Madison Barch can nail 55-yard field goals in nasty crosswinds. Caitlyn Cox can do it in a game from 42 yards out. Holly Neher threw a 42-yard touchdown pass on her very first varsity high school throw.
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Women can do anything men can do in the game of football, and ladies like them prove that every time they take the field. Many detractors of female football players like to claim that these long-haired teammates don't boast the physical presence needed to make (or take) tackles with the boys.
I could say they're dead wrong. Or I could let Amanda Shepps show them.
Female Kicker Makes Game-Saving Tackle
My homecoming game was complete when I made this touchdown saving tackle in the 4th quarter of our 24-20 win! Hokies special teams would be proud! #beamerball #hokienation @CoachFuente @VT_Football @FollowMeToVT @thomasguerry @AllDayGalante @coachfostervt @CoachShibestVT pic.twitter.com/ahNezRlGQ6
— Amanda Shepps (@SheppsAmanda) October 15, 2018
RELATED: Female Kicker Obliterates Returner Along His Own Sideline
Grassfield High School kicker Amanda Shepps was playing in her homecoming game against Lakeland in Chesapeake, Virginia.
The female kicker, who had already kicked three extra points and a 26-yard field goal in the game, wound up saving another six points late in the game.
When a Lakeland player found a lane toward the end zone on a kickoff return, Shepps stepped up and took him down by tripping up his legs. The tackle not only saved a touchdown, it saved the game. Grassfield won, 24-20.
"I wasn't gonna let him score," Shepps told WAVY TV 10. "When I barely get to make tackles, it's enjoyable for me. I know my dad, he likes to see me tackle people."
Her father, Craig Shepps, actually dissuaded her from dancing to encourage her to follow her heart and play football with the boys. When the time came for her to make that tackle, he was the proudest parent in the stands.
"I want her to make every kick she kicks, but that was better than all of the field goals," he told WAVY TV 10.
Shepps wrapped up her career and had hopes of becoming a walk-on at Virginia Tech University. She was invite to a camp there and met the coaching staff the summer before her final season. She enrolled there in 2019.
Even in the middle of the coronavirus pandemic and COVID-19 outbreak, Shepps still found time to hit the gridiron and boot some field goals.
If the Hokies ever need a field goal kicker (or a clutch tackler), I'm sure Shepps is just a phone call away.
