With the new school year starting up, that also means the beginning of fall sports!  Cross country, girls tennis, volleyball, gymnastics, girls golf, football and boys soccer are starting soon. 

All coaches are prepared and ready as are our athletes. This fall promises thrilling matchups and a competitive atmosphere as teams aim to build on last season’s victories.

Cross Country

Coming off their fourth-straight state title, the cross country team is poised to go for a fifth title in a row. Coach Kelsey Carbajo is the head cross country coach.

“I think we have some pretty big team goals altogether for this season,” Carbajo said. “We are coming off of the girls’ side with four straight state championships and we lost a lot of seniors so the goal is to get back to the podium and bring home another first place trophy. And on the boys side we’re coming off of a state championship track season and our four by eight who is also on the cross country team just won first place at state as well.”

The team has been working hard all summer with almost 100 percent in attendance. They have been training and are going into the new season with three summer months under their belt.

“We meet to run at 6:30 and then we lift at 8:15 and they are done by nine o’clock,” Carbajo said. “Every morning from Monday through Saturday we’re running so we meet pretty much everyday of the week except for Sundays.”

The team starts their quest for another championship on Sept. 7 against St. Thomas Aquinas in the Greg Wilson Classic.

Football

Coming off a 2-7 season, the team looks to rebound in Coach Wiemer’s 2nd year.  The team is poised for improvement. The team is excited for the season as the Owls look to climb in the Sunflower League standings. 

One of the big things for the Owls this season is how much returning production they have from last year.

“It’s nice to have the same quarterback and a couple of the same guys in our backfield and at receiver that played last year,” Wiemers said.

“I think they’re faster,” Wiemers said, “They did a really good job in the last year in the weight room and developing themselves physically.”

Some may put expectations on their team, but Coach Wiemers does not.

“This is a really tough league and I don’t really worry about trying to predict anything,” Wiemers said. “We just kind of want to be better from day to day.”

The Owls are gearing up to start their season soon, and the team is ready to compete in the Sunflower League this season.

The Owls look to start their season 1-0 when they take on Shawnee Mission West on Sept. 6.

Girls Tennis

Girls tennis looks to compete in the Sunflower League this season. The girls are trying to make a run at state this year. The Owls are looking to have a successful year under Coach Colby Mnich. 

Both varsity and JV compete in 10 events, and the team competes in both singles and doubles. Most of their home events will be at CBAC. 

Be sure to catch all of the action when girls tennis competes in the first varsity quad on Aug. 29 at CBAC.

Gymnastics

After coming in second at state, the gymnastics team is trying to make their way back. This season, gymnastics aims to win the Sunflower League and get their first state championship. Coach Amy Harrington is looking to lead the Owls to their first state title after a disappointing end to last season.

The team competes in the vault, bars, beam, and floor events.

“I love watching the Owls do floor,” Coach Harrington said, “They all bring something different to the floor, but I would say floor is their best event. 

The goal always is to win the state championship, but there are always other goals for the team, especially with the team being smaller in size compared to others.

“This year I want this team to continue to improve their skills,” Coach Harrington said, “They are definitely a smaller team but they are very talented.”

The Owls are sure to have an entertaining season, and they would love to see you supporting them, so come out and support Owls!

The girls kick off their season on Sept. 10 when they play at Shawnee Mission Northwest.

Boys Soccer

Soccer is starting with high expectations after a great season last year. Solid returning players and promising newcomers will make for another competitive and successful season. Head Coach Matt Trumpp is excited for the new season.

“We have kind of a young team so we have a good junior class so I’m expecting those guys to step up and become leaders maybe before they are ready and our senior class to show good leadership,” Trumpp said. “We have a young team this year so I’m excited to see how quick they gel.”

The team practices every day except Sundays. They have been working hard and will continue throughout the season.

“We want to get better every day, get one inch better than we were the day before, learn from our mistakes, and grow to where we get to the end of the season and we can win championships and keep playing,” Trumpp said.

The boys will have their first varsity game of the season on Aug. 30 at Pembroke Hill High School.

Girls Golf

Girls golf is starting with practices four days a week, Monday through Thursday, with head coach Scott Aldrich recommending weekend individual practice to ensure a great season. 

“The overall goal of the team is just to get better and improve as a team,” Aldrich said. “The younger girls who are just starting out in golf, I want them to improve enough that they have a chance to play varsity next year but for varsity our goal is to make it to state and compete to win a state title.”

Compared to other years, Aldrich is taking a different approach by giving the girls more time to bond and work together.

“We are trying to do more team building,” Aldrich said. “We get pretty separated quite a bit, because varsity and JV sometimes don’t even see each other all week long because we are having tournaments on opposite days or whatever so we are going to try to implement more team building activities this year.”

Volleyball

With high kills per set and solid hitting percentages from last season, Head Coach Amy Hoffsommer is ready for a promising season. Last season the girls placed third and had an overall record of 27-2. 

“This year one of our focal points is gonna be more about just taking one game at a time instead of thinking ahead,” Hoffsommer said. “While we do have a goal to win league and go to state and all of those things, we just want to take it one day at a time and not overthink the future.”

The players have shown Hoffsommer their excitement in each practice. Varsity is together practicing six days a week, Monday through Saturday.

“They just love each other,” Hoffsommer said. “They are really close as a team. I think they are excited to do something important together, something that they all love to do together so that’s the most exciting thing.”

The girl’s have a jamboree on Aug. 27 at Northwest High School. Varsity has their first tournament at Hays High school on Aug. 31.

All of the teams and coaches are prepared for the upcoming season. Come out and show your support!

Dates and times can be found at https://owowlsathletics.com/

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