Glorious weather provided ideal conditions for outdoor sports in central Pennsylvania last week. There was plenty of activity involving the CM sports teams. Let’s take a look at how things unfolded.

For the girl’s tennis team it was a disappointing start to the week as they dropped a 3-2 decision on the road at Shikellamy. CM’s lone winners were Lucy Walker and Kassie Williams in the Nos. 1 and 3 singles, respectively. However, the Wildcats reversed their fortunes when they returned home for a Thursday match against a strong Central Columbia team and came away with a 3-2 win as each of their singles players came away with wins to secure the victory.

That match was highlighted by freshmen Lucy and Lane Walker picking up very competitive wins at Nos. 2 and 3 singles, respectively, to secure the victory. That was a huge victory indeed for a very young squad.

The golf team was in action twice last week. On Tuesday the Wildcats defeated Danville, 167-194. Match medalist was Reese Walizer as she shot a 38. The Wildcat senior was followed by teammates Michael Lodek with a 41 while Blake Walker and Nolan Karstetter finished with 44’s. On Thursday at Clinton Country Club, the golfers hit the course against Hollidaysburg and St. Joe’s in an 18-hole match.

Unfortunately, the Wildcats were bested by both teams as they finished with a 329 to St. Joe’s 324 and Hollidaysburg’s 321. Lodek registered the best round for CM with a 75.

The boys and girl’s cross country teams had solid weeks. Both teams went 3-0 by earning victories over Shamokin, Bloomsburg and Montoursville at Shamokin on Tuesday. Grace Keohane, Aubrey Eiler and Emma Wolfe finished first, second and third, respectively, for the girls.

On the boys side it was Riley Gonzalez, Che McCallister and Damien Winner crossing the finish line fourth, fifth and sixth overall, respectively.

On Saturday both teams participated in the annual Bear Mountain River Run Invitational hosted by Lock Haven University. In a very competitive event, the CM girls would shine bright as they finished third of eight teams with Grace Keohane being a medalist by finishing in sixth place overall. The boys finished in eighth place as a team with their top finisher being Damien Winner.

On the pitch the girls appeared just once, a Saturday matinee against visiting Penns Valley. After taking an early 1-0 lead on a goal by Leah Karstetter, the Wildcats were unable to find anymore offense and dropped the contest by a 2-1 final in double overtime. With the loss the girls dropped to 1-1 on the young season with a busy week ahead.

As for the boys, Coach Billy Hook’s squad recorded similar 3-0 wins at home against South Williamsport and Penns Valley. In the game vs. South, CM goals were scored by Dylan Bechdel (two) and Tim Brinker. On Saturday in the PV win, CM got goals from Mycah Carson and Kullen McDermitt with the third being an own goal by the visitors.

With those wins, CM upped its record to 3-1 on the season. Impressive thus far for the Wildcats has been their defense which was thought to be a potential area of concern as the season began. The Wildcats will begin to enter the meat of their schedule this week and are hopeful that the solid defensive play continues.

On the gridiron it was another tough Friday night for the Wildcats as they fell to visiting Bloomsburg, 35-0. Once again for CM it was an inability to develop any offensive momentum as well as to stop the big play defensively that doomed them in their home opener. With the loss the Wildcats fell to 0-2 on the season with a matchup with 2-0 Williamsport looming on Friday night on the road.

The Wildcat volleyball squad had a solid first week as they defeated Penns Valley at home on Mondayy, 3-0. On Saturday the team took part in the PHAC Tournament and came away with their third straight championship in the event. After going 4-0 in pool play, the Wildcats would go on to defeat Montoursville in the semifinals before downing Williamsport in the Championship. CM’s crown keeps them as the only school to have won the tournament since its inception.

Looking Ahead

The calendar might show a short week due to the Labor Day holiday but the CM teams are set for a very busy five days ahead.

I’m looking at the following home events as worthy of note this week:

• Golf hosting Selinsgrove at Clinton on Wednesday

• Girls soccer vs. Altoona on Wednesday

• Boys soccer playing State College on Saturday

• Volleyball team playing host to Berwick on Thursday.

Another event of note includes the girl’s tennis team at Williamsport on Thursday.

Team of the Week

The boy’s soccer team with a solid week by going 2-0 after two shutouts were surely worthy of consideration. However, this week, the honor goes to the volleyball team on the strength of their perfect week which included the PHAC Tournament championship that pushed their record for the week and season to 7-0. Great job ladies.

Athlete of the Week

The decision here this week was a tough one. Impressive was Lucy Walker’s two tennis victories one of which was from the No. 1 spot. Likewise, Grace Keohane’s performances on the courses served notice that she is primed for a big senior year.

This week though the honor goes to linebacker Kole Corman who has been a tackling machine through the first two games for the CM defense on the gridiron. His intensity despite the score is impressive and makes him worthy of this week’s honor.