This post was contributed by a community member. The views expressed here are the author's own.

Health & Fitness

Des Plaines Park District Hosts Their First NFL Punt, Pass & Kick Competition

The Des Plaines Park District hosted a free National Football League Punt, Pass & Kick Competition on Sunday, September 22 from noon to 3:00pm at Prairie Lakes Park, 515 E. Thacker Street. PP&K provides children ages 6-14 with an opportunity to compete in an event that recognizes individual excellence in core football skills. Each child is allowed one pass, one punt, and one place kick from a tee. Scores are based on distance and accuracy, and the winners are recognized based on their composite scores from all three events. “We were very excited at the turnout for our first PP&K,” said Josh Cantres, Athletic Supervisor. “The weather was perfect, we had tremendous volunteer parent support to run the event, and we cannot wait to host the 2014 competition.”

Over ninety boys and girls participated in the challenge. They were divided by gender into five age divisions: 6/7, 8/9, 10/11, 12/14, and 14/15. In the Boys Division, the First Place Champions were: Ages 6/7: Bear Cortes, 132 feet; ages 8/9: Dhruv Patel, 146 feet; ages 10/11: Connor Benson, 204 feet; ages 12/13: Robby Nehrke, 269 feet; and ages 14/15: Patrick Hickey, 257 feet.

In the Girls Division, the First Place Champions were: Ages 6/7: Katelyn Dahl, 43 feet; ages 8/9: Gillian Herman, 99 feet; ages, 10/11: Jane Rothweiler, 185 feet; ages 12/13: Ally Block, 171 feet; and ages 14/15: Alisa Fallon, 324 feet, the highest score of the day. Fallon took second place at the 2012 Nationals Competition with a score of 302 feet: 67’ 4” for her punt; 114’ 5” for her pass; and 120’ 3” for her kick.

Find out what's happening in Des Plaineswith free, real-time updates from Patch.

The winners now advance to the Sectional Competition held on Sunday, October 20, at 9:00am, at Cannon Crossings Park, 1675 N. Nicholson Dr. in Hoffman Estates. Each competitor will begin anew with a score of zero. Only the top four first-place finishers in each age bracket of the boys' and girls' divisions, from the pool of Sectional Competition Champions, will advance to the Team Championship. “We hope to have a competitor represent Des Plaines in the Nationals Competition this year. Maren Garnett, from Des Plaines, made it to the Team Competition for the MLB Pitch, Hit & Run this past summer, and we wish the Punt, Pass & Kick competitors the same good luck,” Cantres said.

A complete list of the First, Second, and Third Place winners is available at www.DPParks.org. For more information about programs, classes, and events at the Des Plaines Park District, visit www.DPParks.org or call 847-391-5700

Find out what's happening in Des Plaineswith free, real-time updates from Patch.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

The views expressed in this post are the author's own. Want to post on Patch?