Each year, girls from each grade gather together for North Atlanta High Schools fiercest competition: Powderpuff. The flag football tournament in which each grade fights for glory is a quintessential homecoming event and the girls do not take it lightly. Each grade forms a roster that gets together for multiple practices in which they run plays, work on drills, and learn football fundamentals from their group of Senior boy coaches. This year was chock full of impressive plays, riveting wins, and, like always, a little bit of controversy.
Powderpuff kicked off with a battle between underclassmen. Historically, the freshman and the sophomores have significantly worse odds to win the championship than the juniors and seniors, but that has never stopped them from trying. Regulation was a defensive showing, with both teams tying at zero all. Overtime was where it got interesting as the freshman struck first, with a touchdown by Mahannah Hoskins and a successful one point conversion. However, the sophomores quickly responded with a score. At the end of overtime, the score was tied up, and with two games left to go, it had to come down to a coin toss where the sophomores would win it. “Frankly, it sucked that a coin decided a spot in the championship.” said freshman coach Ari Walsey. “Nevertheless, the freshman put a lot of work in and I’m proud of our group.”
The Junior-Senior game followed a similar pattern to the previous showing, with both teams shutting eachother out in regulation. However, unlike the sophomore-freshman game, there was no overtime. Instead, the controversial coin was to decide each of their fates. This time, the quarter ruled in favor of the seniors, and the stage was set for a senior versus sophomore showdown. “We went out there and played our best game,” said junior Liza Hanley. “Even though we were all disappointed for our run to be cut short by a coin toss we had fun.”
After two narrow victories by coin toss, the seniors and sophomores were determined to prove that they deserve a shot at the title. In the first half, both teams put together strong offensives but without avail, as the score was zip-zip when the buzzer sounded. After the break, the teams came out with a new aggression and determination. For the first couple of minutes, they were unable to put together successful drives. Finally, after a 60 yard pass to senior Quinn Alpers, Corrine Evans was able to break the plane for a touchdown and put the upperclassmen up 7 to 0. Given one last chance to tie or take the lead, the sophomores were unable to get in the end zone. As the whistle blew, the celebration for the soon-to-be graduates ensued. “It was a blessing to be able to score the winning touchdown for the class of 2025,” said senior Corrine Evans. “I owe it all to my team. Go senior dubs!”
As the sun set on the hill, the seniors went home winners on their last Powderpuff ever. Meanwhile, the sophomores, juniors, and freshmen went home with broken spirits after defeat. Until next year, Powderpuff!
