History made as Inland girls flag football teams begin inaugural season – Press Enterprise

Aug 24, 2023

RIVERSIDE — It was a day Jennifer Constuble has dreamed about for two decades.

Constuble has been involved in the world of flag football since 2003, when she helped organize a league in her community as a positive way to keep kids active. The players were mostly boys when that league started, but Constuble saw more and more girls sign up with each passing year. Constuble eventually had enough players for an all-girls squad that competed against the boys teams.

“I come from a time when girls didn’t have the opportunity to play football in any way or form,” Constuble said. “There are a lot of women my age out there who would have loved a chance to play.”

Constuble was among the strong advocates for girls flag football to be added to the roster of sports officially sanctioned by the California Interscholastic Federation. That dream became a reality in February, when the CIF’s Federated Council unanimously approved its addition. Constuble then signed up to become the first girls flag football coach at Roosevelt High School.

More history was made Monday afternoon and evening, when the six teams from the Big VIII League kicked off the inaugural season with a tripleheader at King High School. More than 200 players suited up for these historic games, and they treated curious spectators to a thrilling slate of games.

“This is huge day for me and for every girl who has had dreamed about playing football,” Constuble said. “To finally see this at the high school level and not just as some powder-puff game is a dream come true.

“These aren’t just girls playing football. They are football players now.”

Santiago 25, Centennial 24 (final).
Maddie Saruwatari with the winning TD catch with 3.9 second left. pic.twitter.com/mxte1CTbEy
— Eric-Paul Johnson (@CallMeEPJ) August 22, 2023

Eighteen Inland schools will be fielding girls flag football teams during the inaugural season, but more local schools plan to offer the sport next school year. San Gorgonio athletic director Matt Maeda jumped at the chance to start a program but understands why others are being cautious.

“There are so many unknowns whenever a new sport comes along, and that creates some real challenges,” Maeda said. “Once it was approved and we knew that it was coming, me and my administration met, and we all agreed it would be a disservice not to offer it right from the start. We have a lot of great athletes on our campus, some of them seniors, and this will be their only opportunity to play.

“We played our first games Tuesday, and it was a great experience for everyone who was there.”

The list of coaches is an eclectic one. Some coach other sports at their respective schools, such as Corona’s Jimmie Bowers (wrestling), Norco’s Wade Lockett (track and field) and Mike Boggio (track and field). Sami Logan, who played tackle football for her father, Matt, at Centennial High School, has returned to coach at her alma mater, and her assistants include former Husky greats Robert Webber and Ray Bass.

North’s Kiyoshi Harris is a well-known coach in the tackle football world, including his time at Independence Community College in Kansas, which was featured in the Netflix documentary series “Last Chance U.” On the opposite end of the spectrum is Ramona’s Kelly McAllister, a science teacher who has never coached but has a passion to see the sport launch and grow.

Rusty Bailey, who is a former Mayor of Riverside, heads up the coaching staff at Riverside Poly this season. Bailey took over coaching the school’s boys soccer program last season, and he also decided to coach Poly’s first girls flag football team because his daughter Julia is a senior on the team.

“She helped recruit other soccer players for the team,” Bailey said about his daughter. “I think it’s exciting for everyone to be the first team doing this. You get to set the standard and a legacy for those who will follow.”

Most of the players on the six Big VIII League teams also are standout athletes in other sports. A survey of Inland athletic directors show athletes in soccer, lacrosse, basketball, softball, wrestling and track and field are the ones most likely to sign up for flag football, but there also are a handful of players who are competing in a sport for the first time.

A common theme among the players is a genuine love of football. The sport has created strong bonds within their families, as many have brothers, fathers and other relatives who play or have played football.

“I grew up playing in the yard with all my brothers,” said Santiago junior receiver Maddie Saruwatari, who also is a standout on the school’s soccer team. “It’s something that I always wanted to do, but the opportunity was never there for me. I wasn’t going to pass up on this chance to play.”

Corona senior quarterback Victoria Aguilar echoed those sentiments.

“I have wanted to be on a football team for the longest time,” said Aguilar, who also plays softball and wrestles. “Everybody told me I’d get hurt because I’m a girl, which is fair I guess. Flag football has finally given me a chance to live out my dream. It feels great and this has been an amazing experience.”

The passion for the sport expressed by Saruwatari and Aguilar already has produced memorable moments on the field. Monday’s Big VIII League games were chock-full of highlights and competitive games.

Corona 27, Norco 24 (final).
Victoria Aguilar throws the game-winning touchdown to Ava Liaga with 1:00 left in the game. pic.twitter.com/YnsIWy4WBQ
— Eric-Paul Johnson (@CallMeEPJ) August 22, 2023

Aguilar threw a game-winning touchdown pass to Ava Liaga with 1 minute left on the clock to lift Corona to a 27-24 victory over Norco in the opener. Saruwatari caught the winning pass from Abby White with 3.9 seconds remaining to give Santiago a 25-24 win over Centennial. Roosevelt’s Angelina Briano threw four touchdown passes, three to Lotolelei Sivas, to send Roosevelt to a 27-14 victory over King in the nightcap.

“It was nerve-racking, even a little scary at first,” said Briano, a senior who also wrestles and plays softball. “There really are no words to explain what this moment means to me and everyone else here today… We made history being out here and doing something no one else at our school has ever done before.”

There will be no CIF Southern Section playoffs this season because the total number of teams competing throughout the section fell short of the minimum (20% of member schools) required to hold championships. The three leagues in the Inland area will play games or hold tournaments to determine league champions.

Constuble said she is excited to see the sport expand and become an important part of high school sports.

“I think schools across the board will catch on and see how important this is for the girls, the schools and the entire community,” Constuble said. “The girls playing right now are part of a legacy. In 30 or 40 years, there will be girls playing football who can say, ‘I’m here today because of what my mother helped start.’ “

INLAND GIRLS FLAG FOOTBALL LEAGUES

Big VIII League

Centennial

Corona

King

Norco

Roosevelt

Santiago

Ivy League

Canyon Springs

Moreno Valley

North

Riverside Poly

Valley View

Vista del Lago

River Valley League

Arlington

Hillcrest

Indian Springs

Norte Vista

Ramona

San Gorgonio

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Travis Burnett

A pioneer in the flag football community, Travis helped co-found the Flag Football World Championship Tour, FlagSpin and USA Flag. Featuring 15+ years of content creation for the sport of flag football, creating and managing the largest flag football tournaments on the planet, coaching experience at the youth and adult level as well as an active player with National and World Championship level experience.