Gina Lin
CHS Class of 2024
(8/2023) As we are approaching the start of a new school year, it is time for student athletes to think about which sports they will be committing to in this coming season. Catoctin High School will be offering the following sports this season: cheerleading, cross country, field hockey, girls flag football, football, golf, soccer, unified tennis, and volleyball.
Girls flag football has been a highly anticipated sport, as the flag football clinics showed great turnout. About 400 signed up for the flag football clinic and more than 200 attended the clinic held at Frederick High School in May. Previously, FCPS had tried to negotiate a flag football program with the MPSSAA. Due to reasons concerning the conceived popularity of the sport, MPSSA chose to not sponsor the proposal. Subsequently, FCPS introduced a flag football proposal to the Baltimore Ravens. The Ravens agreed and pledged to support a flag football program in all 10 FCPS high schools with a $200,000 grant. Additionally, Under Armour will be providing all of the high schools with 30 sets of customized uniforms and athletic accessories.
FCPS announced their pilot partnership with the Baltimore Ravens and Under Armour earlier this year in a press release. Citing that the initiative "aims to pave the way for female student-athletes in every Maryland county to eventually receive these same opportunities well into the future. Frederick County will be the first county in Maryland to pilot an interscholastic girls flag football program. Currently, there are only a handful of states, Alabama, Alaska, Georgia, Florida and Nevada, offering flag football programs. This demonstrates a major step for Frederick County in fostering a more inclusive environment for all genders to participate in athletics.
FCPS flag football leagues will also be included in the Raven’ s RISE program, which is a high school football outreach initiative that provides additional support and opportunities for athletes and helps to connect players and coaches around Maryland. One of the numerous events sponsored by the Raven’s, was a flag football clinic held at the M&T Stadium on May 21st, in which more than 250 girls worked with Ravens players and USA football certified trainers.
FCPS’ s athletic supervisor, Kevin Kendro, hopes that will create more opportunities for girls in flag football. There were Frederick County Recreational flag football leagues, but they struggled to get by without the funding of FCPS. The recreational leagues would practice in parks and practice cancellations were frequent. Through the new initiative girls flag football teams will have the appropriate equipment along with sufficient space for games and practices. FCPS and the Ravens hope that the flag football pilot program will convince other Maryland counties to support flag football programs. This could lead to an endorsement of girls flag football by the Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association (MPSSAA) which will allow for state championship titles.
The first flag football game will take place at Frederick High on August 30th, with each county team playing a match. Girls flag football schedules will align with that of Central Maryland Conference sports teams. The master schedule has been created and was sent out to those subscribed to the Find Out First updates. Each match consists of seven players from their respective team on the field at once. The game should last about an hour and is divided into two 20 minute halves with three minute intermissions. Touchdowns are worth six points. 10 points can be obtained from the 10- yard line and three points from the 20-yard line, except for the last minute of each half, the games will be played on a running clock, which means the game clock isn’t stopped. Each team is allocated four downs to progress the ball 20 yards and possessions usually begin on the 14 yard line. The offensive team can punt or go for it or proceed on
fourth down. If the offensive doesn’t score on the first down, the ball must be passed to the opposing team where the failed attempt took place.
Catoctin High’s head coach of girls flag football is Elizabeth Dougherty, and Rebecca Hurley is the assistant coach. Although both don’t possess a background in flag football, they attended clinics which helped them to pick up skills. Coach Dougherty discussed developing play strategies with a few of her friends who have played flag football. Dougherty was motivated by the chance to enhance athletics for girls, "I never got this opportunity in high school, I wish I did. I want the girls in Frederick County to be given every opportunity they can get in school." Dougherty thinks that this season will be a success, "I think our season will go great. It might have its ups and downs, but what sport doesn’t? We have a lot of girls interested and I can’t wait to see how it goes."
Interested in participating in fall sports? There are some important reminders and dates to keep in the back of your mind. In order to be considered for the fall sports season, an online athletic registration form, which can be found on the FCPS Athletics page, must be completed prior to August 8th. Additionally, a sports physical dated after April 1st of this year, must be completed and submitted to head coaches on the first days of tryouts, practice, or the Fall Sports Open House. The sports physical form can also be found on the FCPS Athletics website.
For Catoctin athletes, the Fall Sports Open House will be held on August 2 from 7 to 7:30 in the evening at Catoctin High. The first day of fall sports tryout/practice is set on August 9th. For the complete directory of Catoctin coaching staff, please visit the Catoctin High School Athletics page. After student athletes are selected for sports teams, a seasonal fee must be paid online through SchoolCash Online. For student athletes considering Dual Sports, the Dual Sports Participation Contract must be submitted to their school’s athletic director. Additionally, Dual Athletes' choice of sports must be approved by school administrators and the athletic director.
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