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#24 Alison Fischer, DB
The Divas were not very prepared for their first encounter. Their pads had arrived just two weeks before, which had not left the ladies much time to practice in and get used to wearing them. In fact, Alison strapped hers on backwards the day of the first game and did not realize the mistake until after warm-ups. The Divas, who, in Alison’s opinion, looked a lot like the Bad News Bears in their early days, lost that first game against the Liberty Belles 40-0. Despite the score, the game sparked the girls’ determination. Alison was no longer a Fis(c)h out of water; she had tapped into a new passion and had just begun to realize her full potential. Those who know Alison know she is an able businesswoman and a born leader. On the Divas she is no different. The girl, who had doubts about even making the team when she first tried out, excelled at cornerback and was made team captain in her second season. With new management, able coaches, and increasing popularity, the Divas continued to improve and grow. Alison was feeling that upswing in her own football career as well, until things took a tragic turn. In the off-season, at a flag football tournament, Alison suffered one of the worst injuries a football player could incur—the “Terrible Triad.” Alison tore multiple ligaments in her knee—the Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL), the Medial Collateral Ligament (MCL), and the Medial and Lateral Meniscus. She was sidelined her entire third season, but still came faithfully to practices and games. For Alison, however, the emotional toll of the injury rivaled the physical. Alison recalled being so caught up at the team’s first home game and so accustomed to being at the forefront that she actually took a step forward when the coach called the defense to the field.
The first months back were rough for Alison, but instead
of feeling discouraged about the notable changes in her speed and strength,
she focused on ways she could adjust her playing style to compensate for
the difference. Fisch attests that the challenge made her a smarter player;
she had to anticipate her opponents’ moves and routes, and have
a heightened awareness of her exact field position so she could react
to plays as quickly as possible. Now that Alison is 43, she still considers the extra training imperative. “As I fight the clock, I find I have to work out harder to stay competitive.” When Fisch transitioned from flag to full-contact football at 35 (an age when most NFL players are seriously considering retirement), there were many more female players in her age range. Nine seasons later, the average player is around 30, and girls as young as 17 can join as long as they reach adulthood before the first kickoff. Fisch (sometimes also affectionately called “Mama Fisch”) is not at all troubled by the disparity, though. One could say she has aged like a fine wine—an all too appropriate analogy, since she is quite the connoisseur. As one of only five original Divas still on the active roster, Alison Fischer’s sagacity, even temper, breadth of experience, and willingness to support the team however she can have all made her a cherished component of the Diva organization. She does not speak much, but she doesn’t need to. Her love and respect for the team are unquestionable and immediately evident in all she does with them. If her successors gain nothing else from their time with Fisch, she wants them to always remember what the Diva organization was built on—class, hard work, respect for opponents, and a sense of family. -- Article written by Jordyn White
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The
year was 2001. One brisk April evening, a group of 40 women from the DC
metro area traveled to Philadelphia to play in their first full-contact
football competition. The National Women’s Football Association
had just been formed, and almost all of its members were playing tackle
football for the first time. Among those wide-eyed rookies was 35-year-old
Alison Fischer. Alison was no stranger to competitive sports; she had
spent over a decade in the pool, swimming in meets from middle school
through college. But she knew that despite her athleticism, tackle football
was altogether different. Alison did not know if she had what it took
to be a professional football player, but she was determined to find out.
Several
of the original Diva players decided that season would be their last,
but “Fisch” had too strong a passion for the sport to stop
playing so early in her career. As soon as Fisch was cleared to exercise
and “cut” (move laterally) she began to prepare for the 2004
season. She came to tryouts with experience under her belt, but the team’s
increasing notoriety had brought with it a younger and highly athletic
group of prospective new members. Alison did not fare nearly as well at
this tryout as she had in years past, but she didn’t give up on
herself, and her drive caused others, coaches and staff alike, to take
the same stand.
