Even when they aren't at their best the Kansas Wesleyan Coyotes flag football team is still awfully good.
Angel Roman accounted for all three touchdowns and the defense was dominant once again in a 20-6 Kansas Conference and Senior Night victory over Midland on Wednesday at JRI Stadium and the Graves Family Sports Complex. Ja'Daa Wilson, the team's lone senior, was recognized during a pregame ceremony in her final home game.
KWU notched its seventh consecutive victory and improved to 14-1 overall, 12-1 in the KCAC.
Roman did her damage in the first half as the Coyotes raced to a 20-0 lead. She caught a nine-yard touchdown pass from Chihiro Iwata with 5:46 left in the opening quarter capping a five-play, 55-yard opening drive. Roman scored again on a six-yard pass from Iwata with 10:47 left in the half, the final play of an eight-play, 59-yard drive that made it 13-0.
Roman, who also plays defensive back, made it a hat trick with 1:52 left in the half when she intercepted a pass from Midland quarterback Angel Ioane Kaio and returned it 10 yards for the score. The PAT gave the Coyotes a 20-0 lead at halftime.
"Angel is special for sure," KWU coach Melinda Nguyen said. "First off, she has a great work ethic which helps but then she's got a high IQ and the athleticism. She showed out, there's no other way to say it. Angel was Angel Roman tonight."
The Coyotes didn't score in the second half, the defense stepping to the fore. Midland finished with 147 total yards compared to KWU's 286. Ioane Kaio was 23 of 41 passing for 147 yards and one touchdown.
Iwata was 20 of 34 for 255 yards and two touchdowns – 15 of 22 for 169 yards in the first half. She also had a game-best 32 yards rushing on four carries. Jazmine Whitfield caught six passes for 113 yards and Roman four for 52 yards.
"Midland's a good team and we knew coming in we couldn't underestimate them," Nguyen said. "We executed not beautifully; the second half was a little messy to be honest. We just weren't as sharp in the second half … really it was us against us, didn't execute the way we should have."
Nguyen was pleased with the defense's work though. Alexa Mansur had seven pulled flags, Roman five and KWU was able to put constant pressure on Ioane Kai.
"The rushers did their job which made the secondary's job a little bit easier," she said. "Overall, everyone stepped up and communicated really well."
KWU concludes the regular season Saturday with a pivotal game against Ottawa (10-4) starting at 1 p.m. in Ottawa. Each team has one conference loss. The Coyotes won 18-13 on March 23 at JRI Stadium – their first victory over the Braves since both schools started playing flag football in 2021.
"We're excited, we're pumped to go up there and execute," Nguyen said. "There's some things we'll clean up by Saturday and really show up and show out."
