The boys water polo team is currently undefeated in league. The team greatly attributes this season’s success to changes in practice structure and team dynamic under new head coach Gage Unsoeld.

Junior Will Cazares has noticed how Unsoeld’s leadership style has led him to become a stronger and more skilled player.

“He’s teaching us to do these certain techniques in the water and it’s actually been helping me,” said Cazares. “I feel like I’ve gotten a lot faster this season because he’s helped me gain better endurance through all the swim sets that we do.”

Cazares is not the only person to notice a shift in his performance following coach Unsoeld’s leadership. 

“Some of my friends and family have been recognizing that I’ve been doing a lot better this year specifically,” Cazares said.

While the players are proud of their league victories, they share the goal of going far in CIF. Senior Brandon Fan expresses determination to enter the playoffs as league champions.

“We’re excited to play in CIF and are hopeful for a successful run. If we get placed in Division 4, we will definitely have a chance of becoming CIF champions, which would be an awesome end to our senior season,” Fan said.

CIF brackets will be determined after the League Finals concludes on Oct. 22.

The team played Valencia on Oct. 15 and won with a final score of 15-8, celebrating another victory on their Senior Night.

The Fullerton boys cross country team is confident they are on their way to a league champion title. 

With five in the top 11 at their last league meet on Oct. 8 at Central Park in Huntington Beach, the team won with a score of 39 points. Ocean View came in second place 23 points behind them.

Junior Captain Bo Sanderson says their success is a result of the hard work they put in at practice.

“We do lots of hard workouts and then do long runs on Saturdays to help with our endurance.” Sanderson said. “Coach K has been making sure we put in the work and it’s paid off.”

Sophomore Ethan Lueck explains how the team dynamic has helped shape their victories and given them a reason to push themselves- for each other.

“I see how hard the older guys work at practice and it motivates me.” Lueck said. “Having good role models who push you to work harder is important, and I think a big part of why we have been running fast.”

Fullerton has league finals on Nov. 5 where all three boys levels will attempt to defend their first place finish and claim the championship victory.

Even sooner, the team will travel to Oak Canyon Park in Silverado to compete in the Orange County Championships on Oct. 18, where cross country women and men’s head coach James Krawczyk, known as Coach K to his athletes, believes they can score a top 10 finish.

About half way through their season, the girls cross country team is looking strong with multiple athletes running personal bests at the renowned Woodbridge Cross Country Classic.

The team finished in third place in a competitive field, with sophomore Keely Gallagher leading the way with a 14th place individual finish and huge personal best by 25 seconds of 18:27. Gallagher reflects on the preparation and mindset of the team before the race.

“It’s a really big meet, there was a lot of energy because of how many people were there. So I think the stakes were really high for us to do well.” Gallagher said. “There was a lot of hard work that was put in at practice that reflected in our racing, like how our team sticks together.”

The cross country team traveled to Central Park in Huntington Beach on Oct. 8 for their second league meet, with the goal of a first place team finish to put them back in contention for back to back league champion titles after coming in second to Santa Ana High School at their first league meet. Before the meet, Gallagher expressed confidence that Fullerton would outperform Santa Ana come meet day.

“I think it’ll take a lot of hard work, but I think that in the place that our team is right now, we are definitely in line to beat them because of how close it is.” Gallagher said.

Not only did the girls varsity team take first place with a score of 37, but every single level (frosh-soph, junior varsity, and varsity) finished with a win.

After going 0-10 last season, the Fullerton Indians led a great comeback with their initial preseason games, continuing into their league season. The Indians ended their preseason with a 4-1 record including two shutout games against Indio (50-0) and Rancho Buena Vista (39-0).

In the first drive against city rivals Troy High School, senior Caden Wise rushed 45 yards into the end zone after catching a 5 yard pass from junior captain Sergio Andrade. The game ended in a 31-12 loss for the Indians on Sept. 5. 

Coming out of the first season loss, Wise secured his seventh touchdown of the season within week three. Wise has since scored seven more touchdowns bringing his season total to 14 after week seven.

The Tribe had their second league game against Kennedy on Oct. 10, winning in a close 17-14 game.

Students will be decking out in pink this Friday, Oct. 17, for the annual Tackle Cancer football game. The Indians will face off against Marina High School for the third league match-up of the season.

On Oct. 3, Marina faced off against Sunny Hills, ending in an upset loss for the Vikings with a final score of 28-21.

The Indians and Sunny Hills Lancers are closely matched in competition with their identical league and overall records. This upset victory gave the players more confidence for their Friday match-up.

The Indians currently rank second in the Lambda League, tied with Sunny Hills, Kennedy and Marina who all share a 1-1 league record.

The Tribe will continue to rely on its strong defense to keep Marina’s strategic offense out of the end zone.

The girls tennis team maintains an impressive record of 4-1-0, halfway through the season. The team remained undefeated in league up until Oct. 7 in its match against Valencia High School. The Indians lost with a final score of 12-6.

In spite of the larger margin loss, players remain hopeful for their remaining matches.

Sophomore Annette Lee explains her own reason for optimism.

“The more we practice and run different formations, the more confident we are able to play during games, which really contributes to our wins,” said Lee. “And after the first round, we better understand our opponents, so I really feel confident that we can win the second round of matches.” 

The Indians are set to travel to Tustin High School on Oct. 17, continuing onto the second half of their league matches.

The Girls Flag Football team placed first in the Empire League this season, triumphing over competitors and remaining undefeated (12-0).

The team has qualified for playoffs, and is expected to play their first CIF game on Oct. 21. They are expected to participate in division one or two, however the Tribe will receive official results from CIF this Friday.

The Tribe’s most recent win was against Tustin last Monday (Oct. 13) with a 43-7 victory. While the Flag Football team was successful last year—placing 3rd in league— the team attributes their profound success this year to the embracing and collective atmosphere. The team’s attitude creates an encouraging environment, as each member of the team knows their place to contribute.

Junior Maliah Jordan describes the unique ability that each player provides.

“I think that because we can trust each other to do our jobs and perform well, it helps us to be so successful,” she said.

Jordan had an impressive 14 interceptions this season, and hopes to lead her team to victory with a win at the CIF championship game. Last year, the Girl’s Flag Football team lost in CIF finals to Santa Monica (28-6). However, this year, the team anticipates finishing what they started.

Offensive Coordinator Quinten Pounds expresses how the team needs to take full advantage of practices and scrimmages in order to capitalize on their CIF acceptance.

“It’s about how much we can make of the opportunity. It’s gonna depend on how we show up every single day,” Pounds said.

While pushing the team to utilize their practice time, Pounds also notices the intense bond that the team has.

“Everyone just treats each other like sisters. When you have a team like that, it’s just hard to break,” he said.

Freshman Kamila Quintana agrees with Pounds, as she claims that the team’s success stems from the supportive environment.

“We all have such positive energy that we get everyone pumped, I really think that we are all just one big family,” Quintana said.

CIF placement results will be released on Friday Oct. 17.

The girls volleyball team maintained another undefeated season after clinching a win against Westminster High School. Going 11-0-0 in league, the team hopes to maintain their dominant record heading into CIF.

Senior captain Cora Sailhamer says she is proud of her teammates for their unwavering dedication to one another.

“A lot of our starters are young players. Even though we’re a young team, we’ve been great at playing together and learning how to work with one another. It’s important to teach our younger teammates you’re playing for everyone on the court, not just yourself, which they’ve done a great job of,” said Sailhamer.

Last year, the Indians lost the first round in the Division 6 CIF bracket, but this season, they are set to compete in Division 4. In moving up two CIF brackets, the Indians will be faced with tougher competition this time around.

Still, Senior Gabrielle Rodriguez expresses her optimism for this year’s CIF run.

“I’m really hopeful that we will go far, given the strong way we’ve been playing and our team chemistry, I think we have a really good team this year,” Rodriguez said.

This fall, the girls golf team welcomed a record number of student athletes into the program, under new head coach, Mike Guzman.

A total of 16 girls expanded the program into two full teams, varsity and junior varsity, allowing players to get more course time.

The Indians will play host to their closest league competitor, Valencia High School, this Thursday, Oct. 16.

The team lost its league match to Valencia on Sept. 30 by a total of 14 strokes, ending with a final score of 222-236.

Despite it being the team’s first season loss, junior Olivia Woo has high hopes for the team’s second match-up against Valencia.

“This year, we not only have more golfers, but we have more skilled golfers. We’re playing much more competitively compared to last year in that we’re winning by a lot more strokes and also losing to Valencia by a lot less strokes,” Woo said. “We’ll also have the home-court advantage this time around.”

Although it may sound counterintuitive, Woo says that the most important thing for her teammates to remember while going into their most competitive match, is to have fun.

“The less fun I have, the worse I play because I get in my own head and it often translates into my actual swing and more technical things. And I would say that it’s the same for the team. We should all just focus on having fun,” she said.

Along with having fun, Woo acknowledges that taking the time to slow down and focusing on your game is also a crucial aspect for the team.

“Taking a breath and slowing down is so important. When you’re nervous and feel as if there is a lot on the line, things tend to get rushed. And golf is not a game that you should rush.”