You might not know the name Ellie Weinstein, but the captain and quarterback of WJ’s first girls’ flag football team is making a name for herself in the WJ community.
Ellie started off playing soccer as her main sport but always had a passion for football. She loved watching and playing the sport with her friends and family whenever she got the chance. When she found out that flag football was coming to MCPS, she was ecstatic. She knew that she always wanted to be QB as she had a very good throwing arm. Even though she practiced over the summer, she didn’t know what to expect when she became WJ’s starting QB.
“Honestly I wasn’t totally ready, but once I was thrown in it just became a reality,” Weinstein said. “I definitely played a lot of the summer or just randomly with my friends just throwing around, honestly it was just being thrown into the position and adapting.”
As a captain, she strives to be very close to all of her teammates and for good team chemistry on and off the field. She and senior center Naamiah Corke have a very close friendship, especially on the field.
“Whenever we get a touchdown, Naamiah and I lock eyes and run to each other and we’ll jump up and she’s like way bigger than me so it’s just adorable and it makes me really happy,” Weinstein said. “[My favorite] team memory was definitely the team (bus) ride. We didn’t have a speaker, (we had a little one), so we had to make up for it by screaming the music; so we were all very excited on the way to the game. Riding high with our music and our quiet little speaker.”
As a senior captain of her team, she strives to be a great leader for the underclassman. Junior right half Lucy Sher had a lot to say about her leadership with others on the team.
“She’s a great leader and she knows how to talk to the team and hype people up and make them feel ready for the game,” Sher said. “It really shows that she cares about the people and the sport. It’s evident that she really cares about the team, she wants everyone to do well not just herself and I would say she’s a good leader to younger people on the team.”
Having a positive attitude with her teammates is another way Weinstein shows her leadership.
“She’s the female version of Ted Lasso when it comes to positivity she’s always looking for the positive in everything not just on the field, she’s someone that when she walks into a room everybody’s eyes light up because she is so positive to everybody, never looks back at mistakes she’s always looking for the next opportunity to have a positive influence,” head coach Butch Worden said. “She’s a great leader for everybody on the team, a great example for everyone, she works very hard oftentimes the first one to show up and the last to leave, she motivates others to work hard. Everybody looks up to Ellie because she’s always doing the right thing, she’s always on task, all of my interactions with her have always been great experiences.”
As a senior, Weinstein has big dreams after high school. She wishes to pursue a career as a social studies teacher at a big state school and she plans to get a masters degree in education.
While the team lost the first game of the season against Poolesville, Weinstein got a taste of victory in the last three games against Northwood, Blake and Wootton. The Wildcats beat Northwood 34-0. The match-up against the two teams really helped show how much the girls improved since the loss to Poolesville.
Weinstein and the Wildcats will look to keep the wins coming against the Quince Orchard Cougars today at Quince Orchard HS at 6 p.m.
