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For real Female kicker not a publicity stunt
Posted: Thursday September 02, 1999 04:14 PM
MARION, Indiana (AP) -- With a helmet and pads on, nothing unusual separates No. 11 for the Marion Giants from the 50 other varsity football players. But once Kristin Marcuccilli unstraps the purple and gold Giants helmet, the dishwater-blonde bobbed hairstyle that glistens under the sunlight quickly distinguishes her from everyone else. As the first girl to play high school football in Grant County, Marcuccilli reluctantly accepts the attention, but she doesn't understand why it is necessary. "One of the first days in the training room when I was getting ice, I started talking to [senior lineman] Robert Ficklin, who I had never really spoken to before," said Marcuccilli, a 16-year-old junior placekicker. "And he said, 'I really respect you. I respect you as a young lady, and on the field, you are just one of the guys.' That means a lot to me. I don't want or expect any special treatment from anyone." Indeed, Marcuccilli, who missed her only extra-point attempt Friday night in the Giants' season-opening 18-9 win over Noblesville, doesn't look at her participation as anything unusual. The 5-foot-11 Marcuccilli simply came out for the sport after playing soccer the last two years because she thought the Giants could use her right leg to improve their inconsistent kicking game. "I didn't want people to think that I was going out there to be the first girl or to be someone to get attention," said Marcuccilli, who is ranked first in the junior class with a 4.34 grade-point average. "Since I could kick and liked it and could contribute to the team, that drew me to it more. "Once it started, it was really cool to hear people come up to me and say 'That's neat,'" she said. "Then, there's the other group that thought, 'What are you thinking?' I hope those people will change their opinions. I've only kicked in the scrimmage and then Friday night, but I hope a little farther into the season that people will not look at me being out there as a joke." Because to Marcuccilli, her teammates and the Marion coaching staff, her appearance on the football field is not meant in jest. Marion's football team went through four kickers last season in an attempt to find someone who could consistently put the football through the uprights. Much of it was to no avail as the Giants converted only eight extra points attempts all season. "For the uniqueness of the situation, I understand the interest is there," Marion coach Mark Surface said. "We are not doing it to draw interest. We did it because we thought she had some kicking skills that would help our football team." Marcuccilli's introduction to football began last fall, just before undergoing shoulder surgery to repair a dislocated right collarbone from an old basketball injury. Although her only previous kicking experience came from playing soccer since the age of 3, Marcuccilli was out on the football field with good friend and current Marion junior receiver Brandon Barrett when she jokingly asked to kick a football. Impressed with her ability, Barrett told the Marion coaches about Marcuccilli's potent right leg, and the coaching staff went to watch. "Brandon helped a lot by talking to the coaches because I would have never gone up to them," Marcuccilli said. The Giants' staff was prepared to insert Marcuccilli's name on the tournament roster right away, but she decided against it because she did not want to delay her surgery and postpone a return to basketball. Excited by Marcuccilli's ability and her interest in helping a part of the Giants' game that was suspect last year, the coaches arranged for her to attend a kicking camp at Notre Dame this summer. The only girl enrolled at the camp, Marcuccilli spent three days doing nothing but kicking off turf and grass. She quickly fell in love with it. "I never thought when I started kicking last year that I would end up doing it this year," Marcuccilli said. During the spring and summer, Marcuccilli started attending the conditioning and weightlifting sessions each morning with the other members of the football team. It didn't take long for her future teammates to realize how intent she was to join them. "I heard rumors that she was going to kick, but I didn't believe it until I noticed this summer she was coming to workouts with the football team," Marion senior quarterback Reggie Nevels said. "In the back of my mind was 'does this girl know what she is doing?' As I talked to her, I realized she did. Everyone has gotten so used to it that it's no big deal now." At first, Marcuccilli was unsure how she would be received by her new teammates. Friends with many of them off the field, Marcuccilli anticipated her arrival might create some uneasiness. Instead, Marcuccilli quickly discovered that her family that used to include one brother had suddenly grown to more than 50 big brothers, each willing to act as her bodyguard on the field. "They are very protective of me, which is nice," Marcuccilli said. "It does not happen often, but the thought of being hit is not so great. My teammates told me that if they ever see me get hit, they might get thrown out of the game because of it. Of course, they are so much bigger and stronger than I am so it's nice to have all of them around." Marcuccilli said one of the first-asked questions by anyone who learns that she is playing football is whether she has been hit. The only hit she received so far came in practice last week, but it wasn't hard. Being hit or injured is not something she fears in a game either because she knows a 15-yard penalty is automatically assessed for roughing the kicker. "The coaches said somebody might try to take a shot at me because they think it's worth 15 yards to take out a girl," Marcuccilli said. "I know it could happen, but I don't want to think about it, let it affect my kicking and play scared. Besides, I'm confident with that line standing in front of me." Just as confident as Marcuccilli is about her teammates, they feel the same way about her. "Nobody on the team has questioned her or been jealous," Barrett said. "I did notice after the first couple of days, it seemed like everyone on the team wanted to be a kicker. We had 250-pound linemen come out of nowhere and try to toe-bash the ball." Added senior receiver Ryan Jackson: "We don't mind getting stopped in the red zone because we know she can put it through the uprights. She's one of the good things that's happened to the football team this year because she can kick."
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