Sports Recap

Badminton

The girls showed lots of determination and drive this season, remaining in the top 10 divisional ranking for Badminton.

“We played some of the best badminton teams in both the East and West Valleys and remained top 10 in our division,” Head Coach Borze said. “All of the girls won medals in the MPS City Tournament, and we made it to the quarter finals of the State tournament playoffs.”

Boys Golf

The Lions golfed an incredible season and pulled off a regional championship title.

“The team is full of life and loyalty,” Senior Gabe Velarde said. “Everyone definitely made my last year a year to remember and cherish.”

Girls Golf

Working their heart out and refusing to give up paid off with a fourth in state ranking for the Lady Lions.

“My hopes are to build on the success from this season and build Red Mountain Girls Golf into one of the top girls golf programs in the state,” new Head Coach Kain said.

Boys X-country

The Lions exceeded expectations coming off of this season in seventh place state ranking, the highest team ranking in 25 years for Red Mountain.

“We had a very senior heavy team, and the boys this year really bought into the long-term process of becoming champions,” Head Coach Selby said. “This was the year we had been waiting for over four years for, and the boys did such a great job being patient with their progression and coming together to form a great team.”

Girls X-Country 

Setting high goals for the season, the Lady Lions over-achieved, placing 10th in State.

“They ran really well and worked extremely hard during the year overall exceeding my expectations,” Head Coach Krieg said. “Next year we’ll tweak a few things but nothing major, just adapt to our players strong suits.”

Swim & Dive

The Lions achieved greatness this season with the girls surpassing a 20-year-old school record and the boys a 17-year-old one.

“It was a great year. Both boys and girls moved back into the top 10 at State,” Head Coach Peterson said. “Both teams won a big invitational and the girls took back their team City Championship.”

Girls Volleyball

The Lady Lions pulled off an astounding season, achieving higher rankings than the volleyball program has ever before.

“We made big strides to move our program in the right direction, obviously one of those being us winning the region, which we have never done before,” Head Coach Holck said.

Football

The boys had an outstanding season this fall, finishing up in the top four of the playoffs.

“We had a great season finishing in a high ranking and barely losing in the playoffs to the number six ranked team in the country,” Head Coach Peterson said. “This upcoming year we are going to work hard and prepare because preparation is the precursor to success.”

Boys Soccer 

The Lions pushed on this winter and kept their heads held high, ending the season 5-6-1.

“Our team really came together this year and became a whole on the field,” senior Cade Strickland said. “I realized that we will win and we will lose, but most importantly, we will learn.”

Girls Soccer

Despite numerous injuries to players, the team was still able to make the playoffs by working together and supporting each other.

“I think we have improved as a program every season,” Head Coach Gallegos said. “I saw a lot of depth and talent this season in our players this year. We had so many injuries, but we were able to continue to pull up girls from JV and JV2 all season long.”

Boys Tennis

Starting the season off with a difficult schedule, the boys are at a current record of five wins and five losses.

“We can still finish the season strong, we’ve won the last couple and should be able to win the rest and then go into the State tournament,” Head Coach Graves said.

Girls Tennis  

The Lady Lions are persevering after a difficult start and need to win their last match in order to make and compete for a State championship.

“Our number one player, Mikaya Hamilton, did not play for the first six matches due to preseason injury. This put us behind as we should have won two other matches than we did,” Head Coach Langdon said. “Not exactly what we had hoped for, but we will fight to the end.”

Boys track

The boys are striving for greatness this season and the long practice hours are proving successful. Senior Trake Williams is setting multiple school records and the team is dominating meets.

“It looks as if we are going to have the most state qualifiers this season that Red Mountain has had in the past five years,” Head Coach Barge said. “These boys have been at it since this summer, and all the work they’ve put in is starting to show in a big way.”

Girls Track

So far the team is doing really well and is continuing to improve each day as the season passes by.

“Our girls are killing it this season, having won our own meet,” Head Coach Krieg said. “This is only the beginning, and I cannot wait to see what the rest of this season holds.”

Boys Volleyball

With a current record of 5-5 the Lions are fighting to be one as a team and come out of the season on top.

“The guys are working hard and starting to come together as a team,” Head Coach Simmons said. “Changes are happening all the time. We are realizing as a team that we may struggle in some places and we are working to fix those things.”

Baseball

The boys are battling their way through the season with a 6-7 record and are hopeful that they can make a run in the playoffs.

“We are hoping to continue to improve on what we have already accomplished,” Head Coach Pagel said. “We have an uphill battle to the playoffs but our hopes are high.

Boys Basketball

The boys played a tough season, but were able to keep a winning record with 12 wins compared to only 7 losses.

“The season didn’t have the result we wanted but we accomplished a lot as a team that this school has never done before,” senior Jacob Ries said.

Girls Basketball

The Lady Lions ended this season with a winning record of 19-9, making it to State playoffs and proving that being a young team does not mean they are any less competition.

“This was an even bigger accomplishment factoring in how young we are, graduating only two seniors and having three players ending the season with injuries,” Head Coach Appel said. “Going into next year we have a lot of optimism as we have almost everyone returning, including all five starters.”

Wrestling

Finishing 12th in the state, the boys didn’t make the top 10 as they had hoped, but persevered through all the injuries and trials this season held keeping their heads high.

“We will be a young team next year, but that doesn’t change our expectations, just means we have to put in more work,” Head Coach Hare said. “The off season program has changed slightly, and the boys will be held accountable for their commitment to the program.”

Spirit Line

The girls kept a positive influence throughout the whole year, encouraging every team to push through their game and building up the crowd.

“My girls did a great job this year, and I am proud of all of them,” Head Coach Starks said. “Unfortunately, I wish we had a better outcome at Nationals because one mistake can take away everything since they only get one shot at wowing the judges.”

    

Red Mountain Boys Baseball

Spring is on its way and along with it the boys baseball season gets into full swing. The boys have high hopes this season and are putting in the work to accomplish their goals. After practicing for the past few months, the time has finally come for the Lions to show their skills.

“We have focused a ton on supporting each other, as well as throwing strikes and not wasting pitches or at-bats,” senior and varsity player Michael Jones said.

Coaches and players are working side by side in order to make this season the most successful yet. Along with their skills on the field, they are all working towards being ‘one’ not only inside but outside of the game as well.

“I feel that this year more than any other, we are more than just each other’s teammates,” junior and varsity player Samuel Clow said. “We are working as a team and rather a big family.”

Practices are key to any team’s success, and the coaches are making use of all the time they have. Players are held up to a high standard at practices by their coaches in order to execute their highest potential and help the team.

“There are some new coaches this year, and there isn’t necessarily changes in practices but rather some philosophies,” Head Coach Pagel said. “Also, we have a number of returners, in fact many of the varsity players are still juniors along with our strong senior class, so we have high expectations for this season.”

The baseball teams are eager for this spring and ready to come out swinging. Students are encouraged to come out and support the baseball teams at their games. Varsity’s first game is at Valley Vista High School on Feb. 22, and their first home game is on Feb. 28. For more information on the varsity, junior varsity and freshman baseball teams or their schedule, visit http://www.mpsaz.org/rmhs/athletics/programs/baseball/.

Skiing vs. Snowboarding

“Skiing is great because it is like riding a bike, once you learn, you will never forget how to ski.”

– Rachel Ray

The changing weather signals the official start of winter sports. Whether they are competitive or do it just for fun, many winter enthusiasts take advantage of the season to hit the slopes. Whether one prefers skiing or snowboarding, either sport allows students to enjoy their winter break to the fullest.

“My family uses winter break as a time to get away from our busy schedules to go snowboarding for a few days,” junior Sara Svoboda said. “I really enjoy doing this because it’s nice family bonding for us.”

There are many pros to becoming a skier. For example, the first time skiing seems to be much simpler than the first time snowboarding. First-timers tend to pick up on skills quickly and can be seen skiing the mountain by the first or second day. The reason for the simplicity is because, like walking, skis are separated into two independent leg movements.

“I began skiing because my dad skis, and it is something fun we can do together,” junior Rachel Ray said. “Skiing is great, too, because it is like riding a bike, once you learn, you will never forget how to ski.”

A panorama of a ski slope on Big Mountain in Whitefish, Montana. Photo by Marlee Hotchkiss.

Those that prefer snowboarding think it is easier to get around from one ski lift to the next, and that once you are experienced it becomes easier to perform stunts.  Plus, the cost of snowboarding gear tends to be much cheaper than skiing.

At the Arizona Snowbowl, sophomore Lauren Svoboda and junior Sara Svoboda take a quick break from snowboarding.

“It all depends on your background, if you grew up skating or surfing then muscle memory will be transferred to snowboarding,” junior Cameron Sembeluk said. “If you didn’t grow up doing those sports it might take a little longer to learn, but once you do, the possibilities are endless.”

A random poll collected from students rated their preference to ski, snowboard or neither, the poll shows that snowboarding is preferred at this campus, with 65 percent of votes for snowboarding, 23 percent for skiing and 12 percent saying neither.

Whether the favorite is skiing, which is easier to learn but harder to master, or snowboarding, which is harder to learn but easier to master, the winter season promises fun for all snow enthusiasts.

(Featured photo by Nicole Svoboda)

Red Mountain Varsity Football

The varsity football team has been rigorously preparing for the season with practices six days a week. Varsity has faced struggles ever since their 2001 state championship win, however, this year the team looks promising with a current 4-2 record and hopes to come off the season with a new State championship win.

“I wouldn’t say the teams we face are our biggest worry, but rather how we play as a team is,” senior and varsity player David Montes said. “If we play our true physical game of football we will be able to transfer it in the playoffs and possibly a State championship.”

“We’ve gotten rid of cliques and distractions that have kept us from coming together before.”

– Jacob Porter, Senior and Varsity Captain

This season, the coaches and players are working long hours to make sure that practices run efficiently and effectively. The team is also working on team building to help their chemistry on the field.

“The team has become a lot closer this year than in past years,” senior and varsity captain Jacob Porter said. “We’ve gotten rid of cliques and distractions that have kept us from coming together before.”

Running towards the endzone, senior Dominic Pereira sprints to score. Photo by Ms. Saquella

Varsity started off the season with two back-to-back losses and knew they had to change in order to achieve their goals. The team came back and won their next games against Basha, Boulder Creek and Gilbert by large margins.

“We expected and had a great chance to win the first two games, we just didn’t come out successful,” senior and varsity player Lance Lawson said. “But these past games have been really good and we plan to continue that for the rest of the season.”

Along with varsity, the freshmen and junior varsity teams both hold winning records, with freshmen at 3-1 and J.V. at 3-2. Both teams have positive outlooks for this year with new players and tactics.

After a turnover, senior Riley Pagel punts the ball to the opposing team. Photo by Ms. Saquella.

“Our team [J.V.] is doing some new play runs this year alongside varsity,” sophomore and J.V. player Zachary Molina said. “Although it’s taking time to become accustomed to them, I think it is heightening our game overall.”

Even though each team holds a winning record, they continue to put their blood, sweat and tears into keeping up the caliber they are currently playing at. Coming out to games and supporting the team drives them farther, while also increasing school spirit. For more information about football and the season visit http://www.redmountainfootball.com/.

Playing Chandler High to kickoff the season on home turf, senior Dylan Kelley lays out to tackle and stop his opponent from gaining yards. Photo by Ms. Saquella.

(Featured photo by Ms. Saquella)