All-female flag football league taking over the field at Summerville Family YMCA

 SUMMERVILLE, S.C. (WCBD) – A group of girls are taking over the field at the Summerville Family YMCA with an all-female flag football league.

“Some of these girls have never played football. Some of them didn’t know what a touchdown was when we first started […] as we continue to practice, they’ve gotten better and better,” said coach Tommy Boughner, who hopes the growing popularity of flag football catches on for girls in Summerville who may be interested in joining the league.

“I’ve coached for 20 years and I’m more excited about this than I’ve ever been in any sport I’ve ever coached. I just can’t wait to see what they do. I think it’s going to be great. I think it could be a growing sport for all the girls in the Lowcountry,” he added.

Samantha Byrd is not only a parent of three girls on the team, but she’s also one of the coaches.

“My daughters are playing, and they just started the girls’ program, so I thought that would be really, you know, it would be nice time with me, with them, so I can enjoy some extra time with them since I’d be here anyway,” said Byrd.

“I think it’s awesome. Like when I saw that it was a full girl’s flag football league, I was like it’s a great opportunity to introduce these girls into something new,” said Tiffany Crutcher, the mother of Tristin, a 7-year-old energetic child who Tiffany says loves sports.

“She has an older brother that plays every sport under the sun, so you know what, we’re introducing her to everything we introduce my son to,” shared Tiffany.

Tristin says her favorite part about flag football is running and warming up.

“I like running around over there and I like the high knees because I used to do track and these all remind me of track,” she said.

As for Tiffany’s advice for other parents who may be interested in their daughter playing flag football, “I think sports are a really good lesson for all children, especially girls because I feel like you learn leadership skills, you learn communication, you learn how to cooperate, and I just feel like women that play sports really grow up to be in leadership positions.”

The sport some parents remember playing on the field themselves — now growing in popularity across the country.

“I have seen that it is turning into a sport like on the high school level, so we don’t know what the future holds,” Tiffany said.

In 2028, the Summer Olympics will introduce the sport of flag football. There will be two events – one for men and one for women.

“I hope that Tristin has a lot of fun. I hope Tristin learns and gets some new friends and just learns how to be, you know, a good person, a good teammate, and ultimately have fun,” shared Tiffany.

For anyone interested in joining the league click here.