This season, each sport had many notable players and athletes who stood out and dominated their sport. Here is a recap of some noteworthy athletes from each sport of this year’s winter season.
Wrestling:
On the mat, the girls’ team had junior Layla Abdenbi, junior Jadyn Magallanes, junior Ariana Merlos-Bueno, and senior Victoria Pioquinto. For the boys’ team, there was junior Elias Marquez-Flores, junior Josh Spontack, who placed third at states, and senior Lucas Nolette, who were all state qualifiers. The boys’ team finished third in the conference, and the girls’ team won the CPC regular season title, going undefeated in conference duals.
Indoor Track:
The indoor track team had a very accomplished season this winter. The team had 19 athletes make the top 100 rankings list, and had six state qualifiers, including senior Noelle Childs, junior Max Leonard, junior Lily Baugh, junior Dempsey Baldini, and sophomore Tatum Snow, for the girls’ 4×800 meter relay (placed 14th)—Lalia Jones for shot put (placed 7th), and sophomore Aydin Davis. Leonard broke the school record in the 55-meter hurdles, and Davis set a school record in the 300-meter hurdles. A big accomplishment for the team was senior Noelle Childs winning the NCHSAA state championship for the girls’ pole vault.
Girls Basketball:
The basketball team had a successful season with new head coach Johnathan Gainey. The team placed 6th in the conference. The teams’ key player was junior center Brooklynn King. She averaged a double-double while leading the team in points per game and rebounds per game. She also shot a percentage of 43. Her dominance on the court earned her All-Conference honors along with her teammates: senior point guard Emma Staples and freshman power forward Laila Jones.
Boys Basketball:
Entering the new season, expectations were high for head coach Marlon Brim and the Titans, who looked to finish the season on top. The Titans finished a conference-best 26-4 record, and they won the conference regular season title. They made the conference championship and lost to Mount Tabor in the finals. They made the state playoffs as a 2 seed but lost to Watauga in the Sweet 16. The team was led by senior point guard Jacari Brim, who averaged nearly 20 points per game this season. He also broke NBA star Chris Paul’s record for total points and assists at West. Other key players were junior small forward Jordan Tate, who averaged 14.1 points per game, and sophomore point guard Kamauri Manuel, who averaged 10.2 points a game. The Titans had an overall very successful season.
The Swim and Dive Team:
The swim team has a very successful season. The key leaders of the team were: senior Katherine Perdue, senior Anna McDonald, senior Lulu Serang and senior Jack Oghalai.
Perdue broke the 100 butterfly school record at Regionals, with a time of 56.79.
Katie Kennedy, Anna McDonald, Reese Patterson and Katherine Perdue participated in the 400 free relay, they placed 21st in the state. Katherine Perdue also swam two individual events at states, she swam prelims, finals. She swam 100 fly( placed 12th) and 100 back (placed 11th).
