Outstanding CHS Senior Athletes

Mia Ferraro
CHS Class of 2022

(9/2020) As our Catoctin student athletes of the class of 2020 move on to the next phase of their career, we are excited to see the ways in which their legacies and skills have paved the way for inspired young athletes.

Kallan Latham received the CHS Sports Boosters Scholarship. She has been a part of the CHS varsity basketball and field hockey teams for two years, and the varsity lacrosse team for four years. She has been playing basketball for 12 years, and lacrosse for 13 years. She may continue to participate in club sports in college. She will be attending Ohio State University to major in Food, Agricultural, and Biological Engineering with a specialization in Ecological Engineering.

Latham was awarded the Governor’s Merit Scholastic Award along with Bubczyk. In addition to the Sports Booster Scholarship, she also received the Astrazeneca Pharmaceutical Scholarship and the Wiley Family Scholarship. She was a member of several national honor societies and also participated in FFA and Envirothon. Latham has received honor roll for all four years of high school and graduated with highest honors, and was voted Class 2020’s "most likely to succeed."

Latham’s most memorable achievement in basketball was becoming regional champs this past winter season. She also takes pride in her first victory in lacrosse after several years, as well as this year’s victory at her field hockey senior night game after two overtimes and a shoot-out. The bonding moments within the team is what she believes she will miss the most, as she describes, "Being able to form connections with a variety of people from the many teams I was a part of is a great feeling." Her advice to younger athletes is, "In order to improve, focus on what you like about the sport. Once you have a reason to play, you have a reason to persevere and improve. Everything you do in life will have its ups and downs. Maybe you had a rough practice or game. Maybe you aren’t doing as well in your sport as you want to. Instead of letting those obstacles stop you, focus on what you like about the sport, the reason you play, and you can find strength to overcome your hardships and improve yourself."

Gage Frantz is the recipient of a lacrosse scholarship from Wheeling University. He has been a part of the CHS lacrosse team for all four years, and has been playing lacrosse for ten years altogether. He will continue to play lacrosse at the NCAA DII Level at college. He will be attending Wheeling University in the fall to major in Engineering Science and pursue a career in engineering.

Frantz has also received the 168 Thurmont Sons of the American Legion Scholarship and the Emmitsburg High Alumni Scholarship. He was a member of the National Honor Society and Mu Alpha Theta, and participated in Chess Club and Philosophy Club. He received honor roll all four years, and graduated with highest honors.

Frantz was selected to play on the U18 USBOXLA Team America for the USBOXLA Nationals Tournament in California for two years, and this would have been his third year if it weren’t for COVID-19. He has been captain of the lacrosse team since sophomore year. "My most memorable achievement of my high school career was each time I was voted team captain by my teammates," Frantz explained. "It meant a lot to me that they had the faith and confidence in me to help me lead the team." His advice for younger athletes is, "Allow yourself to be coachable and don’t view yourself as a player but a student of the game. Try to get exposure to different coaching styles wherever you can, whether it's clinics or other teams. It is not one point of view or method that will elevate your understanding of the game, but rather a blend of several points of view and methods."

While our graduates move on to the next phase of their career, we are excited to see the ways in which their legacies and skills have paved the way for younger CHS athletes.

Graduate Karsyn Shugars has been a part of the Catoctin golf team for the past three years. She hopes to continue to play in college. She will be attending FCC in the fall and plans to work in the field of education and with students who have special needs.

Shugars has been on the honor roll for all 4 years of high school. She received the Edgar and Mildred Larson Scholarship upon graduating, and was selected as a County CTE Scholar. Having completed the Child Development Class, she has a passion for working with children. Shugars served as an intern to the Cougar Cubs, as well as an intern at the elementary and middle schools working with children. She has earned her go-hour Maryland State Child Care Certificate. She has also participated in FCCLA (Family, Career and Community Leaders of America), as well as Catoctin Crazies and the National English Honor Society.

Shugars’ most memorable moment of her high school athletic career took place in her sophomore year when she was just starting out. "I‘ll admit I was terrible," she explained, "But with hard work and dedication, I made it to the district tournament and missed the state qualification by two strokes and then one stroke my next two years of golf." Even though she didn’t play in a state tournament, she cherishes her hard work and how much it paid off. She is grateful for Coach Ausherman, Bub Wivell and Derek Rivera’s contribution to her success. "All three of them never gave up on me and encouraged me all the way to my senior year when I then had the opportunity to mentor my under classmates." Shugars explained. She will miss being a part of a high school team most of all. Labeled as "Team Mom", she hopes to set an example for younger girls interested in playing golf in future years. She would like younger athletes to know that, "golf can be a very frustrating sport. But there is no reason to get down on yourself and doubt your abilities. It’s amazing what hard work and dedication can do to a player’s game."

Alexa Hopkins has been playing CHS volleyball for all four years of high school, and has been on varsity for two years. She has experience with beach volleyball as well. She expects to play on the volleyball club team in college, where she will be attending the University of Coastal Carolina to major in marine science.

Hopkins has received the Thurmont High School Alumni Scholarship, Joseph Donald Brewer Scholarship, and the Sandra Crist Scholarship for pursuing a career in animal welfare. She graduated with High Honors, and has participated in the National Honor Society, ROAR Club, Catoctin Crazies, and has been a part of the yearbook staff.

Hopkins feels her most memorable achievement of her high school athletic career was when she made her first spike and kill. "I remember looking over and seeing Coach Wes and Coach Dave jumping up and down, and I remember just how happy I was in that moment." She explained that Coach Wes has contributed a lot to her athletic success throughout high school, and he always made sure that she was going to play the following years. Hopkins feels that she will miss Coach Wes and Coach Dave the most upon leaving the team, as well as the team bond she had with the girls. Her advice to younger athletes is to have fun! "Yes, it may get very competitive," she reminds them, "but you still need to remember to have fun."

Jake Baker has been on the CHS football and wrestling teams for four years. He has played varsity football for three years, and wrestled on varsity for four. He wrestled and played football on the CYA teams prior to entering high school. He will continue to play football in college and is pursuing a career in the sport. He will be attending Clarion University to major in marketing.

Baker was recently selected to the Frederick’s All-County 1st Team Defense and the All-MPSSAA 2nd Team Defense for football. He was named Most Athletic and Most Artistic in the senior superlatives. He has been on the honor roll all four years of high school, and graduated with Highest Honors. Baker also participated in the National Art Honor Society, the National Technical Honor Society, and Mu Alpha Theta.

Baker’s most memorable achievement of his CHS athletic career is winning the Maryland 1A State Championship with his team this past year. He feels that he will miss his coaches and teammates the most upon graduating, and the "high and low moments that the team bonded over." He feels he has his coaches, teammates, family, and the weight room to thank for much of his athletic success. His advice to younger athletes is to, "get in the weight room and keep your grades up!"

Emma Appel has been a part of the CHS field hockey team for four years, and has been playing for six years altogether. She hopes to continue to play in college, where she will be attending Towson University to major in nursing.

Appel has earned honor roll all four year and graduated with Highest Honors, and has received the Engelbrecht-Degrange Scholarship as well. She has participated in the National Honor Society, National English Honor Society, National Technical Honor Society, Catoctin Crazies, Senior Club, and Environmental Conversation. She has also been honored to be selected as team captain on the field hockey team for three years.

Appel’s most memorable achievement took place at one of the last games of her senior year, a home game against Brunswick. The game had gone into double halftime, meaning both teams had a chance to take a shot. She was one of the last girls to shoot, and she made the shot, breaking the tie and winning the game. Appel feels she will miss her high school games most with her friends and teammates. "We had a great positive energy no matter how our seasons went," she stated. She is thankful for those who mentored her and personally contributed to her athletic success. "I learned a lot from senior players while I was a freshman and sophomore. My coaches also helped me out a lot by teaching me how to master and perfect skills that improved my performance. My dad, however, consistently made me want to work harder and get better. He was my personal critic and always gave me pointers on how to improve." Appel’s advice to younger athletes is to appreciate the game and the team, but also to focus on constantly improving yourself. "Hard work really does pay off, and people will notice when a young athlete is paving the way to success for his or herself and the team," she instructed. Most importantly, she wants young athletes to appreciate the sport itself and the time they have to experience being a high school athlete. "It’s one of the biggest things I miss about my high school experience."