Catoctin fall sports playoffs

Mia Ferraro
CHS Class of 22

(12/2021) Catoctin High School has officially swung into the winter sports preseason, but not without first bringing home some playoff victories to finish the fall season off strong. Having concluded their regular season in late October, CHS fall sports teams proceeded to carry their momentum into the postseason in early November. A few playoff-winning teams making CHS proud are the field hockey, volleyball, and cross-country teams.

The CHS field hockey team entered the postseason on Nov. 1 when they competed at home in the regional semifinals. There they defeated Brunswick High School 2-0 when CHS senior Cheyenne Van Echo and sophomore Meghan Gray had one goal each, and freshman Annie Abruzzeese had one assist. This victory took them to the regional finals on Nov. 3, where they lost 1-0 to host Frederick Scott Key High School. The CHS field hockey team steadily improved since last season’s record of 1-9, finishing the 2021-2022 season off with an overall record of 6-7. The team consisted of 19 players this season, including 10 juniors, and loses just three seniors next season. Consequently, the team will have plenty of players returning for another hopeful season next year.

The CHS field hockey team

The volleyball team secured a regular season record of 10-4 after the last game on Oct. 28 at CHS where they defeated Tuscarora High School 3-0. The Gambrill Division champions moved on to the regional quarterfinals on Nov. 4 where they hosted Brunswick High School. CHS senior Danielle Baker had nine aces, senior Rylee Curtis had 12 kills, senior Paige Romeril had 11 digs, and senior Paige Smith had 16 assists. CHS won 3-0 with sets of 25-15, 25-11, and 25-11. They then advanced to the regional semifinals at CHS on Nov. 8. They faced off against Smithsburg High School and lost 3-0 with sets of 25-22, 25-21, and 25-19. The team says goodbye to seven valuable seniors graduating this year, but are sure to enter the 2022-2023 season with promising newcomers, some returning players, and the same winning attitude.

The Cougars took to Linganore High School on Oct. 28 for the Frederick County cross-country tournament. Junior Alex Contreras took eighth place out of 70 runners in the men’s 5,000 meter race with 17 minutes and 40.63 seconds. Sophomore Jenna Conley placed 16th of 64 runners in the women’s race with a time of 21:55.64.

The regional championships for cross-country were held on Nov. 4 at Smithsburg High School. The CHS boys cross-country team placed fourth of nine schools competing on the men’s three mile course with an average time of 18 minutes and 34 seconds. Contreras took first place out of 63 participants with 16 minutes and 54.5 seconds. Sophomore Santiago Canadas Fraga (18:41.9) took 17th place, sophomore Gabriel Riling (18:47.4) took 18th, and junior Nikolas Contreras (18:55.1) finished 20th. The CHS girls team placed seventh of nine schools in the women’s race with an average time of 24 minutes and three seconds. Conley (20:25.1) took fourth place out of 65 participants, and sophomore Keira Taylor (23:42.8) finished 28th.

Their results at the regional championship qualified the CHS boys cross-country team for the states tournament, for which Conley also qualified to represent the girls team. CHS finished in sixth place out of 15 competing schools in the men’s three mile course with an average time of 19 minutes and 28 seconds. Alex Contreras (18:01.3) took sixth place out of 117 total runners. Conley (21:16.21) finished in fourth place out of 104 total runners in the women’s race.

Despite falling behind this season, the CHS varsity football team maintained a winning attitude at their last game of the regular season. The team (1-9) finished off strong on Oct. 30 at home against No. 2 seed Brunswick High School. CHS scored a touchdown in the first quarter between junior quarterback Connor Crum and senior Lane Stull, followed by a two-point conversion by sophomore Charlie Dougherty. The Cougars led 8-0 into the fourth quarter when Brunswick scored a touchdown with seven minutes and forty seconds left. CHS then scored a 52-yard touchdown pass between Crum and senior Brendan Ott with five minutes and thirty seconds left. Dougherty forced a fumble during the last two minutes.

This secured the team’s redeeming win after the eight regular season losses. Back in September, the Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association (MPSSAA) Executive Council announced a new policy that allows each high school football team to compete in the first round of playoffs. As a result, the Cougars were able to face off against the Brunswick Railroaders once again as they visited the opponent on Nov. 5 for the regional quarterfinals, resulting in a final loss of 13-0. The team of 32 consists of seven seniors that will be graduating in the spring. There’s plenty of potential among upcoming players for next season, especially considering the promise shown by the junior varsity team this year. The JV team had an overall record of 4-1-2, scoring a minimum of 20 points each victory.

The winter sports preseason began on Nov. 15 when try-outs started and practices immediately followed. Scrimmages also commenced on Nov. 22. CHS welcomes two new coaches: Rick Reeder who is coaching wrestling, and Justin Wantz who is coaching girls swimming and diving. Last winter sports season was interrupted by a lockdown on sports and shortened by safety policies due to the pandemic. This caused many roadblocks in the season, including the limited practices, cancellation of competitions, and the inability to have playoff tournaments. Even so, CHS teams made impressive strides and held their heads high despite the complications. With winter competitions beginning Dec. 6, it will be interesting to watch our athletes make up for lost time.