Once it was CIF approved, San Diego Unified School District added girls flag football as an optional sport for female students, and former UC High JROTC Instructor Brian Josten volunteered to coach the UC High team.
Team Captain Senior Andrea Lanatta-Valera believes that the sport promotes women empowerment. She said, “Girls Flag Football is important at schools for representing women. We’re showing that women can do the same thing as men.”
Center Senior Amara Valdez added, “Women’s Flag Football is important because it breaks down gender stereotypes in sports and gives females an equal opportunity to play a male-dominated sport. It even empowers females to excel.”
According to the Los Angeles Times, “After years of discussion and proposal, the final spark was set off Friday afternoon when the CIF Federated Council voted to add girls’ flag football as a sanctioned sport” (latimes.com). This decision has opened new doors for young women around the state. “Interest in women’s sports has grown steadily across the country. Endorsement opportunities for high school athletes are endless thanks to name, image and likeness laws.” One of the main goals of girls flag football is “…to reach girls who haven’t found their niche in sports” (latimes.com).
“As captain, I hope to inspire and lead the younger class so when I’m gone they can do the same thing,” said Andrea Lanatta-Valera. “Our goal is to get more people involved, win many games and overall have as much fun as possible.” Lanatta-Valera said that she also wants to create a teamwork environment and forge a strong bond within the team.
Girls Flag Football Coach Josten said, “We also want the students to build great memories and experiences, and of course to have some fun. Team sports like flag football help students learn to work together and grow as a team. It builds confidence, strength, and perseverance as well.”
Josten said, “The school district introduced the idea of bringing girls flag football to UC. Mr. Asuncion told me about the idea and I was very interested in getting involved by coaching the team.”
Quarterback Senior Bella Giron said, “It has helped me with time management. I’ve gotten better at balancing practices, school and family life.” She added, “I’ve thrown around the football with my family, and when they [girls flag football] opened it up as a CIF sport I was super excited.”
Valdez explained that she was drawn to the sport because of her family, also mentioning that she grew up playing football with her cousins.
“We’ve had a lot of success when we run the ball to the sidelines and have done well with some deep balls down the middle. We still have a few tricks up our sleeves so you’ll have to come watch a game and find out,” said Josten, “All of our League games are scheduled on Tuesdays, but we occasionally play on a Monday or Thursday.”
Josten said, “I love that all of our players keep coming back and never give up. That is such a valuable life lesson and I’m very proud of their efforts.”
“Hopefully, we will win the League or championship game. We hope to accomplish this goal by working and training hard as a team, and building better communication and trust among the team, which is crucial for having successful plays and winning,” said Valdez. “For the future, I think this team will motivate each other and help one another succeed and overall have fun playing.”