FORT LAUDERDALE, FLA. (WSVN) – No high schools in America offer girls high school tackle football team, but that’s not stopping one local girl from playing the sport she loves on her high school boys team.
Under the front of that lights, there’s one number you don’t expect to see crashing through the offensive line, but Sariyah Lewis didn’t show up to be expected, she showed up to be excellent.
“I play football because I love this sport. I’ve loved this sport since I was a kid. You know, and people told me I couldn’t play it, so I wanted to do it anyway,” said Lewis.
At first, unsure if she’d even belong in the huddle, it didn’t take long for Sariyah to earn more than just a spot.
“It took some time to convince myself because at first I came in, I was like, let me just try JV, but things took their course and here I am.” said Lewis.
Now a starting varsity defensive tackle, number 12 is not here to play games.
“Yeah, because every time someone asks me, they’ll be like, are you the kicker? I’ll be like, no, I play D-line, and the thing is, I like contact,” said Lewis. “I don’t want to just sit there and kick the ball, I want to get to the ball.”
Sariyah’s head coach, Richard Dunbar, a father of four daughters himself, knows exactly what she’s up against.
“She’s a starting defensive end, so to ask her to go out there and perform every day, it’s tough, but she handles it,” said Dunbar.
“I want them to see me as either an equal or somebody they can depend on as a teammate,” said Lewis.
And they do, because Sariyah didn’t ask for special treatment, she earned respect the hard way.
“She competes very well, you feel me? It’s fun, because she’s a teammate, so back and forth, it’s fun, she holds her water,” said Latevien Tharpe, a teammate of hers.
“For a female, you wouldn’t expect that, but she plays like a boy, she’s definitely aggressive on the O-line,” added Lagarius Tyler Jr. another teammate of Lewis. “She’ll get past them, chop block, swim move, everything to try and get to the quarterback or the running back.”
Four years, full contact, and full of heart, Sariyah is a certified baller who also takes pride in the opposition who always seem to doubt her skills.
“Out here on the field, they’d be like, oh, she actually can hit, like, what did you expect? What do you think I’m out here for? I’m not on this team just because I’m doing what I need to do,” said Lewis.
This season may be her last snap, but Sariyah’s story is just getting started.
“I’m trying to go into school for law and business. I want to become a sports attorney, I still want to be in, I want to be where the action is,” said Lewis. “I understand, like, I’m a girl, the next level is going to be hard, but I still want to be a part of it, I still want to help.”
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