As the fall sports season wraps up, girls volleyball, tennis, golf, and boys and girls cross-country have taken on CIFs. Girls volleyball and tennis qualify as a team, while golf athletes must qualify individually. Cross-country athletes can qualify as a team or individually.
With a record of 20-15, girls volleyball ended their league season with a clean 5-5 record. After qualifying for CIFs, they played their first round on Oct. 24 at Oxford against Wildwood High.
“The first round of CIF kind of felt like a big roller coaster. The first set I knew we were still getting our nerves out…however, I’m really happy at how we picked up our own pace, especially with the big comeback in the last set,” Captain Jenevieve Urfano said.
After winning with a record of 3-1, the girls volleyball team made it to the next round of CIFs.
On Oct. 26, the team played against St. Paul High School where, after a tough game, they lost with a score of 0-3.
“[The] second round was definitely a lot more emotional and passionate than the first. Every single point we won was celebrated and the pace of our game was great from the start to the finish. However, inconsistency cost us the game,” Urfano said.
Despite the second-round CIF loss, girls volleyball still had a clean finish and are hoping to build on their success next season.
In their second year back, girls golf also had an excellent season. Due to the individual aspect of the sport, senior captain Melody Oh qualified to become the sole athlete representing Oxford girls golf in CIFs. To hear more about her story as 605 league MVP, head over to The Unicorn Podcast on the Gamut website.
Likewise, the girls tennis team had a successful season with a league record of 8-2. They played their CIF round one match on Nov. 6th, unfortunately losing to Sierra Canyon with a score of 7-11.
“I would say that this season overall was a lot shorter than I hoped for my last season, and I wish I had accomplished more, but I really enjoyed my time on the team.” Captain Ivy Nguyen said. “Given the windy conditions and our lineup…we still played to the best of our abilities and got the scores to be pretty close.”
The score was especially an achievement, as the girls tennis team had competed against challenging competitors in Division III this year after making it up to CIF finals last year.
Cross-country also ended their season with an impressive race. After placing 3rd in the 605 league, athletes qualified as a team and competed in the CIF preliminary meet on Nov. 16.
Boys cross-country placed 8th in their race overall, competing in Division IV heat two. Sophomore Hara Seyoum finished first from Oxford with a blazing three-mile time of 17:33.5 and placed 33rd in his heat.
Girls cross-country also had a strong race, finishing 10th in the Division IV heat one overall. Junior and co-captain Trina So led off the team, finishing with a time of 21:45.9 and placing 33rd in the heat.
“After the meet, I was super surprised to PR (personal record) by over two minutes compared to when I ran the same course earlier in the season – it felt rewarding to see improvement as the season progressed,” So said. “In the future, I’m excited to see our cross-country program grow together!”
The Patriots have demonstrated their hard work and athleticism this season through their games and races. Though the excitement of the fall sports season has ended, students can look forward to cheering on girls and boys basketball and soccer coming up in the winter.
