TIMONIUM, Md. — Girls flag football is coming to Maryland for the first time, and Dulaney High School is already making history.
The upcoming school year will mark the first time girls flag football is an official state sport in Maryland. Dulaney is one of 24 teams in Baltimore County fielding a roster, and the Lions are wasting no time getting to work — practice is already underway.
The team is set to play a seven-game schedule beginning in September, with the season potentially culminating in a state championship game at M&T Bank Stadium in November.
Girls flag football makes Maryland history as Dulaney High School fields one of 24 Baltimore County teams
Head coach Stephanie Fila brings experience as both a flag and semi-professional tackle football player to the role. Her focus right now is introducing the sport to a group of players who are learning it from the ground up.
"I want them to see like, hey, even though this is new, I can do this too, and it's not just something that's just for the boys. It's for us as well. So a lot of my girls here, they switch other sports, they came here, and they're rocking it right now," Fila said.
Dulaney has 20 players on the roster, with athletes coming from a variety of sports backgrounds — but none with football experience. Early practices have focused primarily on learning the fundamentals of the game.
"None of us really have played football before, so we're all figuring it out together, seeing who can throw, catch, doing all that stuff, running through some drills, trying it out," player Kayla Hall said.
For some players, the fact that everyone is starting from scratch made joining the team more appealing, not less.
"I think part of it being new made me feel more welcomed because in all the other sports, they've been there. Even seeing that last basketball season, people knew what they were doing, and it's scary to come new to something, so the fact that I knew everyone else would be new too made it feel more welcoming for me," player Molly Bogdan said.
With only one inaugural season to be had, the players suiting up this year have a unique opportunity to cement their place in the record books.
"Since the other sports have been a thing for so long, it's cool now I can be one of the first people to be a part of flag football," player Alana Francia said.
Fila said the team is already showing signs of cohesion ahead of its first game.
"We're already moving together like a team, so I'm proud of what we got," Fila said.