Tatjana Tschirpke Named Pacific Conference Player of the Week (Presented by Commons)

By Derek Fleming, Staff Writer, WNFC

Tatjana Tschirpke, kicker for the Denver Bandits has been named the Pacific Conference Player of the Week for Week 2. The Bandits faced a tough Las Vegas Silver Stars team that squeezed out a close victory over Los Angeles the week before. It took everything Denver had to secure the win, and nothing was more important to the victory than the performance of the team’s placekicker, Tatjana Tschirpke.

Tschirpke completed her first-ever field goal attempt and added an extra point on the Bandits only touchdown of the day. The four points made the difference at the end of the day as Denver triumphed 10-6 and extended their record to 2-0 for the 2022 season.

“Definitely, the pressure was on,” Schirpke said. “[The kick] was something that was a little more exciting because I’ve never kicked a field goal before in previous years. We just didn’t really have the opportunity.

I have the utmost confidence in my snapper and my holder, we are just a fantastic team. I knew to zone in when it was time,” Schirpke said.

Head Coach Marcell Simpson said that Tschirpke is the regular PAT kicker and has been working on field goals in practice.

“She’s been hitting them, making money,” said Simpson. “It was a defensive game, so points were at a premium. We got stopped on third down and it was a no-brainer for me to have her kick that field goal.”

This is the second week that Schirpke has been instrumental in putting up points that got her team a win after the Bandits secured a victory in Week 1 with a 7-6 victory over Utah. Schirpke’s extra point was the difference-maker in that game as well.

“We are one of the original teams in the WNFC and she has been with us the whole time, so I think it’s a boost for her confidence to get Player of the Week. It’s good that she is recognized for being very instrumental in us being 2-0.”