Thomas Jefferson flag football snaps losing streak

Published 2:00 pm Friday, January 9, 2026

It’s been a bit of a roller coaster the past couple of weeks for Thomas Jefferson High School’s flag football team.

A 82-7 loss to Kentridge occurred in the midst of a five-game losing streak to open the season. But in the new year, the Raiders are now 4-0, and are coming off their second consecutive sweep in the form of Auburn Mountainview and Kentlake.

“It’s been a lot of fun, just being new to the sport and coaching in general,” head coach Shaun Finnegan said. “It’s a great group of girls and fun to see the little things come together and it click with them. The happiness comes from them just being successful and them doing the right things.”

Thomas Jefferson played the second and third game of the triple-header at Kentlake on Jan. 8.

In both games, Thomas Jefferson had to come from behind to win, and the comeback was fueled by their defense.

“We’re not really scoreboard watchers,” Finnegan said. “Defensively we have been pretty stout all year.”

Game one against Auburn Mountainview, the Lions took a 21-7 lead coming out of halftime. But the Raider defense didn’t allow any points in the second half and the offense rolled with quarterback Gracie Leenhiavue.

“The reads are clicking and even on incompletions, she’s making the right reads, just maybe the ball didn’t find people. She’s really seeing the whole field and she’s putting it right where it needs to be,” Finnegan said.

Leenhiavue was hitting players across the field, but especially Claire Kaspersen, who looked like she became a go-to target. She ended up having three total touchdowns in game two, including a pick-six.

“She leads our team in all touchdown categories, picks and pick sixes and touchdowns on offense. She’s a pretty dynamic player with the ball in her hands. Especially in her first year, she’s used to the ball at her feet as a soccer player. It’s been pretty cool to see,” Finnegan said.

It was shocking to watch Thomas Jefferson’s offense, with the recent knowledge that they threw seven pick-sixes against Kentridge. But Finnegan had trust in his quarterback, and also, she was the only quarterback.

The Raiders’ comeback brought them all sorts of momentum into their second game against Kentlake.

Kentlake was coming off a last second win over Auburn Mountainview where the Lions went for two and the lead, but failed. But the Raiders were a team on a mission and took a 21-7 lead in the first half en route to a 28-21 win.

In the win, the Raiders took victory formation and Leenhiavue took a knee to end the game. In the previous game against Evergreen, they also took victory formation, but did it a bit differently.

“These girls are attentive to all things and really pay attention and soak it all in. We never went over victory formation, so when we took a knee, every girl took a knee, not just the quarterback,” Finnegan said. “They are so literal and do everything you ask of them. So when I said take a knee, they all took a knee.”

The Raider coach is in his first season, and has really appreciated the willingness to learn from his group, including how to take a knee.

“I’ve coached a lot of tackle football and played it my whole life. I’m just a coach by nature, I love it. Getting back out here was part of the fun. I didn’t know this would check off all the boxes of filling the bucket,” Finnegan said.