A fairly new sport is taking Arizona by storm: flag football for girls in high school.
On a Monday morning, a group of girls were on the field, sweating under the early morning heat and practicing a sport they love at Mountain Ridge High School. Despite the early morning practices for several days a week at the end of their summer, sophomore Emma Langer fell in love with the sport.
“I enjoy every minute of it. Every practice, even though it’s early and hot, I love it,” Langer said.
More and more high school girls are finding joy out of throwing around a football and being on the field.
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“When I would go to kick, it would be exhilarating, I guess. Like, I always had to have my two slaps on shoulder before I kicked,” said Isabella Ceja, a senior at Mountain Ridge High.
For years, the field was off-limits for girls to play football in high school. But since the Arizona Interscholastic Association sanctioned flag football as an official sport, the number of teams nearly doubled. David Hines, the executive director of the AIA, said the 2023-24 school year was the first for flag football. There were 55 schools that started out the inaugural season. This school year, there are 102.
School districts are also looking into expanding the number of teams, too. Kim Crooks, the manager of activities and athletics at Deer Valley Unified, said the sport is at all five of its high schools including Mountain Ridge High.
“A couple of our schools are looking at making a JV team. I would love to bring it down to middle schools,” Crooks said.
Some middle schools are starting the sport for the first time this school year, too. The Kyrene Elementary School District will bring on the sport for boys and girls this year. While sign-ups haven’t happened just yet, they expect it to take off.
“We’re very, very excited to be adding this. I know it’s something that the community has been wanting for a while and we’re finally able to offer it,” said Josh Glider, the director of community education services with the Kyrene Elementary School District.
As for a future in flag football for girls, the opportunities are getting better.
“It is in some Division 3. It is in some NAIA, but the Division 1, 2 has a process to bring in a new sport,” Hines said.
The momentum and popularity of flag football is only going to keep going. Hines said more schools are already planning to start up teams next school year as well.
