Pouncing on History: Women’s Flag Football

Maria Carillo flag football (The Puma Prensa / Francisco Linares)

By Francisco Linares, Sports editor and Esmond Hoang, staff writer

Eyes locked on the ball and sweat dripping down as the sun sets. The crowd is cheering them on and roaring their names. The girls are making Maria Carrillo High School history. Flag football is a fast growing sport in the west and Monday Sept. 8, 2025, the first ever game of flag football in MCHS history just happened! It was our Lady Pumas against Cardinal Newman High School. Girls have never had the opportunity to play football at Carrillo before. Now they do.

What even is flag football, you might ask? Before we continue, here are some necessary rules and knowledge. Flag is an edited version of American football. The offense will start on the five yard line and have four tries to score. There are many positions each with different roles. And although football is known for intense injuries, flag football takes away the tackling of regular football. It makes it very inclusive to people who want physical activity without the danger. 

Maria Emelia Peritore, a sophomore here at Maria Carrillo was asked why Carrillo should care about this new milestone in school history. Peritore said ecstatically, “We’re literally making history on the field, and it's so empowering seeing girls play such a difficult sport.” The entire night the crowd had a feeling in the air that one was witnessing history. 

The beginning process wasn’t easy, tryouts were held on the first day of school, over 60 different students still managed to make it to the tryouts, but due to a limited number of jerseys, only 28 players were allowed to be on the team.   

However, this does not make it any less intense. The core of the game is flags dangling around players’ waists. The players snatch the flag to take the football away. It’s fast paced and every move could be game changing. 

There is a great sense of kinship within the team. The majority of the girls interviewed for this article said they joined for their friends and to have fun. They also remarked on how thrilled they were to hear that they could be a part of history on the flag football team. Flag has really banded people together and they are inspired to play by each other. Coach Jordan Henry said about her team, “I’m just so excited to be the coach and I’m so so so proud of the effort they’re putting in.”   

The game on Monday Sept. 8th was a loss, but this didn't seem to faze them. This loss has been the Puma's only loss so far, the puma’s stand at 9-1 on the season. We still have so many memorable moments this season yet to happen. For now, our Pumas have seven wins and only one loss. MCHS eyes are locked on the team and there is so much history yet to happen.