GHS grad Lauren Carter joins Women’s Football Alliance

A 2019 Georgetown Jr./Sr. High School graduate is making history in the semi-professional leagues. A former Georgetown High School student/athlete, Lauren Carter, is currently a part of the Cincinnati Cougars, a semi-professional, Division III tackle football team in the Women’s Football Alliance. The team is made up of more than 50 dedicated members.

Carter is a rookie kicker and a starting defensive back for the team, and is ranked third in the nation when it comes to kicking in the WFA league. Throughout the 2024 season, Carter has been named player of the game twice for her defensive and special teams efforts.

Carter is certainly not new to sports. She has played sports for the majority of her life. In high school, Carter played soccer and basketball at Georgetown. She set the school’s blocked shot record for basketball as a sophomore, blocking a total of 54 shots during the season. During Carter’s senior season of fall soccer, the team won its first league title in over 20 years.

Carter’s former soccer coach, Ashley Corbin, said, “Lauren was a tough player who never backed down from any challenge. She is a great athlete who made her teammates more confident knowing she always had their back. She was reliable and always worked hard to get better. It’s no surprise that Lauren is excelling at something she seems to enjoy.”

At the collegiate level, Carter continued her soccer and basketball career at UC Clermont. During Carter’s freshman season (2019) of college sports, her soccer team won the national championship.

Carter has always been known as a “defensive hustler” in nearly every sport she has played, which is why kicking is such a unique position for her.

“When the football goes through the goal post, those points are special,” said her mom, Lori Gray Carter. “She has always been a defensive player. She loved to steal and block shots on the basketball court. She’s doing that again but this time, it’s on the football field. When she got her first interception, she knew she found her home.”

Lauren Carter looked into tackle football simply because she wanted a new hobby, and the new hobby she discovered turned out to be perfect for her.

“I’ve always been an athlete thriving on success of competition. I was looking for another sports outlet, while searching around I stumbled across a women’s full contact football team, and I was all in from the start! On the field playing soccer or on the court playing basketball I was an aggressive player, so why not give football a chance? I found the team via their awesome social media committee. I started practicing with the team September of 2023, then went to tryouts in November. I started practicing with the receivers, quickly to find my home with defense,” said Lauren Carter.

Carter has a large fan base cheering her and her team during the big games. But, most importantly, one of her biggest fans just so happens to be her mom, who is also a huge football fan.

“I have had a front row seat to every game in every sport she’s played since she was three years old. After she graduated from college, I was sad that my role in the bleachers was over. When she told me she found a professional women’s tackle football team, I was so excited. Watching her on the football field felt like home from the first whistle,” said Lori Gray Carter. “I’ve learned so much from watching her over the last 20 years. Most importantly, I learned to show up - half court, mid field, 50 yard line - that’s my happy place. She knows to look up and I’ll be right there.”

The Cougars went into this year’s playoffs ranked first out of 29 teams. The team finished out the regular season with an overall record of 5-1, with the loss only being by one point. Carter and her team traveled to Walnut Hills High School to take on the Virginia Panthers on June 29 for their first playoff game. While battling it out in the field with the Panthers, the Cougars came out on top with a final score of 56-8. The team will travel to Portland, Maine on July 13 to take on the Maine Mayhem.

If the Cougars take the win, they will then travel to the National Championship at the Football Hall of Fame in Canton, OH.

Georgetown Jr./Sr. High School Athletic Director, Krista Cahall, said, “Lauren’s success in the women’s tackle football league is a remarkable testament to show that with hard work, dedication, and the courage to try new things our athletes can reach extraordinary heights, break boundaries and make history.”

Whether Lauren Carter is sporting the jersey colors of black and gold, black and red, or blue and orange on the field or court, you can always look for her to give it her all, no matter what the circumstances are.