After traveling to and from Boston, D.C. Divas quarterback Allyson Hamlin returned to Maryland at 6 p.m. Sunday, only to be greeted with a 10 p.m. to 7 a.m. shift and the loads of paperwork that come with being a District 3 county police detective.

Hamlin has played with the D.C. Divas, a member of the national Independent Women's Football League, for more than eight years and has been with the county police just as long. The Divas, whose home field is at Landover's Prince George's Sports and Learning Complex, play eight games in a season and hold weekly practices. Four of their games are on the road in New York City, Pittsburgh and Harrisburg, Pa.

Hamlin started out as a police dispatcher before entering the police academy in December 1999. Seven and a half months later she began as a beat officer out of the Palmer Park’s District 3 office which covers areas such as Capitol Heights, Suitland and Landover.

Balancing work in the department and on the field has been a challenge, said Hamlin, who became a detective in July 2005, noting there have been times where she has worked 24- or 36-hours straight ‘‘but it’s all worth it.”

Hamlin said beat officers have a new day waiting for them after a day of patrolling, but as a detective the same stack of papers will still be waiting the next day.

‘‘It was an opportunity presented to me that I always wanted to do,” Hamlin said. ‘‘The timing was right for me.”

Growing up in University Park in the 1980s, Hamlin, who now lives in Crofton, said she always knew she wanted to be in law enforcement and even thought about becoming a detective for the FBI while majoring in Criminology and Criminal Justice at the University of Maryland, College Park. During her last semester of school, Hamlin took a year off as a catcher with the university’s 1997 Atlantic Coast Conference co-champion winning softball team to focus on her studies, graduating in 1998.

But Hamlin faced barriers early on throughout most of her childhood when it came to athletics. There were no separate girls teams for basketball or softball and Hamlin was often the only girl playing with a crowd of boys at the Langley Park Boys and Girls Club. Though women have since made strides in both sports, Hamlin now spends the bulk of her time playing in the one sport never traditionally offered to women.

‘‘Most people when they come and see us are blown away,” Hamlin said. ‘‘It’s the same game.”

Hamlin’s father, Paul Hamlin, remembers his daughter’s early frustrations at the lack of local opportunities for her in athletics.

‘‘She was the only girl on our baseball team who played, and she got stuck with the catcher position because most of the boys were too scared to catch,” Paul Hamlin said. ‘‘When you’re that age it’s a pretty scary position. Later on she became a catcher in softball at the University of Maryland. She had a very good arm, even at that age.”

Now Allyson Hamlin is putting her arm to good use as the Divas’ quarterback. District 3 Commander, Maj. Joseph McCann, said her commitments to the D.C. Divas never got in the way of her ability to perform as a detective.

‘‘I think her background in athletics, which keeps her in shape, gives her a little bit of an edge when it comes to tracking suspects,” McCann said. ‘‘It keeps her mind sharp because she stays healthy. She stays fit. I think the main competitive nature of athletics pushes her to strive to be better than everyone else around her. She brings that same competitive attitude and spirit to the work place.”

Hamlin said she’s been injured more on the beat than on the field, tearing her plantar fascia—a muscle in the arch of the foot—and tearing knee muscle from chasing after possible suspects and getting in ‘‘scuffles” on the job. Hamlin, who once patrolled in the guns and drugs task force, said because of factors such as the dense population of her coverage area, low economic status and dealing with cross border criminals because of proximity to Washington, D.C., the work can become hectic.

‘‘I am a resident of Prince George’s County and I feel like it’s a really great county that gets a bad rep,” Hamlin said. ‘‘I feel like that bad rep comes from a small amount of people committing a ton of crime.”

Hamlin’s teammate, receiver Nikki Williams of Laurel, said she still does not know how she handles both responsibilities but after playing with her for 10 years and prior to that on an Alexandria, Va.-based flag football league, Williams has always recognized her as a leader and someone willing to learn.

‘‘She doesn’t think she has the answer to everything,” Williams said. ‘‘She’s always willing to accept when someone comes to her and offers her some guidance. She’s been able to take all the different information from people around her. She’s got a lot of great potential to be even better.”

Hamlin said that female football players might not be as strong as male ones, but that what women lack in physical ability they make up for in technique and commitment to the sport. Hamlin said football is a complex sport that requires skill and intellect but other teams in the league that lost by as much as 70 points previously are now coming back every year stronger.

Even with her demanding schedule, Hamlin said she still has not ruled out starting her own family and having children, noting many teammates are mothers themselves. But for now Hamlin said she enjoys working for a large police department and the opportunity to play football.

‘‘I think sports are important for women,” Hamlin said. ‘‘Whenever you have the opportunity to be a part of something, it gives you confidence.”

E-mail Natalie McGill at nmcgill@gazette.net