By VERNON ROBISON
The Progress
The Virgin Valley Club Flag Football team had its games cancelled last week after travelling on Tuesday, Jan. 19, to the All America Park in Las Vegas. It was only the second week of play for the club team.
The Virgin Valley girls team was supposed to go up against a team of girls who would normally be playing for Basic High School in Henderson that night.
According to Virgin Valley Club Team coach Joey Bowler, after both teams of girls had arrived at the park, on time and ready to go, park officials refused to turn on the lights for the game.
Bowler said that the explanation for this only came later. The private club league had not made plans to take everyone’s temperature before the game began. In addition, the teams had not provided dedicated hand sanitizing stations on the sidelines, he said.
Bowler said that his coaches had not been aware that these things were required. “Of course, instead of communicating with us what the problem was and working with us on it, they just shut us down and wouldn’t turn on the lights for the game,” Bowler said. “It would have been nice if we at least had been given a little explanation after travelling so far.”
Bowler said that the issues appear to be all cleared up and that the league is looking to continue games as scheduled this week. Games are being arranged to make up for last week’s missed games, he said.
The club league has been somewhat controversial from its beginnings. The league came into being to allow young women across Clark County School District (CCSD) the opportunity to play the sport where they would not have gotten to otherwise. Flag football has been allowed by the Nevada COVID guidelines because it is recognized as a limited contact activity. But since most CCSD schools have been shuttered due to COVID; the district has cancelled flag football for all high schools using the distance learning model.
The only exception is Moapa Valley High School which is able to compete in the NIAA league because it is engaged in a hybrid learning model with live class instruction.
In order to allow the girls across the district a venue where they can play, this private club league was formed, separate from the school district or the NIAA. The teams are not allowed to be associated in any way with their high schools, including using school equipment, uniforms, or even the school colors.
Practices and games must take place off of school campuses. Coaches must participate on their own time.
Despite all of these restrictions, the league has gone forward. The girls who want to play must foot the bill for uniforms, equipment, park reservation fees, and they must arrange their own transportation to games and practices.
“The girls have done all this because they just want to be able to play,” Bowler said. “The social isolation is hurting kids a lot this year. For these girls to just be able to get together and see each other; I can tell you, it just brings smiles to a lot of faces.”
The competition in the club league is fierce. It includes any southern Nevada high school team that wants to form a club, regardless of NIAA division.
But the Virgin Valley girls have fared well thus far. Two weeks ago, during the first games of the season, the local team beat a Las Vegas High club team, 32-12; and a Sierra Vista club team, 28-6. Both of these were 4A division teams last year. In fact, Las Vegas High was the state runner-up in the 2019-20 season, Bowler said.
Bowler likes this level of competition that the club league provides for his girls. “It’s a good thing,” he said. “I’ve told my girls that if they keep working hard and if they really show up to play, they can go up against any of these teams and beat them.”
Bowler said that he will miss playing in the regular league, and especially going up against the Pirates of Moapa Valley. Last year, the state championship came down to the Bulldogs and the Pirates and, for the first time, the Moapa girls won out.
“I believe that, if things were different, this year’s state championship would have come down to Moapa and us again,” Bowler said. “So that is the sad thing.”
