The Florida A&M women’s flag football team, Simply Marvelous, won its second consecutive national championship last year. The team is preparing to work towards its next one.
The team has been working over the off-season by doing things like competing in a city league tournament weekly at Mercer Park.
“We have a name to uphold and we’re trying our best to go all the way and have our new comers on board,” said team captain Ashley Livingston. “Our expectations need to be very high this year.”
Marvin Greene Jr., the director of student activities, is returning as the team’s head coach.
The two-time champs face a few challenges, with the departure of a few key players.
“We only have seven returning players,” Livingston said.
Freshman Erika Collins, who was named the team’s MVP last year, will still be with the team this year. Collins, along with teammates Kimbryana Lewis and Aisa Evans, was also chosen to be a part of the All-Tournament team, last season.
She said the team worked during the offseason so they would be able to come in at mid-season form.
“A few of us would come out here and to Godby High School, and throw the ball around to help keep us in shape,” she said.
The team has also been focusing on team bonding and chemistry.
“Trying to build a bond with the new people is hard because the new people think that they don’t fit in,” Livingston said. “It’s a lot of women and different personalities so we have to learn each other’s personalities. From there we go to what the strengths and weaknesses of each person and try to build on that.”
The team will play Thursday night at Mercer Park at 7 p.m., in their second game of the season.