APOPKA, Fla. — Flag football continues to grow in popularity as a girl's high school sport, and Apopka High School has one of the best area teams. The Blue Darters begin their season 3-0, with their first two games being shutouts over their opponents. Apopka is led by their senior quarterback, Deeanna Lopez, returning from a hiatus from the sport.

Athletes like Lopez have found their athletic backgrounds lend themselves well to thriving in a new environment, like flag football.

“I guess for me, throwing. I grew up playing softball too, so that really kind of got me into throwing. All my sisters, I have four other sisters. I’m the middle child of five girls. We all play softball,” she said. "My two younger sisters are currently still playing, but that’s how we grew up on everything with softball growing up."

Lopez began playing quarterback when she joined JV flag football her freshman year. She took two years away from the sport, including one year when she was homeschooled.

“It’s definitely a totally different environment for sure, especially like having kids around you all day, but I try to make the best of it,” said Lopez. “And then coming back to flag. It’s fun. Love it.”

When she returned to Apopka for her senior year, she made an immediate impact

“I’ve seen Deeanna grow on and off the field. Now she returned to her senior year, and she’s our QB now,” said Apopka flag football coach Tanisha Wilson. “I’ve seen her improve and reading the feel. She knows when to throw, she knows when to run.”

Even though Lopez is back to playing flag football for the first time in a couple of years, she says her favorite part of the game is that the team is like a family. As the quarterback and team captain, she becomes the leader of that family.

“I would say just confidence in myself, being out here, like being a quarterback, really having to have to stick with the group of girls for a little bit and building off of them,” Lopez said. "I take the captain and quarterback very seriously because I feel like they feed off my energy.”

“She’s a leader. She is our field general, so she literally has poise. She’s calm. She doesn’t, you know, she handles pressure very well. She doesn’t like shake or quiver or anything,” said Wilson.

Lopez is small, but her confidence and talent erase any pre-conceived opinions others may have when they face Apopka. 

“Because she’s really small, you would think that she can’t see the field, but she makes that adjustment very well,” Wilson said. “So her size doesn’t really matter in terms of that position. So she’s small but mighty.”

Playing a sport like flag football, which may be seen as one predominantly for boys, gives Lopez a sense of empowerment

“Girl Power for sure. I always say that to all my sisters. It just builds confidence and other girls when they see girls playing,” Lopez said. “Definitely go into it. You know, if you’re growing, you’re like, it’s kind of like a guy sport. No, like, get into it. It’s fun. You’ll find a great group of girls. The sport is just fun in general. So I’d say go into it and no regrets.”