He has really taken control of the huddle,” Shriver stated. “He continues to work hard and improve every week. Last week against Griffith, he was able to complete a couple hot routes when they blitzed. This really bolstered his confidence. Connor Frentzel has also really developed as both an offensive and defensive presence on the field. He made some key plays for us on both sides of the ball last week.

Unified Flag Football is new to the IHSAA lineup in 2018. Played on a 60-yard field with three athletes and two partners, the five-on-five format allows those with special needs and abilities to compete alongside in a manner that allows inclusion and respect. Flag football is the second unified sport to join the IHSAA lineup, alongside Unified Track and Field in the spring, part of the Champions Together initiative. The state tournament this year had 25 teams enter, Valley beating Warsaw, Wawasee and Griffith to reach the finals.

The State Finals will be played at the Indianapolis Colts training facility in Indianapolis where the winner of the Valley-Noblesville game will meet either Ben Davis or Bedford North Lawrence for a shot at the first-ever Unified Flag Football state championship. The two semi-finals will be played simultaneously starting at 4 p.m., with the championship game to follow 30 minutes after the conclusion of the completed semi-finals.

Shriver concluded, “Our players really care about each other and are selfless in their desire to make each other better. I can honestly say this team exemplifies Valley Family, Valley Pride.”