Del Norte's flag football team will travel to Ramona on Monday, Oct. 19, with the Palomar League title on the line.
The Nighthawks entered the week at 8-8 overall, tied with Ramona atop the league standings. Two sophomores are driving the surge: quarterback Katelyn Maley and two-way player Kensley Kim, a pair teammates have dubbed "Special K," as reported by the San Diego Union-Tribune.
Through 17 games, Maley completed 329 of 543 passes for 3,238 yards and 40 touchdowns. She also led the team in rushing with 508 yards and seven scores on the ground.
Those totals build on a strong freshman campaign in 2025, when Maley completed 454 of 678 passes for 3,895 yards and 48 touchdowns.
A team captain, Maley carries a 4.0 GPA and plays three sports. She calls softball her primary sport, where she plays catcher, followed by flag football and basketball.
"The difference from last year to this year is I see the field better, so I can decide whether to run or pass quicker," Maley told the Union-Tribune.
Kim, 15, stands 5-foot-1. On defense, she leads the Nighthawks with 90 pulled flags, 36 quarterback sacks and 52 tackles for a loss. She has three interceptions, returning two for touchdowns.
She contributes on offense, too. Kim ranks second on the team with 55 catches for 446 yards and seven touchdowns. Senior Lauren Holmes leads with 99 catches for 794 yards and eight scores.
Like Maley, Kim is a three-sport athlete with a 4.0 GPA. She plays soccer and runs track in addition to flag football. Her mother, Clarissa, suggested she try out as a freshman after Kim had played recreationally.
Kim told the Union-Tribune soccer was her top sport entering high school but called it "50-50" with flag football now. Two members of Del Norte's track 4×100 relay team also play flag football, giving the Nighthawks notable team speed.
First-year coach Keith Carden, who also coaches Del Norte's varsity softball team, attributed the team's 1-4 start to the transition from his five years coaching boys' football.
"It took us a while to mesh," Carden told the Union-Tribune, adding that he saw an opportunity to help players earn college scholarships as the sport grows.
That growth has institutional backing. The NCAA added flag football to its Emerging Sports for Women program at the January 2026 convention in Washington, D.C., a step that followed the sport's selection for its Olympic debut at the 2028 Summer Games in Los Angeles.
Del Norte fielded its first flag football team in fall 2024, the inaugural CIF season for the program. The roster remains young: two seniors, six juniors, seven sophomores and three freshmen.
Monday's finale at Ramona will decide whether that young group brings home the program's first league championship.
