With six championship banners brought back to the school, the fall sports season was a major success. Redwood secured four Marin County Athletic League (MCAL) championships, two North Coast Section (NCS) titles and 50 athletes were recognized for MCAL All-League.
Football: The varsity football team started the season strong with a 5-0 record, and finished 7-4. Their record secured them a spot in the NCS playoffs, which led them to host the very first NCS home playoff game in program history. Junior Ronan Ralston, the starting safety on the team, felt proud of the team’s work this season.
“We had a pretty great season. We broke records by hosting our very first home playoff game, and had the best [offense] record Redwood football has had in a while,” Ralston said.
Golf: The girls’ golf team went undefeated in the regular season with a heartbreaking loss in the MCAL championship game against Branson. Despite the loss, junior Taylor Bridges was proud of their undefeated record in the regular season.
“Although we did not win MCALs, we [still] had a successful season. We went 16-0, we [were] a close team and we felt confident in everyone to do their part,” Bridges said.
Volleyball: The girls’ volleyball team finished second place in MCALs, with a regular season record of 7-1. The team was placed into open division for state for the first time in Redwood history. Junior Ella Moran, the team’s starting libero, was grateful for such a good season with a lot of improvement but believes there’s work to do before next season.
“While the season didn’t go exactly the way we wanted it to, we placed into open division for states which is super exciting –that’s the top eight teams in [Northern California],” Moran said.
Boys’ Water Polo: With a 7-2 record in MCALs, the boys’ water polo team took home an MCAL and NCS championship, with key contributions from juniors Sawyer Goldberg and Ossie Joplin. Although the season ended with a heartbreaking loss against San Luis Obispo in the CIF championship, senior and outside shooter Cormac Erving was content with the team’s perseverance.
“Considering we lost a few extremely good players from last season, I feel we held our own and had a very accomplished season,” Erving said.
Girls’ Cross Country: The girls’ cross country team won MCALs, and three runners, including junior Marley Nacco, senior Erin Stolte and freshman Kate Kozubik, all qualified for state at NCS. Nacco placed 78th, Stolte placed 80th and Kozubik placed 133rd. Junior Marley Nacco was so excited to set a personal record during her MCAL and NCS championship races.
“I was surprised I qualified for states individually because in my freshmen and sophomore years, I qualified with the team but I was shocked and so happy I qualified this year,” Nacco said.
Boys’ Cross Country: The boys’ cross country team finished in second place at MCALS, qualifying for state as a team where they finished in 12th place. Senior captain Ethan Werner won individual MCALs with a 15-minute and 30-second five-kilometer personal record.
“After losing many key runners from last year, our team had a very solid year and a lot of runners stepped up like Justin Shern [and] Gabriel Cavanagh. They did [well] when we needed them to,” Werner said.
Field Hockey: Finishing their season with an 11-1-2 record and their fourth consecutive MCAL championship, senior co-captain, Maisie Pipitone, was grateful for the successful outcome. With no NCS playoffs after MCALs the girls’ field hockey team achieved their goal and finished their season strong.
“This was the fourth year in a row we’ve won MCALs. It’s so rewarding to work hard for your goal and reach it,” Pipitone said.
Tennis: Capping off an undefeated season, the girls’ tennis team took home both the MCAL and NCS championships, winning the first NCS title since 2001. The girls’ season finished with a loss in the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) quarterfinals to Monte Vista. Senior Lindsay Reed, who was the captain of the team, was ecstatic with the outcome of the season.
“We were all really connected this year and really bonded. That helped us on the court [because] when you’re closer with your teammates, you have better chemistry and play better, ” Reed said.
Girls’ Water Polo: Finishing their season with a record of 6-3, the girls’ water polo team placed fourth in MCALs. The team lost in the quarterfinals of the NCS tournament, which ended their season. Junior Sasha Lilien plays right attack and enjoyed creating relationships during the season with her teammates.
“While we didn’t have the best season, we really bonded, especially in the Marin Catholic game. Even though we lost, [it] was a key moment for us as teammates this season,” Lilien said.
Cheer: Kicking off their season in the spring, varsity cheer practiced all summer and hosted a successful homecoming rally, doing their halftime performance. Junior Gemma Fox put in a lot of time and hard work into the fall cheer season.
“I really loved the rally. We put so much work into it [went] so well. The crowd engagement made it really worthwhile,” Fox said.
