Sports

Wrapping Up: A recap of the fall sports’ seasons and remaining games

Dorothy Lakshmanamurthy and Lauren Hoogeveen

October 26, 2023

TEAR YOU DOWN At the Sept. 22 senior night game against Hanover Central, the football team brings a stop to the play after a successful tackle against one of Hanovers’ running backs. This game resulted in a final score of 21-56.

Football

Record: 3-7

Highlights: “Our defense stopped KV from scoring in order to win our first conference game since 2018,” Daniel Elias, senior said.

Records Broken: Daniel Asgedom, senior, rushed for 247 yards and 4 touchdowns at the Oct. 13 away game against Kankakee Valley. He broke the single season rushing record of 1,493 yards, held by Brian Eldridge in 1993, with 1,684 yards. Also at the KV game, Owen Burns, junior, broke the previous consecutive extra points record of 28, held by Tom Royal in 2000, with 32 points.

Next Game: Away game at 7 p.m. tonight against Merrillville

FAST FOWARD Speeding up, Giana Bartusiak, sophomore, gives it her all at the Highland High School meet Oct. 21. as she makes the final straight to the finish line. (Aaron Alvarez)

Girls’ Cross Country

Highlights: “I was proud of our sophomore, Elora Bliss, when she won Sectionals,” Riley Jorge, senior, said. “She has been trying to beat the Lake Central girls, and she finally did it. Our team also got 5th overall that day.”

Remaining Meets: Placing 13th at Regionals last weekend, Elora Bliss, sophomore, is competing Saturday at LaVern Gibson State Championship in Terre Haute.

MID SPRINT From left to right, Sebastian Kozy, senior, and Lukas Stewart, junior, pace themselves on their second mile at Sectionals. “The weather was rainy and cold that day, so it pushed me to go faster to the finish,” Kozy said. (Karla Aguilar)

Boys’ Cross Country

Highlights: “At the Harrison Invite in West Lafayette, I had a huge personal best there that gave me an outlook on how great my senior season could be,” Ian Smith, senior, said.

“I enjoyed going with the team to get smoothies to improve team bonding,” Dominic Dicarlo, senior, said.

Seniors Ian Smith, Josh Serrano, and Dominic Dicarlo advanced from Sectionals Oct. 14.

TAKE CHARGE Charging toward the ball, Ryan Giba, senior, tries to beat Lake Central for possession at Sectionals Oct. 4 at Highland High School. (Vivianna Rodriguez)

Boys’ Soccer

Record: 16-2

Highlights: “Beating Hobart 4-3 to win Conference was a great experience and an amazing win,” Niki Dimitrijevic, junior, said. “It was a strong team effort, and we stepped up when it mattered most.”

Records Broken: At their Sept. 28 home game against Boone Grove, Nolan Kinsella, senior, set a new single season goal record of 39 goals. The previous record of 37 goals was held by Ryan McMahen in 2000.

SECONDS TO GO Turning the ball around, Maya Maldonando, sophomore, saves the ball before it goes out of bounds at the Sept. 16 home game against South Bend. (John Kullerstrand)

READY FOR IT Watching for the ball, Taylor Schroer and Ella Woltman, seniors, get in to a recieving position at Sectionals against Hammond on Oct. 14. The team sweeped a 3-0 win and the Sectional title.

Girls’ Soccer

Record: 10-6-1

Highlights: “My favorite moment was when we won against Valpo 2-1 in a competitive, intense game,” Natalie Kindt, senior, said. “We hadn’t beaten them in a long time.”

The team earned the Conference Championship title on Sept. 30 with a 5-3 win against Hanover Central.

READY FOR IT Watching for the ball, Taylor Schroer and Ella Woltman, seniors, get in to a recieving position at Sectionals against Hammond on Oct. 14. The team sweeped a 3-0 win and the Sectional title. (Zoe Clark)

Volleyball

Record: 17-16

Highlights: “The week before we took the Sectional title, we had just been pushing ourselves in practice,” Ella Woltman, senior, said. “We worked so hard for that moment we all ran out onto the court jumping and yelling.”

The team won Sectionals Oct. 14 with a 3-0 win against Hammond. They came up short in Regionals on Oct. 21 against Crown Point.

WINDING UP During Sectionals, Adam Muntean, senior, serves the ball to the opposing Valparaiso team. “It was a very fun but challenging season, especially because I was injured for all of it,” Muntean said. “The team had a bond this year that was awesome.” (Marianna Young)

Boys’ Tennis

Record: 14-5

Highlights: “At Culver Academy Invite, we went 2-1 using one of our new lineups,” Adam Muntean, senior, said. “It matched up well that day.”

Seniors Ethan Walker and Jose Foster came up short to state runner-ups in a 7-6, 6-1 doubles match at Park Tudor Oct. 21.

Awards: Coach Patrick Spohr was named 2023 NCC Coach of the Year for boys’ tennis.

1st Team All State Recognition: Seniors Ethan Walker, Jose Foster, Yousaf Khokhar, Jack Morton, Adam Muntean, Michael Fesko, and junior Joey Conner.

TEE UP Warming up for the Aug. 27 match against Kankakee Valley, Natalia Jeknic, senior, prepares for a chip shot. (Josephine Zangrilli)

Girls’ Golf

Record: 8-1

Highlights: “Winning Conference and Sectionals Tournaments , LC and Pat Ford Invites, along with my team was a lot of fun,” Hannah Ingersoll, freshman, said.

The team won Sectionals by 25 strokes on Sept. 15 at Sherwood.

Awards: Coach Bill Smitka was named 2023 NCC Coach of the Year for girls’ golf.

About the Contributors

Dorothy Lakshmanamurthy, Deadline Manager

Hello! My name is Dorothy, and I am a senior and this year's Deadline Manager. I am also involved in Mustang Volunteer Project, Best Buddies, Girl Scouts, and Munster Junior Historical Society. In my free-time, I love to dance, listen to music, hang out with my dog Danny Zuko, and watch Titanic.

Lauren Hoogeveen, Editor-In-Chief

Hello! I am Lauren and I am editor-in-chief this year. Along with this being my third year on Crier staff, I am involved in Student Government, National Honors Society, Orchestra and Mustang Volunteer Project. Outside of schoolwork, I love to bake, listen to music, and walk The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills.

Heidy Sanchez, Photographer

Hi, my name is Heidy Sanchez. Currently, I am a junior at MHS, and am a photographer for this school years crier staff.

Aaron Alvarez, Photographer

Hi my name is Aaron Alvarez. I am a photographer. I am also new part of staff this year. I like to play guitar for fun.

Karla Aguilar, Photographer

Hi! My name is Karla (junior) and I'm a first year photographer for the Crier. Being here at Crier is very fun yet nerve-racking (in a good way I promise) with all of the work. I have made a lot of new friends and love to spend my time with them whether it's doing my work or talking to them about random things. I love to listen to music and as of now I like Laufey and The Weeknd! I enjoy talking to my friends as well :3

John Kullerstrand, Photographer Trainer

My name is John Kullerstrand - Junior, photojournalist at MHS. Soon-to-be recipient of the CIA's award for excellence in journalism.

Zoe Clark, Head Photographer

Hello, my name is Zoe Clark! I am a senior, and our publication's head photographer. I took photography my freshman year, and have been in Crier since sophomore year. I have a lot of fun taking photos and connecting to students and teachers through our work. I am also on the MHS varsity swim team, which I have been a part of since my freshman year.

Marianna Young, Photographer

I'm Marianna. I am a junior and a photographer for Crier. I am also in Spanish Club, and a fun fact about me is that I used to play hockey!

Josephine Zangrilli, Social Media Manager

Hi! I am Josephine and I'm a photographer but I do write. I love playing golf and watching movies!

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