On Sept. 11, 2025, the junior women challenged the senior women to the annual friendly, but competitive, game of flag football called Powderpuff. This is a West High tradition that occurs every year during Homecoming week, which also serves as a fundraiser for the Parkway West Food Pantry. Admission was three dollars, and there were opportunities to donate additional funds at the gate. The final scoreboard was 12-2 with a win for the seniors.

Those who choose to participate in Powderpuff prepared through two practices before the game. Football players coached the girls, who were split into groups as they learned about the positions they would play on the field. One of these coaches was senior Braden Kluba, a member of the varsity football team.

“The environment felt just like a Friday night game. I was trying to bring a lot of energy with everyone, making sure everyone was on their feet, keeping warm and ready to go,” Klubba said.

Last year, the current seniors, then juniors, lost the Powderpuff game, meaning that the class of 2026 had never experienced a win before. 

“Last year I scored, but it didn’t give us a win,” senior Jamaya Love said. “This year, I scored the first touchdown [of] the night, we ended up winning the game, and it was Piffel’s first win for the seniors.”

While at the beginning of the game, the juniors were leading with 2 points, two touchdowns secured the senior victory. Love carried the football into the end zone near the end of the game. Her touchdown was celebrated by hundreds of members of the senior class rushing to the end zone to cheer the team on. 

Love was supported by her starting offensive-line teammate, senior Kate Roland. Although Roland never touched the ball, she blocked defenders and helped her teammates rush to the end zone. At first, Roland was discouraged by the ending outcome of the game, due to the upset last year, but the seniors’ win at the end helped to dissipate her previous thoughts.

“It was very exciting [but] we [thought] because we lost last year, and there’s been a streak of losing [multiple] games [in a row], we were going to lose,” Roland said. “I was very excited when I turned around and saw the time running out, because it meant we had won and all our hard work paid off.”