Each year for the past four years, all 32 National Football League (NFL) teams have been invited to nominate one male and one female high school senior football athlete as part of the NFL Latino Youth Honors.
The Seattle Seahawks’ female nominee in 2026 was none other than Olympia High School senior Gabriela Peralta, who has been a varsity flag football player for all four years of the program’s existence. She lines up at slot wide receiver and defensive back for the Bears.
The honors recognize outstanding high school tackle and flag football athletes from around the nation for their academic and athletic excellence.
Peralta was nominated by her parents and her Olympia coaches Justin Christiansen and Orlando Johnson. She first learned of the NFL Latino Youth Honors after her teammate Alicia Whatley received the same nomination by the Seahawks in 2024, and the honors popped up on an Instagram post when Peralta was on spring break this past school year. She immediately began asking for nominations from those close to her, and she learned she was nominated by the Seahawks during a flag football camp at Pacific Lutheran University in July.
“It was really hot that day, and I was kind of down. My coach Justin Christiansen told the whole team. It didn’t feel real,” Peralta said. “I was really happy at that moment. It gave me the motivation to keep going. I’m really happy to not only represent the sport I love playing but also my culture.”
Peralta is driven not only to succeed in flag football and track and field, but also in her academics. She sets a high standard for herself in the classroom so that she can graduate with a gold cord like her siblings before her. The nomination for the NFL Latino Youth Honors requires a minimum grade point average of 3.0 or higher. Peralta is also involved in the school’s powerlifting club and choir. After graduation from Olympia in June 2027, she plans to stick around sports and potentially study sports management or sports science.
The next step in the nomination process for Peralta in the NFL Latino Youth Honors sphere is the selection of eight finalists, each representing one of the NFL’s eight divisions. Each finalist will receive a grant award, including $25,000 grants for both the male and female national winners and $5,000 grants for each of the six other finalists. They will also participate in a variety of special events in Los Angeles during the week of Super Bowl LXI, when the male and female national winners will be announced. Recipients will receive an invitation to the Hispanic Heritage Foundation National Youth Awards.
As a flag football player, Peralta has grown alongside the Olympia program, which was introduced during her freshman year. She had once been hesitant to try new things, but she knew that essentially everyone on the team would be starting from the ground up alongside her. Flag football became an officially sanctioned sport in the WIAA ahead of Peralta’s junior season.
In her junior campaign, she played defense for the first time and was an All-South Puget Sound League First Team receiver for a Bears team that qualified for the 4A state tournament.
“I learned that I needed to be all in. Playing both sides of the ball, you really need to watch more film,” Peralta said of her experience last season. “The team was really close. Everyone knew each other. Everyone liked each other.”
Christiansen said that Peralta’s nomination for the NFL Latino Youth Honors was well deserved because of her positive attitude, leadership and competitive drive. She is expected to be one of the core pieces for the Olympia Bears once again in 2026-27 as they lost six seniors from last year’s team.
“Gabi is an incredible athlete and overall human in general. A true leader in all aspects of her life. She works very hard to elevate her craft while raising all those up around her,” Christiansen said. “Whether it be in a game or during practice, you will always see her supporting her teammates through celebrations, positive affirmations or reinforced assertions that we’ve got this. During the day, and even at practice in between reps, you will find her laughing and smiling with those around her. Gabi is a fierce competitor, but what truly sets her apart is her character. We could go on and on about her integrity and morals, but it is that positivity and will to make those around her better that make her so likable and establish her as a leader within our program and at our school. We are very fortunate to have Gabi on our team. Whether she sees herself as a leader or not, everyone has her back because they know she has theirs. She is a pillar within our program and will be a pillar in whatever she chooses to do with her future.”
The Bears had a successful summer, highlighted by a second-place finish at the PLU tournament and a 6-0 run to win the Graham-Kapowsin tournament where they scored 142 points compared to just 7 points allowed. During those camps, Peralta came into her own as a natural leader.
“I find it weird that everyone that I’ve played with has graduated. I knew I really needed to step up and get to know everyone again,” Peralta said. “I believe that a team that’s really close and connected trusts each other, and then we can play at our highest level.”
In all three of her flag football seasons, Olympia has grown stronger and inched closer to its ultimate goal of winning a state championship. Peralta will be at the forefront of a strong nucleus of athletes that also includes all-state sophomore Ella Moynihan, sophomore Parker Udo, junior Addyson Quemdo, and senior Sofie Shakespeare, among others, that have the Bears pinned as a favorite in the SPSL in 2026-27.
“Our goal is definitely winning state. It’s on everyone’s mind. Every year, we’ve gotten one step further,” Peralta said.
