With the final quarter of this school year upon us, Friday night lights seem like ages ago, and many students are missing the fun of football season. But now that spirit week is here, football was back for a night! And this time, the game was for the girls. This year’s powderpuff game was held at the football field on March 22, with kickoff at 6:30pm. The seniors were victorious this year with a final score of 30-18 in a game that even a rainstorm couldn’t stop.
Saint Mary’s annual powderpuff football game is an exciting face off between our junior and senior girls, with football players as coaches. Layla Gonzales, a varsity cheerleader who played on this year’s junior team, thinks having football players as coaches is a rewarding experience, “They know almost everything about the game and they are very excited for us and the game. Everyone also seems to be good friends and everyone gets along well. Our coaches are also very excited and supportive in every aspect of who we are and our capabilities.” Ella Rishwain, the seniors’ powderpuff team captain, enjoyed having football players as coaches too, “They are really helpful with teaching us how to get better and they are also really fun to be around.” Brooks Wheatley was back this year as a coach for the seniors, and he takes coaching inspiration from his varsity football coach, Tony Franks, “My coaches have taught me that to be a good coach you must put great effort into working with your athletes and players. I like being a coach because it gives me a chance to beat the juniors and that’s what I live for.”
Practices for powderpuff were generally after school on the football field, but the days changed to work around the players’ other sports practices. “It will be a really great game so preparing prior during practice is a big focus of ours,” Ella remarks. A typical practice started off with stretching, and then the teams split into offense and defense to work on drills to learn everyone’s individual skills. Layla said that the juniors “are working very hard at practice and we are taking care of ourselves. Everyone is staying up to date with our coaches and what’s going on. With practice we’re working very hard and are doing our best to be ready for the game.” Brooks agrees: “We are doing the only thing you can do to become better and that’s practicing efficiently.”
But what about last year’s game? As many recall, the outcome was tense as the game was believed to be rigged to the seniors' advantage. “Personally, I think the game was rigged last year, but it is not that big of a deal. … It definitely will not be rigged this year. It will be a fair game,” said Ella.
But as it turns out, this year’s game was just as controversial to those who participated. Annabella Gallegos, a junior, says her team was told that they couldn’t be physical since they were playing flag football. But once the game started, the juniors felt that the seniors were playing dirty. Lily Kirby, a senior, blamed the juniors for making the game physical. “A lot of things were happening from both sides that weren’t supposed to be happening. There was tackling from both sides, and lots of angry words,” said Lily, of the game that featured the added challenge of a rainy downpour at one point. Additionally, the juniors felt that unfair calls were being made against them, and the clock was run more for the juniors rather than the seniors. But the juniors expected this: losing, even if unfairly, is a right of passage for the junior team. Nonetheless, Lily doesn’t think this year’s game was rigged, especially since the seniors led for a wide margin then entire game until the end when the juniors tried to make a comeback. “You don't win 30 to 18 in a rigged game,” Lily said.
With competition set aside, Annabella, Lily, and all the other players in this year’s powderpuff game are thankful for the opportunity to bond with their classmates and grow as athletes. No matter what this year’s outcome was, most agree that they are sad this year’s powderpuff season is over.
Powderpuff is more than just a spirit week competition. It is a unifying event for all members of our school community, as it brings together competitors from every sport and school activity on our campus. “One thing that is truly unique about powderpuff is connecting with the girls in my class,” Ella said. “Most of us do not talk to each other frequently, so having an event like powderpuff that unites us all is amazing. I also love the friendly competition between juniors and seniors. In the end, it is just a game that we should all have fun competing in!”