For the second year in a row the girls’ soccer team made it to the first round of sectionals. Playing the same team for the second year in a row in sectionals, the girls were able to improve from last year with only a 1-0 deficit.

The girls feel more hopeful for next season. “ I’m really optimistic,” junior and captain Senna Gardner said. “In Sectionals, we had no seniors on the field. We are mostly a sophomore and junior team. Knowing that we won’t lose any important players next year makes me feel like we are well prepared.”

Additionally, the team has been able to sustain a great team dynamic. “I think the team dynamic is really good,” Gardner said. “I think because the girls soccer team is historically small in numbers we know each other very well and we are genuinely like a family. With our team, the upperclassmen and underclassmen divide is not very apparent.”

This year the tennis program has acquired new staff in almost every aspect of the program, only keeping one coach. Varsity head coach, Danny McDermott and JV head coach, Brandon Smith are among the new staff that came in this year for the 2019 tennis season.

The interview process began last year, but interestingly head coach Danny McDermott originally wasn’t even a name Athletic Director Bobby Starks had in mind. “Originally, I was utilizing him as a reference to lead us to some other coaching candidates,” Starks said. “Once Danny expressed his interest in coaching, he was kind of a no brainer with the extensive expertise he had. He’s played on the European circuit and coached at the high school level. His resume really jumped off the page.” After Starks reached out to coach McDermott asking for possible candidates, McDermott called back saying he wanted the job.

McDermott has coached at Parker before. “Interestingly, he was one of the tennis coaches in the 80s which is something I didn’t even realize until I saw his resume,” Starks said.

The second hire, Brandon Smith has a resume that includes working for the US Tennis Association. “Smith is a great asset because he works with the sports side of tennis but also the programmatic side,” Starks said. “Additionally, he was a coach at Kenwood… We are really lucky to have both coaches this year as they bring great things to the table.”

Not only was the Starks intrigued but even players are enjoying the new coaching staff. “Coach Danny is a great improvement from last year,” varsity player and sophomore Ethan Butler-Vanderlinden said. “He’s very thorough. He will send emails nightly to parents letting them know about the weather, who’s playing, and tries to help mentally prepare athletes for upcoming matches. Additionally, he strives for everyone to be a student-athlete as he wants us to do well in academics but also put our all into tennis.”

“The…captains we had…were very encouraging,” junior Owen Bowers said, referencing seniors Sammy Kagan and Zach Lending and sophomore Ethan Neff. “Sammy was always very upbeat during the games and keeping things lively and making sure the underclassmen were included… I definitely looked up to the upperclassmen and they set a good example for me for later.”

Bowers is optimistic for next season. “I know there are a few kids in eighth grade who are really good and we are looking forward to have them play for us next year,” Bowers said. “Additionally, we have a strong sophomore and junior class which makes me excited for what we can do.”

This year, the girls softball team won their first regional game against Holy Trinity 7-4 but unfortunately lost in the championship game. “Estelle Heltzer has been getting better every single year since she was a freshman,” Assistant Varsity Softball Coach and English teacher Mike Mahany said. “She has developed a really nice fastball and a variety of pitches. I thought she did a great job this year.”

Additionally, some believe that the team chemistry was really great for the girls this year. “I do think the team chemistry is really great,” Mahany said. “Part of that is the nature of the girls but also part of that is the captains. I think they do a nice job of bringing the team together.”

Although, there is more the softball team wants to improve on come next year. “We got to figure out how to bolster up our outfield and we also need to work pitchers that aren’t Estelle,” Mahany said. “We rely on Estelle to pitch a lot.”

This year track had many athletes qualified for state. Junior Ryan Humphrey qualified for two events, the 400m and the 800m and seniors Bella Evan-Cook and Simran Jain, sophomore Ada Collins, and freshman Sofia Brown qualified for the 4x800m relay. “I was really glad to make state this year, it was a pretty big deal to me. Especially making Indoor State was a huge accomplishment,” Humphrey said. “The goal next year is to not only to qualify for state finals but to also to finish those races top ten or top five.”

The game-changer this year was practice. “Practices really made a difference and being able to train at the Wilson Track really helped out,” Humphrey said. “Also the coaching staff was really able to push me beyond my limits.”