Fall sports starting off strong at Mount Si High School

Published 5:54 pm Thursday, September 17, 2015

This week, we took a look at many of the fall sports teams at Mount Si High School. Coaches and athletes talk about their teams’ prospects for the year, and on doing what it takes to become better every day.

Football team renews title goals

On a sunny afternoon before Mount Si’s first home football game of the season, head coach Charlie Kinnune is setting goals and assessing variables.

The goals are obvious: Making it to the state championship; giving each practice and each game a best effort. The variables look pretty good, too.

Winning teams like the ones his squad now faces with every game in the 4A division he says, depend on four variables — depth, coaching, community support and facilities.

“We’re still working on our depth,” he said, “but our numbers are as good as they ever are.”

Coaching should be pretty consistent, as Kinnune heads into his 24th year leading the team, which has usually enjoyed solid community support, he says, and a good stadium, too.

Among the students playing football this year, five are co-captains, Cory Cotto, Caleb Mitchell, Ried Lutz, Riley Peerboom and Harrison Danna.

Following Kinnune’s lead, they have set a path for their team. Quarterback Danna says “Our goals should be the same as every year, go to the state championship.”

Cotto, a linebacker, is more specific. “To win a championship for this team.”

The heightened competition in the 4A league, new to the team last year, is now just part of the routine. “I’ve gotten used it it,” Cotto said. “We’re very comfortable in this league.”

Another part of the routine for many Mount Si players is touching a metal pawprint as they enter the stadium.

“It means we’re here to work hard every day, we bring our best every day,” said Mitchell.

Team co-captains, Harrison Danna, Cory Cotto and Caleb Mitchell

Growing in the game

Talented teammates are only part of Mount Si goaltender Nellie Joselyn’s formula for success. Growth is another part, and leadership.

“We had a really good team last year, with six or seven girls going on to play college ball,” said Joselyn during practice last week. “We have lots of good players this year, too.”

With an emphasis on personal growth this season and a strong core of players who’ve competed together for years, Joselyn foresees a good season.  “We just need to put it all together,” she said.

Head coach Darren Brown set the goal for personal improvement.

“I’m not really concerned with the wins and losses,” he said, although he does enjoy the more competitive nature of the 4A division that Mount Si moved to last year. “I want to know, can we grow? I want to get better every day and get back into the playoffs.”

With nine seniors on the team, Brown doesn’t have to worry about leadership.

“My goal would be to be the best captain I can be,” Joselyn said, adding that she has confidence in her co-captains, Camryn Buck and Natalie Weidenbach.

“Buck,” she says, “is as quiet as a mouse. She leads by example. When everything else is crazy, she knows how to be calm, and get the ball where it needs to be.”

Co-captains Nellie Joselyn, Natalie Weidenbach and Camryn Buck.

Strong showing expected for golfers

Boys golf at Mount Si High School is looking to be quite competitive. Coach Brandon Proudfoot said the team, especially in the top rankings, is looking the strongest he’s seen it.

“It’s not just one player either,” he said, “We’ve got a handful that are pretty good at those top spots, so I’m expecting us to have a pretty good season.”

Proudfoot has a roster of 10 varsity golfers. Last year Mount Si’s record was .500 overall; they won everything at home, lost everything away.

“It was our first year in 4A so we got to travel to all new golf courses… We didn’t travel as well as I was hoping,” Proudfoot said. “We have a stronger squad and … a big junior class last year, now they are all seniors and they have an extra year of tournaments under their belts.”

Seniors on the Mount Si High School golf team, from left, Alex Nelson, Colin Anderson, Nick McAlister, Jake Karavias, Mitchell Dover and Jimmy Jacobson.

Looking up: Tennis team starts with a win

It may just be the beginning of the year but the Mount Si tennis team, with one win, has already improved on its record from last year.

Coach James Gibowski said they have a stronger team this year and the results to prove it.

“We already won one more game than last year. We had some close matches, but we didn’t win one match last year so we are one and one,” Gibowski said.

With three of four singles players back on the team this year and the addition of newcomer Dhruv Khurana, Gibowski said “we are better this year in singles than we were for a long time.”

With the open courts, Gibowski is hoping the team members take more advantage to play outside of the regularly scheduled tennis practices. Experience is the best way to improve.

John Day reaches for the return at tennis practice last week.

Bigger and more fun, every year

The girls swim team has seen fast growth in its short three years. Coach Patrick Stewart is happy to see continued growth for the team.

“We have 36 and last year we had 25-ish,” Stewart said. “It’s a lot bigger this year and so it’s a lot of fun…It’s good too see the numbers increase.”

Last year, a few of the girls made it to district competition. This year, it’s  Stewart’s goals to get more of them to that level.

“Everyone improved as the season went on so that my goal is to do the best we can and keep improving and making it fun,” Stewart said. “We are a newer team. We are focused on getting better and doing the best we can.”

Seeing what was once a small team grow into something much bigger has been really exciting for sophomore Julia Crumb.

“Last year it was a really small team but we were really close so it was a good atmosphere,” she said.

Junior and team co-captain Murial Ross wants to keep the swim team enjoyable for everyone so that it grows even further.

“Our main goals are to try and get everyone to enjoy swim team, come back, and try to get their friends to come to and try next year,” she said.

The Mount Si High School 2015 swim team.

Find game schedules, updated daily at www.kingcoathletics.com.