Levi Andrew was not waiting for any seal of approval to continue changing the scope of high school athletics in the state.
He had seen it firsthand from coaching football at the youth flag, peewee, middle and even high school levels in Kingston— recounting the desire expressed by some girls to carry the pigskin and run the routes the same as boys, to get the chance to find their role in playing America’s game.
“Ever since that first year of coaching, I’ve almost always had a girl on the team across the levels, ” Andrew said. “Why not try and shoot for the stars for something like this?”
On a whim, he sent in an application to the Seattle Seahawks for grant funding to start a girls flag football program at Kingston High School. Fast forward to the first days of December, and the coach was joined by approximately 14 girls for the first practices of their inaugural season.
“A lot of the girls, we were just excited to join a new sport, try something new, see how it goes and have fun,” Kingston senior Joey Castillo said. “I totally think it can be very competitive if you put the right amount of effort forward.”
North Kitsap was the first school in Kitsap County to have girls flag football as a club sport in 2023. The Vikings were followed months later by South Kitsap with the help of Seahawk grant dollars. Kingston included, the NFL franchise has distributed over $300,000 in funding in Washington since 2021, championing the sport with hopes that it will become WIAA-sanctioned.
And Kingston’s not alone. Bremerton and Bainbridge have also confirmed they will field teams this winter, and the Central Kitsap School District said it is inviting girls from all three of its high schools to compete for Olympic High School. The teams will compete in the newly formed Olympic Division, while South Kitsap will compete out of the South Puget Sound League in its second season.
CKSD athletic director Lauren McDaniel said, “Finances were a factor in this decision but also, we wanted to start with a pilot program districtwide to gauge the overall interest and to introduce the sport in hopes of expanding to our other two high schools in the near future.”
Interest levels have fluctuated depending on the territory. Over 40 girls registered for the CKSD team as of Dec. 2, while Andrew said he’s seeing the most interest out of junior high students.
Tom Breen, a former offensive coordinator for the Spartans and coach of the new Bainbridge girls team, called it the fastest-growing sport in America with nationwide participation skyrocketing by 60% since 2019 and an Olympics debut inbound for 2028. “The time is now for girls varsity flag, so here we go,” he said. “We’ve got upwards of twenty girls coming out to practice. They are all excited to be the founders of this league and to make some memories together.”
Getting the WIAA’s stamp of approval to go from a club to a high school sport in the next couple of years will depend on the votes of schools east of the mountains. Freezing temperatures and harsh snowfall make playing the sport in winter more difficult there. Also of concern is the overload of options of sports in fall and spring.
The amendment that would have sanctioned girls flag football this year needed 60% approval but it failed with 26 in favor and 27 against. The WIAA confirmed Dec. 10 that it will go to a vote again in April.
