They run, they pass, they catch and, girl, can they hit. These are the women of the So Cal Scorpions: San Diego’s very own full-contact women’s professional football team, who will be kicking off their 2004 season July 31.

The Scorpions played their inaugural season in Temecula last year, and in March of this year they were officially awarded the San Diego market; something they worked for from the moment the first ball was snapped.

“We started in Temecula to gain fans in that market and to go down in the history books as the first professional sports team in Riverside County,” said co-owner Ann Bagala.

The Scorpions are members of the Women’s Professional Football League, which is the longest operating women’s professional sports league in the nation, with the WNBA right behind them.

Ann Bagala and Christina Suggett own the Scorpions. Both are San Diego based business owners and former competitive athletes, and Suggett is a member of the team.

“Time-wise, it’s not as difficult as people would think. Ann is a great business partner. She picks up the extra slack so I can play. The experience of playing is phenomenal,” said Suggett

Football enthusiasts have asked what the differences are between the WPFL and the NFL.

“Not many,” said Suggett. “We play by the same rules as the NFL. Our ball is slightly smaller, but are salaries are much smaller.”

Although the starters on the Scorpions will get a salary, there are currently no multi-million dollar deals in the works.

“One of the goals of the WPFL is to go mainstream, so those large deals are there, so all of the games are televised,” added Bagala

What is currently more important to this team is getting San Diego out to the field.

“Once you see women in full gear go head to head, it’s addicting. This is no powder puff,” said the Scorpion’s head coach, Nate Benjamin.

For more information on the team, or to register to try out, call the team hotline at (866) 71-STING.

- Press release