Hilltops’ Dale makes history as first female playing CJFL games

Emmarae Dale takes part in a drill at Hilltops practice.

The realization of a moment that wasn’t on Emmarae Dale’s radar became real the first time she ran out on to the field for a regular season game with the Saskatoon Hilltops.

On August 22 at Jasper Place Bowl in Edmonton Alta., Dale became the first female player to play in a CJFL game when she took the field as a linebacker with the Hilltops against the host Huskies.

The Hilltops has been part of Dale’s life since she was a little girl. In the late 2000s and early 2010s, Dale went to games to support her older brothers Anthony and Donovan, when they played for the storied junior club.

When she was coming out of the tunnel to take the field with the Hilltops for her first game, Dale thought of her brothers. It hit her in that moment that she was now doing something her brothers did many times in coming out of a stadium tunnel to take the field with the “blue and gold.”

“That was really cool,” said Dale. “It made me kind of feel like I was really truly part of the legacy.

“I can’t even describe how much of an impact it kind of felt like. I think it is something that I will remember for the rest of my life.”

Dale made one special teams tackle in helping the Hilltops pull out an 18-17 victory, which was their 30^th consecutive road victory including action in the CJFL regular season and post-season.

A week later on August 29, Dale recorded a solo defensive tackle, two assisted defensive tackles and two special teams tackles in a 35-18 win over the Colts in Calgary, Alta., at Shouldice Park. That was the Hilltops 31^st consecutive win on the road.

Emmarae Dale became the first female to play games in the CJFL.

Dale will make her home debut when the Hilltops host their home opener against their provincial rivals the Regina Thunder on Saturday at 7 p.m. at Saskatoon Minor Football Field. The clash will be a battle of teams both sporting 2-0 records.

While watching her older brothers play for the Hilltops growing up, Dale saw football as a sport she would like to try one day. Becoming a member of the Hilltops wasn’t a thought that crossed her mind.

Dale played flag football in high school, where she caught the eye of personnel from the Saskatoon Valkyries. The Valkyries are a powerhouse tackle team in the Western Women’s Canadian Football League.

Michelle Duchene, who is the Valkyries general manager, Carisa Polischuk, who was a Valkyries player and director, and Jeff Yausie, who was the Valkyries head coach at the time and is the Hilltops defensive coordinator, talked Dale into giving the Valkyries a try.

In 2016, Dale joined the Valkyries as an 18-year-old rookie. She played middle linebacker for the Valkyries for four seasons from 2016 to 2019 helping them win two WWCFL championships in 2016 and 2019.

On top of playing for the Valkyries, Dale was a member of the University of Saskatchewan Huskies women’s track and field team for four seasons specializing in throwing events. She helped the Huskies win three straight Canada West Conference team championships from 2018 to 2020.

On the football side of things, Yausie stepped down as Valkyries head coach following the 2016 campaign and remained the team’s defensive coordinator in 2017 before stepping away from that club.

Emmarae Dale (#45) in action for the Valkyries in 2019.

Yausie kept tabs on how Dale was doing with the Valkyries and thought she improved to the point where she could help the Hilltops. He brought the idea to legendary Hilltops head coach Tom Sargeant, and the decision was made early in 2020 to recruit Dale to the club that has won 22 CJFL championships.

Dale was slated to play with the Hilltops last year, but that season was ultimately cancelled on August 6, 2020 due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic that had gripped the world.

The Hilltops completed all the paperwork to allow Dale to join the team before August 6, 2020. 

That allowed her to be eligible to play in the 2021 campaign, when the CJFL announced in early September of 2020 that players who were 22-years-old in 2020 could play as 23-year-olds in 2021.

Dale took part in the six weeks of practice the Hilltops were able to hold in September and October of 2020, and the official announcement she was on the team’s roster was made on September 15, 2020.

That eventually led to Dale getting on the field for the Hilltops regular season open on August 22 of this year. She can still feel the excitement from that day.

“It was pretty surreal,” said Dale, who has done numerous interviews with media outlets across Canada about joining the Hilltops. “I think it was just such a long time coming that it is kind of weird to think that it has already come and gone.

“It was the first game back since COVID. I think everyone is still just kind of getting the rust off after such a long wait, but it was awesome being there. I think even when I was just first putting on the shoulder pads and the Hilltops jersey it definitely kind of hit me that it was going to be a big game and very meaningful game.

Emmarae Dale followed two of her older brothers to the Hilltops.

“It was really awesome. It was definitely exciting and humbling. It was just a lot of emotions just kind of wrapped into one I think.”

During the first game, Sargeant said lots of people didn’t realize Dale was a female player. He said Dale deserved the opportunities she was given.

“She is just another football player,” said Sargeant. “She is one of the 45 players we took on the road trip.

“She was in some good situations. She did her job. She had some contain responsibilities.

“She got in on a tackle. Emmarae is such a positive kid. She works real hard, and she is a joy to be around.”

Sargeant said Dale has been perfect fit with the team.

“We really enjoy coaching her,” said Sargeant. “As I said, we don’t think anything else.

“She is number 45 in the blue and gold, and she is out there to try and help us win. That is all we care about.”

After getting that season opener under her belt, Dale said the focus quickly shifted to the rest of the 2021 campaign.

“Now that game is done, I think it kind of feels like a little bit less pressure,” said Dale. “I’m excited to just keep getting better for the rest of this season.

Michelle Keene, left, with Emmarae Dale. (Photo courtesy Michelle Keene)

“I think we still all have a lot of learning to do. We’re a young, fast and talented team. I think we are just going to keep growing from here.

“It is definitely not the peak of the Hilltops for that first game, so we’re excited to keep going.”

 

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