Lacrosse

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – Twelve St. Francis seniors have committed to play a sport in college during the spring signing period that started Wednesday and were celebrated at a ceremony at the school today. Overall, 17 St. Francis student-athletes from the Class of 2017 have made commitments or signed a National Letter-of-Intent this year.

The Troubadours made commitments to schools including Duke and Stanford and several California schools from American River College to UC San Diego. The Troubies will travel as far as away as New Hampshire to play softball at Saint Anselm.

RANCHO CORDOVA, Calif. – Senior Grace Passantino had four goals and sophomore Jade Borg and junior Juliette Vielhauer each added three goals as the St. Francis lacrosse team posted a 19-2 win over Bella Vista.

The Troubadours recognized their six seniors in a ceremony before the game, including Sarah Brust, Emily Bish, Kismit Gill, Avery Myers, Passantino and Sarah Westover. SF built a 13-1 lead in the first half and cruised to the victory. The Troubies improved to 7-3 and 3-1.

Sarah Westover is in her fourth season with the St. Francis lacrosse program. She has scored 101 goals in her career after her six-goal performance against Palo Alto on Tuesday. She has signed to play next year at USC. She has chickens, horses, two dogs and used to have a turkey named Fred.

How is your senior season going?
“It is going really good. Senioritis is really kicking in. This season has been awesome. We have really been taking it and dominating. I am really looking forward to college.”

Avery Myers is in her second season with the varsity lacrosse program after playing two seasons with basketball. She averaged 6.7 points per game as a sophomore. She saw action in 12 games last season, recording 11 ground balls and five takeaways. Avery’s sister, Miranda, graduated from St. Francis in 2015 and runs at Northern Arizona.

How is your senior season going in your second season with lacrosse?
“It is going pretty well. My stick skills are improved but I am still out of shape. That will pass with time.”

Emily Bush will be playing in her fourth season on the varsity in 2017 and has scored 17 career goals. She will be attending the Naval Academy in the fall. She has been to Guam five times in her life, visiting family on her mother’s side. She has an older brother and sister.  

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. – Sophomore Jade Borg and senior Sarah Westover combined for nine goals to lead the St. Francis lacrosse team to a 13-4 win over St. Francis Mountain View Friday night in the first game of two-day trip to the Bay Area.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – St. Francis senior Sarah Westover has committed to play lacrosse at USC and will sign with the Trojans on Nov. 9.

“This year after my official visit and being in the life of USC, I am really excited to get there and experience it,” said Westover, who originally committed to the Trojans as a sophomore. “They are such a family. They are all about winning as well as your well-being.”

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – St. Francis Catholic High School has earned recognition as one of 88 schools of distinction from the NFHS Network for the efforts of the Sports Media Club in producing TroubieTV.

TroubieTV produced 58 events in 2015-16 including games and contests from the sports of basketball, golf, lacrosse, soccer, softball, volleyball and water polo. They also showcased the three St. Francis National Letter-of-Intent celebrations, the Homecoming Pep Rally and International Night among the other broadcasts.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – St. Francis High School and the Troubadour Athletic Department will partner with SportsLeader over the next four years to implement their Catholic virtue-based formation program for coaches.

“In offering athletics programs at St. Francis we seek to use sport as a context for physical, intellectual, and spiritual growth,” said Athletic Director Mark McGreevy. “Our partnership with Sports Leader represents a continuation of that great Troubie tradition in a very intentional way.”

FAIR OAKS, Calif. – The celebration had to wait a week but it still was a special night for the nine St. Francis lacrosse seniors who played their final regular season game Friday night, defeating Bella Vista 18-5.

“Senior night meant a lot because this is four years wrapped up in a game,” said Erika Palmer. “Even though we started slow in the beginning, we finished out so strong. It made me so happy and proud of my team.”

Marin Anderson is a fourth-year lacrosse player who is a two-year letter winner for the Troubadours. She is considering Portland, Seattle and Montana for school next year. She plans to study chemistry. Her favorite movie is Forrest Gump.

What does graduating from St. Francis High School mean to you?
“It is a great accomplishment.”

Have you made any college plans?
“I probably will be attending the University of Portland. 

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – Junior Sarah Westover scored in overtime to give St. Francis a 10-9 win over Christian Brothers.

“It is the most satisfying feeling in the world,” said Westover. “We worked so hard and there were a bunch of weird calls. The fact that we were able to capitalize and get the ball back and finish to the end was so satisfying.”

MATHER, Calif. – St. Francis fell to Granite Bay on Tuesday 20-8 at Mather Sports Complex. Junior Sarah Westover scored three times for the Troubadours and Grace Passantino and Meg Anderson added two goals each in the loss.

“I think we worked really hard,” said Meg Anderson. “But we still need to practice harder and push each other so we can improve on both ends offensively and defensively so can come out stronger next time.”

Megan Hoffeditz began playing lacrosse freshmen season and is in her fourth season with the St. Francis program. She is planning to become a Creighton Blue Jay and study nursing. She enjoys her job at Jamba Juice and shopping.

Why have you been attracted to lacrosse?
“I used to play volleyball and soccer and I was just a player on the field. With lacrosse, we are a team and it is not just one person. It is the whole team that matters. We are big on making the whole team better rather than make the one star on the field.”

NAPA, Calif. – Jade Borg scored five goals and Maggie Anderson added four in a 17-8 victory over Justin-Siena Tuesday night.

Borg scored five goals and added two assists. Grace Passantino led the team with three assists. Mia Bonini and Erika Palmer both had multiple-goal games and Meg Anderson and Megan Hoffeditz tallied scores in the game.

Palmer and Passantino led the team with five and four ground balls, respectively. Meg Anderson was efficient on the draw, controlling 4 out of five, while Maggie Anderson recorded 8 out of 12.

Kelly Chavez is a senior on the St. Francis lacrosse team. She is still waiting to hear back from colleges but hopes to study economics at a school in the South. She has been inspired by her service trips and hopes to return to make a difference.

What do you want to make out of your final months at St. Francis?
“I want to make memories with my friends and hang out even on school nights.”

PLEASONTON, Calif. – The St. Francis lacrosse team had a great team effort in a 10-9 overtime loss to Foothill Saturday afternoon to close out a two-game Bay Area road trip.

St. Francis (2-5) got goals from six different players in the loss. Junior midfielder Sarah Westover scored three goals and added an assist and freshmen Jade Borg had two goals and two assists. Senior Maggie Anderson tallied three points with a goal and two assists.

EL DORADO, Calif. – Oak Ridge posted a 13-6 win over St. Francis Tuesday night in a Sacramento Valley Lacrosse League matchup.

The Trojans out-scored the Troubadours 9-2 in the second half to pull away after the teams were tied at 4 at the half.

Meg Anderson, Erika Palmer, Maggie Anderson and Jade Borg scored in the first half. The teams were tied at 5 after Sarah Westover scored in the second. But Oak Ridge scored eight unanswered goals  to pull out the win. Emily Bush scored late to cut the final margin to 7.

Assistant AD Kelly Ketcham conducts inPACT testing on all freshmen, juniors and new players in the sports of volleyball, soccer, softball, diving, track and field (pole vault) and lacrosse. The ImPACT test is open to all students. Contact Kelly for more information. 

Here is the spring sports testing schedule:

Monday, February 15 (MEET IN GYM FOYER)

1-2 p.m. SOCCER

2:30-3:30 p.m. LAX

Wednesday, February 17 (late start day meet in room 333)

Spring sports start on Feb. 8 for the sports of lacrosse, soccer, softball, swimming and diving and track and field. Please have your daughter’s current physical on file with the athletic department to insure her participation in the first day of tryouts. The physical must be on the form on the school website. You can find it here.

DIVING: Practice starts on February 15: 3:00-4:30 p.m. at Capital Diving. Workouts the rest of the season (2/22-4/27) will be M/W/F from 3:30-5:00 p.m.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – Former college basketball coach and athletic director Stan Morrison was the keynote speaker for the St. Francis athletics department retreat in August 2015. Morrison started his coaching career at El Camino High School before embarking on a career that would include head coaching jobs at Pacific, USC, San Jose State Basketball coach and as the AD at both UC Santa Barbara and UC Riverside.

Morrison had several messages for the Troubadour coaches intertwined among his tremendous coaching experiences and stories that highlighted his talking points.

LINCOLN, Neb. – MacKenzie Campbell ’14 recently accepted a paid internship with the University of Nebraska Huskers Marketing department. She was selected for one of seven positions out  of more than 100 applicants and was one of only two freshmen and the only freshman girl. She will be coordinating the marketing for the Huskers nationally-ranked volleyball team, nationally-ranked women’s gymnastics and men’s gymnastics teams this fall. She also will be working events for the football and game day on the field. 

Maddie Merwin is the face of St. Francis High School as the SBO President and she is the goalie for the varsity lacrosse team. Merwin lived in England growing up and got two questions from her classmates 1. Did she like President Bush? 2. Did she know John Travolta. She has a colorful personality that has sometimes shown in her hair color. 

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – The St. Francis lacrosse team lost a 14-8 game to Amador Valley Saturday at the Mather Sports Complex.

Senior Hayley Kusserow scored three times for the Troubadours but had a hard time containing senior Jackie Gilbert, a USC commit, who scored nine goals in the game.

Amador Valley, ranked as the No. 5 team in Division I in California by LaxPower and one of the Best of the West by US Lacrosse, also got two goals by Sadie Grozier.

PALO ALTO, Calif. – Senior Hayley Kusserow scored seven goals as St. Francis pulled out a 22-20 win over Palo Alto to close out their two-game Bay area road trip.

Kusserow was one of four players with multiple goals in the game. Kusserow, who has signed to play at St. Mary’s next season, tied a career-high with seven goals. She also notched seven goals against Redwood during her junior season. Colleen McClain had three goals and Erica Palmer and Emily Bush also contributed scored.

MATHER, Calif. – Cal High scored 15 second-half goals to break open a close game and post a 19-11 win over St. Francis Tuesday night at Mather Sports Complex.

St. Francis (1-2) led 6-4 at the break behind three first-half goals by senior Hayley Kusserow. But the Grizzles rallied in the second half, scoring three quick goals to take a 7-6 lead.

Junior Meg Anderson scored the first of her four goals in the second half to briefly tie the game at 7. But Cal responded during a man advantage and quickly built its lead.

Grace Kuchera is playing her third season with the St. Francis lacrosse program and second with the varsity unit. On campus, she has been a part of the student council for three years and currently is serving as the Senior Class Treasurer.

What are your thoughts entering your senior year?
“I am excited. I have only been playing for two years. I am excited to improve on my skills, because I still have so much to improve on. I don’t think I am going to play in college so it is my last opportunity to play. It is exciting and sad.”

GENERAL INFORMATION

Location: Davis High School

Field 1: The stadium

Field 2: Back grass field

Field 3: Field outside fence (Behind baseball field)

Parking: Behind the stadium off of Oak Ave. & larger lot at the main high school entrance on W. 14th St. 

Conduct as Visitors: Please pick up all garbage and maintain our areas while at Davis High School. Also remember this is a training day for many referees. Parents and players should be respectful of this. 

Remember we represent SFHS!

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – Nine St. Francis High School seniors signed a National Letter-of-Intent or made a commitment to play collegiate sports next year at schools across the country Wednesday. They were recognized on campus as part of the school’s formal fall signing day recognition.

The event was broadcast on the TroubieTV Network on PlayOn Sports.

St. Francis National Letter of Intent Signees

Danika Bailey, Softball, California

Lauren Charter, Water Polo, California

Erin Crooks, Swimming, Lafayette

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – St. Francis lacrosse head coach Kristy Wilson will not return for the 2015 season in order pursue personal opportunities out of state.

“We thank Kristy for all her hard work and dedication to the St. Francis lacrosse program as she takes on a new chapter in her life,” said Athletic Director Mark McGreevy. “She has been a great leader and role model for our young ladies in the program and played a significant role in the development of the St. Francis program.”

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – The St. Francis lacrosse team placed six players on the Sacramento Valley Lacrosse Conference All-League team, including three first-team selections. Juniors Hayley Kusserow, Ryleigh Bone and Erika Palmer were all first-team selections as selected by the league coaches.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – A soccer and basketball player growing up, Lyndsay Carpenter knew how to shoot using her feet and hands. But a lacrosse stick was a foreign object to her four years ago. Fast forward to her senior season, Carpenter will be playing lacrosse in college on a scholarship. She has come a long way.

“Lyndsay is an athlete and they make great lacrosse players especially ones that come over from basketball,” said St. Francis Head Coach Kristy Wilson. “They see the game well and make especially good defenders.”

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – The St. Francis lacrosse team is seeded 11th in the North Coast Section bracket and will play at No. 11 Granite Bay in the latest revision released by the North Coast Section. The game will take place at 5 p.m. on Wednesday, May 14.

St. Francis and Granite Bay will be playing for the third time this season and for the second consecutive game overall. The Troubadours finished with regular season with a 15-9 loss at Granite Bay on May 8 and dropped a home match against the Grizzlies 15-10 on April 1

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – The SFHS Booster Club recognized four senior student-athletes at the 2014 Awards Ceremony.

Senior Lauren LaRocco was named the SFHS Booster Club Scholar-Athlete Scholarship recipient, while Brinnley Barthels, Emily Laskin and Jane Sadler were named winners of the SFHS Booster Club Leadership Scholarship.

ORANGEVALE, Calif. – The St. Francis lacrosse team posted a 19-1 victory over Casa Roble Friday night as five players had multi-goal scoring games.

Junior Hayley Kusserow led the offensive charge with four goals, while Colleen McClain added three goals. Sarah Westover, Ryleigh Bone and Maggie Anderson added two goals each in the winning effort.

Erika Palmer, Meg Anderson, Ryanne Brust, Lyndsay Carpenter, Kelly Chavez and Mia Bonini also scored in the game.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – Sophomore Meg Anderson and junior Hayley Kusserow each scored five times to pace St. Francis in a 21-0 shutout over Bella Vista Friday night.

“It was really good,” said Anderson following the game. “We did not expect to do so well especially since we were missing so many players due to different things.”

St. Francis played without a sub in the game and had a first-time goalie in action.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – St. Francis out-scored Granite Bay in the second half but was unable to erase the first half deficit as the Grizzlies prevailed 15-10 on a rainy night at Mather Sports Center.

“I think we came out and started meshing as a team,” said Maggie Anderson. “We really pulled together and started to us that. Especially since it is Granite Bay, we wanted to beath them so we came out strong in the second half. We will get them next time.”

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – Hayley Kusserow scored seven goals to lead St. Francis to a 15-7 victory over Redwood at Mather Sports Center Friday night.

The Troubadours won their second consecutive and improved to 5-5 on the season.

Kusserow powered a strong offensive attack that helped St. Francis hold a 9-7 lead at the half. The Troubadours posted a shutout in the second half, scoring six times. Junior goalie Maddie Merwin did not allow a goal in the second half and made 11 saves in the game overall.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – St. Francis senior defender Ryanne Brust has committed to play lacrosse and attend Fort Lewis College in Durango, Colo., next year.

“I am so beyond excited,” said Brust. “It seems unreal.”

Brust, who took up the game as a sophomore, was first seen at a tournament over the summer and recruited by the Fort Lewis coaching staff.

“I started playing as a sophomore so I never thought playing in college would be an option for me,” said Brust. “I went to a showcase in Colorado with over 100 college recruiters and got noticed.”

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – Junior Ryleigh Bone scored three goals and junior goalie Maddie Merwin made two crucial saves in the final minute as St. Francis prevailed 14-13 over Palo Alto Saturday at Mather Sports Center.

“I think we did well,” said Bone. “We tried to spread it out and pass it around. Their defense is pretty good. We took advantage of opportunities to cut in and get the ball.”

ATHERTON, Calif. – Six players scored two or more goals as St. Francis defeated Menlo-Atherton 18-5 Saturday to improve to 1-1 on the season.

Collen McClain scored three times and Meg Anderson, Madison McKim, Maggie Anderson, Emily Bush and Sara Westover each found the net twice for the Troubadours.

Jane Sadler, Erika Palmer, Ryleigh Bone and Lyndsey Carpenter also scored in the contest.  Maddie Merwin made seven saves in goal for St. Francis.

This is a reminder to all spring sport athletes that you must have a physical on file before you may participate in conditioning or tryouts for your chosen sport. Please click on the following link to find our pre-participation exam.

You and your parent/ guardian will complete the health history exam on the first page then the second page is completed and signed by a doctor. Tryouts for all sports begin on Monday, Feb 10th.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – The role of performance apparel and footwear in sports is part of everyday culture and is a significant part of athletic branding across all levels and sports. The promoter locally for adidas is Megan Curry.
On any given week,