Spring is upon us, and that means it’s time to switch gears at Meridian High School as baseball, softball, soccer, lacrosse, tennis, and outdoor track and field are all set to get underway. Here is a rundown of what to expect from each program.
Baseball is finally back at Meridian after a year of being unable to play at home while their field was under construction. The Mustangs went 9-13 in their trying season last year, but figure to return to competitive form this season with a lineup featuring Luke Greiner and Jason Wattles on the mound and Atticus Kim, Ashok Radcliff and Jack Mossburg behind the plate. After starting their season at Fauquier on Thursday, their long-awaited return home will be against Millbrook on March 25.
Heath Simon’s softball team looks to improve upon its 6-16 campaign a year ago, but will have to replace star pitcher Elena Clark-Wilson, last season’s District Player of the Year. Seniors Claire Dassira, Rachel Grooms and Anisa Frey will be expected to lead the program, while Valeria Wright, Claire Hartenstein and Maddie Novotny figure to play key roles as well. They’ll get underway on Thursday at Fauquier.
The boys soccer team is one of a couple of programs with a coaching change this season, which is significant as they are the defending Class 3 state champions. Ronald Cruz takes over for Nathan Greiner, while the team lost a large group of seniors as well. Still, Meridian has a solid core of returning contributors, including Yanek Guziewski, Charles Miller and Osteen Espina-Campos. They’ll begin their season at Rock Ridge on Thursday.
Girls soccer has high expectations again after going 11-7-1 last season, with Leah Partridge’s group set to be led by forwards Emma Flanagan and Violet Zullo and defenders Serena Binkowski and Lucy Byrum. Goalie Baelyn Reinfurt returns as well for a group that hopes to make a deep playoff run, and it will begin on Tuesday against North Stafford.
Girls lacrosse has a new head coach in Whitney Evans, but two highly experienced team leaders on the field in Zoe Gale and Sara Meade. Last year they went 10-4, and they don’t figure to miss a beat, as they’ve scheduled some tough non-district matchups early in the season, including their season opener at John Champe on Tuesday.
Boys lacrosse is looking to back up its best season in program history, in which Will Stewart’s team went 13-6 and made it to the state semifinals. They’ve lost several seniors, but return key contributors Colin Williams, Jack Moore, Xavier Kuo and more. Their season begins on Thursday against Charles J. Colgan.
On the tennis court, the boys return a strong group led by Thomas Lapp, who advanced to states as an individual last season, and fellow senior Ben Behr. Head coach Tim Goetz’s goal is to win the regional championship at the singles, doubles and team level. Meanwhile, Victor Koo’s girls look to back up a team state semifinals appearance with an experienced group led by sisters Ana and Mia Vuckovic.
Finally, boys track and field will be led by top returners in sprinter Duke Dawson, endurance ace William Anderson and long jump specialist Jacob Quintana as they look to build upon their 12th- and eighth-place group finishes last year. The girls, who finished 10th and seventh a season ago, will be led by runners Michelle Malheiro, Emily Beloe and Angeliki Bousbouras, and field performers Kelsey Just and Ash Kosmider.
