Sedona Sweginnis | Sports Editor
November 15, 2024
Charging from the shadows to the spotlight, the girl’s side of Triton athletics has had an impressive showing this fall. Particularly, girls’ flag football and girls’ cross country have earned the great honor of representing their school and town in CIF as a team this fall season; additionally, junior Darla Larson also experienced this honor, golfing as an individual in CIF. While all of the fall sports worked hard this season and found great success, the few that have risen to CIF are programs that are brand new or have received little recognition in the past.
Although boys tend to take the stage in high school sports, many girls’ sports at SCHS have proven themselves to be just as competitive and formidable as their counterparts. Both sides of the sports world at SCHS are incredibly talented and hard-working, bringing honor to their town and teams. With the CIF success of many girls’ sports this fall, San Clemente can take pride in its overall incredible athletics program.
In their first-ever season as a sport at SCHS, girls’ flag football had an incredible season, led by dedicated coaches, Mr. Popovich and Ms. Dimperio. In spite of adversity, the team put in the work and exhibited incredible growth throughout their season to achieve an overall record of 12-11-1, inciting hope for a bright future for this new sport. Against all odds, the team made their way into CIF, where they rose to the occasion and continuously advanced all the way to the CIF championship game, decisively defeating their rival, Beckman, 37-7 along the way. Growing and learning from the season’s rocky start, flag football demonstrated the perseverance and dedication that it takes to truly be a Triton.
Although they unfortunately lost in the extremely close CIF championships, the flag football team surpassed all expectations and brought great honor to their school. Junior Lacy Lou Haggar described how “it honestly felt surreal, knowing that [she] was the start” of an incredible sport. After finishing out the first year of the sport with an incredible CIF season, Haggar explained that “the feeling of being in CIF against all odds” and “was something that [she] will cherish.” Haggar fondly recalled the incredible friendships she gained and recounted “the moment of stepping onto the field holding hands with [her] teammates, knowing how badly [they] wanted that win for [themselves] and for [their] team” in CIF, which she will always remember.
Unlike flag football, Girls Cross Country’s CIF journey is not over yet. The team had a successful season, placing well in many competitive invitationals, as well as placing third in their extremely competitive South Coast League Finals. The team has been training hard all season and is looking towards their aspirations for success in CIF and state. Their CIF Season officially begins today as they take on their CIF Prelims race at Mt. San Antonio College in Walnut, CA.
Looking forward to the upcoming CIF races, senior Ashlyn Caldwell expressed her immense love for her teammates, who have become like a family to her as they near CIF. Caldwell conveyed that she is incredibly “proud of [the team’s] hard work and dedication this season.” As she looked back on all the hard work that the team has put in, Caldwell disclosed that she finds great joy and gratitude in “working toward CIF with such amazing teammates” by her side.
Finally, golf phenomenon Darla Larson swung into CIF as an individual, representing her school and town. After a long season of hard work and perseverance, Larson placed fourth in the incredibly competitive South Coast League Girls’ Golf Individual Finals. With this impressive placing, Larson successfully made it out of league and gained the opportunity to represent San Clemente on one of the biggest stages for high school athletics. Larson brought her team great pride and joy as she represented them in CIF.
Overall, the girls’ side of SCHS athletics put forth a noteworthy fall season, highlighting new and generally recognized sports. The immense success of these teams in CIF demonstrates the depth, talent, and determination that defines Triton athletics as a whole. Congratulations to girls’ flag football, cross country, and golf for their CIF success!
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