High school flag football: No. 1 JSerra Catholic caps second straight unbeaten season with 40-14 win over No. 3 Newport Harbor

Kate Meier accounts for six touchdowns while Tessa Russell hauls in three TD catches for 150 yards.

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Nov 7, 2026, 11:00pm
No. 1 JSerra Catholic (San Juan Capistrano) completed its second straight undefeated season with its third win over No. 3 Newport Harbor (Newport Beach), beating the Sailors 40-14 in the Southern Section Open Division championship Saturday at Huntington Beach High School.

The win marked the second straight 28-0 campaign for the Lions, extending the nation's longest active winning streak at 56.

Sophomore quarterback Kate Meier was 24 of 31 passing for 253 yards and four touchdowns while adding nine carries for 45 yards and two more scores. Fellow sophomore Tessa Russell caught 10 passes for 150 yards and three touchdowns to spark JSerra.

The Lions haven't lost since the opening round of the 2024 Southern Section playoffs and have held No. 1 spot in the MaxPreps Top 25 all season.
Top-ranked JSerra Catholic completed its second straight unbeaten season with a 40-14 win over No. 3 Newport Harbor in the CIF Southern Section Open Division finals. (PHOTO: John Luciano)
Top-ranked JSerra Catholic completed its second straight unbeaten season with a 40-14 win over No. 3 Newport Harbor in the CIF Southern Section Open Division finals. (PHOTO: John Luciano)
Newport Harbor kept it close, entering the fourth down 20-14. But JSerra scored three touchdowns and hauled in two interceptions in the final period to put the game away.

Meier connected with Russell on the second play of the game for a 62-yard scoring play to quickly make it 6-0 Lions. JSerra added to its lead at the 4:11 mark of the first after Meier ran in a 4-yard score to make it 13-0.

Newport Harbor responded on the ensuing drive as Scarlett Guyser found Cora Jordan for a 14-yard touchdown pass to cut the deficit to 13-7 on the first play of the second quarter. 

Meier once again found Russell for an 11-yard touchdown pass to make it 20-7 just before the break.

Guyser found freshman Emma Yokoi for a 12-yard touchdown midway through the third quarter to cut the deficit to six entering the fourth.

But Meier and the Lions took control from there as she hit Abby VanderWeerd for a 19-yard score, followed by a third TD hookup with Russell and a 1-yard QB keeper to cap the scoring at 40-14.
JSerra Catholic quarterback Kate Meier accounted for six touchdowns in a 40-14 win over Newport Harbor in the Southern Section Open Division flag football championship. (PHOTO: John Luciano)
JSerra Catholic quarterback Kate Meier accounted for six touchdowns in a 40-14 win over Newport Harbor in the Southern Section Open Division flag football championship. (PHOTO: John Luciano)
Avery Olson and Stella Day collected fourth-quarter interceptions to boost the Lions' defense.

Guyser finished with 122 yards and two touchdown passes on 19 of 28 passing with 34 rushing yards while Skylie Cid added 66 receiving yards on 10 catches for the 23-5 Sailors.

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