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Growing up, Carly Kray had exposure to lots of sports.
Basketball, softball, soccer, and dancing all had a significant place in her childhood.
Football, on the other hand, did not.
Well, maybe just a little bit ... from trying to talk her way into a backyard game with her older brother, Logan, and his buddies.
“All of his friends used to come over and I’d want to play with them,” Kray recalled with a laugh. “It was a little hard, though, because they never wanted to let me play, but eventually he’d let me play with them a little bit.”
Turn the clock ahead a few years and Logan and his friends probably never would have guessed the football player she would become.
Carly Kray, for a second straight year, was a dominant force for the Edgewood Girls Flag Football team in the 2026 season
She led her team with 71 receptions for 860 yards and 24 touchdowns.
Kray also paced the Warriors with 14 interceptions, which ranked third in the state for those teams who reported stats.
For her efforts, she has been named as the first-ever Ashtabula County Girls Flag Football Player of the Year, as voted on by the county coaches.
As children, Logan probably never dreamt his little sister would become the football star she has become the past two years at Edgewood.
Then again, neither did she.
“Honestly, no,” Kray said. “I never dreamt I’d have an opportunity like this one.”
Flag football is in its second year at Edgewood.
The Warriors did not quite match the success they had a season ago when they advanced to the state championship tournament.
Still, Edgewood turned in a solid 8-2 mark.
For Kray to be named the first county player of the year in flag football is something she’ll cherish because of her team more than any individual recognition.
“It’s a great honor,” she said of the award. “My team and I worked very hard this season and they definitely pushed me more.
“Coming off a great season last year, we definitely lived up to the expectations. We came up a little short in the end, but I thought we still had a great season.”
Warriors coach Olajuwon Cooper calls what Kray’s able to do on the field as “crazy impressive.”
Not only is her individual performance incredible, but she is constantly double-teamed and targeted by the opposition, and that opens up opportunities for other players.
Cooper, though, said Kray, as a person, means even more to the Warriors flag football program.
“She’s one of the best players in the state,” Cooper said. “What she does from a statistical standpoint is crazy impressive. But, the more important thing is who she is as a person, and the regard she’s held in by her teammates.”
Athletic success is nothing new to Kray. She earned the county girls’ basketball player of the year in the 2025-26 season, and has also been a standout for the school’s soccer and softball teams.
Flag football is something that has to take a backseat to her other sports, but Kray’s work ethic and desire to keep improving and helping her team win has more than made up for lack of practice time.
“She’s a worker,” Cooper said. “Even without her God-given talent, she’s a great football player because of how hard she works.”
Kray, like many of the players who are involved in flag football, are also busy with other sports.
However, that is nothing she will ever use as an excuse for not excelling on the football field.
It’s something that Cooper said really catches everyone’s attention.
“Sometimes we want to make the practices a little bit easier because we understand that they’re coming right from another practice,” he said. “Anytime, we tell her to take something a little lighter, she adamantly says she wants to get better. She doesn’t expect anyone to take any shortcuts or take it easy on her. She expects to do the work and then some.”
Though playing football was not something she thought would be just a funny childhood memory, Kray said she’s really fallen in love with the game, and is looking forward to continuing the sport.
“I think I like it because it’s different,” she said. “The competition levels are different, the people are different. Getting to be coached by coach Cooper and ‘Weezy’ [assistant coach Tyler Welton] has been really cool. It’s definitely become one of my favorite sports.”
Continue reading...
Basketball, softball, soccer, and dancing all had a significant place in her childhood.
Football, on the other hand, did not.
Well, maybe just a little bit ... from trying to talk her way into a backyard game with her older brother, Logan, and his buddies.
“All of his friends used to come over and I’d want to play with them,” Kray recalled with a laugh. “It was a little hard, though, because they never wanted to let me play, but eventually he’d let me play with them a little bit.”
Turn the clock ahead a few years and Logan and his friends probably never would have guessed the football player she would become.
Carly Kray, for a second straight year, was a dominant force for the Edgewood Girls Flag Football team in the 2026 season
She led her team with 71 receptions for 860 yards and 24 touchdowns.
Kray also paced the Warriors with 14 interceptions, which ranked third in the state for those teams who reported stats.
For her efforts, she has been named as the first-ever Ashtabula County Girls Flag Football Player of the Year, as voted on by the county coaches.
As children, Logan probably never dreamt his little sister would become the football star she has become the past two years at Edgewood.
Then again, neither did she.
“Honestly, no,” Kray said. “I never dreamt I’d have an opportunity like this one.”
Flag football is in its second year at Edgewood.
The Warriors did not quite match the success they had a season ago when they advanced to the state championship tournament.
Still, Edgewood turned in a solid 8-2 mark.
For Kray to be named the first county player of the year in flag football is something she’ll cherish because of her team more than any individual recognition.
“It’s a great honor,” she said of the award. “My team and I worked very hard this season and they definitely pushed me more.
“Coming off a great season last year, we definitely lived up to the expectations. We came up a little short in the end, but I thought we still had a great season.”
Warriors coach Olajuwon Cooper calls what Kray’s able to do on the field as “crazy impressive.”
Not only is her individual performance incredible, but she is constantly double-teamed and targeted by the opposition, and that opens up opportunities for other players.
Cooper, though, said Kray, as a person, means even more to the Warriors flag football program.
“She’s one of the best players in the state,” Cooper said. “What she does from a statistical standpoint is crazy impressive. But, the more important thing is who she is as a person, and the regard she’s held in by her teammates.”
Athletic success is nothing new to Kray. She earned the county girls’ basketball player of the year in the 2025-26 season, and has also been a standout for the school’s soccer and softball teams.
Flag football is something that has to take a backseat to her other sports, but Kray’s work ethic and desire to keep improving and helping her team win has more than made up for lack of practice time.
“She’s a worker,” Cooper said. “Even without her God-given talent, she’s a great football player because of how hard she works.”
Kray, like many of the players who are involved in flag football, are also busy with other sports.
However, that is nothing she will ever use as an excuse for not excelling on the football field.
It’s something that Cooper said really catches everyone’s attention.
“Sometimes we want to make the practices a little bit easier because we understand that they’re coming right from another practice,” he said. “Anytime, we tell her to take something a little lighter, she adamantly says she wants to get better. She doesn’t expect anyone to take any shortcuts or take it easy on her. She expects to do the work and then some.”
Though playing football was not something she thought would be just a funny childhood memory, Kray said she’s really fallen in love with the game, and is looking forward to continuing the sport.
“I think I like it because it’s different,” she said. “The competition levels are different, the people are different. Getting to be coached by coach Cooper and ‘Weezy’ [assistant coach Tyler Welton] has been really cool. It’s definitely become one of my favorite sports.”
Continue reading...
