6-1. That was the record of the Jesuit Football team after September 22, when the Crusaders started 0-4 for the first time in 30 years. Although they faced the three best teams in Oregon and a top 5 team in Washington, it was definitely not an ideal start for Ken Potter as it was something that he had never experienced before. However, the Crusaders bounced back going undefeated in league play in dominant fashion claiming their tenth consecutive Metro League title. Entering the playoffs, Jesuit had a tough first round game against a very skilled Lake Oswego team, making it a matchup between two of the most storied high school programs in the state. In another classic showdown, Jesuit earned a 34-28 victory after a game sealing interception by senior Matt Eilers. Jesuit’s senior leaders came to play as Jace Burton hauled in 7 catches for 122 yards and one touchdown, Elias Johnson had a kickoff return and a reception for a touchdown, and Lonnie Burt led the rushing attack with 164 yards and one touchdown. The Crusaders would then go on to face the number one seed and state semi finalists, West Linn where they lost in a 59-14 drubbing. Though a disappointing end to a roller coaster of a season, The Crusaders bounced back from a historically bad start, A quarterback battle that went on for multiple weeks and developed an offensive line that returned only one starter. Contributions from quarterback Treynor Cleeland, running back Lonnie Burt, linemen Liam Cassidy and Joey Schuler were all crucial to Jesuit’s success. Looking forward to next season, Potter will have a tall task in replacing arguably the state’s best defensive back core in Eilers and a pair of Washington commits in Johnson and Burton. The vast majority of Jesuits running attack will also be gone as Burt will graduate as well. However, next season should be a positive one for Potter as he returns almost his entire offensive line excluding Liam Cassidy and also his starting quarterback in Cleeland. Keep in mind Potter will almost certainly claim the title of the winningest coach in Oregon State history as he is just 2 games short.

After losing in the state championship game in both 2021 and 2022 Teresa Zimmerlee and the Jesuit Volleyball returned to glory and were crowned as the 2023 state champions. After defeating Oregon City in a 3-2 thriller, the Crusaders finished with a 35-2-2 overall record. Headlined by an elite front court including senior UC Irvine commit Lilly Lansing, Montana commit Emma Williams and sophomore Sadie Ross, the Crusaders were a dominant force on both offense and defense throughout the entire season. Junior and Washington commit Addy Azavedo also played a huge role as the teams libero who swarmed the entire court set up her front court for offensive opportunities. This year’s team was also filled with a stacked group of freshman and sophomores including Ross, Iman Foster, Jada Johnson, and Kiana Johnson who all contributed to the success that this team experienced. The Crusaders also claimed the Metro League championship in dominant fashion and won the Albany state preview tournament. Although players like Lansing and Williams graduate and will not return next year, Zimmerlee is returning a wealth of talent and should be the very early favorite to go back to back next year. Azavedo is in a great position to be a captain next season and players such as Johnson, Ross and Ellie Carroll will play even bigger roles next season.

Finishing with a 14-3-2 record the Men’s soccer team defeated an extremely skilled Aloha team in a game that they were the underdogs in. The Crusaders would later go on to compete in the state championship where they would fall just short to Lakeridge in a 3-2 overtime thriller. Leading 2-1 with just 20 minutes left, Jesuit was dominant for the first 65 minutes of the game. However, the Crusaders gave up two late goals and it was the only game in which they allowed 3 goals in one game. Without Drew Pederson on the offensive side of the ball who plays soccer at Gonzaga University, this year’s men’s soccer team relied a lot on the defensive side of the field as they did not have a dominant attacker or striker. The Jesuit defense and defensive midfield was headlined by a heavy dose of seniors including Kogen Albertini, Griffin Scott, Jack Reding, goalkeeper Elliot Parelius and sophomore Kian Stone. Seniors Pablo Salazar and Logan McGuire took on the scoring role and were able to come up with some clutch goals when they needed it the most. The Crusaders learned early in the playoffs that soccer is unlike other sports in the sense that one goal or possession can end your season. They experienced that early in the first round of the playoffs when they went to PKs when they were favored to win by multiple goals. Led by coach Geoff Skipper, the Crusaders were able to get the best out of all their players by changing game plans and moving players to different positions when needed. With a very large senior class departing, look to Grant Sasaki and Andrew Bromert to be huge contributors and leaders of the team. If Eyad Salhi and Kian Stone decide to return for junior year instead of costing on club ball, they will be huge contributors for a very young Jesuit team this upcoming fall.

At one point ranked number one in the country, The women’s soccer team was a dominant force the entire season, finishing with a 16-1 record, winning almost every game in dominant fashion. The Crusaders would fall in the state quarterfinals in a PK heartbreaker against West Linn. With a team full of division one commits, Jesuit was led by the state player of the year and TCU commit, Abby Cox. Cox’s supporting cast included Kaitlyn Maclennan (Cal Poly), Zoe Anderson (Santa Clara) Sophia Stiles (Rutgers), Claudia Rose (LMU) and star sophomore Marian Dunne. Throughout the season, the Crusaders scored 95 goals and only gave up 6. Although they did not win state, which was their goal, it is important to note how dominant they still were. Jesuit still won the Metro League title, which is never easy to do. With such a star studded junior class returning for their senior year this coming fall, Steve Fennah’s squad will be the heavy favorites next year. With Cox departing to TCU look to Dunne have an even bigger role on the field and to Hanna Slama and Stiles to take on the leadership role for a stacked women’s soccer team looking for revenge.

This upcoming fall, the men’s cross country team will be returning 6 out the 7 varsity athletes that competed in 2023. Led by team captain and Gonzaga commit Caden Swanson, this years team featured Matthew Wroblewski, the freshman 5k school record holder and #2 runner, followed by Coen Strub, Kellen Williams, Brayden Fletcher, Loland Flemming, Eric Schumacher who were all around the same speed and worked really well together. The highlight of the seasons for the men’s cross country team was the Hole in the Wall Invitational, which is a high level meet that is hosted in Washington. Coming into the season their goal was to win state and to make it to the Nike Cross Nationals. The Crusaders fell just short of this goal, but considering how young the team was and how many of the runners are returning next year, they are all very proud of what the team was able to do this year. In a season that did not completely go their way as some injuries were suffered by some of their top runners teh team learned that patience and consistency are the best keys to success. With such a  young team that featured so many talented sophomores on the varsity team this year, everyone learned a lot about trusting the process, continuing to work and then even actually seeing the results. Coach Rothenberger and the senior leaders had a very big role and impact on the team this year. Coaching up the younger runners to where they need them to be doesn’t happen overnight and they will continue to grow and become better athletes every day. The big contributors for next year will be seniors Coen Strub and Loland Fleming along with many of the rising juniors who will continue to make a huge impact on the team.

The women’s cross country team had a very impressive performance at the OSAA state meet. All seven girls placed in the top 24 in the entire state of Oregon. They beat some of their biggest rivals and earned the title of state champions. Three out of their seven girls were first team all state, one was second team all state, two were third team all state, and one was honorable mention. An extremely impressive stat was that they had the lowest score that any women’s Jesuit cross country team has scored at the state meet. Every athlete was very integral to their success, although only seven girls compete at the varsity level, every member of the team helps push each other, work harder and improve every day. Junior Emma Bennett was the most outstanding athlete during this season. While battling injuries, illnesses, and a concussion, she earned the individual title of state champion and led our team to our state championship win. Surprisingly, the team’s goals throughout the season were not as focused on placement in their meets as long as how they executed their races. They  always had specified race plans prior to competing and a lot of it focused on running with one another. As the season progressed, they learned how to race together as a team and what racing strategies work best for each of them. As five seniors graduate this year, all attention will be turned towards Emma Bennett and Maura O’Scannlain. Maeve O’Scannlain and Ellie Welsh were outstanding this season and will only continue to grow as athletes. It is safe to say that the women’s cross country team will be in great hands for years to come.

The Jesuit men’s basketball team accomplished something that they hadn’t done since 2019: Advance to Chiles Center. For a program that has struggled since their 2019 state championship it was important for the Gene Potter led team to have some success. Finishing with an 18-10 record, Jesuit had some impressive wins against teams such as Southridge, the 5A state champions, Summit and Barlow. This year’s team had a balanced roster with a mixture of senior leadership and underclassmen with loads of potential. Tyler Curvy, Nico Rafalovich, and Hudson Rommel headlined a talented senior class. Curvy, a guard, facilitated much of the offense using his elite ball handling and vision. Later in the season he would go on to be a scoring threat whether it be shooting the three or slashing to the basket. Rafalovich was the alpha of this team because he guarded their opponents best player and had the ball in his hands when they needed a bucket the most. Rommel, who originally wasn’t even going to play basketball this year, brought an unexpected spark to the team. With the ability to hit spot up threes and command the defense, Rommel was able to compliment so many of the facilitators by moving off the ball and creating opportunities for himself. Junior Patrick Kilfoil and freshman Isaac Bongen added some flash to the fundamental seniors. Kilfoil was named a captain as a junior which is a huge testament to who he is as both a person and player. Bongen, ranked as a top 25  player in his entire class, was one the first freshman to play varsity for numerous years and showed flashes of greatness, showcasing his athleticism and ability to knock down the three. After a disappointing trip at Chiles Center, the Crusaders have a lot to build on with the likes of Kilfoil, Bongen and Joe Stimpson returning. If Potter can find himself a consistent big man, do not be surprised if the Crusaders compete for a state championship in 2025.

After losing seven seniors last season, the women’s basketball team were crowned as Metro League champions and made a Chiles Center appearance. Filling the shoes of McDonald’s all American and current University of Oregon starter Sofia Bell is not a task to be taken lightly, but the leadership of senior Kendra Hicks combined with an impressive group of sophomores helped the Crusaders finish with a 20-8 record. Losing to West Linn in one of the first games of the season was a tough pill to swallow but prepared them well for the rest of the season. Along with the Metro title, the highlight of this season was a huge win over a Tualatin team that greatly outsized Jesuit. They were able to knock down key shots and defeated the Timberwolves 39-31 in a defensive battle. Other than the group of key sophomores that helped fill the void that graduated seniors left, Audrey Bayless was a key returner who has had previous varsity experience. Bayless always guarded the opponents best players which took a lot of the load off of some of the younger and inexperienced players. On the offensive side of the ball, Bayless was unselfish and could find teammates all over the court. Bayless could also score the ball when needed shooting efficiently from behind the arc. Another key player was Kendra Hicks. Hicks was one of the best posts in the state, holding the record at Jesuit for most rebounds in her career (1000). Hicks was also the team captain and was someone that head coach Jason Lowry could rely on to lead such a young and inexperienced team. After proving a lot of people wrong, and advancing to Chiles, coach Lowry has a lot fo be excited for as he will return sophomores such as Sophia Costarella, Reese Filkins, Amani Lubrano, Lauren Reding, and Anna Mccullagh along with Bayless returning for her senior season. Losing Hicks will be a big loss on both sides of the ball, but with such a talented young core, Jesuit should be back and ready to contend for another run at Chiles Center.

After a narrow loss to Sunset during districts, the Men’s team was able to bounce back and improve their times before the state meet. Winning by only 1.5 points, Seniors Graham Inman and Kadyn butcher secured the majority of individual points and anchored relays which secured the state title. When the season started the goal was to clinch another state championship for back to back titles and they absolutely accomplished that goal. Although swimming is an individual sport, The men’s swim team succeeded by pushing each other to be the fastest swimmers they could be and supporting each other through all of their grueling conditioning and difficult practices. Butcher and Michael Dinh took on the leadership roles and were able to remove the mindset of swimming being only an individual sport. Coach Butcher, the father of Kadyn, had an excellent race strategy and made sure each person knew exactly what they needed to do in order to accomplish their goal of going back to back.

The Women’s team showed dominance through the whole season, winning both districts and a state championship. Led by senior and Arizona commit Sydney Wilson, Crusaders’ Lissette Soto, Stella Stufuentez, Addison Farley all helped to fill up the 200 Freestyle heat and gain a large bulk of points at State. This year’s team was a senior led team who, similar to Butcher and Dinh, took on leadership roles and quickly removed the individual aspect of swimming. Through the leadership of seniors, the team learned how to work together really well. The seniors were excited to be at meets, engaged with the younger swimmers, worked hard, and were incredibly responsible in preparing for big time races. Losing Wilson will undoubtedly be a big loss for Butcher and co, but captains Serena Keene & Leah Woodell, will be ready to take on the new role as leaders of the team as the women’s swim team will look to defend their state title.

The men’s and women’s ski racing had a successful season full of sunny days on the mountain, overnight team bonding and competing at a high level in the Metro League races. Although the weather wasn’t always the clear and sunny days that they had hoped for, all the men and women on the Crusader ski team improved their times and  grew closer as a team after every trip. Key racers for this season included Jack Goldstein and Lucia Daes, both consistently placed in the top 5 at metro league races and had a strong turnout at the state meet. The mens and women’s team both had high aspirations of winning metro. The men’s team fell just short of their goal but with strong performances from Dawes and Lucia Crespo, the women’s team came out on top. After a season ending injury to Jesuit’s best overall racer, Joe Ferguson, placing well at state was going to be very difficult for the men’s team, especially after underwhelming performances from all but Goldstein. The racers learned that in order to experience success, everyone has to contribute equally. For Jesuit, they needed more practices to optimize their training for everyone. Head coach Tanya Stremme impacted the team with better coaching than last year and seniors such as John Jaderholm were fantastic role models for the younger racers Jack Goldstein and both Lucia’s will be the team’s biggest returning contributors next year as they plan to have a better season with better results at the state meet.

With a 14-1 record the men’s lacrosse team has been dominant throughout the entire season, only losing to Dallas Jesuit in a nail biting game during their spring break trip. This year’s team features seven division one commits and one of the most talented senior classes the state has seen in a long time. The offense is led by senior Princeton commit Porter Malkiel and Yale commit Christian Buck. Both players have had multiple years of varsity experience and have been key contributors on the past two state championship teams. This year’s defense is anchored by senior goalie and Hobart commit Brady Smith and is led by captain and senior defender Richie Nadolny. Nadolny brings leadership skills and lacrosse IQ that guides a very talented defense. Nadolny has the most experience out of any defender on this team as he has been a starter since the sophomore year State championship team. The rest of the defense is rounded out with senior Denver commit Jacob Hutchinson and Vermont commit Hudson Lewis. The highlight for the men’s lacrosse team so far was defeating The Woodlands in Houston, Texas. The woodlands defeated the Crusaders last season in embarrassing fashion, but they bounced back this year and beat them 16-5. The team motto this season was “sweep the sheds.” It’s a testament to leaving everything better than they found it, anything from relationships with people to your spot at the dinner table. As a team they aimed to leave the program better, a stronger bond between teammates and setting the team up for success year over year. With nothing on their minds other than accomplishing their goal of winning another state championship and completing the three-peat, the lacrosse team will enter the playoffs as the number one overall seed.

The women’s lacrosse team is looking to win their 4th state championship since 2019 and will have the opportunity to do just that as they will face Lake Oswego on May 23 at Pioneer stadium. With a 16-2 record this year’s team was a team full of talented young players. There were only two seniors this year in Lucy Maddocks and Courtney Vogt. The offense has been led by junior Penn commit Quinny Handley who was named Metro League player of the year and first team Metro League section and Bucknell commit Gigi Abernethy. Losing 13 seniors made a huge difference for this team and they had to almost start over as a program. As a team they made great progress throughout the season with so many new talented young players. The Crusaders did lose to Lake Oswego in a one goal game earlier in the season, so the championship should be a very even matchup. Taylor Stalick has been a huge asset on defense as she leads the defense with her aggressiveness and leads the team in caused turnovers. She is always there to help out the players who need an example of what a strong defender looks like. Georgia Daskalos is a key player on the attacking end, always looking and passing in the tight spaces and looking for the open girl. The team’s goal this season was to make it to state and win the state championship. The senior leaders have impacted the team tremendously with their work ethic and attitude showing the young players how to be great players on and off of the field. Lauren Lakey is fortunate to only lose two seniors next year after this year, so there will be loads of talent on the team next spring. Expect Abernethy, Handley, Daskalos and Stalick to take over the leadership role. The Lakey led crusaders have had a very successful season and will look to cap it off with yet another state championship.

The Jesuit baseball team only returned one starter from last season and finished with a 19-9 record. With Noble Meyer getting drafted to the Miami Marlins and Ty Alleman now pitching at Santa Clara, it was senior Mickey McClaskey’s turn to take over as the team’s ace. In a completely new pitching rotation, junior Johnny Ingalls and seniors Julius Christensen and Jacob Bishop were key in some of the impressive wins. The highlight of the season  so far would be the win against number one West Linn early on in the season. It proved to other teams in the state that they are a legit contender and proved to themselves that they can play with anyone. Some key players other than the new pitching staff include Brode Lyman and Carter Stewart. They both rotated at catcher replacing Charlie Sturm and Brock Leitgeb. Both Stewart and Lyman have been valuable bats whether Lyman is DH or Stewart is at first base. After an injury to the loan returning starter, Kainoa Santiago, senior Preston Miller has not only stepped up as a valuable hitter but also as a key asset at center field. Another player that has stepped up tremendously is sophomore infielder and closer Jake Rolling. Rolling has been a valuable closer that coach Colin Griffin has been able to rely on to close out the 7th inning. He is the only sophomore in the starting lineup and his potential is through the roof. Coming into the season, the goal was to win the Metro League championship. They knew it would be a challenge with such a skilled Sunset, and ultimately came a few games short that were decided by 1-2 hits each. After a huge win against number two ranked south Salem, the crusaders moved up from the 7 seed to the fourth seed. They defeated Sheldon in the first round of the playoffs and will now face Sandy in the second round of the playoffs on May 22.

Finishing with an 19-8 regular season record, the Jesuit softball team is poised to make a deep run in the playoffs. With a 10-0 win against Newberg in the first round of the playoffs, the Crusaders will face Southridge on May 22. The Crusaders went on a 9 game winning streak during metro league play to conclude the season going into the playoffs with lots of confidence and finished second in a very talented league. Another impressive game that they experienced was an extra inning thriller against the number two ranked Oregon City where they fell short 4-3. The record of 19-8 really summarizes the Crusaders season by highlighting their struggles in the beginning of the season, being that most losses occurred then, which overall shows the improvements and adjustments they have made as a team. Offensively, Sam Blachly and Mary Cunningham have led the team with hits. They collected 20 home runs between the two of them, as well as 83 hits, 51 runs, and 64 RBI’s. Makenna Boynay and Aubrey Rhodes, the teams’ pitchers, have played key roles in the defensive success. Boynay recently hit 100 strikeouts on the season. The team’s main goal was to improve throughout league play to be better prepared for playoffs. They lost 3 league games early and then picked themselves up and didn’t lose another game. One of their losses was to Southridge but would later face them again, shutting them out 16-0. Next year as team captain Mary Cunningham will graduate and play college softball at Kansas City, Blachly will likely take over as team captain as Jim Speciale and his team will be poised to win the Metro League title.

The men’s track and field team are Metro League champions and had an impressive showing at both the state meet and Twilight relays. The atmosphere at Twilights is always super energetic, and it’s always been a meet the entire team looks forward to. The Crusaders however slightly struggled at some of the earlier meets. A lot of times in track it takes a few meets to get under runner’s belt until they can start running at their full potential, but it is important to note that they kept improving every single meet and were able to accomplish their goal of winning the League title. The men’s also went undefeated this season, winning every single meet, oftentimes by a large margin. The part of the team that was most critical to their success was the 4×4 squad and  hurdlers as they were dominant at every meet gaining lots of points for the team. The distance team is always dominant and makes big contributions every year so it was a huge step that the sprinters were able to step up to the challenge and experience success. Sprint seniors Landon Lagasen and James Timmins had great contributions all year and both competed at the state meet. As the season progressed the team learned a lot about patience. The team accepted every challenge and overcame adversity after struggling at the beginning of the season.

The Men’s Golf team were recently crowned as state champions after a narrow win against Lake Oswego at Quail Valley. With an impressive third place finish from senior Mason Zimmerman, the Crusaders were able to pull away by a 4 shot margin. The golf team was not always dominant however, as they lost the first two Metro events to Westview and started the season down 0-2. The team morale quickly went down as they felt the season was slipping and knew changes needed to be made. This year’s varsity team included first team all Metro selections Jack Harrington, Grady Brown, Mason Zimmerman, second team selection Joseph Ulrich and senior Evan Post. Their goal was to go into every tournament with a good mentality and confidence. Overall they wanted to win metro as a team which they did for the 18th year in a row. The ultimate goal was to win a state title which they did for the tenth time in program history tying Lake Oswego for most in the state. Coach Matthew Schulte did an amazing job in his first years as coach for the program. Schulte would have the team go to his classroom during school break and do lots of film sessions. Looking forward to next year Jack Harrington and Joseph Ulrich will both be some of the top five best players in the state come next year. Furthermore, guys like Athan Kandy, Cameron Fagan, and Will Burke will have to show up next year and keep improving every day .

The Jesuit Women’s Golf team entered the season looking to defend their state title from last year when they won at Trysting Tree Golf Club in Corvallis. With junior Kate Lee leading the team, she was eventually crowned as the 2024 individual state champion, along with the team finishing third overall. Longtime head coach Laurie Wagner returned for another year to lead the team and continued to develop their young roster as multiple seniors such as Anna Poulin, Quinn Burke, and Beth Milne have gone off to college in the last two years. After an impressive turnout at the state tournament the team also featured Milla Ptel, Cecili Hayes, Amelia Kim and Elle Jagger. Lee, the overall champion finished with scores of 70 and 71. The Crusaders did not have a single senior on the varsity team this year, so next season, they should be early favorites to win the state championship. With Lee returning for one more year, she should be poised to defend her title.

The men’s tennis team is currently undefeated and are metro champions as they enter the state tournament. With high aspirations to win a state championship, this year’s team has a plethora of senior leadership to contend for a banner. This year, the crusaders have won ever single dual meet match by at least 7-1, displaying the team’s true dominance in the state and the depth from top to bottom.  Key players include seniors Reif Larsen and Surya Panyam at singles and doubles teams that feature Tristan Hernandez and Aaron Yan, Alex tran and Logan Aman, and Ishan Ahluwalia and Justin Ebramsyah. All these players will be playing in the state championship tournament where they will be competing for the state final. At the state final, every team’s points will be crucial to the team’s high aspirations of victory. Throughout the season, the tennis team has learned that being competitive in practice and competing against their own teammates is crucial to a successful team. Oftentimes during matches, many of their teams did not get the best practice against high level teams in dual meets, so competing against other Jesuit players has helped everyone improve and get ready for harder competition in state. Someone to keep an eye for next year to step up is Tristan Hernandez. Hernandez is one of the top players this year that  will most likely be the number 1 on the team by the time next spring comes around.

The women’s tennis team are metro league champions and are poised to have an impressive run at the state tournament. Some of the key players on the team include Carissa Gerung, Sabrina Larsen, Kitty Ayotte and Kate Paine. All of these players qualified for state this year and have been great leaders to the underclassmen who competed as well. Senior and Cal Tech commit Carissa Gerung has been labeled as the team’s MVP because of her combination of talent on the court and leadership off the court. The Crusaders did not lose during metro league matches, however some individual losses were frustrating. Entering the season the team had a goal in mind to win Metro and districts and they accomplished both of those goals in very dominant fashion. Hall of fame coach Kirsten Ruchaber had a team with lots of talent this season and has taught her team about mental toughness. The team experienced some tough moments on the court where they got in their heads and forgot to play their game. Ruchaber recognized this early and helped her team overcome adversity. With Carissa Gerung as the lone senior, she’s taught the team what it means to have setbacks and how to push through those during matches. Next year, with 4 juniors on the team and two already being captains this year, Ruchaber will turn to them to become even better role models and stronger players to replace such a talented player in Gerung.