Running, sweating, people coming in from every angle–flag football is one tough sport. With hard practices, a lot of strength training, and, not to mention, high school, it is very hard to manage. Despite this sport requiring lots of practice, Emma Gandara (10) has been doing this for two years and is already on the Varsity team. As someone who was part of the Junior Varsity (JV) team last year, it is impressive to see how she has already climbed her way up.

Gandara was able to make it into the Varsity team within a span of just one year. With her passion for sports while balancing academics, this jump from one level to the next is especially to Gandara.

“I felt like it was a big accomplishment for me. When I started the sport, I honestly didn’t really want to do it. I was super anxious when I started, but as I went into my JV season, I really came to love it,” said Gandara. “I really wanted to just keep working harder so I could get to Varsity. I was just really proud of myself for it.”

Gandara has made a lot of effort to get to where she is now, which is evident to both herself and her teammates. Neveah Lima (12) has been able to see her grow as one of her supporting teammates.

“I’ve really seen her grow more confidently in the way she plays. She plays spectacularly, and I’m super proud of how far she has come, and flag football being part of the mix, I’m proud of her both academics and athletics. And I just want her to always know that I’m so proud of her,” said Lima. 

Not only has Gandara been growing her flag football skills to help the team, she has also been working on her art skills. Gandara has been doing art for a while and has been incorporating it with flag football. Not only is this collaboration a unique thing to witness, but it is also a calming activity for Gandara. Through graphic design, Gandara is able to advertise the game days through her creative side, and the designs she has made have been appealing to many.

“What made me want to do this collaboration is that both of these activities give me a lot of joy in life and ar the reasons why I keep pushing through hard times in my life,” said Gandara. “When I incorporate the two, it is just a way of keeping me motivated and keeping me working hard every day.” 

Gandara has been able to work on her art skills despite all of this work, and it has been paying off in her teammates eyes as well. Sarah Avila (11) has been able to see some of this magnificent work from her fellow teammate. 

“I’ve seen her passion for flag and art grow by the day and [I’ve] seen her put in all the hard work in school and during flag football,” said Avila.

Flag football is a very hard and tough sport that requires a lot of patience and hard work to get through, but Gandara is able to make the process look effortless. Not only has she been juggling sports, and art, she has also been juggling academics, something that is very hard to keep up with.

“I’ve always seen her working harder to be her best and I love the way she encourages everybody else and herself to keep going,” said Lima.