54 MAY 2022 By Rachael Bouley It’s been a big spring for sports teams at Xavier Prep, with the Gators making a statement in soccer, archery and Spiritline at their competitions. Here’s a roundup of the school’s success at recent championships on the state and national levels. SOCCER Xavier won its 12th soccer state title in the AIA 6A girls soccer state championship, marking the Gators’ 16th appearance in a state championship match in school history. In February, playing against Perry High School on the Campo Verde field, the game went through regulation time, two ten-minute overtimes, and two five- minute quarters before Xavier won 3-2 in penalty kicks. It was a thrilling finish for the team as they went back-to-back at the state champs, one year after bringing home the 6A state title as a fifth seed. Led by Coach Barbara Chura, the Gators went 12-3-2 overall, with a five-game win streak at the end of the season and 68 goals for and just 12 goals against. They finished second in the regular season behind Perry and beat Chaparral 1-0 in the quarterfinals and Liberty 3-0 in the semifinals. Xavier said goodbye to eight seniors at the end of last season, making way for younger players to step up on the varsity squad this year. Sophomore defender Talia Coury and junior forward/midfielder Bella Leonard were two standouts, receiving honorable mentions in Arizona Republic’s All-Arizona girls’ soccer team for the 2021- 22 winter season. Bella, who had a direct kick goal in the quarterfinal win over Chaparral, said the Gators were driven to succeed this season, working hard to earn their spot. “It was a surreal experience. We all wanted to win a state title and come playoff time, we left it all on the field,” Bella said. “We played for each other and never gave up.” ARCHERY Xavier archery was one of the top teams at the 2022 AZ Archery in the Schools State Championships, qualifying for the national tournament in Salt Lake City at the end of April. There were 437 archers from 33 schools overall, with 27 Gators hitting the mark in the high school division. They finished third in bullseye with a score of 3,106 and second in 3D with a score of 1,569. Felicia Fitzgerald took fifth place in the bullseye top 10, with Alexa Ojeda in seventh place. The 3D top 10 included Kylie Cavanagh, Nancy Govea, Olivia Fisko and Isabella Beninato in fifth to eighth place. Coach Kelsey Gerchar said it was awesome to see the Gators do well in both events. “I remember when 3D was first introduced and how so many girls didn’t want to shoot the 3D targets, but now, they love it, and they have higher and consistent scores,” Gerchar said. “For bullseye at the State Championship, the girls were in the zone. You could see their determination and that their end goal was nationals. I am so proud of them!” Despite the challenges of a tough competition and a long season running from September to April, the Gators persevered, with this year marking the first time Xavier took an entire team to the national event. Practices for new and returning archers started in the fall, and tryouts for the competitive team happened in the winter. With a comp and a development team, the coaching staff could support all archers and ensure the most dedicated students were represented at state. “I think another key success was within the coaching staff. We have three USA Archery Level 4 Instructors, and their knowledge and coaching skills help our team have the best form, resulting in higher scores,” Gerchar said. “The coaching staff also are the biggest cheerleaders of the students. We get them excited, help hype them up, remind them to stay positive and have fun.” Junior Kylie Cavanagh credits the encouragement from her teammates and coaches with helping her succeed. “The support from my team helped me want to try even harder and allowed me to achieve personal bests. I was able to increase my skillsets and achieve even higher scores,” Kylie said. “The highlight of the season was us being able to perfect our techniques and grow closer together as archers and as a team.” SPIRITLINE After qualifying for USA Spirit Nationals with a second place finish at qualifiers in January, Xavier Spiritline shined bright at the national event in Anaheim. The Gators competed in five divisions against 20 other varsity schools from across the country. The cheer team had a clean sweep, taking first in every division they competed in. This included the All Girl Stunt event, where five of the team’s top performers completed as many challenging skills as possible in one minute. Their Crowdleader and Medium Varsity Show Cheer routines also impressed the judges and earned them the title of national champions. Coach Monica Gaspar was overjoyed to see all the girls succeed, with a third place finish in jazz and 5th place finish in pom, as well. “The experience was amazing. Though we still had some restrictions, the girls had a great time with each other and all the parents who attended,” Gaspar said. “They will have memories to last them a lifetime!” Spiritline coaches and judges were impressed with the Gators’ determination and execution of every performance. “The key to their success was that they never gave up. These girls had to deal with quarantines and injuries along the way and never lost sight of their goals,” Gaspar said. “They continued to overcome everything thrown at them up until the very end and gave everything they had when they went on the floor.” Senior Kalli Ward embraced every moment of her last season, from cheering on Brophy football to performing on the national stage. “For the first time in a while, we had a completely normal competition season,” Kalli said. “It was so much fun to be back out on the floor doing our favorite thing and showing the judges what we have been working on. Pom and cheer qualified for both state and nationals and put on phenomenal performances.” Xavier Prep enjoys athletic success 2022 Xavier girls soccer team: Savannah Angell, Lucy Brink, Ally Brown, Jayme Brown, Ansley Burns, Michal Cagungun, Sarah Castlen, Talia Coury, Collins Entz, Tatum Kramer, Lourdes Lauterborn, Bella Leonard, Keila Lopez, Tessa Montanile, Hennessy Perez, Madison Schenk, Charlotte Sredzinski, Lainey Swanson, Larkin Thomason, Julianne Veloria, Kate Willmering and Bailey Wolcott. 2022 Xavier pom squad: (back) Arianna Orr, Steel Rodriguez, Ava Calihan, Natalee Lizarraga, Emma Mackay, Sophia Goossen, Kaitlyn Markham. (Front) Grace Helenic, Abbey Zimmerman, Tara Kelly, Coach Taylor, Alex Keppel, Caitie Madden, Adeline Kershner, Natalia Gomez del Campo, Carlee Shilliday and Sabrina Le. (not pictured) Tatum Zerbib. It was a surreal experience. We all wanted to win a state title and come playoff time, we left it all on the field. We played for each other and never gave up. — Bella Leonard, junior forward/midfielder girls soccer

55 MAY 2022 By Mallory Gleich St. Theresa’s softball team is still relatively new to the sport. There was only one team back in 2019 – and before then, only three teams had played in the last nine years. But that only proved to make this year’s teams stronger and more determined – which paid off, as St. Theresa brought home their first softball championship in school history. The group of eighth-graders played 12 regular-season games before heading to the end-of-season tournament, where they played four games against other Catholic schools for the Catholic Youth Athletic Association Championship. “We only had a few practices before the season started,” Coach Eric Dreier said. “We focused on some fundamentals, like ground ball fielding, pop fly fielding, pitching, catching and hitting. We also mixed in some fun Wiffle ball games.” Dreier has much experience in the coaching realm. He also coached youth flag football in Arcadia, was with Arcadia Little League for ten years and coached St. Theresa’s boys flag football, basketball and baseball teams. He also coached the fifth-sixth grade softball team during the 2019 season. “I think a positive coaching environment is key,” he said. “You coach the girls to improve when you see opportunities and praise them when there is excellent effort or outstanding performance. Additionally, I was fortunate to have the help of Shawn Brown and Andy Bandura coaching the team as well – they are both excellent in a coaching environment.” At the championship, St. Theresa’s Broncos played against Our Lady Mount Carmel. In the eighth-grade tournament, eight teams played at both St. Francis Xavier and St. Agnes Catholic School in Phoenix. “It was so fun to play for our school team,” first base and pitcher Reese Brown said. “Our hard work finally paid off!” Angelina Falls was outstanding on the mound, and several other players were instrumental in achieving a successful season. The team was comprised of one eighth-grader and a mix of fifth-seventh graders. Dreier said that the group hit the ball very well throughout the season, too, so they could regularly put some runs on the board. “All players are key players if your team successfully wins a championship – which we did,” he said. According to Dreier, the team had excellent pitching, catching, and timely hitting in the championship game that propelled them to victory. “We played the entire game very consistently and took advantage of a couple of key spots to gain an edge,” he said. “The win was amazing. It was a cool feeling to know we were the first team at St. Theresa to win a softball championship. I think the girls felt it, too, and carried a sense of pride back to school with them for their performance.” There’s a display case at St. Theresa, where the winning team has displayed their first state championship trophy for everybody to see. A banner hangs in the gym for the championship team – a daily reminder of their strength and determination. St. Theresa Broncos bring home first state championship Coach Shawn Brown, Baylor Wand, Milla Meinhausen, Coach Andy Bandura, Adeleine Bandura, Lila Evarkiou, Lexi Brown, Logan Wagner, Reese Brown, Lucy Dreier, Angelina Falls, Annie Dreier, Katie Bizzozero, Coach Eric Dreier and Meredith Schager. PHOTO COURTESY OF SHAWN BROWN By Rachael Bouley A local tradition that brings building design professionals and dog lovers together for a good cause returned to the neighborhood earlier this year. The 8th annual Design for Dogs event was hosted by Facings of America, a tile and stone distributor based in Scottsdale. The organization started the fundraiser in 2015 to benefit the Arizona Animal Welfare League (AAWL). While food and drink, music and raffle prizes were part of the event, all eyes were on the Designer Doghouse competition, which included 11 design and build teams tasked with creating a custom doghouse to attract the attention of judges and furry friends alike. These luxurious abodes were auctioned off to raise money to support AAWL rescue programs, adoptions and vaccine clinics. Local architects, builders, engineers, and interior designers were invited to join in the fun. A few local businesses often partner up as one team, putting their heads together to produce an eye-catching custom pet palace. That was the case for the 2022 Design for Dogs Best in Show winner: Doghouse of Form. The inspiration of modern architecture was brought to life by interior design firm House of Form and woodworkers at Material Matters. The fancy retreat made the biggest impact on the judges and ultimately went to a sweet pup named Rocky. Although Doghouse of Form stood out in the judges’ eyes, there was plenty of worthy competition, including second-place K9-Kuma by Space Bureau and Kaidence Group and third-place Pied-A-Pooch by Lauren Jacobsen Design and NorthLight Construction. HAUS, the custom doghouse made by nvk design, SlabHaus, and Swell Fab, received the People’s Choice Award. In her first time on the Design for Dogs judging panel, local food and travel author Christina Barrueta faced the tough task of evaluating the designs alongside co-judges Peter Deise, L.A. Eidson, and Feras Irikat. The judges were given a list of criteria and features to score, including design, creativity, sustainability, and usefulness. “There was a striking design that scored high in other aspects, but the judges felt that the inside space may have been a little too small,” Barrueta said. “There were also dog houses that companies described as being designed for outdoor use, but we felt there were materials or elements that wouldn’t do well with prolonged exposure to the weather.” Attention to detail, creativity and craftsmanship were the key features judges found in the winners, which offered an ultra- comfortable, stylish and functional space for canines. “Each had elements that may not have been readily apparent to the naked eye, but we learned about those when talking to the designers and builders,” Barrueta added. With another successful Design for Dogs contest in the books and $55,000 raised for AAWL, organizers and participants are already getting inspired for next year’s contest. “All involved, especially the Facings of America team, were welcoming and enthusiastic and made the judging process and fundraiser an entertaining experience,” Barrueta said. “It’s a fun and interactive way to put a spotlight on such a worthy cause while also celebrating our community of talented designers and industry professionals.” designfordogs.org These homes are going to the dogs PHOTO COURTESY OF FACINGS OF AMERICA Best in Show winner: Doghouse of Form. K-9 Kuma, second place. Pied-A-Pooch, third place.