Piedmont Recreation’s popular Play Like a Girl+ returns this weekend for another free, action-packed day of hands-on activities, live demonstrations, inspiring role models, and good vibes – all designed to get girls pumped about playing sports!
Play Like a Girl+ Piedmont
Sunday, May 4, 10am-2pm
Witter Field @ Piedmont High School, 800 Magnolia Avenue
Free to all - advance registration encouraged
Now in its fourth year, Play Like a Girl+ Piedmont invites girls from 2-18 throughout the Bay Area to try their hand at sports from field hockey to flag football to roller derby at 29 interactive demo stations, with supportive guidance from skilled athletes and coaches. If a girl connects strongly with – or just wants to continue exploring – any individual sport, there will be information available at the station about classes, leagues, and camps to sign up for.
Play Like a Girl+ 2025 will feature meet-and-greets and Q&A with former WBNA player Layshia Clarendon and 5-time Olympic swimming gold medalist Dana Vollmer-Grant.
Playing sports provides lifelong benefits to girls
Play Like a Girl+ Piedmont is just one of the Piedmont Recreation Department’s initiatives to empower young women through athletics.
Participation in sports builds skills that support girls throughout their lives, teaching leadership, discipline, and teamwork. Girls who participate in sports experience lower rates of depression and higher self-esteem than their non-athlete peers.
Research has shown a direct link between participation in sports and better educational opportunities, positive health outcomes, and improved career outcomes for girls:
- Girls who participate in sports are significantly more likely to graduate high school compared to non-athletes.
- Overall, young girls who play sports have higher grades and score higher on standardized tests than non-athletes.
- Girls who participate in high school sports have higher rates of labor force participation and earn 7% higher wages than non-athlete peers.
- In a 2013 study of 821 senior managers and executives, 94% of female executives reported playing organized sports after primary school.
Play Like a Girl+ Piedmont is made possible by the support of title sponsor Dress Best for Less and many Piedmont athletic organizations hosting stations, including the PHS women’s basketball team, PHS flag football team, Piedmont DEVO mountain biking team, Piedmont junior running club, Piedmont Baseball & Softball Foundation, Piedmont Soccer Club, PMS Sports, Piedmont swim club, and the PHS track & field team.
Play Like a Girl+ Piedmont is an inclusive event open to all female-identifying, non-binary, gender nonconforming, and gender queer youth. Visit piedmont.ca.gov/PlayLikeAGirl for details, to register, or to sign up to volunteer.