Glastonbury High School’s girls flag football team won the first ever Connecticut Flag Football Girls Jamboree. Players Gisel Astiasaran, Julen Astiasaran, Lola Awofala, Emma Beagle, Riley Carroll, Angela Chavez, Leila Espirito Santo, Lola Espirito Santo, Skylar Fiske, Jenna Fradin, Francesca Gionfriddo, Maddy Handrahan, Alyssa Healy, Kathryn Matson, Avery Olschefskie, Emily Smith, Caleigh Sullivan, Alayna Taylor, Lily Woodworth, along with coaches Scott Daniels, Rob Bernard, John Bolduc, and Mark Alexander were crowned high school’s first flag football champions on April 29 in Windsor. Photo credit: Betty Velasquez Davis.
A group of 19 girls and four coaches from Glastonbury High School tackled barriers on April 29, winning the Connecticut Flag Football League’s inaugural seven-on-seven Girls Jamboree at Windsor High School. GHS defeated Wethersfield 7-0 in the championship game to become the first champion and set the foundation for the growth of girls football in the state. Assistant coach Rob Bernard called the entire experience “thrilling” for both the players and coaches. “The girls were just so enthusiastic,” added Bernard. “Not only to play football, but also to be part of history and really promote the game and expand the game to girls and women.” Bernard was coaching the team with Scott Daniels, John Bolduc, and Mark Alexander — all veteran coaches in various sports at GHS. With limited preparation, the experienced coaching staff put together a roster that practiced only a handful of times between the winter and spring sports seasons. “All credit goes to the players,” said Bernard, who previously coached the GHS football team with Daniels. “A lot of the stuff we used to use in tackle football we just transferred it over to the girls because they are such top athletes and we knew they would be successful with it.” The coaches used many of the same schemes, formation, and tactics they previously used and Bernard said it was “remarkable” how quickly the girls picked up and retained the terminology—despite a sizable gap between the practices and the jamboree. During the daylong tournament, Glastonbury battled both several worthy opponents and the elements, playing in a driving rain at times. Bernard said the adverse weather didn’t affect the Guardians, who were thoroughly dominant, allowing only one touchdown and outscoring their opponents by nearly 100 total points. Following the morning’s preliminary round, GHS earned the No. 2 seed and then defeated Southington and Hartford Public to reach the championship game. Bernard said that the title tilt with Wethersfield was evenly-matched and that Glastonbury needed to play until the final whistle. Senior Alayna Taylor provided Glastonbury a 7-0 advantage in the first half when she hauled in a 60-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Maddy Handrahan. It turned out to be the only points in the defensive battle. For Taylor, the long touchdown reception was just one of the moments that made the entire day special. “I feel that I’m a part of creating a new path and opportunity for girls that I wasn’t able to experience until my senior year,” added Taylor, a two-time all-conference soccer player at GHS who will play collegiately at the University of Connecticut. “When I was younger my dad and I would always throw a football in the yard, but I never would’ve thought I would be playing in a real flag football game and winning the tournament.” The deep scoring strike provided an early cushion for a defense that smothered the Eagles, using an attacking Cover-2 man defense, deploying Taylor as the “shutdown corner” and blitzing senior safety Alyssa Healy to pressure the quarterback. Healy is a basketball captain and track and field standout at GHS, and can now add football champion to her resume. “Being a part of the first girls flag football championship team was truly an honor,” stated Healy, who will run track at Providence College. “I was surrounded by not only amazing coaches and teammates, but also fierce competition and fans who support the game.” Like Taylor and Healy, all of the players on the roster are multi-sport athletes at GHS, ranging from field hockey to ice hockey and everything in between. Bernard said the player’s athletic adaptability was evident once they took the field, using the skills they developed in other sports and translating them to the field, adding the championship triumph was a “complete team effort.” “Every player came up big every single time,” stated Bernard. “If one piece was missing, maybe we don’t beat Wethersfield in the finals.” One of the sponsors of the jamboree was the New York Giants and current Giants safety and Windsor-native Jason Pinnock was on hand and presented Glastonbury a trophy. Glastonbury’s win turned out to be a landmark moment for expanding girls football in Connecticut. On May 5, less than a week after the jamboree, it was announced that the state’s inaugural girls high school flag football season will kick off this fall. Connecticut will join several other states, including New York and New Jersey, that already have added high school girls flag football leagues. Connecticut’s new independent league will be based in Wallingford and feature six teams. The long term hope is that more schools will join the movement and that girls flag football could eventually become a Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Conference (CIAC) sanctioned sport in the coming years. “Personally I am the father of two girls and I want as much opportunity for women’s sports as possible,” stated Bernard, who added the players and coaches soak it the moment on the rain-soaked field at Jack O’Brien Stadium in Windsor following the victory celebration. “It was one of the best moments I’ve ever seen,” added Bernard. “It was great to win, but really important for girls sports and expanding the game. The historical nature of winning this was pretty darn cool.” For the players, particularly the seniors, the triumph was more than winning a trophy. “I hope this tournament opened the eyes of girls to show that their dreams of playing this sport can also come true. I was lucky to have such a wonderful experience with a very athletic and passionate team,” said Taylor. Healy said the history-making day is something she will cherish forever, adding, “The moment I will never forget is when coach Bernard told the team how grateful he was that his two younger daughters will be able to see the progression of women’s sports and have even more opportunities then we did growing up.”
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AuthorSports Editor for the Rare Reminder, Glastonbury Citizen, and Rivereast News Bulletin Archives
April 2024
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