Diaris Morales scored 6 touchdowns despite battling the flu, leading his team to victory. The Choctaw flag football team also advanced in their competition.
Key points
Diaris Morales scored 6 touchdowns
Morales played despite having the flu
Choctaw flag football team advanced
Bella Brooks scored a 66-yard touchdown
Pryor won 40-0 against Destin
Diaris MoralesBella BrooksChoctawPryor
Diaris Morales has 6 TDs in 'flu game,' Choctaw flag advances
Pryor quarterback Bella Brooks makes flag pullers miss for a 66-yard touchdown run in a 40-0 win over Destin.
The Pryor flag football team celebrates a 40-0 win over Destin for a 10th straight Okaloosa County title.
Pryor head coach Justin Savage is doused in celebration following a 40-0 Okaloosa County win over Destin
Kadalina Bledsoe scores one of two touchdowns in a 40-0 win over Destin.
Q&A
How many touchdowns did Diaris Morales score in the flu game?
Diaris Morales scored 6 touchdowns in the flu game.
What was the outcome of the Choctaw flag football game?
The Choctaw flag football team advanced in their competition.
Who is Bella Brooks and what did she achieve in the game?
Bella Brooks is the quarterback for Pryor, and she made a 66-yard touchdown run in a 40-0 win over Destin.
What impact did Diaris Morales's performance have on his team?
Diaris Morales's performance, scoring 6 touchdowns, significantly contributed to his team's victory.
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Jessalynn Robinson carries the abll upfield after an interception in a 40-0 win over Destin for a 10th straight Okaloosa County title.
Pryor coaches are doused in liquid following a 40-0 win over Destin.
The Pryor flag football team celebrates a 40-0 win over Destin for a 10th straight Okaloosa County title.
A Pryor coach looks on as his team defeats Destin 40-0 for a 10th straight Okaloosa County title.
Pryor flag football has won 10 straight Okaloosa County flag football titles.
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Pryor flag football finishes 14-0, wins Okaloosa County title
Pryor quarterback Bella Brooks makes flag pullers miss for a 66-yard touchdown run in a 40-0 win over Destin.
1 / 9
Pryor flag football finishes 14-0, wins Okaloosa County title
Pryor quarterback Bella Brooks makes flag pullers miss for a 66-yard touchdown run in a 40-0 win over Destin.
2 / 9
Pryor flag football finishes 14-0, wins Okaloosa County title
The Pryor flag football team celebrates a 40-0 win over Destin for a 10th straight Okaloosa County title.
3 / 9
Pryor flag football finishes 14-0, wins Okaloosa County title
Pryor head coach Justin Savage is doused in celebration following a 40-0 Okaloosa County win over Destin
4 / 9
Pryor flag football finishes 14-0, wins Okaloosa County title
Kadalina Bledsoe scores one of two touchdowns in a 40-0 win over Destin.
5 / 9
Pryor flag football finishes 14-0, wins Okaloosa County title
Jessalynn Robinson carries the abll upfield after an interception in a 40-0 win over Destin for a 10th straight Okaloosa County title.
6 / 9
Pryor flag football finishes 14-0, wins Okaloosa County title
Pryor coaches are doused in liquid following a 40-0 win over Destin.
7 / 9
Pryor flag football finishes 14-0, wins Okaloosa County title
The Pryor flag football team celebrates a 40-0 win over Destin for a 10th straight Okaloosa County title.
8 / 9
Pryor flag football finishes 14-0, wins Okaloosa County title
A Pryor coach looks on as his team defeats Destin 40-0 for a 10th straight Okaloosa County title.
9 / 9
Pryor flag football finishes 14-0, wins Okaloosa County title
Pryor flag football has won 10 straight Okaloosa County flag football titles.
FORT WALTON BEACH — Twenty-nine years after Michael Jordan did it, Diaris Morales had her "flu game."
Heavily medicated, sporting a fever above 102 degrees and coming off a couple of missed practices, the Choctawhatchee senior quarterback connected with four different receivers for six touchdowns and threw for nearly 400 yards in Tuesday's 39-0 win over Menendez in the Region 1-2A quarterfinals at Joe Etheredge Stadium.
"I just pulled through. Coach Bay gave me the leniency of a couple of days off so I could feel a little better for the game," said Morales, who'll play at the next level for Shelton State Community College. "I felt a little better today, and I knew if I didn't play I'd be letting my team down. I couldn't do that. I'd rather play through any sickness than let my teammates down."
Big Green head coach Jim Bay, who'd seen the team struggle in practice without her at quarterback, knew he could count on Morales.
"She was going to play whether she was on the sideline puking or not," he said. "We were talking about it earlier today: She was going to have her Michael Jordan moment."
Her teammates knew as well.
"It's comforting. It's really amazing to know she'll come out here ill or in bad health and put her heart out on the line, put this team above herself," said DiBenedetto, who alongside Tishelle Bowles had two touchdown receptions and KK Hardy and Mirian Redondo accounted for the other two.
In spreading the love, Morales never once put Choctaw in position to punt. She said the receiver depth is more than athleticism, it's about being on the same page and seeing one step ahead to her next move, next throw.
"They understand me," Morales, protected by Grey Smith all night, said of her weapons. "We've been playing together so long, it's refreshing the connection we have and it makes my job so much easier. Me throwing the ball is what looks cool, but they do most of the work in getting open and making plays."
Speaking of making plays, the defense was full of them. Hardy and Bowles locked down the secondary as opposite corners, DiBenedetto and the linebackers shut down anything underneath and over the middle and Menendez stuggled to find any seam as they tried to get to the edges to no avail. Tuesday marked the third shutout in the last four games for the Big Green, who've won seven straight behind their defense.
"It's taken us awhile to get here," DiBenedetto said. "The beginning of the year, it was rough with a lot of girls coming up, a lot of girls who hadn't played together. But we've worked hard every day to get to where we're at and I'm proud of everyone. This shutout means more than anything anyone could understand."
"The personnel is coming together," Bay said. "When you have dogs, you have to let them eat. And we just needed to move around some pieces. KK coming back, she and Tishelle have really locked down our secondary and erased the issues that were affecting us earlier this year."
Now 15-3 and in search of a fifth straight Final 4, the top-seeded Big Green advance to host fifth-seeded Booker T. Washington in Monday's Region 1-2A semifinal at Joe Etheredge Stadium. Booker T. Washington is 11-2 and beat St. Augustine 7-0 in the region quarterfinals.
