LOS ANGELES — California has become the latest state to make flag football an official girls’ high school sport.

Last week, the California Interscholastic Federation voted to approve flag football to begin playing at member schools for the upcoming school year. The decision comes amidst a huge rise in popularity for the sport, one that has been fueled primarily by women.

And though kickoff is about a semester away, Long Beach Poly is getting a bit of a head start on the football field.