The official student newspaper of Walter Johnson High School

The Pitch

The official student newspaper of Walter Johnson High School

The Pitch

The official student newspaper of Walter Johnson High School

The Pitch

WJ Sports Year in Review

The year is over for WJ sports. There were several superb performances and several teams crushed expectations and made memorable runs.

Fall

The fall season was one of the best for WJ sports ever. Three teams made it deep in the playoffs: boys’ soccer, girls’ volleyball and field hockey. Boys’ soccer made it to the regional finals only to lose a heartbreaking game to Wootton.

The girls’ volleyball team was lead by seniors Gina Fischetti, Stephanie Paul and Kristen Larrick. This talented trio led WJ to one of their best seasons ever, though they lost to Sherwood, the eventual and defending state champs, in the regional finals.

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The field hockey team, led by the county player of the year, junior Anna Rowthorn, beat Wootton in the regional finals and made it all the way to the state semi-finals. However, the girls lost a heart breaking game to Catonsville 2-1.

The boys’ cross country team was going for their fifth straight state title but fell just short,  coming in second to Severna Park at states. Along the way, the boys won the division, county and regional titles.

All the fall sports had good seasons as football went 3-7, golf had two individuals players in the state championship and the girls’ soccer team had big wins against rivals Wootton and Churchill. In addition, the girls’ tennis team went 10-2. The girls’ cross country team qualified for states after placing fifth in the region. Although there were no state titles, this fall season was one to remember for WJ.

Winter

The winter season was another successful season for WJ sports. The boys’ swim team defended their state title while being a dominant force all year. The team was lead by senior Barry Mangold who was first team All-Met.  The team also received huge contributions from senior Chris Root and junior Jean Marc-Nugent. The girls’ swim team also had a very successful year as junior captain Natsumi Horikawa led the girls to a fourth place finish at regionals and states.

The boys’ basketball team had great senior leadership with Michael Lumbuku, Sean Poosson and Everett Wells. However, they fell in the first round of the playoffs to Whitman. The girls’ basketball team were the 4A south co-division champs and had an outstanding run in the absence of injured standout senior center Kristen Larrick.

The wrestling team also had a legendary season. Seven senior wrestlers all qualified for the state meet after the team finished fourth at the regional championships.

The bocce team had an excellent year finishing third in the south division championship.

The girls’ indoor track team was led by grade Ana Gomerez who was the Montgomery County triple jump champion and was on the all-county first team. In addition, the boys’ indoor track team had some very good performances by Dan Kosgov in the 1600 meters and Nathaniel Rees in the 3200.

 

Spring

The spring season had some amazing performances from WJ athletes. The baseball team went 6-12 in the regular season before a heartbreaking playoff loss to Wootton 2-1. Senior Gus Gill had two no-hitters and was named all division most outstanding pitcher.

The gymnastics team capped off a fantastic year with a second place finish to the B-CC Barons at the county championship. Senior captain Grace Leslau led the girls all season and finished second overall in the county.

The boys’ lacrosse team had a fantastic year, the finished 11-2 in the regular season. The boys’ earned a first round bye in the playoffs. They crushed B-CC in the first round before falling to Wootton in a close game, 10-6. Senior defensemen Timmy Seppi amd Matt Radack proved to be key this year. The girls’ lacrosse team had an up and down season finishing 7-5. In the first round of the playoffs they won a nail-biting game 12-11 over B-CC.  They then fell to Wootton 13-8.

The girls’ softball team also had a tough season going 5-13 in the regular season. The girls’ at one point dropped six in a row. The girls came together for the playoffs and beat B-CC in the first round before eventually falling to Blair.

The boys’ tennis team got a boost when junior Baran Baris transferred to WJ. Baris led the Wildcats to a 8-3 record.

Additionally, the track and field team had some fantastic individual performances. Gomerez came second in the state in the long jump and Rees came in fourth in the regional to qualify for the state meet. Freshman Christian Campbell had a break-out year, and was the top freshman finisher in the 400 m at the county meet.

The boys’ volleyball team had a tough season going 3-8. The team benefited from great leadership from senior Ian Morrison. The co-ed volleyball team also benefitted from standout senior Gina Fischetti. Fischetti led the team to a 7-4 record and a playoff birth.

The WJ sports teams all had fantastic years, congrats to all the athletes, great coaches and teams.

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About the Contributor
Ben Resnick, Print Co-Editor-in-Chief
Senior Ben Resnick is Co-Editor-in-Chief for The Pitch print edition. Ben began his career on The Pitch as a sophomore, serving as the online sports section editor and the print assistant section editor he continued in by becoming the sports section editor his junior year. Ben also runs cross country in addition to indoor and outdoor track. When he is not competing, he plays basketball, baseball and street hockey. This past summer, Ben worked in the office of biostatistics at the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. He is excited to help lead a large motivated group of journalists.
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