The562’s coverage of Millikan Athletics for the 2025-26 school year is sponsored by Brian Ramsey and TLD Law.
For anyone that doubted the Compton flag football team after their big win at Long Beach Poly last week, there’s no room for doubt any longer.
C-High is legit; and after a thrilling 26-18 comeback win over Millikan on Monday afternoon, they’re also in first place. Compton, Millikan, and Poly each have two losses against one another with only two weeks left in the regular season, setting up an exciting conclusion to the 2025 season.
“A Compton High School sports team hasn’t done this well in quite some time,” said head coach Jason Carreras after his team’s victory. “To be on a new campus, it means a lot more to have these girls playing at such a high level … We knew we had a good team, we know we’re definitely raw in a lot of areas, but we know we have athletes, and we know we play hard and play with heart. They knew that this was their only game this week, and they said, ‘Let’s empty the tank.’”
Nobody left more on the field than sophomore Ariel Willard, who was a force on both sides of the ball for Compton. She had a pair of interceptions on defense, a huge punt return in the fourth quarter, and a pair of receiving touchdowns to help spark the Compton offense.
“Honestly, it means a lot, because everybody was doubting us,” said Willard on how it feels to get into a tie for first place. “We had a rough start last year because it was everybody’s first year, but this year we’re dominating both sides of the ball, defense and offense. And our coaches have been here to support us throughout everything. I just love my team. We get the job done even when we’re doubted.”
C-High’s attack has added another key element with sophomore QB Miah Gibson, who was a big part of her team’s success on Monday. She gave Compton its first lead in the first quarter, scrambling in from 15 yards out to cap off their first drive with a TD. She then hit Willard on the extra point try to make it 7-6 Tarbabes in the early going.
Gibson finished with four total touchdowns: two on the ground and two through the air to Willard.
As Carreras points out, his team has been without one of its captains, Laila Williams, who was injured in the first game of the season. And getting Gibson into the lineup has really boosted his team’s explosiveness offensively.
“I haven’t had a starting quarterback since mid-season, so the fact that the girls were able to lock in and hang with that adversity, has been amazing,” Carreras said. “But now we’ve taken it to the next level. Now I see the confidence, and I see the girls believing in themselves, that they can compete with a Long Beach Poly and a Long Beach Millikan. We know we may not have certain things, but we’re getting there. And just to see that happening now, and to see us being able to take the field and know that we can play with these teams, is absolutely amazing. It’s an amazing feeling for our program.”
Monday’s win needed to be a comeback, as Millikan was able to get out to a 12-7 halftime lead. Kate Martin ran in a touchdown on an end around to cap Millikan’s first drive of the game, then a TD pass from Holly Ibarra to Nikki Cheshire put the Rams back in front, 12-7, in the final two minutes of the first half.
Cheshire was also a solid presence for the Millikan defense, recording an interception and a pass breakup for the Rams.
Coming out of halftime, Millikan was able to extend its lead on a TD pass from Ibarra to Martin, making it 18-7 Rams with 7:13 left in the third quarter. But from that point on, Millikan struggled to move the ball against the Compton defense, and were held scoreless over the final 19:13 of game time.
A big reason for that success was freshman Destin’ee Kelley, who recorded five sacks for the Tarbabes and had several QB hurries throughout the game. Her persistent pressure helped Compton get the ball back in good field position in the second half, setting them up for three consecutive scoring drives to turn their 18-7 deficit into a 26-18 lead.
“It’s very natural. I’m just naturally fast, so I felt like I was just playing tag,” said Kelley on how she was able to knife in for her five sacks. “This win for us is actually the best thing that’s happened for us this season, and I think we’re gonna keep on going, because we’re gonna be the big one–most definitely.”
Compton’s comeback started on the last play of the third quarter, when Gibson hit Willard for a 23-yard touchdown to cut the deficit to 18-13.
On the ensuing drive, Kelley recorded consecutive sacks to force Millikan to punt, and the Gibson-Willard connection locked in again. On a 3rd & 12, Gibson lofted a pass deep into the Rams’ secondary, and Willard came flying in to snag it, then raced for the pylon for a go-ahead 32-yard score, making it 19-18 Compton with 7:48 left on the clock.
Then the Compton defense held Millikan to another 3 & out, and Willard set her team up on the doorstep with a terrific punt return deep into Rams’ territory. Gibson would run in the TD to put Compton up eight with 5:44 to go, giving the Tarbabes a 19-0 run in the span of just over six minutes.
But Millikan was able to make things interesting in the final minutes, starting a drive at their own 3-yard line with just 1:42 left. They were able to move the ball down to the Compton nine-yard line, and had a chance to tie the game with just over 20 seconds to go.
But the Rams couldn’t get any closer than that, as a pair of sacks by sophomore Paityne Chandler pushed them away from the goal line. Ibarra’s final heave as time expired fell incomplete, and Compton’s bench stormed the field in celebration.
Both these teams have work to do to maintain their share of the Moore League crown. Compton (17-2, 7-2) is off the rest of the week before returning to action at Jordan next Monday. Meanwhile, Millikan (10-5, 6-2) will host Jordan on Wednesday at 3:45 p.m.
