This school year’s athletic programs started off with a blast, as 3 out of the 6 sports played in the fall won their League titles. These sports include football, boys water polo, and girls tennis. Battling their way to the top, each team earned their first place title, and would go on to compete in their respective CIF tournaments.
Barely securing their spot in a CIF tournament last year, the football team was ready to come back the next season, prepared to give it their all for a CIF championship. Unfortunately, the Titans would be faced with a wretched situation, as the team now was in need of new coach management. Luckily Nate Turner, former NFL running back who played for the Buffalo Bills and Carolina Panthers, would come to the rescue. Coach Turner would bring on his hand picked staff to train and condition the football team into an unstoppable force. In the football team’s 5 regular season games, they would outscore their opponents 153-60 and a record of 4-1. Also having a record of 4-1 in League games, the Titans easily would easily win first place and continue to fight on in CIF where their season was sadly ended against the Redlands. When wide receiver JJ Wilson,11, was asked how he deals with the stress of playing in a CIF game, he stated, “Just trusting all your hard work will help you succeed and stay calm in those stressful moments.”
Water polo, similarly to the football season, would also start off hot, winning their first four games of the season. Leading the team, co-captains Daniel Chen,12, and Howard Huang,12, would be crucial parts to the team’s success, guiding the team through hardship and victory alike. In this successful 2024 season, the water polo team would face off against many formidable opponents like Flintridge Prep and Crescenta Valley, two schools renowned for their athletic programs, but ultimately the Titans would come out on top, defeating these two schools over hard fought battles. Being a former Titan Elite Scholar Athlete, an award given to student athletes with a gpa over 3.9, Nathan Chan,11, was asked how he manages to keep up with his school work and grades while playing sports. He responded, “To be able to excel in and out of the pool, I make sure to put in enough time and effort by working and studying with classmates and managing my time to perform well academically and athletically.” The water polo team would eventually have a rematch with Crescenta Valley in a CIF game, where they would easily beat them for the second time with a score of 18-8. Sadly, the 2024 Water Polo season would come to an end, after losing Downey High School by a mere two points.
The last team to win their League was Girls Tennis. Throughout neighboring cities, San Marino is known to have an exemplary Tennis program and team, having great seasons one after the other; this year’s team definitely did not disappoint. The Girls Tennis Team went undefeated in League, sweeping every team including our rivals, South Pasadena, 18-0. At the end of the season they had a staggering score of 163-17 in League, meaning on average they lost one and a half sets per match. This years team was dominate and continued on San Marinos reputation of having one of the best Tennis Programs in the area. These three teams had remarkable accomplishments for the community, establishing San Marino as a school renown for not only it’s academics but also for it’s sports.
