7 Moments of Paly Excellence

7Moments Palyof Excellence

Over the past year there have been countless remarkable moments for Paly athletics - here are some of the best.

by DAVID GORMLEY and GRACE GORMLEY

Girls Golf

1Over the past few years, the girls golf team has been one of the best teams in Paly history - and this year they didn’t disappoint. At CCS, the team placed 2nd behind Valley Christian and was led by a stunning 68 shot performance from senior Bridget O’Keefe that was good enough to net her first place in the individual competition. At State Champs, the team finished second with a score of 382 and defeated rivals Valley Christian by a single stroke to end a sensational era of Paly girls golf as seniors Lauren and Sydney Sung and O’Keefe played their final match with the Vikings.

“It finally hit me that it was the last time I would be able to compete with this team, … but it was a great way to end my last season on the team” - Sydney Sung ‘22

The Paly wrestling team was extremely strong this year: Senior Ella Jauregui won 2nd place at the State Championships, losing to the 2nd ranked wrestler of her weight class in the nation. Beyond that, in the quarterfinals, Jauregui beat the 1st ranked wrestler. “I’ve learned so much about discipline and what it takes to commit to a goal and see it through,” Jauregui said. “The most important thing I’ve gotten from this preparation is a level of comfort and confidence, even when I’m nervous.” Senior Cade Creighton also won 5th in States. “I got to see so many places and wrestle so many amazing athletes,” Creighton said.

Wrestling 2

Bridget O’Keefe Photo courtesy of Keith Ferrel.

“Wrestling made me strong, helped me learn how to fight and made me a more capable person.” - Cade Creighton ‘22

Cade Creighton (22) after a win. Photo courtesy of Keith Ferrel.

Boys Swimming

“This is a moment we will never forget.” - Harrison Williams ‘22

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42 | VIKING MAGAZINE | vikingsportsmag.com Ethan Harrington (22) dives into the water to beat the CCS record. Photo by Grace Gormley. Boys swimming won the first CCS championship in Paly history - and it wasn’t even close. They won nine of eleven events and recorded eight All-American performers. In the 200 IM and the 500 free, the Vikings surged with three in the top eight finalists and a 1-2 finish in both events. The individual highlight of the meet came from junior Ethan Harrington’s stunning 19.73 50 free that broke a 13 year old CCS record and put Harrington 12th all-time in the 15-16 age group - faster than seven-time olympic medalist Caeleb Dressel was at his age. Victory was already assured prior to the final relay of the meet, but the Vikings weren’t done yet. They closed with a 3:00.26 in the 400 freestyle relay that shattered the CCS record and eclipsed the CA state championship meet record in the same event. The team is currently seeded second heading into the CA state meet. All four Paly swim teams also swept SCVAL League Championships.

Track and Field

Hillary Studdert (23) is 14th of US high school girls for the 800. Photo courtesy of Malcolm Slaney. At the Arcadia invitational, the biggest high school meet in the US with 622 schools from 29 states represented, Paly track shined. First, the boys 4*800m relay finished 3rd in the seeded heat. They followed up the performance with a stellar finish in the 4*1600 - which is rarely contested at the high school level - where they took 5th overall in 17:40: an average of 4:25 per mile. In the distance medley relay, where each member of the team races a different distance, they placed 2nd in the open heat. At the Stanford invitational, another elite invitational where high school stars compete alongside the best in the NCAA, Paly shined in the individual races with junior Hillary Studdert lit up the track with a 2:10.41 in the 800 - good enough for 14th among all high school girls in the US. Sophomore Grant Morgenfeld - who was a key leg in the relays at Arcadia - jumped to second in the nation in

Dance Team The Paly dance team has also excelled this season. They won 3rd place for their extra small contempothe mile after putting up a 4:14. “This was a breakthrough performance that I’ve been 4 rary routine at the regional competition, got 1st for working really hard for and their pom routine at the West Coast Elite competitions, and won 3rd in nationals for their character piece. The piece is Disney themed and Coach Alana Williamson said that “it is our most fun piece for sure, and I’m so proud of how [the dancers] have been executing it all clicked on the track. I’m really excited to build on that it.” The dancers have come out strong from a year without getting to practice together momentum.” Studdert ‘22 due to social distancing. Sophomore Rachel Ho said, “I was really pleasantly surprised by how well the team has done this season. After an entire year of dancing in my room and having little to no space to turn, jump, or dance with full range of motion, it’s been so nice to get back into the studio and fall into a far more normal routine.” 5 “After a year of danc-ing in my room... it’s been so nice to get back in the studio” - Rachel Ho ‘24

The boys won the El Camino division of SCVAL and Division 1 R ach el Ho (24) practices the pom routine. Photo by Grace Li. of CCS for the first time in two decades. While cross country is typi6 cally seen as an individual endeavor, the CCS victory was anything but. Traditionally, the top 5 athletes score for each team - which leaves all but the top runners racing for themselves. But as the top five runners from Paly and rival Bellermine crossed the line, the teams found themselves tied at 49 - which made the 6th place runner from each team the tiebreaker. With the race of his life, Paly’s own Kenji Tella crossed the line just six seconds ahead of Bellermine’s Jack Frida to clinch a CCS title for the Vikings for the first time in 31 years.

Cross Country

Grant Morgenfeld (24), above, placed 3rd at SCVAL. Photo courtesy of Malcom Slaney.

7To say the girls basketball team was dominant this year would be an Girls Basketball understatement. They cruised through the SCVAL league with a record of 11-1 and became the first team to win a game in the open division of CCS in Paly history after they defeated Sacred Heart Cathedral in their final game of CCS play. The team was led by freshman superstar Vienn Sheng three-point shooting to secure a rare win against an elite private school. The team’s performance came in part as a result of a unique leadership strategy: the team had no defined captains and every player was expected to lead. Though unorthodox, the approach proved to be successful for the Vikes. Photo courtesy of Karen Hickey. @vikingsportsmag | MAY 2022 | 43