Boys Varsity Baseball:

The varsity baseball team opens up their season with a few non-league games at home. MCAL play begins with a big rivalry matchup at Marin Catholic on March 14 and follows that up with their first home league game of the season against San Marin on March 17.

“We lost a lot of seniors but have a great young group this year. We’re gonna hit the ball well and compete in every game. Our team is really close. We are all confident in each other’s individual abilities in all phases of the game. We have set very high expectations and believe we are capable of putting up two banners this year,” Captain Jensen Yamane said.

Last season the baseball team didn’t fare as well as they had hoped, finishing (15-12) overall and (11-7) in league. They had early exits in both MCALs and NCS, falling in the quarterfinals of both tournaments.

Boys Varsity Lacrosse:

This season, after only graduating three seniors from last year, the boys lacrosse team is trying to repeat and improve from their 9-8 overall record and their 6-4 league records. These strong records earned the boys a spot in both the MCAL and NCS playoffs.

“We have a lot of key players returning this year despite some loss of talent to the graduating class. We have what it takes to be a strong competitor in the league this year. I definitely encourage anyone who is interested to talk to anyone on the team and come try it out. We could use some young athletes this year,” senior Lucas Lind White said.

This year, the boys lacrosse team looks to improve from last year, and expand the program as a whole.

Girls Varsity Softball:

This season, the softball team opens up with a lot of non-league games, but they open their MCAL season with two away games, at Terra Linda and Justin Siena on March 13 and 16 respectively.

“This season, we need to practice more on defense, so that as a team can make routine plays. Last year we had a lot of little errors that we can reduce this year by practicing more. I am looking forward to the returning players welcoming in the new girls. We are a really fun team that forms friendships on and off the field,” senior Riley Siegel said.

Last season, the softball team had a strong year, going 10-13 overall and finishing 7-9 in league play. However, this year they are looking to improve both records with returning stars Riley Siegel and Sona Halajian.

CoEd Mountain Biking:

This upcoming season the Drake Mountain Bike program will look to three peat as state champions as they have brought home the past two championships. They start their season with a race at Fort Ord on Feb. 25 and 26.

“The Drake mountain bike team is pushing to get a lot of kids on bikes and expand the program while still hoping to bring home another state championship and promote the history of the sport in Marin County,” Captain Alec Levy-O’Brien said.

Last season was another stellar year for the mountain biking program, bringing home yet another trophy. They look to keep the streak alive by bringing home another trophy later this year, even with a change in leadership.

Girls Varsity Lacrosse:

This year, the girls varsity lacrosse team wants to improve as a whole, improve their record from last year and expand the program. They open up the season with two non-league games versus Mercy and Petaluma High Schools on March 3 and 7 respectively.

“I’m so excited for this season. We’ve come along way since my freshman year and we’ve all grown a lot, I think this year is going to be great year on the field,” senior Paloma Prudhomme said.

Last year, the girls finished with a 4-10 overall record, and 2-5 in league. Although it didn’t go as well as they had hoped, they grew as a team and have a promising 2017 season.

CoEd Sailing:

The Sailing program is off and running, placing 9th in a regatta over winter break in Long Beach. For the rest of the season they are building as a team to try and place highly in very competitive regattas later in the year.

“This is an exciting season for the Drake Sailing Team, with many veteran sailors returning, and many new people joining as well. We started off with a solid regatta over winter break in Long Beach, where we placed 9th. We look to continue our season with high scoring at the upcoming Golden Bear Regatta in San Francisco, as well as the Gaucho Regatta in Santa Barbara.

“The season will lead up to the final regatta, the Pacific Coast Championship, where the team is looking for a solid score in the top five. It’s been a great year so far and we are all eager to get underway with some of our bigger competitions. Go Pirates!” sophomore Gabe Reuter said.

Although there hasn’t been a long history of the Drake sailing program, it seems that with many newcomers and veterans ready to sail this season they will help continue the growth and progression of the program.

CoEd Diving:

This upcoming season, the CoEd dive team hopes to move the program forward. However, some individual divers have their eyes set higher, as they attempt to finish well above the pack in MCALs and move onto NCS.

“The dive team is looking forward to another great year on the board. Led once more by Coach Miranda Maas, veteran divers are working to return to the NCS championships and solidify our team as an MCAL dynasty,” senior Rick Miles said.

The dive team opens up their league schedule with meets against Branson and Tam on Feb. 24 and March 3.

Boys Varsity Swimming:

This year, the boys swim team wants to improve on their 3rd place finish at MCALs last year.

“We are looking to wreak some havoc on the swimming world this upcoming season. We are returning a lot of speedy guys like Emerson Sullivan and Christoph Horky who are poised to put some points on the board, as well as some studly anchors in Wyatt and Spencer Hanson who are sure to impress. And I couldn’t talk about Drake swimming without mentioning the heart and soul of this team? Yes you guessed it, Art Kondratyev is back and ready to lead us in another run at MCALs,” junior Quinn Woodhead said.

Only losing two swimmers from last year, they have their eyes set on improving individually and bringing home the MCAL title as a team this season.

Girls Varsity Swimming:

This season, the girls varsity swim team are working to improve on their third place finish in MCALs last year and improve their individual times.

“We’re just looking to have fun this year and work together to not only achieve our personal bests, but have a successful season as a team as well,” senior Malia Potter said.

Since they graduated only a few seniors and have most of their team returning they should have a good shot at repeating, if not improving their 4th place finish as a team in MCALs.

“Roderick Miles”

CoEd Varsity Track:

“We graduated a couple key leaders and point scorers last season, so it provides an opportunity for this years returners to step up into bigger leadership roles, especially with the large number of first time athletes we get each season.

“Because of the way the dual meets are scored, depth is the most important thing a team needs to have to win MCALs. You need athletes racking up points in every event possible, and we have the potential to do that this season in a big way.

“With promising talent from many underclassmen, lead by a strong returning group, Both the girls and guys squads have the potential for a very exciting season out on the track this spring,” said senior Laura Kelemen.

Boys Golf:

This season, the varsity golf team is trying to repeat the stellar season they had last year, winning an NCS title and a quality finish in MCALs. Although they lost their top two golfers to graduation, this season they have Division 3 Carnegie Mellon commit Aaron Silverstein at the helm.

“We are going to work hard and try to keep the same practice regime that we have been taught over the past four years. Hopefully that will help us end up on top just like last year,” said captain Aaron Silverstein.

Although they lost the MCAL golfer of the year last year, Devin Gregg, they will have a veteran group of returners hopefully ready to lead the way back to another run at an NCS championship and a better finish in MCALs.

Boys Varsity Volleyball:

This season the boys volleyball team hope to keep up the work and results of teams’ in the years past. Although this once powerhouse program has taken a few steps down as of late, they hope to compete throughout MCALs. They open up league play on March 7 at San Marin and on March 9 at rival Marin Catholic.

“This season, we are looking to keep up the Drake volleyball tradition. Although we lost a lot of players this season we are hoping to still be able to compete and hopefully win a lot of games,” senior Levi Ummel said.

Last season, the boys volleyball team had a solid season, going 12-8 overall and 8-4 in league. Although they only graduated one senior, they lost returning players which will make it hard to improve on last years season.

Boys Varsity Tennis: 

The tennis team has a veteran group this season as every starter returns from last season. League play opens with back to back matches on March 1 with a home match versus Branson and another home match versus Terra Linda on the 2nd.

“This season we are excited about some new additions to the team. Our sights are set high as we are eyeing top finishes in both MCALs and NCS as well as individual championships in the tournament,” Captain Josh Gilbert said.

All photos courtesy of Rod Miles