Eagles, Highlanders, Vaqueros carry flag

By Ramon Scott
Updated: August 17, 2025

Granite Hills' Brooklyn Spencer scores a touchdown. / Vic Marano

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2025 EAST COUNTY PREP FLAG FOOTBALL

The Granite Hills Eagles kicked off their season with a 26-6 victory over El Centro-Central on Aug. 12, getting contributions across the roster. Junior playmaker Brooklyn Spencer showed her burst on offense with a touchdown, while sophomore quarterback Emily Fong had a touchdown and senior Victoria Brady each made key plays in the win. Sophomore linebacker Cashlynn McGrath and junior Gabi Shoemaker also factored into the Eagles’ balanced performance. Granite Hills will face another big test on Tuesday, Aug. 19, against Eastlake.

Elsewhere, the Helix Highlanders opened strong on Aug. 15 with a 19-6 win at Sage Creek, marking a successful debut in the Grossmont Hills League. A day earlier, the El Capitan Lady Vaqueros split their season-opening doubleheader, rolling past Our Lady of Peace, 29-7, before falling narrowly to Murrieta Mesa, 15-13.

Grossmont also impressed in preseason action, though their 47-0 blowout of Vincent Memorial on Aug. 9 may be logged as a scrimmage. Senior quarterback Marissa Farace accounted for six total touchdowns in the effort, showing the Foothillers’ high-powered attack is already in mid season form. Grossmont is ranked third in the county and sixth in the nation, however, their first official result was a hard-fought 12-0 loss to Cathedral Catholic on Aug. 14.

Monte Vista dropped a 7-0 decision to Sweetwater on Aug. 12 and later traveled to face Mabel O’Farrell Charter on Aug. 13, though no score has yet been reported from that contest.

Grossmont Conference at Full Strength

This year marks a turning point as the Grossmont Conference now fields 10 teams in girls flag football. After Grossmont stood alone in 2023 and Granite Hills, Santana, and Steele Canyon joined in 2024, every conference program except Mount Miguel now has representation.

The league is split into two tiers:

Grossmont Hills League: Grossmont, Granite Hills, Helix, Santana, Steele Canyon
Grossmont Valley League: Monte Vista, West Hills, El Capitan, El Cajon Valley, Valhalla

In 2024, all four East County programs reached the CIF playoffs — Grossmont (Division I), Steele Canyon, Santana, and Granite Hills (all Division III). Steele Canyon reached the semifinals, while Grossmont and Granite Hills each won an opening-round game.

The 2025 season also comes with significant rule changes. Defenses now start just one yard off the line of scrimmage (down from seven), which speeds up the pass rush considerably. Offenses, meanwhile, may now use limited screen blocking, letting receivers shield defenders after a catch. For the first time, teams also have a punting option on fourth down.

Some coaches welcome the changes as added layers of strategy, but others worry that the combination of closer rushers and blocking may make flag football more physical than intended. With CIF emphasizing safety in its rollout, the season will serve as a proving ground for whether the game can balance its finesse roots with an increasingly aggressive style of play, as organizations try to make a uniform rule-book nationally in the ramp up for the 2026 Olympics where flag football will be featured as a new participating sport.