Half Hollow Hills flag football advances to state championship game for second straight season
Half Hollow Hills players celebrate their win following a state Class A flag football semifinal on Saturday, June 6, 2026, in Cortland. Credit: Adrian Kraus
CORTLAND — For just the second time all season, the Half Hollow Hills flag football team was trailing.
They allowed 12 first-quarter points and trailed by five in the state semifinals.
But Half Hollow Hills rose to the occasion. The RedColts scored 30 unanswered points and advanced to their second straight state championship game with a 37-18 victory over Middletown at Homer High School on Saturday.
“No matter what happens, we stick with each other,” Zoe Franks said. “After trailing, we knew it wasn’t acceptable. As a group, we came together, figured it out and snapped back into it. The emotions are high, but we have to get ready for the next one. We have a lot more work to get done.”
Hills (18-0) will face Shaker at Homer High School at 11 a.m. Sunday for the Class A state championship, a year after finishing as runner-up.
Franks finished with eight receptions for 70 yards and a touchdown, along with a rushing score and two interceptions.
"They made some great plays early on,” Hills coach Mike Lupa said of Middletown. “[We could have] shut down early, but we kept answering the call. We stopped playing with emotion and stuck to the game plan, and it set us up defensively the rest of the way.”
In the first quarter, Middletown's Ava Pryce threw for more than 100 yards and a touchdown. Middletown led 12-7 with 2:58 left in the opening quarter.
Hills was forced to punt on the final play of the first quarter. Franks launched a punt nearly 60 yards and pinned Middletown inside its own 1. Emma Gould then recorded a sack on the next play for a safety to trim the deficit to three.
“That’s a game-changing kick right there,” Lupa said. “You flip the entire field, and it put their backs against the wall. It led to a safety, which was huge. From that moment on, we didn’t look back.”
The RedColts then got the ball back and drove down the field in 10 plays over 6:02, capped by a 2-yard touchdown run from Franks. Just over three minutes later, Samantha Heyman scrambled for an 11-yard touchdown run with 1:52 left in the second quarter. Hills led 23-12 at halftime. It was 30-12 after three quarters as the Hills defense delivered.
Harlow Rivera finished with three sacks.
“I couldn’t have done it without Emma Gould,” Rivera said of her fellow edge rusher. “I can’t even describe how this feels. We came together, kept our composure today and fought for this.”
Heyman then threw her third touchdown pass, connecting with Franks for a 6-yard score to make it 37-12 with 11:04 remaining.
Heyman completed 17 of 26 passes for 198 yards and added a rushing touchdown.
After falling in the state championship game last season, Hills will have another opportunity to bring home the program’s first state title.
“It’s the love we have for each other. My teammates weren’t letting me go home yet,” said Heyman, a senior. “Any adversity we face, no matter what gets thrown at us, the heart that we have keeps us going."
