Trenton girls flag pulls away from Monroe for first win of inaugural season

TRENTON – The sun returned Sunday afternoon for Week 3 of the Michigan high school girls flag football league. Related Articles D2 No. 13 Carlson girls soccer caps off outright Downriver League title with second win over Woodhaven Photo gallery of Brownstown Woodhaven vs Gibraltar Carlson in Downriver League girls soccer action Monarchs continue hot streak, beat Foley in CHSL Intersectional playoff semifinal Roosevelt, Trenton, and Grosse Ile all qualify for girls tennis state finals Trenton’s Ethan Gilbert pens NLI to play hockey at Northwood University Over at Trenton High School, a pair of games in the ‘Honolulu Blue’ Division of the Detroit Lions-sponsored league saw Flat Rock take on Huron League foe Monroe Jefferson, followed by the host Trojans from Trenton battling Monroe. In what was its first home game of its inaugural season, Trenton added to its list of firsts in the sport. Key completions on offense and big interceptions on defense propelled the Trojans to a 28-7 win over the Trojans of Monroe in front of the Mother’s Day home crowd. 'The Insiders' react to Packers-Rams being the first Thanksgiving Eve Game “We’re really happy with our first victory,” Trenton head coach Steve Voss said. “We’ve noticed that the girls are really starting to buy in and they’re really enjoying themselves. It’s so much fun because there’s no pressure, no stress, and every week, we’ve gotten better.” After being shut out by local rival Gibraltar Carlson in Week 2, Trenton came out on Sunday afternoon and scored early en route to their victory. Just four minutes in, quarterback Kelsey Clements passed the ball off to Amelia Damron, who took off almost the length of the field for the touchdown. An extra two points put them up 8-0. The Monroe Trojans were able to get a score of their own in the first half, but big plays on both sides of the ball kept the host and local Trojans on top at the half, 14-7. Violet LaMay snagged two interceptions on defense, including one right on the goal line, while Clements’ long pass up to Grace Wend added to the Trenton scoreboard. In the second half, it was Kayla Quigley on the receiving end of two scores for the 28-7 final. In the earlier game of the day, Flat Rock was handed its first loss of the spring when they fell 24-7 to Jefferson. Freshman Violet LaMay (21) had two interceptions for Trenton, which picked up a 28-7 girls flag football win at home vs Monroe on May 10, 2026. (SAMANTHA ELLIOTT -- For MediaNews Group) Freshman Violet LaMay (21) had two interceptions for Trenton, which picked up a 28-7 girls flag football win at home vs Monroe on May 10, 2026. (SAMANTHA ELLIOTT -- For MediaNews Group) While their defense held strong throughout the contest, mistakes on offense doomed Flat Rock as three interceptions were returned the other way for Jefferson touchdowns. “Losses hurt but I think the girls are still having fun,” Flat Rock head coach John Logan said. “Obviously this is not the outcome that we wanted, but we see some good things out of the girls and they’re learning football.” The lone Flat Rock score of the afternoon came late in the game when Avery Mack sent a pass to Faith Soden with four minutes to go. In the two Sundays prior, the Rams tallied up a combined 48 points in wins over both Trenton and Monroe. “We’re trying to teach them team effort from a perspective of a sport that’s not very common for them,” Logan said. “They’re taking to it well (and) they’re learning but there’s always room for improvement.” While both Trenton and Flat Rock are continuing to work their way through their first official flag seasons, some prior experience comes in the form of the schools’ annual Powderpuff football games that take place during Homecoming week. “The part that’s new is there’s a lot more structure,” Logan said. “Learning the rules, teaching the girls the rules and just the overall flow and how it changes from when we do it as a school versus how we do it here under a set of rules as an organized group. “That’s probably been the biggest hurdle,” Logan continued. “Just having them understand concepts and learning football things, and then having them implement it as what works for them.” Voss agreed that learning the rules and organization takes time. Senior Avery Mack was responsible for the only touchdown for Flat Rock, which suffered its first loss of the girls flag football season, a 24-7 final vs Jefferson on May 10, 2026. (SAMANTHA ELLIOTT -- For MediaNews Group) Senior Avery Mack was responsible for the only touchdown for Flat Rock, which suffered its first loss of the girls flag football season, a 24-7 final vs Jefferson on May 10, 2026. (SAMANTHA ELLIOTT -- For MediaNews Group) “The rules are different so we had to adjust to that,” he said. “Once we learn the rules, we try to teach them stuff that the boys have been doing their whole lives and try not to get frustrated because they don’t have the understanding. “We started off with players who didn’t even know what a down was or knew what the line of scrimmage was,” Voss added. “But it’s so fun.” At the sidelines of both programs is the same coaching staff you will find in the fall during the boys’ tackle football season. Logan said it makes it fun as they pull concepts from the tackle program into the girls flag edition. “There’s a lot of crossovers and I hear some of the girls talk about it during school,” Logan said. “Some of the guys will jump in and they’ll work through things because we use a lot of the same terminologies and the concepts. “In that fashion, it’s really cool to hear that conversation happening across different demographics.” Another unique aspect of the fast-growing sport is recruiting for the next level. Back in April, Eastern Michigan University announced that it will be adding girls flag football as an interscholastic varsity sport next spring. The recruiting trail has seemingly already found its way Downriver. “I was astounded that I got a phone call from a college coach wanting to fill out recruiting questionnaires for players,” Voss said. “It really is interesting.” As the teams head into the final week of the season, they are already looking forward to a year from now. “There’s a couple of good athletes for us that have been performing really well,” Logan said. “We look forward to a lot of them coming back. It’s nice to know that next year we’ll have some returning girls and a year under our belt.” Meanwhile for Trenton, a defense-first Coach Voss has been most encouraged with that side of the ball, but is otherwise most impressed with the commitment level from players. “The girls are buying in and they’re having fun,” Voss said. “They don’t have the same pressure as other sports and everyone’s eyes on them. Our defense has improved dramatically and we want to continue to improve on that.” UP NEXT The fourth and final week of the ‘Honolulu Blue’ division of the girls flag league will take place next Sunday, May 17 under the lights at Flat Rock High School. Trenton will first take on Jefferson beginning at 6:30 p.m., followed by the host Rams battling first-place Carlson.