North Pole earns first-ever Alaska state flag football title

WASILLA — The North Pole flag football team wrote itself into the Alaska sports history book on Saturday.

With a 27-6 win over Service, the Patriots became the first Alaska state champions in the burgeoning sport.

While the win was huge for the North Pole team and community, having a state tournament sanctioned by the Alaska School Activities Association might have been the greatest victory.

“Part of it hasn’t even sunk in yet,” North Pole head coach Jamie Darby said. “It’s been a long time waiting. You know, we’ve been trying and trying for this. It’s hard to believe the day is here, but it’s amazing.”

There have been a number of teams playing across the state for nearly two decades, and the sport has continued to grow outside of Anchorage, allowing for a state tournament. Darby said it’s nice to have another option for girls to compete together in the fall.

“I think it’s extremely important,” Darby said. “Anchorage has been doing it since like 2005 or 2006, and we’ve had it for at least, like, 10-12 years. We’ve been a part of the (state) program for the last eight years. Our daughter went to college and played (flag football). We’ll keep trying to push girls to go play. It’s growing.”

The sport will even be part of the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles.

North Pole scored three times in quick succession in the first half to take control of the game. Quarterback Taimane Skipps scored on a keeper in the first quarter and the Patriots tagged on the two-point conversion. The tournament started Thursday, and North Pole’s greatest challenge was a semifinal win over West.

“I feel great,” North Pole senior Tiahna Guzman said. “We were super excited for this tournament. Our second game was pretty tough but we pulled it off.”

She said the increased interest in the game has been notable.

“My freshman year, it was super small and we played the same teams every time,” she said. “Now we’re here with eight teams.”

Despite being the top seed from the Railbelt Conference with only one loss, Darby said the team wasn’t considered a favorite going in.

“I don’t think we were the favorite,” she said. “North Pole has always kind of been sidelined, and the bigger schools are looked at like they have better programs. This year is one of the strongest teams we’ve had, and it’s not just one, two players. We have 21 girls, and 80% of them can play varsity.”

Service was a surprise finalist, entering the weekend as the No. 4 team out of the CIC. They finally got on the board in the second half as Nora Simon converted a nearly 90-yard run for a touchdown.

Darby said now that the sport is sanctioned, the sky is the limit for Alaska flag football.

“We have to be patient with it, which is hard, but we want to see a lot of Alaskan girls across the nation playing collegiately and seeing them in the Olympics,” she said. “We’re just having a blast with it. I’m pretty excited, and any time you can have your name first on the list (of champions) that’s great.”