High school flag football rankings: Illinois programs St. Charles North, Glenbrook South and Evanston make push in this week's MaxPreps Top 25

Only one other high school flag football team in the country has been able to keep pace with the 19-0 start of No. 1 JSerra Catholic (San Juan Capistrano, Calif.). 

That would be St. Charles North (St. Charles, Ill.).

The North Stars rose to No. 3 in this week's MaxPreps Top 25 after matching their win total from last season with four wins in five days. Kaelie Tomalak has a state-leading 60 touchdown passes against just four interceptions. Tomalak is also one of two St. Charles North players along with Alexzandria Richardson with more than 1,000 rushing yards. That duo has run for nearly 2,500 yards and 25 scores.

Richardson leads the team with 148 flag pulls and 21 sacks while Tomalak has a team-best 12 interceptions.

No. 12 Evanston (Ill.) joins the rankings for the first time after handing then-No. 7 Willowbrook (Villa Park) its first defeat of the season with a 33-0 shutout Saturday. At 14-2, Evanston's only losses have come against reigning state champ Maine South (Park Ridge) and No. 9 Glenbrook South (Glenview).

Sophomore Ava Bellis completed 24 of 41 pass attempts with 273 yards and five touchdown passes while senior KyNia Hunt picked off four passes for the Wildkits.

Bellis has thrown for 3,527 yards and 47 touchdowns while Hunt and Brielle Rosemond have each caught 16 TD passes. Hunt is also tied for the state lead with 18 interceptions.

Chaparral (Parker, Colo.) rose to No. 6 after a week of quality wins over previously-ranked Legend (Parker) and No. 16 Mountain Vista (Highlands Ranch), a game where Zoey Fink threw for 361 yards and four touchdowns while twin sister Paige Fink and Sutton Persichina each went over 100 receiving yards. 

Wolverines sophomore Maylee Mojica collected five sacks against Mountain Vista.

Central holds down home turf

Central (Phenix City, Ala.) is making a push back toward the top 10 after two victories as the host of Battle of the Borders, a showcase event pitting teams from Alabama and Georgia against each other. 

The Red Devils scored victories over Carver (Columbus, Ga.) 36-6 and reigning three-time Georgia state champion Pope (Marietta) 26-7. 

No. 18 Pope, meanwhile, picked up its first win of the year with a 25-7 victory over Enterprise (Ala.).

St. Anne-Pacelli (Columbus, Ga.) has gone 3-2 against five Alabama teams with wins coming against Smiths Station (Smiths), Auburn and No. 23 Spain Park (Hoover, Ala.).

Edison (Huntington Beach, Calif.) has compiled a 16-5 record with one of the toughest schedules in California. Four of the team's five losses have come against national top-five programs, including JSerra Catholic, Huntington Beach and Newport Harbor (Newport Beach), who the Chargers exacted revenge on with a 6-0 win Sept. 23.

Junior Maddie Phung has 51 touchdown passes, including 16 to freshman Lyric Lesui. Edison has won nine straight and has a rematch against Huntington Beach on Wednesday.

No. 24 Highland (Gilbert, Ariz.) is on the rise after a 3-0 start that includes a 41-16 win over Campo Verde (Gilbert), a 63-0 win over Tolleson and a 55-13 win over O'Connor (Phoenix).

The high-octane offense is led by junior quarterback Lacie Nemchick, who is averaging 280 yards per game and has 14 touchdown passes along with another three rushing scores. Her top target thus far has been freshman Kaliyah Kisler, who has 180 receiving yards and four scores.

The Hawks are coached by former NFL Pro Bowl wide receiver Kenny Golladay. Highland went 18-2 last year and lost in Arizona's Class 6A semifinals.

11. Central (Phenix City, Ala.)
Record: 8-2 | Last week: 13

Record: 1-1 | Last week: 18

Record: 3-0 | Last week: NR