PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. – Caroline Hughes isn’t an average teenage girl.
She changed the game at Ponte Vedra High School — literally.
Hughes, 17, is the first female to play on the school’s junior varsity football team. She said her key to success is all about attitude.
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“I’ve always had the confidence like if I want it, I’m going to go get it. So, I mean I don’t really doubt myself especially to like my sports. It’s pretty much I’ll put in the work to where I want to be,” Hughes told News4Jax.
Caroline is a kicker, and she’s good at it. She’s the first female to ever score a point for her school. The kicker to this story is that she joined the team initially just to get into a weightlifting class.
“In order to get into the weightlifting class first period, I had to get onto the football team. So, I went to talk to the coach, and I said how do I join? I play soccer so I can kick, I can punt. I have the different things to get me there,” said Hughes.
And well, the rest is history. Her message to all girls is just to go for it.
“You are allowed. They cannot tell you you cannot play football,” she said.
Hughes said when she first joined the team her teammates were shocked but quickly embraced and supported her. She said she wishes she joined a lot sooner.