With the fall semester well underway, athletes at local Catholic schools are taking to the court, field and sidelines — can’t forget spiritline — many nights a week. Take a look at related headlines:
- Welcome Red Hawks — it’s the new mascot for Benedictine University at Mesa, which launched its sports program this semester. I haven’t seen the mascot yet, but students left them a welcome note. The golf team sent the Red Hawks into competition mode Labor Day weekend. Here’s the recap on BenU’s sports site.
- Broncos kickoff broadcast — Cox 7 is resuming its faithful coverage of high school sports this semester. Among its 10-game lineup is Brophy College Preparatory’s kickoff against Centennial 7 p.m. Sept. 11. Players can re-live the full game and catch highlights plus player/team features online. Brophy’s replay airs 4 p.m. Sept. 13.
Be sure to also check out AZCentral’s high school sports coverage throughout the year.
- Brophy open aquatic center — A whirlwind of construction this spring and summer resulted in Freshmen Water Day — a chance to explore the campus’ newest feature — followed shortly by the school’s first intersquad aquatic meet on campus. Neither group of students were the first to take a swim though. Jesuit Father Eddie Reese, Brophy president, had that honor.
- New athletic complex — Notre Dame Preparatory’s new athletic complex is still underway with hopes of hosting the final home football game Oct. 31. The article sites a set of delays for the later opening, but the Holy Spirit may have influenced the process a bit. The school’s mascot is the Saints and the final home football game falls on the eve of its feast day.
- Future Knights — I don’t know if more campuses offer such a bargain for young high school sports fans, but St. Mary’s High School advertises that students 10 and younger are admitted free to games. Perhaps they’ll develop a love for the sport they’re watching and become a Knight in a few years.
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Lanier Clarke Sports Illustrated‘s ‘Faces in the Crowd’ — “Fans who read Sports Illustrated most certainly had to do a double-take while perusing the popular “Faces in the Crowd” feature…” one lead of Xavier College Prepratory’s new sports blog said. Khalia Lanier, a junior and a top volleyball player, alongside Madison Clarke, a senior tennis phenom, is aiming to clinch a third straight individual state championship next spring.
The blogwriter says having two athletes from the same school in the same issue is a rarity. Varsity Zone on AZFamily.com/Channel 3 interviewed them.
- National/world champs — Three alumni from Seton Catholic Preparatory in Chandler earned honorable titles this summer. Jack Lawless and Dillon Stanley both graduated in May and went on to take first in the USA Volleyball’s Boys Junior National Championship in Houston with the Spiral 18U team.
Daniel Garlid, Class of 2013 played baseball for Mesa Community College and won the National Junior College Div II World Series this summer.
