Scanning through the players, football in hand, junior Mackenzie Arnold launched the ball to teammate Avery Hansuvada, who then ran through the endzone for a touchdown in their game against Westview.

Arnold has been playing flag football with her younger brother ever since she could throw a football. She began her flag football career in 3rd grade alongside her dad, David Arnold, who is the Varsity Girls Flag Football coach. Before high school, Arnold grew her love for flag football through the recreational league Friday Night Lights (FNL) from third to eighth grade where she learned to be a quarterback. Her father watched as she grew both physically and mentally. Through the years Arnold says she learned to dissect the game and make smarter choices while anticipating her opponent’s movements in the chaos of the field.

Arnold has had great reflexes since she was young, allowing her to make quick and decisive decisions, “Her ability to recognize what is happening and then act has increased her speed and movement on the field,” Coach Arnold said.

Mackenzie believes the team has really started to improve, “I believe our team has grown fast and excelled in such a small time, it was an entire team effort”, Arnold said. “Everyone puts in a lot of effort, and that is what makes a good team, I believe the team is just getting better.” With such a strong team philosophy their success has skyrocketed, allowing them to win seven games and lose only one.

Arnold has had to balance football with soccer,  her main sport, which she has been playing since 3 years old.  She also competed in track, doing the 400-meter dash. Arnold appreciates her flag football team because they maintain a cooperative dynamic with communication and strong relationships that allow them to build trust.

“She has a confident attitude brought to the team and she brings good leadership on the field,” teammate Avery Hansuvada said.

Although she is generally excited about being quarterback, Arnold sometimes gets stressed due to the amount of people relying on her, but ultimately she said it is worth it because of the memories and bonds she has created being on the team, where they have enjoyed team bonding activities like pasta parties, dinners, and get-togethers. 

Arnold’s favorite memory of flag football was from eighth grade, in the FNL Carlsbad championship. Her team was losing and had one last opportunity to score. In the final play. Arnold threw the ball, and as her teammate ran into the endzone they scored and won.