Becoming a varsity sport only two years ago, Girls Flag Football has been an exciting and popular activity among North Atlanta students. Those first two years weren’t exactly marked by success, though, as the girls have only managed 4 wins across both seasons. However, with those shortcomings in the rearview mirror, the girls are looking to flip the script in 2024 led by head coach Ricky Plante. The season officially kicks off on the second of October, with an at-home bout against Mount Vernon, the perfect opportunity to start with a win.
When the dubs are on the offensive, let’s just say there won’t be much flag-pulling going on. At the helm is senior quarterback Victoria Carlucci, her third year leading the offense. A lifelong football fan and player, it was only natural that she would be throwing the pigskin for the Warriors. Her weapons? Receiver Nivea Santiago and running back Jaiya-Ola Okoka have proved to be formidable with the ball in their hands. “Putting points on the board is the primary objective this year,” said Carlucci. “Whether it’s throwing or running, we have to get the ball in the endzone consistently if we don’t want a repeat of the last two years.
While good offensive play is imperative, every football fan knows that defense wins championships, and unfortunately for the Warriors, it has proved to be a spot of weakness. Over 11 games last year, 189 points were scored by opposing teams averaging just over 17 points allowed a game for the North Atlanta defense. However, where there are flaws, there is also room for improvement. Senior safety Bella Van Nostran recognizes this principle and believes that the Warriors have the talent to be effective on defense. “We have spent lots of time in practice going over defensive schemes and working on flag pulling so that we’re prepared to make stops,” said Van-Nostran.
At the end of the day, flag football is a long season, spanning over 20 regular season games. That means that the Warriors have to be able to make adjustments over the year, in wins and losses. There is no doubt though, that being in such a juvenile stage of existence, the flag football team’s improvement is only a matter of time.
