TAMPA, Fla. — Several local athletes and coaches, including three members of the Alonso High School team, have been named to the initial 18-athlete rosters for USA Football’s 15U and 17U U.S. Girls’ Flag Football National Teams.
“It’s an incredible thought that I could be part of something that is bigger than me,” Alonso sophomore quarterback Gabriella Werr said.
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“It’s really amazing to be able to have the USA across my chest,” freshman receiver Shea Plantz added. “It’s an amazing honor.”
Werr and Plantz were selected for the U.S. Junior Flag Football Girls’ national teams; Werr on the 17U team and Plantz on the 15U team.
Alonso head coach Matt Hernandez was named the head coach for USA Football’s 17U girls’ team.
“He develops players,” Werr said of her coach. “That’s a major part that coaches need to do. He took me as a freshman, he developed me, he made me higher and better than what I was. Honestly, I don’t think I’d be where I was today if it weren’t for him. He’s the one providing these girls with all these new opportunities.”
Five girls with Tampa Bay Area ties are on the 15U roster, and the assistant coach is Robinson High School’s Josh Saunders.
- Jurisah Bailey, Seven Springs Charter
- Giavanna Gambino, Walker Middle
- Juliet Gambino, Walker Middle
- Shea Plantz, Alonso High
- Victoria Whitfield, East Bay High
The 17U roster also includes a duo from Steinbrenner High School.
- “KK” Ramsey, Steinbrenner High
- Kate Smith, Steinbrenner High
- Gabriella Werr, Alonso High
“We always thought of Hillsborough County as the best county in the country for flag football,” Hernandez said. “We’ve shown that in some of the events we’ve done and the way we really led the way in this area for girls’ flag across the country.”
They will compete for the opportunity to represent the United States in an international competition in July at the Junior International Cup in Los Angeles, where flag football will debut in the Olympics during the 2028 Summer Games.
Many of these young athletes could potentially be part of the U.S. Flag Football National Team in those games.
USA Football will announce the final 12-athlete rosters for the U.S. Boys' and Girls' Junior National Teams following a training camp in Charlotte, N.C., from late May into early June.
The other athletes will serve as alternates, available to be called up to the 12-athlete roster if needed.
“It’s a wonderful thing to witness and be a part of,” Werr said. “It helps girls develop and helps girls grow. It gives us an opportunity that is different."
