Head flag football coach Aaron King told a story about quarterback Kinleigh Lewis before she signed to play collegiate flag football at Campbellsville University in Campbellsville, Kentucky. He said that when didn’t earn the starting job as a sophomore in the first year of competition at West Creek, she asked how she could better herself so that she could eventually win the job.
This attitude stuck with King, and she did win the starting job as a junior.
On Dec. 12, Kinleigh signed the letter-of-intent to become the first flag football player in school history to sign at the college level. She is also only the second player in Montgomery County to sign a flag football scholarship after Montgomery Central’s Sarah Rankhorn signed with Milligan College.
“Kinleigh is the definition of a leader,” King said. “On and off the field, she does what she needs to do in order to be better every single day. There’s a reason why she was voted as a team captain every year she’s been with us.”
Kinleigh believes that she won’t be the only Lady Coyote to earn a scholarship.
“It’s an honor, but it only means that it’ll grow from here,” she said. “If I could do it, anybody can. It’s not some unimaginable goal.”
Achieving this kind of success is not something Lewis did alone, though. She gives her family credit for her success.
“I thank my mom and dad and family just for pushing me when I didn’t want to,” she said. “Staying with me and staying hard on me and giving me the opportunities.”
Sara Lewis, Kinleigh’s mother, acknowledges the self-doubts Kinleigh had.
“The sacrifice, tears, late nights doing work to keep grades up, extra workouts with her dad, the hesitation when she wasn’t making the throws, the double sport practices,” she said. “I’ve seen her overcome the overthinking, the self-doubt, and the what-ifs.”
Kinleigh is a two-sport athlete who also plays center back for the soccer team, which has enjoyed unprecedented success the last two seasons. This, coupled with the success of the flag football team, has allowed her to experience the joys of winning championships in both sports.
Campbellsville University is located in central Kentucky, approximately a 3-hour drive from Clarksville. That was one of the selling points for Kinleigh.
“The campus is really nice, especially for a private college,” she said. “It was closest to home. I had a visit with multiple girls and they were very welcoming. I could see myself bonding with them.”
Kinleigh plans to major in exercise science to become a physical therapist or possibly a sports psychologist.
