Sid wins again, defeats Baker in coed IM flag final
Illuminated by the Memorial Hermann Medical Plaza’s red and yellow lights, Sid Richardson College defeated Baker College in the intramural coed flag football championship April 3. Sid Rich took home the title for the second year in a row, outscoring Baker 19-7 in the final after an undefeated season.
Rice Recreation hosts coed flag football every spring. Zephyr Zoidis, senior coach and captain for Baker, said it is challenging to merge the men’s flag football team with the women’s powderpuff team, but he loves the dynamic it creates.
David Hill, a friend of Baker player Alice Owens, attended the game.
“I like the fact that it’s mixed [gender],” Hill said. “It’s a lot more tactical.”
Hill, who is from England, said that this game was only the second American football game he had ever attended. The first was Baker’s semifinal game against Wiess the night before. Hill said that in England, the most similar sport is rugby.
“[In rugby] you just pass the ball and run and hope for the best,” Hill said. “[With flag football] they take their time to work out the tactics.”
Sid Rich scored the game’s first six points when junior wide receiver Kai Peiris caught a long pass from freshman quarterback Alejandro Reto and ran the rest of the way into the endzone. Sid Rich attempted to run for the one extra point, as opposed to starting from further back for the 2-point conversion, but Baker junior Ethan Quach stopped the pass, leaving Sid Rich leading 6-0.
Neither team scored in the remainder of the first half as both teams boasted competitive defensive squads. For Baker, Quach frequently made flag pulls to delay the Sid offense and hold them to one touchdown. On the Sid Rich side, freshman Tyra Helper recorded a sack against quarterback Zoidis to close out the half.
In the second half, Sid Rich scored off a rushing touchdown by sophomore running back Izzy Balise and successfully ran for the extra point. Sid Rich also changed their line-up throughout the game, at one point swapping Reto for freshman Harriet Shapiro at quarterback.
One Baker freshman spectator said he wanted to see Baker make similar changes and put in a female quarterback. His requests were later answered when Baker played senior Alice Owens in place of Zoidis, leading to their only points of the game on a passing touchdown from Owens to Zoidis.
Sid Rich sophomore Andrew Goin, an offensive lineman, said he knew why Sid Rich was able to win.
“One word: Magic,” Goin said.
Max “Magic” Ahoia, a senior at Sid Rich, played both offense and defense throughout the game, but his best moment came deep into the second half. When Baker was in prime position, just a few yards away from scoring and tying the game, Ahoia picked off a pass from Zoidis, fighting off the Baker defenders and running all the way into the Baker endzone. Ahoia’s pick-6 effectively ended the game in Sid’s favor, leaving a final score of 19-7.
Sid Rich senior captains Prat Mohapatra and Graham Waterstraat said they attributed the team’s success this season to the team’s familial dynamic.
“This game didn’t start out easy, but we stayed together as a team,” Mohapatra said. “We never get angry at each other. We do everything with love and care in our hearts, and it shows in the way we play.”
Sutter Armistead, a junior receiver from Baker, said that despite the struggle to field a team this season, he was proud of what they were able to accomplish.
“We’ve played so many games with zero subs, and we actually won them,” Armistead said. “It was very fun, having everyone from Baker who could just rally.”
Similar to the Sid Rich captains, Armistead also mentioned the selfless nature of the Baker players.
“I’m proud of the development of this team,” Armistead said. “I feel like people are always down to switch for what the team needs. No one’s selfish about if they want the ball. It’s a good atmosphere.”
As Waterstraat reflected on his final game, he said he looks forward to seeing where the Sid Rich team will go without him.
“Damn proud of this team,” Waterstraat said. “I think it’s in great hands for the future.”
Sid Rich sophomore Evan Bishop said he was proud of how Sid Rich had performed in the championship game.
“We never gave up,” said Bishop, who plays receiver and cornerback. “Even when the game was over.”
As the school year comes to a close, Sid Rich sets their sights on the coveted Presidential Cup. The P-Cup is awarded at the end of the year to the college that wins the most points across the fall and spring intramural sports. Sid Rich won the cup last year after also winning the coed flag championship.
Ahoia left some departing wisdom for the team after the game.
“It’s always bigger than you, but never as big as you make it out to be,” Ahoia said.
Before the team walked back to Sid Rich, Bishop said he had one more thing he wanted to share: a warning to all the other colleges.
“Everybody at Rice gotta know: Sid runs this shit,” Bishop said.
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