9 months ago on October 6, 2012 I tried out for the DC Divas Professional Women’s football team.
I was terrified that day! I had no idea what I was getting myself into and feared not making the team.
A few weeks later after all of the try outs, I received an e-mail from the head coach that I had made the team! I was beyond excited and eager to learn.
Every Saturday in November the rookies met for Football 101 training and conditioning… all leading up to training camp!
In January we moved to three day a week practices, focusing on conditioning and technique.
By February we were in full pads, which meant full contact practices. I had my days when I dreaded going to practice because I was so tired, but I left each and every practice grateful to be a football player. Playing alongside my team mates was just amazing.
On March 23, 2013 I played in my first football game in a scrimmage against Keystone.
I was SO nervous and throughout the game felt lost and confused but it was such an important day for me. As the starting center, I had to get it together and to be confident in what my coaches had taught me.
Two weeks later on April 6, 2013 I played in my first football game of the 2013 season against the Pittsburgh Passion. The game was fantastic and for the first time, it all came together!
Unfortunately during the first half of our second game of the year the nose tackle (nasty nasty woman btw) broke my big toe, taking me out for 6 weeks. It was incredibly depressing not being able to play in 4 of our 8 regular season games, but it taught me a lot about patience and allowing your body to heal completely from injury.
On June 1 I returned to the field for the hottest game of the year against Pittsburgh…
and then closed out the regular season the next week against Columbus.
With the division championship under our belts, we moved into the post season with the second round as our focus. We tackled Columbus on June 22 and then made our way up to Boston this past weekend for the WFA Conference Semi Finals.
As I shared yesterday, our season ended on Saturday with a difficult loss to the Boston Militia. A part of me was ready for the season to be over but I just didn’t want it to end this way. Losing is never the way you want it to end!
The past 9 months have taught me a lot and have really made me a different person. I have played alongside some of the most amazing women I have ever met. Women who work full time jobs, even two, and dedicate their lives to playing “a man’s game”. Every day we break barriers and my hope is that each year more and more people will learn about professional women’s American football and will support us!
A lot of people just don’t realize what we do. When I say I play full contact football, I literally mean it. We play the same game the men play… no different! If you live in the DC area, I encourage you to give football a try! Try out this fall for the 2014 team or find ways to support the DC Divas franchise.
I am incredibly sad that season is over, but now it’s time to get into even better shape and to look towards the future.
Thank you all for your support this past season. It was an amazing run!
