Female official not looking for the spotlight

Dayton — Hanna Keller doesn’t want the attention but it’s hard to miss the blonde ponytail bouncing down the back of her black-and-white striped officials jersey. The 23-year old Wright State graduate is in her second season on a varsity officiating crew calling high school football games.

“I’m probably one of five women in the area that officiate football,” Keller said last week.  “I love the instance where you get a “yes sir” instead of a yes ma’am.  People apologize but it’s not a big deal.”

At 5’2” Hanna is dwarfed by a lot of the players on the field, but she insists she doesn’t think a lot about being a woman in a man’s game.”

“I guess I don’t think about it.  I just think I’m an official and I’m out here to do a job and do what’s best for the game.  If someone holds that against me then I guess I just need to work harder but at the end of the day I hope nobody sees that as a reason for me to stand out.:

Keller has been working games since she was a teenager.  Her dad is also an official and he got her started.  Hanna is also certified to work basketball, softball, and baseball games.