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McClatchy vs. Monterey Trail
Category: Sports
The McClatchy cross country team really said, “We are the champions, We’ll keep on fighting to the end”, as they traveled up to Frogtown, Calaveras to run at sub-sections. The team did incredible with the varsity, jv, and sophomore boys teams qualifying for sections.
Jonas Johnson is a junior at McClatchy and has been running cross country since seventh grade. He is the fastest boy on the team and ran a good race at sub-sections with a time of 16:40 minutes for the 5k. Although he hasn’t been feeling too well in the weeks leading up to sections he gave it his all.
“So Mr. Johnson we’ve heard that you haven’t been feeling so well leading up to subs, can you elaborate on what you’ve been experiencing?
“So about two weeks out from this race I started feeling a pain in my femur and it ended up being a reoccurring pain due to stress. So I’ve been going to the gym and using the elliptical instead of running, but I’ve been able to do workouts with the team.”
“I’m sorry you’ve been feeling that way, but hey on the bright side you trained to do your best and you did. You ran an excellent race and got another shiny medal to add to your collection. What’s your game plan going into sections?”
“My game plan for sections is to get out to that front pack at the start and stick with them for as long as I can.”
“That sounds like a very challenging plan Jonas. Are you sure you can handle that? I think you could go about this more strategically.”
“Well for these last two weeks I haven’t run so I was worried I would lose some of my drive and maybe I could go about this more strategically but the top pack has a big gap between the other runners, so if I don’t want to fall behind I have no other choice.”
“Ok ok well you are the fastest guy on the team and I’m sure you can get through this!”
The varsity girls team unfortunately didn’t all qualify but Jillian Palmer and Isabel Neff did and will be representing for the varsity girls at sections.
Isabel Neff is a sophomore and has been running cross country for only two years now, but is so incredibly fast!
“You ran fabulous Bel! I know this wasn’t your best race but you still got an amazing time of 22:38 minutes for the 5k. In your eyes, how did your race go?
“Looking back on my race I’m so proud of how I did! Right before my race, while warming up and stretching, I was not feeling it. My legs felt sore and my throat had been dry since that morning, these things tend to happen to me whenever I’m about to race. But once the gun went off, all of the pain went away and was replaced with lots of adrenaline. I can’t remember much of the race, except the steep hills and all the dust in my eyes. I do remember the relief that I always felt when crossing the finish line. I thought the race was hard, but in the end, the effort I put in paid off and that’s what makes me so happy and proud of myself. These races are just as much mental as they are physical.”
“Your efforts sure did pay off, since you’re going to sections! It’s really unfortunate that all of the varsity girls didn’t qualify though. How does it feel to be going to sections?
“I’m really sad that the whole team didn’t make it to sections, but there’s always next year. We had a great season as a team and I’m so proud of all of us! For me, this entire season has felt like a comeback. I had the worst season last year, fracturing my foot early into summer conditioning, which put me out for the majority of the cross-country season. The rest of my freshman year was followed by another fracture and a hematoma on my hand. I spent the spring of 2023 working with a personal trainer trying to strengthen my body and prepare for a healthy sports year. This season I’ve been able to regain my strength and confidence in running and stay healthy. I’m beyond proud of myself for making it to sections and I seriously couldn’t have hoped for anything more. I’m so happy that Jillian and I get to represent CKM for the cross-country girls!”
“Wow, you’ve been through so much and I’m so happy that you still have a positive outlook on everything. Keep striving for greatness Bel!”
This was the last race for many runners on the team, but they all went out with a bang and ended their season wonderfully. As for those on the team that qualified, make sure to look forward to what they will accomplish at sections this Saturday, which will be held at Willow Hills in Folsom. That course has some crazy hills but the runners have run it many times before so I know they can do this. Go lions!
The McClatchy Lions have once again amazed us as they raced phenomenally on Wednesday at the Metro League Championships at North Laguna Creek Park in Elk Grove.
The Lions have been taking wins after wins the whole season and even when they don’t they keep their heads held high! There were many incredible races run that day including many of the team’s injured players being able to come out and run an excellent race.
The frosh/soph girls and boys teams took a big W, placing first. Along with the varsity boys placing first and the varsity girls placing second. A quick shoutout to Hugh Heyer who gave the crowd a thrilling show as he raced to pass another runner in front of him as he crossed the finish line. Joy McDaniel was recruited by the team’s coach, Coach Watkins, to run in the frosh/soph race due to the team not having enough frosh/soph girls to compete. She led the team to their first-place win!
As said earlier many of the team’s injured runners came out to race. Jax Leon, a senior at McClatchy, has been running cross country since seventh grade. He has been suffering from shin splints and has been out of the running game for practically the entire season. Only starting back training two and a half weeks ago and racing his first race this season at Metro Champs, Jax ran an incredible race.
“So you’ve been injured for basically the entire season, but you came back strong! How are you feeling?”
“I feel pretty good, I mean it’s lower than what I expected. I’ve only had two workouts and since I’ve been back I’ve only been running for about two and a half weeks now. Also, I think for it being my first real race of the season with minimal training I couldn’t ask for much more.”
“That’s wild that you’re already back to racing after such a short training period, amazing. I know you’re a senior and this is probably not how you wanted the season to go, but how do you feel going into subsections and possibly qualifying for sections?”
“Well I mean the team is looking really strong this year and we have a lot of good depth and a lot of fast guys in varsity. So I’m pretty confident we’re gonna make it to sections.”
“So am I! Thank Jax for your time and keep training.”
Chela Cobb, also a senior at McClatchy, has been running cross country for all four years. She is the treasurer of the student body board, which can be a really time-consuming job.
“This is your last metro champs and you went out and crushed it. How do you think you did?”
“I think I did good under the circumstances. I’m sick and didn’t run all last week because i was busy with planning homecoming. So I think I killed it!”
“Yes, girl you did amazing! How did you feel after your race? Do you feel like you were kicking enough at the end?”
“I think my kick was average. I’ve certainly had a better kick, but right now my throat is hurting. Overall I think I’m feeling good about my race”
“As you should, you did really well!”
Metro League Championships was not the only big event the team was celebrating. The team celebrated their fellow senior lions as it was their senior night. The seniors were Jaime Garcia, Jillian Palmer, Claire Mills, Jax Leon, Chela Cobb, and new French exchange student Maëlys Garros.
The seniors ran their last metro champs beautifully and the whole team came together to honor them! We look forward to seeing how the team will do this Saturday at Subsections, but from how the champs went, they got this in the bag. Go Lions!
The state championship-bound, McClatchy cross country team set out last Saturday to Cordova High School to race in the grand HOKA meet.
The meet was sponsored by the very popular running shoe brand HOKA and the top three runners from each race had the opportunity to win a limited edition HOKA backpack. The race was two miles on a track, so about eight laps.
The Lions gave it their all and did incredibly, even with many runners setting new personal records. The team has been doing really well this season, even with some runners being injured they give it their all.
Reina is a sophomore at McClatchy and has been out from running due to an injury she sustained earlier in the season. She has just returned to running and has run 3 races since returning, including the HOKA race.
“So Ms. Reina you have been injured for quite some time now and you’ve just recently gotten back to running. How does it feel to be back?”
“It feels really good. I’m really excited especially about the track season because I know there’s not a lot of cross country left and I feel like I am satisfied overall with my performances during these races.”
“Yes you’re already such an amazing runner and I’m sure the team is joyed to have you back! How did you feel you did at the meet?”
“I know I didn’t run my personal record and I was initially really frustrated about that but I think it’s due to the fact that I haven’t really done a lot of speed workouts and I know that I’m just going to have to be patient. Like, it’s a waiting game and it’s completely mental.”
“Yes it is so mentally challenging, but I know you will do great!”
Hugh is a McClatchy freshman and is already an incredibly talented runner. Hugh suffered a nasty ankle injury at the last race in Clovis. He was tripped and his ankle was stepped on, but he didn’t let that hold him back as he only continued to get stronger.
“So I know you had a pretty nasty accident at the last meet in Clovis. I’m sure many people weren’t expecting you to be back racing so soon. How do you feel after the incident?”
“It definitely hurt a lot and I couldn’t run for a week, which sucked. So I tried to get back to racing as soon as possible”
“Well, I am just glad that you’re okay because you’re a really good runner and you’re only a freshman at that! What did you feel like during your race?”
“The first 800 hundred meters I think I went out too fast, but I eventually settled in and started to feel a lot better. I feel like if I didn’t start off so fast I probably could’ve gotten top 5.”
“You can do this Hugh, we’re rooting for you!”
The runners repeatedly prove that lions are at the top of the food chain. They work hard and run strong. Another honorable mention is Marisa, a junior at McClatchy who ran such an amazing race that she moved by 4 points! Way to go Marisa and remember to stay lion-strong!
The amazing McClatchy Lions took off this Saturday at the Tom Laythe Invitationals
The race was held at Willow Hills in Folsom, a very brutal course that consisted of many big calf-wrenching hills. The freshmen/sophomore boys raced strong and were so close to placing first but they got passed by five racers at the finish line.
The freshmen/sophomore girls also had an incredible run, placing 5th in the race! I spoke with the team’s coach, Coach Watkins, who had many pleasant things to say about the team’s performance.
“So Coach Watkins, how do you feel your runners did?”
“I think they did amazing. We started off today with Suja and Aiden going 1-2 in the freshmen and sophomore boys race and the team took second overall. That was fantastic, along with the freshmen and sophomore girls placing 5th overall and were looking really good. I was very excited, it was a really nice day to run!”
“I see you have coached them well, good job! Do you think they could have improved on anything?”
“Oh always, we can always improve and this only midseason we’re still looking at these races as training at this point and figuring out what we can do better. Just always looking for ways to improve!”
“Well, we look forward to seeing that improvement! Thank you for your time and keep being such a good coach!”
Suja Amarkhil, a sophomore at McClatchy ran a phenomenal race finishing first out of many other teams. This is only his second year running but he is already so incredibly fast!
“First off congrats on your race, you ran so effortlessly! I know the course was pretty tough, with all the hills and just having to compete against so many other runners. How did you feel as you ran?”
“I felt really good, the hills were really challenging. But I pushed through it and caught up to many people.”
“That’s so good. What was going through your mind as you approached the finish, about to win the race?”
“That was my first time winning a cross-country race and I couldn’t believe it! I thought there were more people right next to me, but they were a few seconds behind me. Which really motivated me and I finished strong”
‘“Thank you so much for your time and once again, you did so well!”
Well, folks it just proves that when a team has a great coach the team will be great as well. Every runner ran so amazingly and made us all so proud. The Lions have a Metro League meet this Wednesday in Elk Grove and I’m positive we will see many more astonishing achievements from the team. Go lions!
Last Friday The McClatchy football team played River City at Hughes Stadium.
McClatchy’s latest game against River City was a close match ending with an unfortunate loss for the Lions. The Lions started the game off strong with #11, Kiko Brambila running the first touchdown to set McClatchy up 6-0 on River City. During this half, I had the opportunity to speak with Coach Fisher and ask him a question.
“How do you think McClatchy will do against River City in this game?”
“River City is a beatable team. Every year in the metro league River City is a tough team, But a beatable one at that.”
In quarter 2, the Lions played hard and fought harder to keep the lead in their favor. Unfortunately, near the end of the quarter River City made a play and got a touchdown in. RC also scored the field goal which led to the Lions being down 6-7 going into the second half.
At halftime, I could interview Coach Davis about how he felt the team would fare going into the second half.
“How do you think the team will do going into the second half?”
“Good, good. We need to stay focused and motivated going into the second half to win this one.”
McClatchy kicked off to River City in the 2nd half. There were lots of trading yards back and forth between the teams until River City scored yet another touchdown and field goal leading the Lions by 8 points. After more back and forth between the teams, the 3rd quarter ends.
In the 4th quarter, River City scored 2 more touchdowns, one at the start of the quarter and one at the end. These touchdowns locked out the game leading to an unfortunate loss for McClatchy. The final score was 6-27 with River City winning.
Post game I was able to interview student athlete, #24 Malachi Goethe about the loss.
“How do you feel about the loss against River City today?”
“The loss tonight was a strong loss, it hit home for sure. We started off strong in the start but as the game went on we kind of just let it go. We let them get the upper hand and we let them keep it”
In the end McClatchy lost but still the team is excited, motivated, and hopeful for their next games.
Sac State secured the win against Stanford. But only by a thread. The star of the game was Kaiden Bennett. The great quarterback threw the winning touchdown while dodging a sack, with 1:32 seconds left. Putting them at the top with a score of 30-23.
This was an important win for Sac State. For one, it ruined the debut of Stanford’s coach, Troy Taylor. It also might have been the greatest win in Sac States history since 1970.
It was a great game besides the ending score. Both teams played great offense and defense. It was a head-to-head game. Even though Stanford was up by half by 3 it didn’t stop Sac State. They kept their heads up and came back to score a field goal and of course the winning touchdown.
Sac State’s 2 big players to look at after the game were, K. Bennett and D. Gandy. But for Stanford, they had 3. J. Lamson, E.J. Smith, and E. Ayomanor. K. Bennett with an amazing passing yard number of 279, while Stanfords J. Lamson only had 138.
For the fans, the stands looked packed. Everybody in the West, East, North, and South parts of the stadium. The capacity of Stanford Stadium is 50,424. But the number that was attended was 23,848, almost 30,000 people. Yes, only 47% of the stadium was attended even though it looks like it’s packed.
Back to the teams though. Both teams greatly had over 300 total yards. 2 turnovers, and one team with 23 1st downs and the other with 18. Even though both teams had stats over the other, it didn’t stop it from being a head-to-head game.
Now for the amazing coach. Troy Taylor is Sac State’s former coach. He coached for 4 seasons and led to them beating Colorado 30-28 in 2012. He also led them to a 30-8 record and their first win in the FCS playoffs. Before he got replaced by Andy Thompson, who was the defensive coordinator for Sac State.
Unfortunately, Lamson got injured, but not before getting 121 yards for his college debut. Also ran for 36 yards and 16 carries.
Sac State and Stanford also have a good rivalry. But this time Sac State got the upper hand and beat Stanford by a very thin thread.
The McClatchy Lions XC team set off on Thursday all the way to Irvine to race at the big Woodbridge Classic!
The runners went in with their heads held high, tightly laced running shoes, and a passion to win. And they did just that! Nineteen of the twenty-two racers from McClatchy set new personal records, along with several of the racers receiving medals for placing in the top 50 to finish the race. I had an opportunity to speak with two of the many amazing racers who ran at the meet.
Colette Combrink is a senior at McClatchy and has been running cross country for all four years! I asked Colette several questions during our interview but here are the most notable ones!
“How did you feel leading up to the race?
“I was really nervous because it’s a really big meet, a ton of teams were there, and they’re really fast. But I was also super excited because I’ve run this meet before and I remember it being really fast and really fun.”
“That sounds really fun but quite challenging. Did you face any challenges during the race?”
“Yeah, I have been injured leading up to the race and hadn’t been practicing as much as I would have preferred to. So I was a little worried that my injury was going to start hurting really bad during the race and I also just got out running really fast and struggled to keep that pace up, but I pushed through and made it to the finish!”
“Agh being injured sucks and I applaud your strength to keep running. Thank you so much for your time and stay hydrated!”
“Of course!”
Sam Rounds is a junior at McClatchy and has been running cross country since freshman year. He’s on the Ultraviolets, which is the second-fastest a person can run. He also placed in the top 50 at the race.
“So Sam, how did you feel leading up to the race?”
“I was a little bit nervous the day before, but on the drive there as we got closer the more nervous I became.
“So what did you do to calm your nerves?”
“I tried to sleep to keep my energy levels low so I didn’t over-exhaust myself.”
“I bet the anticipation leading up to the actual race was thrilling!”
“Yeah, when we started to warm up before the race I got more excited!”
“How did you feel after you received your medal?”
“It felt great, but I know I could have worked harder for it. I was happy to receive it though.”
“Well, that’s still so good. Thank you for your time Sam and keep working hard!”
The Lions ran their hearts out and gave it their all. Many of them felt they could have done so much better than they already did and we should look forward to seeing how great they do at the next meet! Stay Lion strong!
Categories
2023 Sports Assembly
In the 2022-2023 season, the Sacramento Kings made a massive impact as they made it to the playoffs for the first time in nearly seventeen years, taking down some of the biggest teams in the NBA. The team finally ended what has been repeatedly referred to as the longest drought in sports history.
The Kings’ objective this season was to completely rebuild the team. They brought in a new coach, Mike Brown, and added new players including Domantas Sabonis (Center), and Kevin Huerter (Shooting Guard). Though the first few games were rocky, as soon as these players got acclimated, their positive impact was clear. For context, in seasons prior, their record was consistently around 25-35 wins and 40-50 losses. These new additions to the roster, along with the others, brought the Kings to a winning record of 48 wins and 34 losses.
Sacramento finished third in the Western Conference during the regular season, which is a remarkable accomplishment. The Western Conference has multiple elite teams, including the Los Angeles Lakers and the Golden State Warriors, both of whom were ranked below the Kings going into the playoff season. This accomplishment shows the King’s progress and competitiveness, and it sets them up well for future success.
The Kings’ season has been nothing but high hopes and accomplishments. Star players for the Kings, namely the point guard and first-time all-star this year De’Aaron Fox, have brought the team some fame both locally and all around the NBA.
Since being drafted 5th overall in 2017 by the Kings, Fox has done nothing but improve his game, which showed this season. Fox won the Clutch Player of the Year award this season. He also led the NBA in total points of 194 in the clutch series, according to The Sacramento Bee.
The two all-stars on the team, Fox and Sabonis, are considered by the masses to be the backbone of the Kings. They helped get the team to the playoffs, but also were recently named to the all-NBA third team. Other players such as Malik Monk and Kevin Huerter were also crucial pieces for the Kings. Coach Mike Brown, who came to Sacramento to take a head coaching position, was named coach of the year, bringing hope and revitalization to a team on the verge of moving to Seattle. This brought the fans and the city of Sacramento alive.
The creation of the beam was another powerful moment that encouraged and garnered support from the fans. According to Front Office Sports, the beam is powered by four lasers capable of producing 1,000 watts of RGB laser power, making it “the brightest full-color laser equipment in the world.” The phrase “Light the Beam,” was brought along with it, and the fans love it. The beam was lit on gameday after every win until midnight, symbolizing a beacon of hope for the team and the city.
After being one of the worst teams in the league for years, the Kings finally made a playoff appearance. Their first-round battle was against the defending champs, the Golden State Warriors. All the attention was on the Warriors and many predicted they would win the whole series in a four-game sweep. The Kings surprised the basketball world when they brought the Warriors all the way to game seven. Sadly, the King’s season ended there and the Warriors moved on. But again, making it to the playoffs at all is great, and seeing them put up a good fight against the Warriors was really entertaining.
This season was full of victories, despite our team no longer competing in the playoffs. The Kings received attention around the world, and will be propelled towards more success in the future with the locals’ newfound pride and excitement around them. With sold-out games bringing Golden 1 alive, the Kings should bring home a championship in no time. Things are only looking up for Sacramento now: this team is not going anywhere anytime soon, especially as they’re stacked with young players who have plenty of years left in their careers. Rivals better get ready to feel the roar of the Sacramento Kings.