Soccer
The girls’ soccer team heads into the first league game Tuesday against Buckingham Charter with a record of 0-2.
The Cavs lost to Western Sierra Collegiate, 2-1, and Our Lady of Guadalupe, 3-2.
Freshman Emma Belliveau was a bright spot for the Cavs in the second game against Our Lady of Guadalupe, scoring both goals.
She scored these goals to nearly equalize in the second half, but the team came up short.
Attendance at both games and practices has been a major issue for the team, according to senior sweeper Jianna Gudebski, who joined the team after the first few weeks of the season.
“It’s been hard to get people to regularly come to practice,” Gudebski said.
Senior captain Madeleine Wright expressed similar frustration.
“It’s kind of hard to win games when you have no subs,” Wright said.
With only 11 players, starters are forced to play entire matches.
Coach George Champayne said it’s still too early to tell what the team is going to look like, as the lineup has fluctuated since the beginning of the season.
“We could be good if we’d have people show up,” Champayne said.
Returning senior Natalie Polan said the lack of commitment almost kept her off the team.
One of several returning players who had to be recruited to fill roster holes, Polan was discouraged by the lack of dedication.
Last year’s team finished second in the league and qualified for playoffs, while the 2010-11 team lost in the section semifinals.
“This year, we don’t have that level of involvement. Also, it’s hard to play whole games. We aren’t in shape enough to run for 80 minutes,” she said.
The real start of the season is Tuesday, marking the Cavs’ first game with playoff implications.
If they are to repeat as playoff qualifiers, more players and more work ethic need to begin showing up in practice and games.
—Morgan Bennett-Smith
Baseball
On Thursday, March 14, the Cavaliers beat Sacramento Waldorf 14-9, their first victory against the team in over a year.
The Cavs’ first game, also against Waldorf, gave a similar message: the team has improved significantly over previous years.
Last season, the Cavs played against Waldorf in their first game and lost 10-0 on a mercy rule. However, this time, things were different. The Cavs still lost, but only 7-8, the game being called one inning short on account of time constraints.
Assistant coach Gary Smith noted that though the team’s ranks were bolstered by new, athletic players, many have little to no experience playing baseball.
“I hope that throughout the season they’ll learn the mental aspects as well as the basic skills of baseball.” Smith said.
The team’s sophomore outing wasn’t as hopeful an omen as their first.
On March 12 the boys lost to Faith Christian 15-3. Smith attributed this loss to a failure to perform well defensively. He said this was mostly due to the inability of the team to practice, as many of its players must split their practice time between lacrosse and baseball.
Senior Morgan Bennett-Smith went 3-4 with a triple and a double, scoring three runs and driving in four, while senior Donald Hutchinson pitched a complete game.
—Grant Miner
Track
After strong practice turnouts for the first few weeks of track, attendance has fallen significantly.
But despite the drop in participation, the regulars are still going strong.
Senior Logan Winfield placed 13th overall with a 10:15 time in the 3200-meter at the King Gilbert Invitational and 18th overall at the CSUS Track Classic.
“Logan raced well, but he’s still trying to get his time under 10 minutes,” coach Nick Domich said.
Freshman Serajh Esmail placed best among underclassmen with 29th overall in the 100-meter.
The team will be competing at the Bronco Roundup Distance Carnival, on Friday, March 22, at Bella Vista High School.
After reaching sections last year, Winfield is looking to make another appearance. Next year Winfield hopes to keep running at Colorado School of Mines.
“I am going to try and do cross-country and track,” Winfield said. “But depending on the academic rigorousness, I might not do cross-country.”
—Skovran Cunningham
