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Local High School Sports Teams Return to Action

Photo courtesy Jennifer Godwin-Minto
Poly held its first official high school athletics event last week, hosting Flintridge Prep in an outdoor volleyball match played on grass. The Panthers’ water polo teams also played matches against the Wolves in the pool.

It’s been a long journey for administrators, coaches and athletes, but high school sports are officially back in Pasadena.
Cross-country teams began running after being given the green light by state and county officials, and some schools have set up volleyball nets outdoors to give players an opportunity to play while adhering to health orders.
Mayfield Senior held its first sporting event in 358 days last Thursday, hosting San Marino High School and Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy to outdoor volleyball matches. The sight of volleyball players competing outdoors while wearing masks was strange, but Cubs Athletic Director Steve Bergen was just glad to give the athletes a chance to play, even if it is a shortened season with no playoffs or championships.
Continue reading “Local High School Sports Teams Return to Action”

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FSHA, St. Francis Cross-Country Teams Are Running Again

Photo courtesy FSHA Athletics
The Flintridge Sacred Heart varsity girls’ cross-country team opened the fall sports season at Sherman Oaks Notre Dame on Feb. 13. Izzy Mozillo won the three-mile race with a time of 21 minutes, 51.5 seconds.

The Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy and St. Francis High School cross-country teams participated in Mission League dual meets last Saturday, marking the official beginning to the much-delayed fall season.
Other schools will certainly follow suit after Los Angeles County gave the green light for schools to host inter-team competitions for cross-country, swimming, tennis, and track and field as long as students and coaches adhere to health and safety guidelines.
The Tologs traveled to Sherman Oaks to face Notre Dame High School and fell to the Knights, 24-31. Izzy Mozillo of FSHA led all runners in the three-mile course with a time of 21 minutes, 51.5 seconds. Teammate Annie Ramirez finished fifth with a time of 23:49.9 and Emily Wong wasn’t far behind to place sixth with a time of 24:47.1. Eva Lopez finished in 25:13.2 to place ninth, Morgan Birkett was 10th with a time of 25:23.3, Bridget Byrne crossed the finish line in 26:50.6 to place 11th, Josie Perkins was 12th with a time of 27:38.4, Abigail Blea finished in 27:44.1 for 13th place and Campbell Buffington placed 16th with a time of 29:36.8.
d off [during the winter surge of COVID-19 cases]. There’s always that nervousness in the first race, but once the girls ran, they just had a good time. It was really nice to see them run.”
Continue reading “FSHA, St. Francis Cross-Country Teams Are Running Again”

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FSHA Holds Special ‘Time Capsule College Parade’

Flintridge Sacred Heart’s seniors had a twist added to the school’s traditional car decorating and Time Capsule Picnic events when the Alumnae Association helped host a Time Capsule College Parade in the social distancing era of COVID-19. Students showed their college spirit by decorating their cars, and they also received their alumnae gift bag, graduation dress, cap and gown during a parade of automobiles which ran between FSHA’s two parking lots. The celebration was “a great collaboration of many of the departments at the school, including Alumnae Relations, Facilities and Security, and High School Administration,” said Carmella Grahn, FSHA’s director of Advancement and Planning, who teamed with Breeana Koemans, the director of Alumnae Relations & Special Events.
“We wanted to celebrate the seniors,” said Grahn, noting that students were required to stay in their decorated cars while school personnel put each girls’ pick-up items in the auto’s trunk. “There were a lot of tears of joy, laughing…just an outpouring of emotions. It was really special; there was a lot of love. The students didn’t want to leave.”
FSHA President Sister Carolyn McCormack and Principal Sister Celeste Botello were joined by approximately 50 other school employees and teachers to honor the graduating seniors. There were also surprise appearances by first responders from the local Fire Department and Crescenta Valley Sheriff’s station.

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FSHA Teen Wins Coveted Place on Rose Court

Emilie Risha, a senior at Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy, was named to the 2020 Tournament of Roses Royal Court this week.
Photo courtesy Rachel Russell / Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy
Emilie Risha, a senior at Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy, was named to the 2020 Tournament of Roses Royal Court this week.

Homegrown in La Cañada Flintridge, Emilie Risha bloomed before elated locals this week as she was named to the Tournament of Roses 2020 Royal Court, earning distinction as one of seven young women who will serve as ambassadors of the storied organization.
A senior at Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy, Risha credited growing up in LCF as an important step in her journey to being chosen for the Rose Court honor.
The 17-year-old LCF resident went to the local public elementary and middle school before attending FSHA as a high schooler.
“I think being in La Cañada and the Sacred Heart community has really helped uplift me, and the faculty members are so devoted to students at both schools — in La Cañada and Sacred Heart — that I just feel so supported and loved and raised up in my respective communities,” Risha said. Continue reading “FSHA Teen Wins Coveted Place on Rose Court”

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Equestrian Show Jumper Clears Significant Hurdle

Sloan Elmassian
Photo courtesy Captured Moment Photography
Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy graduate Sloan Elmassian, an LCF resident who gained recognition as a student athlete from her university, is shown riding her horse Centurion.

Sloan Elmassian, a 2017 graduate of Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy who grew up in La Cañada Flintridge, is redefining the notion of the student athlete at the University of San Diego while remaining passionate to educate others about equestrian events such as show jumping, in which she specializes.
Elmassian is a professional equestrian who was able to get the university to revise its policy to include members of her sport — and others who qualify — as student athletes if they are able to produce a letter from a training federation recognized by the Olympics to qualify for that famed athletic competition. Continue reading “Equestrian Show Jumper Clears Significant Hurdle”

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Four Softball Players Considered For All-State

Vivian Wheeler
Polytechnic’s Vivian Wheeler is nominated for All-State honors.

Softball athletes from Polytechnic, Maranatha High School, Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy and Westridge were among those nominated by Cal-Hi Sports for All-State honors.
Cal-Hi Sports, an online publication that covers major high school athletics in California, recognizes athletes by releasing an All-State list at the end of the season. Continue reading “Four Softball Players Considered For All-State”