WELLINGTON, Fla. — A Wellington flag football athlete is bringing the spotlight to Palm Beach County following a viral video with more than 2 million views on TikTok that shows off her arm skills.
Ava Hanson is a starting quarterback from Wellington High School and said was a historic season for their team. She threw 62 touchdowns and over 3,900 yards.
“At Wellington High, we’ve either won districts or we’ve won regionals but not in the same year,” said Hanson. “So this year we won both and we also made it to states.”
The viral video captures the moment from the state championship game and caught more attention than she expected.
“I threw a touchdown and let me tell you my teammates were jumping for joy,” said Hanson. “I was scrolling on TikTok and I saw myself and I was flabbergasted like it was the craziest thing I could’ve thought would ever happened.
Although they finished as runner-ups, Hanson said her team's bond made all the difference.
"The camaraderie that my team has was the biggest impact on me for this whole season," said Hanson.
Hanson will play college flag football at Hendrix College in Arkansas. Looking back, Hanson adds she only began playing flag football four years ago and never imagined coming this far.
“I’m going to study psychology there. So I'm hoping to start my life there,” said Hanson. “I still don’t think I’ve comprehended it fully. I think that once I finally get there, I’ll understand it more but at this moment, I am just so surprised and so proud that I have the opportunity to do this.”
Hanson adds her hard work didn’t go unnoticed and she's been invited to play in an all-star game at Keiser University this weekend.
"I feel pretty great. I feel like this is definitely a big part of my life now. This is something I’m never going to forget and I’m just happy to make people in my life proud,” said Hanson.
