Author: Mateo Corral

On Thursday, April 18th, the McClatchy Lions played an away game against the Kennedy Cougars.

The game was a spectacular show of force from the Lions, with them crushing the Cougars and not even allowing them to score a single point. Parents, friends, and family showed up for both teams to show support.

In the first inning, McClatchy gained a staggering 5-point lead on Kennedy. McClatchy was up at bat first, and out of the box, #2 Antonio Barber hit the ball deep into the outfield, getting himself to second base. After that, #11 Ari Silva got himself to first base, and #2 to third when the next at-bat, #8 Jackson Halverson, stepped into the batter’s box and slammed the ball way out, getting himself a triple and allowing the two on bases to score.

When the Kennedy Cougars stepped up to bat, they only had two players on base before McClatchy got three outs, and the inning ended. The second inning went very similarly, with the McClatchy Lions scoring 4 while Kennedy scored nothing again. A notable moment in this inning was when McClatchy’s Antonio Barber stole three bases, scoring the first point of the inning.

The Lions slowed down a little, only scoring one point in the next two rounds, but they played an oppressive defense, locking Kennedy down and keeping them from scoring. In the Fifth inning, McClatchy continued to trample the Cougars, scoring 6 more points before getting 3 outs and swapping. Kennedy, unfortunately, wasn’t able to score a single point, and the mercy rule ended the game. The final score was 17-0, with McClatchy having a fantastic game. A big win for the Lions as their rampage continues to the Oakmont Vikings.

The McClatchy Varsity baseball team played an away game against the Folsom Bulldogs on Friday the 15th. The game was close until the end.

In the first inning, the Folsom Bulldogs scored the first point when a runner attempted to take second, and an unfortunate pass from the McClatchy pitcher went over the second baseman, and the runner on third took home. Folsom maintained this one-point lead up until the top of the fifth inning.

The fifth inning was the most lengthy game, with over 10 batters taking the plate. In the top of the inning, McClatchy was up to bat. The first two batters, #18 Jacob Lyons and #2 Antonio Barber, both managed to secure a base, landing them on first and second. #11 Ari Silva went up to bat and bunted the ball, advancing the two bases but getting out himself. With players on second and third, #24 Austin Aten took the plate, hitting the ball to the outfield, letting #18 take home and tie up the score. With a runner on third, #8 Jackson Halverson hit a single, advancing the runner on third to home plate and putting the Lions in the lead.

The bottom of the fifth had Folsom up to bat. The Bulldogs managed to hit two singles, making them have two runners on first and second. At their fifth batter, #5 Logan Hutton slammed the pitch deep into the outfield, allowing the player on second base to make it home, tying up the score. Their next batter got walked, leaving the bases loaded, but their next at-bat hit the ball, and as the runner on second was taking third, the McClatchy catcher threw the ball to third but, unfortunately, the baseman missed the catch, letting the runner take home. The Lions were unable to make up the point in the sixth and seventh innings, making the final score 2 to 3, Folsom taking the game.

An unfortunate loss for the McClatchy Boys Varsity Baseball team, but there is always hope for winning their upcoming matches.

On Saturday night, the Varsity Girls’ Basketball team played against the Carondelet Cougars in the 2024 CIF State Girls’ Basketball tournament. McClatchy had a large turnout of friends and family cheering them on.

It was a nail-biter. At the end of every quarter, both teams were within 5 points of each other. McClatchy’s starting five were #1 Sianna Squires, #3 Norret Lewis, #5 Kaela Stancil-Williams, #22 Nina Cain, and #24 Daisy Throckmorton.

The first quarter started with McClatchy winning the tipoff, the ball going to #22 Nina Cain who promptly scored the first points of the game setting the Lions ahead. Both teams truly brought their A-game, but the Lions pulled ahead in the first quarter, leaving them ahead 12 to 8 going into the second quarter.

Quarter two had Carondelet inbounding the ball. McClatchy kept their cool and played some excellent defense, while still being able to rush down the court and keep themselves in the lead. The Lions went into the 3rd quarter 22 to 16, but at this point in the game, the Cougars began to pull themselves back. Both teams played very well, but the Cougars picked up their tempo, scoring 15 points to McClatchy’s 7.

The Fourth Quarter was when the game got serious. Although the Lions were down 2 points going into the fourth, they never stopped fighting for the win. So many free throws were shot in this quarter, with both teams fighting tooth and nail for the win. As time ticked down, both teams continued to battle, and with seconds left, a single foul from McClatchy put one Carondelet player up to the free-throw line. Scores tied 48-48, all that was needed was a single point. The silence was deafening as the player shot their shots, but the pressure was too much as they missed both, taking this game to overtime.

Overtime was the straw that broke the camel’s back for McClatchy. A few open three-pointers and a couple of unfortunate layups led to McClatchy being down 54-62. As the game drew to a close, so did the season. Having made it so far McClatchy keeps their spirits and reflects on a great season.

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.