With the fall sports season fully under way, a number of Mission Bay varsity teams have secured wins in the first few weeks of action.
On the gridiron, Mission Bay under head coach Willie Matson comes into play this week at Kearney (Friday, Sept. 23) with a record of 2-2.
The Bucs rolled to a 49-14 victory over Clairemont this past Friday.
“Both sides of the ball did a fine job on Friday,” Matson commented. “We’re looking for more consistency from the team heading into Friday’s game.” Field hockey
On the field hockey scene, Mission Bay under head coach Kris Auer, sported a 3-1 mark heading into play this week.
According to Auer, several players have stood out to date, among them Kylie Kroeger, Naomy Espinosa and Emery Reyna.
“Kylie is an exceptional player,” Auer stated. “She is incredibly skilled and very fit. She has worked very hard to put herself in a position to excel. Naomy and Emery play center midfield for us. They complement each other very well; Naomy is a passer and playmaker, Emery is the destroyer.”
Auer also noted that the girls quickly asserted themselves as leaders and role models, governing themselves and keeping each other in line.
As for improvements, Auer is looking to see the team convert a higher percentage of chances into goals.
“The lone loss on our record is because of this. We had more shots, more short corners, and more attacking possessions yet lost 3-2 in OT.”
Auer added that she is very proud of the way the girls represent the school and community, noting that they are great kids, wonderful students and solid athletes.
Beach volleyball On the boys beach volleyball scene, Mission Bay opened league play last Thursday against Scripps Ranch, winning its first match 2-1, as the teams of Kieran Wills/Jacob Cayetano and Dylan Kasper/Stephen Tarbell pulled out victories. The freshmen duo of Ian Briski/Dusty Schrader also tallied a dominating win.
Mission Bay coach Nikki Caufield noted that the conditions were a bit windy, making ball control challenging for the team. “It is always nice to start league play with a win against a solid Scripps Ranch team.”
According to Caufield, the Bucs have a really good group of freshmen boys that are also really improving and did well against teams that were comprised mostly of juniors and seniors.  “In a year or two, if our freshmen stick with it, we could have a really dominant team,” Caufield added. Girls tennis
In girls’ tennis action, head coach Trong Tong’s squad entered play this week at 3-3 (3-1 in league action).
According to Tong, returning seniors Ludmila Raynal and Sabina Hagey are playing some inspiring tennis at the moment.
Meantime, freshmen Amanda Edmunds, Jeanne Picard and Rosina Valia are settling quite nicely into their roles on team, performing beyond Tong’s expectations in their rookie seasons. Super rookie McKenna Mountain is undefeated in all her matches to date.
“Although we’ve started well in league matches this year, we still have ample room for improvement,” Tong remarked. “Our losses thus far have taught us the improvements we need to strive for to have an even better second half of the season.”