IJ’s picks for 2024 Fall Players of the Year
The fall campaign was another strong season for Marin as multiple teams claimed North Coast Section titles in cross country, girls volleyball, water polo, and girls tennis.
Among the highlights were both the Archie Williams boys and girls teams winning section titles while the Branson girls won section and state titles.
In girls tennis, Redwood advanced to the NorCal semifinals and Branson won the D-II section title.
History was made in girls volleyball as Branson became the first team to win the NCS Open Division title. Tam also secured the NCS D-I championship.
Three water polo teams won section titles this season — the Redwood boys, Marin Academy boys, and Marin Catholic girls.
Boys cross country
IJ/MCAL Runner of the Year, Archie Williams’ Ian Sharp
Sharp proved to be the fastest runner in the county throughout the postseason, turning in the best time of anyone from Marin at the MCAL championship, the NCS championship, and the State Meet.
Sharp won the MCAL boys race with a time of 15 minutes, 29.9 seconds, helping the Peregrine Falcons to a second-place team finish – a single point behind Tam.
Sharp then ran the 3-mile course at Hayward High in 16:23.6 to win the Division IV race and lead Archie Williams to the team title.
At State, Sharp once again set the pace for Marin with a time of 15:31.2 on the 5,000-meter course at Woodward Park in Fresno.
Other standouts
Marco Zink (15:45.5) and Caeden Gardner (15.49.1) finished second and third, respectively, at MCALs to lift Tam to its second consecutive team title at the event. Lucas Ruark (16:05.5) also turned in a top-five finish for the Red-tailed Hawks, who went on to qualify as a team for State.
Archie Williams qualified for State for the 10th consecutive postseason, with Ryan Seeley, Milo Hetherington, and Nolan Marsh all finishing inside the top 11 at NCS.
Branson’s Jasper James also had a strong season, placing fourth at MCALs, second at NCS D-V, and helping the Bulls qualify for State.
Other individuals who qualified for the State Meet were San Rafael’s Teo Cristea, Terra Linda’s Shahan Ajmani, and San Domenico’s Devin Price.
Girls cross country
IJ/MCAL Runner of the Year, Archie Williams’ Ani Stieg
Stieg replicated the same trifecta pulled off by Sharp on the boys side, turning in the best time of any Marin runner at MCALs, NCS, and State.
Stieg ran a 17:43 at MCALs, finishing almost 20 seconds faster than everyone else in the field. A week later, Stieg won the individual title with a time of 19.50.1 in NCS D-IV on the 3-mile course at Hayward High and helped the Peregrine Falcons to the team title.
Stieg ran a 17:59.6 on the 5,000-meter course at Woodward Park in Fresno at the State Meet.
Other standouts
Farah Allen and Audrey Spaly finished in eighth and 10th place, respectively, in Fresno to power Branson to its first state title since 2013. Allen ran an 18:27.9 and Spaly ran an 18:29.3. The other scoring runners at State for Branson – which also won the NCS D-V race – were Imogen Brown, Maya Gidney, and Hailey Sellers.
Sydney Middleton and Kate Kozubik finished second and third, respectively, at MCALs to lead Redwood to its third consecutive team title and fourth in five seasons. Marley Nacco and Rose Mueller joined Middleton and Kozubik inside the top 10 in the NCS D-II race to help the Giants qualify for State as a team.
Other individual qualifiers for State were Tam’s Emma Gardner, Marin Catholic’s Gabby Hays, and Marin Academy’s Luella Shepard.
Field Hockey
IJ player of the year, Tam’s Rowie Scobie
Scobie moved to a midfield role this year, handing over the primary scoring and attacking role but taking on more of a leadership role in her second year as captain. Scobie, a Northwestern commit, played both ways for Tam, a move which bolstered the Red-tailed Hawks’ defense, the stingiest in the league. Tam gave up just 13 goals all season.
Other standouts
Emi Navesi, an All-MCAL first team pick, played in Argentina, but came to Tam to study and was cleared to play with the Hawks this season. Navesi, with her superior stick skills, scored in the Hawks’ semifinal win against Marin Catholic.
Redwood’s Lucy Jeffers and goalie Eva Layton helped the Giants secure the MCAL crown in a 5-1 victory over Tam. Jeffers led the Giants’ attack with 20 goals and 10 assists this season. Meanwhile, Layton was superb in goal with 117 saves and 12 shutouts while allowing just 15 goals.
Marin Catholic senior Elsa Green and junior Mattie Reale were the force behind the Wildcats’ attack. The two all-league first-team picks were among the team’s leaders in goals and assists with junior Lolo Bosch for the Wildcats.
Girls golf
IJ/MCAL player of the year, Branson’s Elizabeth Liu
Throughout her high school career, Liu has continually established herself as one of the best high school golfers in Northern California. Liu advanced to the NCS Division I playoffs for the fourth consecutive time in November.
“I look back on my junior season (in 2023) and it makes me really proud. I wanted to continue that success this year,” said Liu, who placed 43rd at the CIF State tournament last season. “But golf is hard.”
The Bulls senior shot a 1-over par 73 at Fairfield’s Paradise Valley Golf Course to finish in the top 10 at the North Coast Section Division I tournament, but missed a berth in the CIF Northern California Championship by just one stroke. She had the best individual score at the MCAL Tournament with a 71, to lead the Bulls to second place.
Other standouts
Marin Catholic junior Lexi Ferguson wrapped up a solid season in impressive fashion, as she finished in the top 10 at the MCAL Tournament with an 84, then shot an 80 at Rooster Run in the NCS D-II tournament. Ferguson later carded a solid 81 in the NCS D-I tournament.
Redwood’s Taylor Bridges and Katelyn Van Dusen led a solid team effort at the NCS D-I tournament with an 82 and 84, respectively. Bridges and Van Dusen, with strong outings from Katherine Lim, Madeline Lim and Chloe Branson, helped Redwood claim the MCAL crown and place fourth at NCS.
Marin Academy’s Elsa Anderson placed eighth at the Bay Counties League tournament at Peacock Gap with a 91 to lead the Wildcats to a team berth in the NCS D-II tournament, where she again had a team-best score, this time a 97.
San Domenico’s Mila Dawson placed seventh at BCL with an 89, and followed that with a 90 at the NCS D-II tournament, to help the Panthers continue to grow their program.
Girls tennis
IJ//MCAL player of the year, Redwood’s Jordan Marotto
Marotto occupied the top spot on the singles ladder for the Giants as they went undefeated in league play this season, won the MCAL title, finished second in the NCS D-I tournament, and advanced to the NorCal semifinals.
Marotto bounced back and forth between No. 1 singles and No. 1 doubles for Redwood this season, ultimately choosing to compete in doubles with Ella Povio during the postseason. Marotto and Povio won the MCAL doubles title and took third place in the NCS D-I doubles tournament.
BCL West player of the year, San Domenico’s Carly Amborn
Amborn went undefeated in league play for the Panthers and won the BCL West singles title for the second consecutive season.
Amborn, a Stanford basketball commit, advanced all the way to the NCS D-II finals, finishing as the runner-up to North Coast Prep’s Lily Bazemore.
Other standouts
San Marin’s Clare Zhu had a superb season for the Mustangs, going unbeaten in league play at No. 1 singles and to help guide San Marin to the MCAL playoffs for the second consecutive year.
Branson’s Mirabel Arlander won the MCAL singles title without dropping a set as the tournament’s second seed. Arlander faced Branson teammate Katie Warrin, the No. 3 seed, in the final. Arlander and Warrin led the way as the Bulls finished second in the MCAL playoffs then followed that up by winning the NCS D-II team title.
Redwood, with Marotto and Povio playing key roles, won the MCAL team title. Marotto and Povio were all-MCAL first teamers while Julia Povio, Jennie Liu, Alessia Bailliet, and Livia Klompus were all selected as second teamers.
Marin Academy’s sister duo of Jane and Ann McDermott won both the BCL West and NCS D-II doubles titles for the second year in a row.
Girls volleyball
IJ/MCAL player of the year, Branson’s Elena Fisher
Fisher has been one of the league’s most dominant outside hitters since she made the varsity team as a freshman. She earned her first MCAL player of the year honor and was the IJ’s co-player of the year with teammate Logan Tusher for the 2022 season.
Fisher helped lead the Bulls to an historic season as they won MCALs and became the first team to win the North Coast Section Open Division playoffs, which were new for this year.
Fisher had a game-high 20 kills to go with nine digs as the Bulls took down MC in three sets to win the MCAL title on Oct. 25. Fisher was part of a more balanced attack with 10 kills when the Bulls defeated MC again for the Open Division title on Nov. 9.
Fisher is set to play beach volleyball next season for Stanford, where she will be reunited with Tusher.
Other standouts
Branson had the best team in the NCS this season led by the senior trio of Fisher, libero Lauren Dignan, and setter Celia Tolmie. Dignan, who is headed to play indoor volleyball for Northwestern next year, and Tolmie were both first-team all-league selections.
Despite graduating that much talent, the Bulls figure to be just fine next season after a pair of sophomores – middle blocker Abby King and outside hitter Blake Cussen – emerged as key rotation players this season. Cussen was a second-team all-MCAL pick while King was an honorable mention.
Marin Catholic finished as the second best team in the section, led by first teamers Krystal Rose Huff and Chloe Allcroft. Freshman Carolina Delaney immediately emerged as a top player, garnering second-team honors.
Marin volleyball teams have been dominant within the NCS for years and this season was no different. Redwood was also picked for the Open Division and finished as the fifth best team in the section. The Giants were led by Neeva Gaine (first team), plus Madeleine Wagner and Katie Lazzareschi (second team).
Tam also enjoyed a stellar season, winning the NCS D-I championship to cap arguably the most successful season in program history. The Red-tailed Hawks had one of the top outside hitting duos in Natalia Clifford (first team) and Natalie Stanford (second team), plus a top setter in Emmeline Sandgren (second team). Clifford had 25 kills in the section title game while Stanford added 14 kills and five digs. Sandgren had 46 assists.
Marin Academy also collected some hardware, rallying to win the Bay Counties League West title in five sets against University. Outside hitter Katie Murphy piled up 25 kills in the title game to earn tournament MVP honors. Murphy and middle blocker Muriel Harris were both first-team BCL West selections.
Novato resident Claire Ellis, a sophomore who came back after tearing her ACL as a freshman, led St. Vincent de Paul in kills this season and helped the Mustangs win the NorCal D-VI title. Ellis had 26 kills in the title game.
Boys water polo
IJ co-players of the year, Archie Williams’ Jake Carrera and Redwood’s Ossie Joplin
Carrera was named MCAL player of the year for the second consecutive season after leading his team to the NCS Open Division playoffs and a berth in the NorCal D-I playoffs.
Carrera led the Peregrine Falcons in assists and was second on the team in goals during his senior campaign. The Falcons capped an undefeated MCAL run with an 11-8 victory in the league finals against Redwood, during which Carrera scored a team-high five goals and had three assists and four steals.
Redwood, with the leading scorer in the NCS, reached the NorCal D-II semifinals after winning the NCS D-I crown. Joplin, a two-time all-league first team selection, finished the season with 125 goals, best in the section and 13th in the state, as reported by coaches. Redwood was the top-ranked team in the NCS by MaxPreps.
Other standouts
Redwood had a solid core with Joplin and fellow all-league first-team pick Sawyer Goldberg, and backed by MCAL goalie of the year Owen Malone. Goldberg was second on the team in goals and assists, and first in steals. Malone emerged in his junior year as an athletic presence in the cage as he tallied 331 saves.
Archie Williams senior Vincent Krilanovich made a dramatic return after missing much of last season with an injury. Krilanovich had something to prove to himself and the competition as he led the team in scoring with more than 100 goals. He and teammate Nate Greenberg were named to the all-league first team.
Tam’s Reed Hanna has been described as “one of the most dynamic players in MCAL,” by Archie Williams head coach Steve Carrera. Hanna paced Tam with 62 goals and 26 steals as he led the Red-tailed Hawks to the NCS D-I finals against Redwood.
Terra Linda’s Soren Jessen took the reins and lifted himself and his team in the process. Jessen scored seven goals as the Trojans (7-3 MCAL, 15-12) nearly upset Redwood in the MCAL semifinals in double-overtime. The Trojans ran into the Giants again in the NCS quarterfinals, a 12-8 loss.
Girls water polo
IJ co-players of the year, Tam’s Julia Ulvestad and Marin Academy’s Gabby Reichley
Tam sophomore Ulvestad, with fellow all-league picks Sabine Barringer and goalkeeper Nola Palestrant, emerged as one of the leaders on a young Red-tailed Hawks squad that seems prepared to defend its MCAL title for at least the next two years. Ulvestad scored three goals as the Hawks beat Redwood, 8-4, for the league crown, after a 12-10 upset win over second-seeded Marin Academy in the semifinals.
MA’s Gabby Reichley was a deserving choice as MCAL player of the year. She and all-league first team pick Kelly Kurtzig helped the Wildcats to a near-perfect MCAL run, blemished only by a 8-7 loss to Archie Williams near the end of the regular season and a MCAL semifinal loss to Tam. Reichley and Kurtzig helped establish Marin Academy as an elite program.
Other standouts
Marin Catholic senior Emma Slaught was the driving force as the Wildcats claimed their first NCS title since 1999, and the program’s first NorCal appearance ever. The Wildcats ripped through the competition to win the NCS D-III crown.
Archie Williams’ Sylvie Fine and Holly Hovey were integral to the Peregrine Falcons’ undefeated MCAL season. The Falcons’ leading scorer, Hovey forced teams to adjust their defense to stop her. Meanwhile, Fine was matched up against some of Northern California’s best offensive players as the Falcons advanced to the NCS D-I semifinals.
Redwood’s 2-meter specialist Samantha Riley made an immediate impact as a freshman. She led the Giants in every field stat, and scored five goals in Redwood’s NCS D-I first-round victory over Castro Valley.