Girls’ Cross Country (Alex Bedore)
The girls’ cross country team had a pretty good season as they started as an unranked team, but ended up competing in their sectional and eventually having one runner compete at the Illinois State Championship.
The girls’ experienced a tremendous amount of growth over the course of the season.
“Last year we did not qualify as a team in our very difficult regional to sectionals, we were able to do so this year.” varsity head coach Eric Anerino said.
Qualifying for IHSA Regionals and Sectionals was a good accomplishment for the team, as they got closer to making their ultimate goal of IHSA State.
“We were only 14 points out of qualifying as a team to make it to state,” Anerino said. Going to State has been the girls’ goal for many previous years, but taking that little step forward was a step in the right direction.
The expectations for the next season remain the same. “State will always remain the goal, as well as being competitive,” Anerino said.
Boys’ Cross Country (Tyler Perry)
The boys’ cross country team was very excited about a new opportunity to do better than the previous season.
”Their morale was a lot better than it has been impassionate I think that's improved a lot. We have a really good group of guys right now that have great work ethics are working,” senior Jack Coyle said.
From Lincoln Park in Downtown Chicago to Detweiller Park in Peoria, the team has traveled all around northern Illinois for their meets. The Mustangs were primarily led by junior Mamadou Diallo who had multiple three-mile runs in under 17 minutes. He was able to make it to the St. Charles East Sectionals.
Boys’ Golf (Jose Collado)
The varsity team was represented in a phenomenal way this season, thanks in large part to sophomore Arjun Vyas’ success throughout the season.
The Mustangs had four players go to sectionals, of which one made it to state. This marked the first time in school history that a player made it to state, which was a massive accomplishment for the golf program.
“Our biggest accomplishment as a team this year was being extremely competitive in our conference, we had different players step up on a match to match basis. We had some ups and downs, but definitely more ups, as well as many individual accomplishments,” said varsity head coach Pat Brusveen.
The team was able to stay competitive the entire season, even though a lack of individual consistency at some points. All in all, it was a big year for the golf team and surely one that will have an impact on the future of the program.
Football (Alex Bedore)
Metea’s football team had a rough year in their 2019 season, ending with one win and eight losses. There was a lot of change this year with a new head coach, John Parpet, which lead to a brand new style of coaching for the players. Some seniors graduated, which made several changes in various positions.
Though their record was sub-par, the team’s growth and experience grew substantially. “We started clicking offensively, we had only three players that came back to play varsity,” varsity head coach John Parpet said. They had little experience when the season started, but the team grew together as the season continued.
Though the season had a lackluster finish they did accomplish some goals. “The number one goal coming in was to be competitive, there's a lot of small things that go into that, but I think we accomplished the goal,” Parpet said.
From the football team’s growth and struggles, they now have a few expectations. “The expectations going into 2020, are to win,” Parpet said. We will see if these predictions come true in the 2020 season.
Girls’ Golf (Tyler Perry)
“The highlights of the season was seeing the girls continually get better and better with practice. We were seeing their averages go down and down and just seeing better golf,” assistant coach Collin Hayes said.
The coaches were very pleased with the team this year as they were able to meet his expectations in such a hard conference.
“[The main goal] was shooting better than the week before,” Hayes said. “[For] every single girl, their average was lower than what they started with.”
Despite all the improvement from the players, the team did ultimately have a rough season this year. When they went to IHSA Regionals, they sadly couldn’t make it far but we can hope for a wonderful season next year.
Boys’ Soccer (Jose Collado)
The Metea Valley High School boys varsity soccer team ended the season on a high note at the IHSA awards, despite a disappointing result to end their season prematurely.
“The season went well, we graduated 15 seniors [last season] so I think there was some nervousness about how well we were going to play. Thankfully, the group of returning players took on a huge leadership role and got us on the right track right away,” head varsity coach Joshua Robinson said.
The boys’ season was full of highs and lows, but the team displayed unity and passion throughout the entire season. The Mustangs were victorious in the St. Charles Invite as well as the Warstang invite, marking the first time in school history that the team won two tournaments in the same season. They displayed the evolution and growth of the program and continued to create hope for the upcoming season.
Girls’ Swim and Dive (Elena Buscher)
The girls’ swim and dive team had a successful season filled with multiple first place finishes and team records. This season brought many returning faces to the varsity team, proving they’re a force to be reckoned with. This also called for a stronger team bond.
“I noticed that the team atmosphere has been the best of all four of my years,” senior Lanie Patterson said.
The team knew there were multiple opportunities to succeed. It made them stronger and swim harder. Having teammates cheer each other on gives the swimmer more motivation to win. They not only want to do it for themselves but for their team. This quality was demonstrated this season in their success in the postseason.
“We always know that [going to] state is not given,” Patterson said. “We had high expectations this season for state and we matched them.”
They brought six swimmers to the state tournament at New Trier High School. At state, they competed in four individual races and three relay events. State qualifiers include Aimee Patterson, Lanie Patterson, Kellie Willhite, Lucy Siwicki, McKenna Stone, and Laurel Bludgen.
Overall the girls’ swim and dive team had a successful season this year and are eager to see how they can be even better next year. The girls’ worked extremely hard for their success, and their hard work definitely paid off.
Girls’ Tennis (Leland Pan)
The Mustangs closed out on their season with a 2-3 conference record. In total, the team graduated 9 seniors After their regular season, the team sent doubles Isabella Palm and Taylor Goldman (13-6), and singles player Meera Baid (14-4) to IHSA State. Overall, there were hidden gems each player gained this year.
“Being able to work together was one of the things that got us the furthest. Our doubles chemistry of being able to pick each other up helped us a lot throughout [this season],” Goldman said.
Team chemistry was not only important for game plans. From the early morning practices to celebrating Senior Night, it was a vital factor in keeping the team close and connected.
“I’ve learned how much the team matters and how much we help each other out even though [tennis] is an individual sport. I’m playing tennis in college so I’m definitely going to carry through [teamwork] and have a good bond with everyone,” Goldman said. “Do not put yourself first, put the team first. Enjoy being there with everyone. Even if you are better than them, they are still very important,” Goldman said.
The future of the team will consist of fresh faces. With Goldman and Palm’s departure, they and seven seniors lay a path in continuing to build the strong team chemistry.
“They just need to refine their chemistry because every year you lose players and gain new ones,” Palm said. “Focus on actually working hard when you need to, but also realize that they are all team players rather than individuals.”
Girls’ Volleyball (Elena Buscher)
The girls’ volleyball team did not end their season without a fight. They finished this year off with sophomores Morgan Rank and Regan Holmer being named All-Conference, as well as juniors Keira Jannisch and Emily Day being named Special Mention All-Conference. This success is attributed to their season.
“This season was like a rollercoaster,” senior Cora Ondrus said. “We improved a lot from last season’s record and took a lot of steps forward.”
Despite the win or lose, the girls never stopped fighting. They practiced hard every day and competed in multiple matches a week. This hard work was demonstrated in the stand-out moments of the season.
“We won the Willowbrook Tournament for the fifth year in a row which was a big highlight for us,” Ondrus adds. “Another was our regional game. Even though we lost it was still the best fight that we have ever put up.”
Despite the outcome, this team improved from day one. Their strongest game was their last, and they are still extremely proud of their efforts.
Ultimately, despite the quick end to the season, the girls’ volleyball team never gave up. Their perseverance granted a few players a spot in All-Conference and a fantastic finish. The team is excited to see what next year brings for them.