Sandy High Girls Flag Football Ends with Hope to Next Year

By Abby Haney, The Sandy Standard 

“Incredile. The season was incredible,” Sandy High School girls flag football coach Kim Turin said. 

Sandy High School girls flag football had a historic start for the team's first year in the league, ending their league season with a 8-0 record and overall record of 11-0. After placing second in the state, Sandy went to their first round of playoffs against 15th placed team Mountain View High School. 

The game against Mountain View on May 13 ended with a 41-0 win for Sandy. Freshman Jamela Turin scored an early touchdown to give Sandy the lead. Towards the end of the first quarter, junior Alix Flowers scored the second touchdown of the game. 

“Everything was good, everything was solid. Our offense and our defense, both were super locked in and overall prepared,” Flowers said. 

In the second quarter, Sandy makes a hook and ladder play with freshman Autumn Lucky throwing the ball towards Flowers, allowing her to score the touchdown. The first half ends with a touchdown by senior Kaylee Snavely who traveled 30 yards to score. 

“We always joke about ‘friendship is magic,’ but it really is, because we’re so close you are able to learn how each other plays and play off each other,” Flowers said. 

The second half included a touchdown by Jamela and Snavley. The first win in playoffs put them through to the second round, the quarterfinals. 

“We were so excited. All the fans were there and it made it such a fun experience, and winning first round, it’s always fun,” Flowers said. 

The second game in playoffs for Sandy was against 10th placed team David Douglas High School. Earlier this season, Sandy beat David Douglas 19-0 but the game was a tough competition. 

Sandy started early with a touchdown by Flowers. Senior Mary Knifong scored a second touchdown shortly after Flowers to put Sandy ahead 13-0. 

In the second half, David Douglas fiercely fought through Sandy’s defense and managed to score two touchdowns. After the second touchdown, David Douglas attempted a two point conversion play and succeeded putting them ahead 14-13. 

Sandy never gave up, and managed to put up a fight against David Douglas. Plays by quarterback freshman Kyleigh Joachim, Flowers, Knifong and Jamela put Sandy in dangerous positions for David Douglas. However, after controversial calls and tight defense by David Douglas, Sandy ended the game with a 14-13 loss. 

“It was a pretty incredible season. We had a perfect regular season which was crazy. We definitely didn’t expect that coming so it was really cool,” Flowers said. 

“I’m so glad we got a team because it went way better than we expected,” Jamela said. 

The team played fiercely throughout the entire season and even though it ended sooner than they thought, all were proud of the effort and willingness to learn flag football. 

“We literally had no expectations and we didn't know how other teams were because it was a lot of first time for those teams too. But I think once we got partway through the season, we knew we definitely wanted to take it as far as we could,” Jamela said. With a first year team, many doubted their abilities, but Sandy established their identity in flag football. 

“Nobody expected us to get as far as we did so that was another cool aspect to it. We’re proving a point,” Flowers said. 

The team already looks toward next year, where they hope to win state. The team will continue to work hard and develop not only their skills, but the program. 

“This is the best sports team I’ve ever played on. We’re all best friends and it’s a great group of girls. I’m really excited to build that up again next year and hopefully expand the program,” Flowers said. The season started with a win over Estacada and for Kim, “it made me realize in that moment that we could take on anybody. And we most certainly did.” While every game was memorable, home games brought the most excitement, mainly due to the cheers from fans. 

“Every home game was really fun. It was fun to have a sport where a lot of people come out,” Jamela said. 

State is a major goal for the team moving onward. With the their talent and determination, coaches and players alike have confidence in winning state. 

“Kim and I both hope the girls know how proud we are, even after they lost in playoffs. It also gave us hope for the future,”  Sandy High School girls flag football coach Tony Turin said. “We now know we belong and can win state in the future.”

Overall, a common theme is the team relating the incredible season. But there is also gratitude to have a team after fighting for one. Their ability to exceed expectations proved Sandy’s ability to succeed in yet another sport – flag football. 

“We were so thankful that the season even happened and for the girls to be so successful was a bonus,” Tony said. 

Sandy had a thrilling start to their first season and year with a girls’ flag football team. They are hungry for more and waiting for next year to try their hand in playoffs again.