On September 17, 2026, Lick-Wilmerding High School’s Varsity Girls’ Flag Football team made history, taking the field for its first official game against University.
In March 2025, Zoe Polsky ’27 and Amelia Davies ’27 proposed starting a girls’ flag football team at LWHS. After countless meetings with the athletics department and more than 30 students expressing interest through a Google form, the idea began to feel like a reality. “This could be a thing,” Polsky thought.
What started as an idea in the spring of 2025 has since grown into a team of students learning a new sport together. After a previous season in the fall of 2025, focused on practices and recruiting new members, the team was ready to take the next step by competing against teams around the city.
Many players entered the season without experience in flag football. The team has focused on learning together and creating an environment where players feel comfortable trying something new.
For captains Rubyana Folau ’28 and Polsky, the objective was to create a fun and supportive team environment. That sense of community has become one of the team’s defining characteristics.
“[The team] is very welcoming, everyone makes mistakes or drops the ball, but it’s okay,” Polsky said. “I really encourage just trying for one day.”
The supportive environment does not mean the team lacks competition. Players have been determined to learn plays, understand the rules and improve with each practice.
“Everyone was committed. I was impressed by the time and effort each player put in to remember the plays,” Haruna Koizumi ’27 said. “It really spoke to the characteristics that Lick students have. Everyone puts their 100% into the field.”
Associate Athletic Director and Head Coach Jerrieza Enriquez hopes that commitment will extend beyond this season.
“Of course, I want to win, but that’s not the most important thing. [I want] them to enjoy themselves so much that they come back next season,” Enriquez said.
But flag football extends beyond the field. Enriquez has built a schedule that incorporates not only practices and games, but also film sessions and strength and conditioning, allowing players to grow as well-rounded athletes.“[They are becoming] not just a flag football player, but an overall student-athlete,” Enriquez said.
As the season continues, both captains hope to expand the program.“Hopefully, next year or the year after that, we’ll join a league. We are just trying to get in the flow first,” Polsky said.
For a team in its first season of official competition, that growth is already a victory. With new players joining, teammates encouraging one another and a community built around learning and improving, girls’ flag football is establishing itself as more than a new sport at LWHS; it is becoming a team of players that want to return.
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