The Week in Sports

October 12, 2017

In most parts of the country, October is the time of the year when the air begins to turn crisp and the leaves darken and fall to the ground. It’s also the time of the year when high school student-athletes start to set their sights on a deep playoff run while continuing to work together as a team. Here in Carpinteria, it’s 75 and sunny so we aren’t as familiar with the former, but the latter is something we know very well. The Rams are busy on the fields, courts, and pools learning lessons they might not anywhere else. The goal now is to extend those seasons as long as possible.

Whatever outcome is on the scoreboard after each game, our hope is that our student-athletes are taking away some valuable lessons. Whether it’s about themselves, their teammates, or the game itself, we want our athletes to grow as individuals each time they get ready to compete. We are so proud of what all Rams have accomplished this season and can’t wait to see how the fall season wraps up.

Most teams will want to test themselves against challenging competition during the year. The Cate girls varsity volleyball team embodies this idea to it’s fullest extent. This season the Rams have gone up against the #3 ranked team in Division IV, the #2 and #5 ranked teams in Division V, the #9 ranked team in Division VI, and the #3 ranked team in division VII (all rankings according to the most recent CIF-ss girls volleyball advisory committee). The young Rams have met the challenge head on, competing hard against some of the best talent in the area. Grace Johnson ’21, Finnian Welan ‘20, Riley Borchart ‘21, and Lily Zanze ’21 have all seen plenty of action in recent games that will no doubt help them as they go on in their Cate careers.

Like their volleyball playing schoolmates, the football team has faced its fair share of tough opponents. To this point in the season, every game the Rams have played has come against a ranked opponent. The last few gridiron battles have not been for the faint of heart. Cate beat Lancaster Baptist 48-26 in an overtime thriller, then followed that up with a heartbreaking 72-68 loss. Last week, the Rams beat rival Laguna Blanca 33-20 in a hard fought game. Cate has seen stand out performances from Drew Anastasio ’19, Jack Deardorff ’19, Patrick Armstrong ’18, and Luke Beckmen ’18. The Rams have three games left in the regular season, all of which will be played at Peck field on campus.

The boys varsity water polo team has had their share of tough contests against tough competition this season. The Rams recently dropped a 10-9 heartbreaker to rival Villanova, however the team showed some serious grit and bounced back nicely with a 18-3 win over Fillmore in their next game. The Rams have four games left in the regular season, including what will no doubt be a spirited rematch against Villanova. Cate has been lead recently by Parker Matthews ’18, Sebastian Sak ’19, and Cullen Barber ’19.

The Ram runners on the cross country team have battled injury and illness to put together a solid campaign thus far. They’ve gotten some great contributions from several different runners. On the boys side Tesfa Asmara ’20, John Rokoine ’21, and Josh Shields ’19 have paced the squad, posting most of the Rams’ top three scores all year. For the girls, Isabela Montes de Oca ’18, Bella Hillyer ’19, and Zoe Hale ’19 have been the top three, with newcomers Jolea Moes ’21 and Ariana Sterling ’21 right on their heels. The Rams will run in the Santa Barbara County Championships next, where they will test their skills against some of the best runners in the area.

The girls tennis team has been fire this fall, dropping just one contest this year. The Rams have been paced by Grace Fuss ’20, Jackie Cai ’18, Janice Ng ’18, and Carol Cai ’20. Cate has also seen great contributions from Fritzie Mayer ’21 and Sydney Burton ’19. One of the reasons the Rams have been so successful this season is the versatility of the girls on the court; there have been several different double combinations, creating matchup problems for Cate’s opponents. Four regular season games remain for Cate before the Tri-Valley League finals and the CIF-ss playoffs.