Bethany College Launches Women’s Flag Football, Expanding Athletic Opportunities

BETHANY, W.Va. (Feb. 28, 2025) – Bethany College Interim Director of Athletics Jen Windmiller is announcing the addition of women’s flag football as a club sport, effective immediately, marking an exciting expansion of athletic opportunities on campus.

In a corresponding move, Windmiller is also announcing Mikayla Lopez as the director of women’s flag football. Lopez, who currently serves as the head coach of Bethany’s women’s basketball team, will lead the flag football program’s development, with a nationwide search for the program’s first head coach set to begin this summer.

“The addition of women’s flag football brings an exciting, growing sport to our campus,” says Windmiller. “We look forward to our other Presidents’ Athletic Conference brethren joining us in the inclusion of this emerging sport on their campus.”

Mikayla Lopez

Windmiller also expresses her enthusiasm for Lopez’s leadership in launching the program. “I would like to thank coach Lopez on accepting the challenge of bringing the first class of women’s flag football student-athletes to campus.”

Bethany plans to compete in two NFL-sponsored showcases this season, followed by a full club season in 2025-26. The program will then evaluate the transition to full intercollegiate status for the 2026-27 season.

This comes on the heels of the NCAA Committee on Women’s Athletics making the recommendation on Feb. 12 that Divisions I, II, and III sponsor legislation to add flag football to the NCAA Emerging Sports for Women program.

Flag football is one of the fastest-growing sports in the country, with at least 65 NCAA schools sponsoring programs at either the club or varsity level this year, with more slated to join in 2026. The sport is also gaining global momentum, having been added to the lineup for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics.

Currently, 11 states—including Pennsylvania—sanction high school girls’ flag football, with Washington expected to become the 12th. In Ohio, 32 high schools have introduced the sport, though it has not yet received official championship status from the Ohio High School Athletic Association (OHSAA).

Bethany College is excited to be at the forefront of this movement, providing new opportunities for student-athletes and further enriching its athletic tradition.