Rudy Alston: Staff Writer
In 2026, Howard County changed flag football from only being a recreational sport for people to play to an official sport for high school students.
For their training, since their coach is also the coach for track, they do a lot of running activities, for example, running 40 yards, and when they aren’t focusing on running, they practice pulling flags and potential routes they would do in a game.
When they aren’t playing a game or practicing, some other activities they would do are have some type of party or dinner. On the 21 of September they had a pasta party where they could bond and just have a good time. “We had our first team dinner, like, a pasta party on Monday, and it was fantastic,” said junior Kemi Otolorin.
The River Hill team played their second game against Oakland Mills, losing with a final score of 0 – 26. The team said they didn’t have enough time to prepare for the game.
The River Hill team won their first game against Guildford Mills High School with a final score of 27- 0. While they were celebrating, they had to start getting ready for their next game against Oakland Mills.
When the River Hill team got to the game against Oakland Mills, the referees didn’t give them time for warm-ups or planning. The team was also tired from their last game, so it was hard for them to keep up the same performance as the last game.
“They told the refs that we didn’t need any warm-ups, so our team was rushing to get onto the field, and we were not prepared, and we were tired from playing a whole game beforehand” said Layla Arthurton, one of the River Hill Flag Football players.
The coach didn’t have any replacements for the positions, so the players had to keep playing. The players who ran the most would have been the most exhausted and in need of a break, but without anyone to take their position, they had to overwork themselves, and that’s for the whole team.
After the loss to Oakland Mills, River Hill continued to win the next two games. They beat Glenelg on the 14th of September with a score of 21- 12. The next game was against Guildford Park on the 22nd of September, with a final score of 19- 6. One of the players, senior Danielle Kayisavera, really helped the team to be victorious.
Kayisavera got two out of the three touchdowns that game and got two interceptions. Ava Stephenson got the other touchdown, and senior Layla Arthurton got one other interception.
Senior Ava Stephenson scored one touchdown during the game, and Kayisavera scored two touchdowns; she also got two of the three interceptions that game. She is one of the seniors on the team; the players describe her as a staple of the team.
“We got, altogether, three interceptions, one from me and two from Danny, which she is a GOAT,” shared Arthurton.
The River Hill flag football team won three games and lost two. Their latest game was against Long Reach, who were ranked number one in the county.
Some players on the team were confident they would win the next game against Long Reach and that it would be like the other games they did win.
“Long Reach, we are coming! Full gear on the field, pulling flags, intercepting the ball” announced Otolorin.
When questioning other players about the statement Otolorin made, they said she is very energetic, but they are going to try their best, and since this is the first year flag football is official, they are mostly practicing their defensive skills to hopefully win against Oakland Mills.
The final result of the game against Long Reach was 0- 14, meaning River Hill lost. Long Reach stayed in first while River Hill got knocked down by one. River Hill is was then ranked seventh.
The team believes they will keep winning every game and getting to know each other more for the rest of the season. “We have four weeks left to prepare before playoffs, which means four weeks of more games and more winning and just getting closer with our team,” commented Arthurton.
Overall, the team is very excited to play this season; the players train a lot and are dedicated to this sport. The team has great chemistry and gets that from bonding. Based on the stats from the games, if they continue to work very hard, there is a good chance they will win this season.