Yonkers Girls NFL Flag Football Caps Off a Dynamic Weekend in the City of Yonkers

by Warren Rosenberg, MetroSports Magazine September 29, 2025

The weekend of September 27^th and 28^th brought much excitement to the City of Yonkers. Saturday featured the 3^rd annual Comic Con and an intra-city high school boys football face off between the Yonkers Force and the Yonkers Brave. Sunday began with the 16^th running of the Tour de Yonkers bicycle race and concluded with the inaugural games of the new Yonkers Girls NFL Flag Football League, established and operated by Alpha Elite Sports, Inc.

Above: Players, coaches, and league officials ready for the start of the new Yonkers Girls NFL Flag Football League

Under beautiful sunny skies and with family, friends, and neighborhood residents looking on, eight NFL authorized and branded teams took to the fields at Lennon Park in Yonkers for the opening of the league’s inaugural season. The teams included the NY Giants, NY Jets, New England Patriots, Miami Dolphins, Minnesota Vikings, Philadelphia Eagles, Pittsburgh Steelers, and San Francisco 49ers.

Above: Some of the inaugural on-field action of the new Yonkers Girls NFL Flag Football League

On hand to honor the athletes, coaches, and organizers of the league were a number of officials representing the City of Yonkers and County of Westchester and included:

Yonkers Mayor, Mike Spano, who welcomed those present and presented the City of Yonkers Proclamation to Nuryel Benitez, one of the league organizers and coaches.

-Westchester County Legislators. Shanae Williams and David Tubiolo, who served as Masters of the Ceremony at the opening event and presented the Westchester County Proclamation to Kris Areche, President and Head Coach of Alpha Elite Sports.

-City of Yonkers District 1 Councilwoman, Deana Norman.

-Jessica Gordon, Deputy Chief of Staff and Communications Director for Assemblyman Nader Sayegh, 90th District.

-Millie Gutierrez – Westchester County Representative.

Above: Mayor Mike Spano along with members of the Yonkers City Council and Westchester County Legislature posing with players, coaches and league officials.

The participation of girls and women in flag football has grown rapidly in recent years.The NFL Flag program has been expanding across the country and has been growing its presence in Westchester County and the New York Metro area and Women's Flag Football will be making its debut as an official Olympic Sport at the upcoming 2028 games in Los Angeles. In offering his proclamation, Mayor Spano stated “Thank you for bringing Girls NFL Flag to Yonkers. I can’t wait to see what our young athletes can accomplish.”

Commenting on the the growth of interest in this sport, Coach Nuryel Benitez noted that “The turnout for the league was overwhelming. The talent pool is much larger than I anticipated, and I’m excited for what the future of Girls Flag holds in Yonkers. We are looking to mold Olympic-caliber players.” MetroSports would like to point out that Mr. Benitez serves as coach for the Yonkers Public School District's Girls Varsity Flag Football team and had been recognized this past season as one of the Flag Football Coach Week honorees by the NFL's New York Giants.

Above and Below: The level of intensity on display was nothing less than impressive.

The idea for the Yonkers Girls NFL Flag League came directly from Kris Areche, after attending a tryout last year for the Yonkers Schools Girls Flag League. At that tryout, more than 130 girls showed up, but only 25 could be placed on the team. To address this gap, the Yonkers Girls Flag League was launched as both a gateway and a developmental system—providing more opportunities for girls to play while demonstrating to Yonkers Athletics the growing need for additional teams.

And the benefits are paying off for the girls participating. Marion Tovar, a parent of girls playing in the league said that, “My girls are so happy with the team! I truly appreciate all that you are doing. They are beyond motivated.”

Above: The athletes' motivation was apparent in the quality of play.

Our long-term vision is to strengthen the Yonkers Girls Flag Football League so that it can become more competitive within the NYSPHSAA framework. Plans are also underway to establish a Junior Varsity (JV) program, which will create a developmental pipeline for high school athletes.

Alpha Elite Sports, Inc. is led by Kristian Areche, President and Head Coach. Alpha Elite Sports is a nonprofit youth organization dedicated to empowering young people through athletics—particularly flag football—with a focus on both competitive and developmental opportunities.

Adding to success of the Yonkers Girls NFL Flag opening day were Yonkers Hub, located at 470 South Broadway and owned by Gilberto Gutierrez, generously donated shirts to help raise funds for the league.

Above and Below: Families, friends and others enjoying the action