Sayville's Ava Rueb wins National Football Foundation's top scholar athlete award for flag football
Ava Rueb never imagined she would trade her pom-poms for a football.
Despite doubts about the transition from the sideline to the field, the Sayville cheerleader — encouraged by her father — tried out for her school’s inaugural flag football team as a junior.
“I didn’t think I was cut out for it because cheer and football are so different, but I gave it a shot and I loved it,” Rueb said. “It was surreal because Sayville football is a legacy team. To be a part of that was amazing.”
Rueb, who will attend Florida State University this year and be a member of the cheerleading team, was awarded the inaugural James Conrad Metzger Top Scholar Athlete award for flag football presented by the National Football Foundation’s Suffolk County chapter Sunday at Stonebridge Golf and Country Club in Hauppauge.
“This means so much,” Rueb said. “It makes me feel like all of my hard work paid off. All of the nights I was up past midnight studying after having two practices, it was all worth it. I managed it and I’m grateful for the opportunity to do everything I love.”
Rueb, who was a middle linebacker, led the county in tackles and was named the most valuable player on a team that won county and Long Island titles and made an appearance in the inaugural state flag football championship game.
Rueb also carried a weighted average of 102 and was a member of the Honor Society Committee, Athletes Helping Athletes, SWEEP and the Athlete Advisory Committee. She volunteers as a youth flag football, cheer and gymnastics coach.
“She was the ultimate team player,” said Sayville coach Reade Sands, who was named Coach of the Year. “Thank God she came back to practice that year and realized how great of a player and athlete she is. I’m incredibly proud of her.”
Rueb said she couldn’t have imagined her high school career without wearing the Golden Flashes jersey.
“I made a lot of friends on that team,” she said. “It was great because I never thought I would become so close with so many teammates. It was tiring. It was a lot. There was a lot to memorize and learn from the playbook, but it was very interesting, and I just loved learning the game.”
Seven other scholar-athletes were honored Sunday as part of the inaugural 2024 National Football Foundation flag football Golden Seven: Samantha Heyman (Half Hollow Hills East), Alexis Bulson-Cuozzo (Patchogue-Medford), Olivia Stuart (West Babylon), Iris Hoffman (Whitman), Grace Gilmartin (Northport), Alexa Flood (Eastport-South Manor) and Kate Lysaght (Harborfields).
“I wasn’t sure about the sport at first, but our team grew a close bond as soon as we started playing and we all loved it,” Flood said. “I didn’t expect to be honored like this, so it’s a great feeling for all of us.”
Marc A. Negrin, the president of the Suffolk County Football Officials Association and Suffolk County Girls Flag Football Rule Interpreter, was named the Official of the Year.
“It was truly an honor to experience the exceptional level of passion and talent as I officiated the inaugural state championship,” Negrin said. “The level of sportsmanship and athletic ability of these athletes is beyond compare, and they deserve the recognition they’re receiving today and every day.”
While Rueb and 14 seniors will leave Sayville, she is hopeful about the growth and talent of the squad and the sport.
“I feel like we set a precedent for the program,” she said. “We all worked really hard to finish where we were. There was so much talent on our team. I see a lot of opportunity for our team and this sport to grow, and it’s exciting.”
