COVINGTON, Ga. — Alcovy’s inaugural flag football team took the field for the first time on Tuesday as the team competed in scrimmages with Discovery and Locust Grove.

In what was the program’s introduction into the sport, the Lady Tigers pulled off the win.

The first game of the day pitted Alcovy against the Discovery Lady Titans, who finished last season 6-8 and just outside the playoffs with a fifth place finish in Area 8-AAAA.

After a hard-fought four quarters, the Lady Tigers won 14-8.

“My thoughts right now are that as we continue to grow, we will continue to get better,” said head coach Toby Davis. “I want to see this team develop and exceed in what they do. The team we just played has been doing this for a minute, and we are still here learning it on the spot. I am happy that they are actually buying into what I am trying to give them. I am just blessed that we got a win today.”

Alcovy’s offense took the field first as the unit was led by basketball player Addison Way.

“She[Way] didn’t want to play quarterback but I convinced her to play quarterback and she has loved it, she is gravitating to it,” Davis said. “She can sit here and dissect the whole unit with our playbook.”

Two plays in, Way put the Lady Tigers ahead with a deep shot.

Way connected with Shaniya Hampton, who outran the Discovery defense for an opening touchdown.

Although the team is still in the process of learning the game and each other, Way noted how Tuesday’s result is just a by-product of the teamwork.

“It feels good, this is my first time playing quarterback and my first time playing flag football,” Way said. “There are a lot of us that are first-timers. It is good that we are building chemistry with the whole team and it's just a learning process.”

After a strong start from the offense, Alcovy’s defense followed suit with a player of its own.

A few plays into the drive, Discovery was intercepted by Alcovy’s Milani Baughns.

Baughns is just a freshman for the Lady Tigers and found ways to make an impact on both sides of the ball.

Alcovy was unable to capitalize on the turnover, but the team’s defense continued to play stout as Discovery was held scoreless on both drives prior to halftime.

On the Lady Titans' first play of the second half, Alcovy forced another turnover at the hands of Baughns.

The pass from Discovery was off as it landed in the hands of Baughns, who went off to the races before she scored on a pick six to make it a 14-0 lead for Alcovy.

The effort from Baughns is what the identity of the defense is as a whole according to Davis.

“We are teaching from day one that anyone on the defense has to be fast, play with a sense of urgency and play with hunger,” Davis said. “That defense has to be the best thing going out there. I told everyone that if they want to play defense, they have to be fast paced and if you make a mistake, just go on to the next play.”

Outside of a late touchdown in the final quarter, Discovery was stopped on almost every possession the remainder of the day as Alcovy grabbed a 14-8 win.

Davis noted Teliah Howard as one of the Lady Tigers who impressed him the most on Tuesday, and the senior broke down what the team thought of their first ever action.

“This first game was crazy because we did not know what was going to happen. We have been practicing hard and we did not know what to expect, we are new to all of this,” Howard said. “We got out and tried our hardest and did what we had to do. We are big on teamwork, that [is what] got us far.”

In the final game of the day, Alcovy took on Locust Grove, who finished the 2024 season 22-1.

Against a formidable opponent with years of experience, the Lady Tigers took a 24-0 loss.

Locust Grove’s ability to test Alcovy’s eye discipline with backfield movement allowed for the Lady Wildcats to mount multiple touchdown drives.

With a pair of scrimmage games now under their belt, the Lady Tigers will turn their attention to week one in what will be the first games of the regular season.

Alcovy will travel to Monroe Area to take on the Lady Hurricanes and the Brookwood Lady Broncos on Tuesday, Sept. 30.