The freshmen and seniors team won Robert Morris University’s first powder puff football game that put freshmen and seniors against the sophomores and juniors with a final score of 16 to 8 on Saturday, Oct. 8 at 1 p.m. in the Joe Walton Stadium.

The Student Program Board, Residence Hall Association, intramural staff and student body were all involved in putting together this free event.

“There seems to be a lot of girls interested. We’ve been trying to get this underway for three years, and I’m excited it’s finally happening,” stated Bridget Bohonek, a junior and president of the Student Program Board.

Of the 66 girls who signed up to participate, only some 20 girls showed up for the game. The freshmen and seniors wore blue, while the sophomores and juniors wore red as their uniform color.

Other students participated in other ways. For instance, senior Rob Papale was the freshmen and seniors team coach and sophomore Andrew Beal coached the sophomores and juniors team.

Referees for the game were a few members of the campus’ intramural sports department,

Powder puff football bears a much closer resemblance to intramural flag football rather than regular football. Literal tackling is prohibited in powder puff, so each player wears flags. When a ball carrier’s flags are pulled off, she has been “tackled.” A team has five downs allotted to them, but the first is only given after the 50-yard line is crossed.

The positions for the players were assigned during the pre-game practice on Oct. 5. Each position was determined by the personal interest the player had in a certain place on the field. This system of selection was made possible due to the higher flexibility of the different positions in flag football.

“Powder puff football is something I’ve wanted to establish since starting my position, and I am really excited that we have so much interest in it this year. It’s just another testament to how engaged our students have become in campus life,” declared Armand Buzzelli, director of campus recreation.

Situated in the middle of the homecoming festivities, the game both promoted a new sport to the university and gave students time to make memories and, simply, have fun.