Category: Sports

With everyone moving forward into their sports and studies, so are the Long Beach Poly Spirit leaders. These crazy, intellectual individuals have shown a lot of people about the true meaning of the Poly’s spirit has to offer.

“Cheerleading isn’t about looking cute in the uniform, it’s working hard like the athletic individuals cheerleaders should be,” said senior cheerleader Sydney Rita.

Every Friday during the football season, these girls show the guts and the excitement of the game.

Cheerleaders are the motivation and as the potential that the football players have and need to put the numbers on the scoreboard.

Before games on Friday at school, the cheerleaders kick it off with a rally, to present the traditional pride of Poly. “Cheerleading is a sport that brings the pride and spirit towards the school,” said junior song leader Joey Linares.

Our homecomings and senior nights are filled with the alumni from classes from the 50’s- now, to come see the love flow through the games and traditional spirit that started over 100 years ago. To see old members of cheerleaders come in their old uniforms. To know you’re never too old to have spirit and Poly pride.

The Poly football team began Moore League games with two sizable wins over Cabrillo and Wilson High Schools after a 2-1 record in the preseason.

The Jackrabbits started their Moore League opener at Wilson High School against the Bruins. In front of a sell-out crowd, the Jackrabbits and Bruins continued the long-standing city rivalry. The Bruins held a close score through two quarters, but Poly pulled away late in the game to win 67-30.

To much surprise, the Bruins took an early 7-0 lead after an interception by junior quarterback Nolan McDonald. Sophomore running back Michael Mauai swiftly answered with a 15-yard touchdown to put the Jackrabbits in front 8-7. Senior quarterback Malik Henry ran in a touchdown and threw a touchdown pass to senior receiver Jack Jones to keep Poly ahead.

Entering halftime, the team had a close 20-14 lead over the Bruins.

The Jackrabbits commanded the game in the second half, outscoring the Bruins 47-16. The points included two more touchdown receptions from Jones, and sophomore return specialist Malachi Tolliver’s two kickoff return touchdowns. This was Tolliver’s first varsity game, after being moved from JV. Jones continued his All-American season totaling 7 receptions for 160 yards and 3 touchdowns against the Bruins.

Junior linebacker Josh Brown had another strong defensive performance this season, with 13 tackles and 2 tackles for loss against Wilson. Other Jackrabbits contributed to the stout defense, including senior defensive lineman Jason Nettles totaling five sacks and senior safety De’Andre Pierce with one sack. Brown credits his performances against Cabrillo and Wilson to his other defensive teammates

Through the season, the team utilizes a two-quarterback system, giving McDonald and Henry equal playing time. McDonald finished the night with 5/9 passing for 130 yards, 2 touchdowns and 1 interception, while senior quarterback Malik Henry completed 8 of 15 passes, 2 touchdowns and 1 interception.

On October 2, the Jackrabbits won their home opener in convincing fashion against the Cabrillo Jaguars 73-7. The team has started a new tradition of wearing all black to the homecoming game, this year was no different.

Despite two blowout games against league opponents, players know there is much to improve.

“We have to play better against De La Salle,”

The team is preparing for the next league game against Compton, but also looking forward to the De La Salle game in Northern California. The football powerhouses have faced twice before, with De La Salle winning both games.

Many teams have struggled stopping the heavy rushing attack the De La Salle offense features.

“We need to tackle every guy that moves,” said Jones. The team will face more Moore League opponents after De La Salle.

New to campus this year, the Long Beach Poly Surf Team will make its debut in the upcoming weeks.

Started by senior students Chad King, Isaac Nelson, and Eileen Sok, the trio enlisted Mr. Montooth, the government and economics teacher at Poly, to coach the team. Mr. Manack is the human geography and environmental science teacher at Poly as well, and will serve as the co-coach of the team.

Many people think of the Surf Team as just a club, but it’s a sports team just like any other team on campus that students can get P.E. credit for. Surf Team practice takes place during zero period at Bolsa Chica State Beach where team members prepare for upcoming competitions in the Sea View League.

“We’re just starting out and we’ve actually been surfing in the water for the past three weeks. It’s still very early. I’m getting to know my surfers and their strengths,” said Montooth, when asked on what improvements he’d like the team to make.

When the Surf Team begins to compete, they’ll go against other teams including Wilson, Mater Dei, and Los Alamitos. In total, there will be six schools who will compete in the league. These competitions will take place before school during the week. Poly’s home competition will be at Bolsa Chica, but other schools have their home break, the event site, at locations close as Sunset Beach, and even as far as Newport Beach.

When asked on what she likes about being on the Surf Team, senior, Herran Daniel, says that, “It’s a fun thing to do and the people are really nice. The team is supportive and it’s a positive environment.”

Senior quarterback Malik Henry was awarded his Under Armour All-American jersey presentation September 23 during a lunchtime assembly for his selection to play as a quarterback in the elite game.

The Under Armour All-American football game takes the best high school players throughout the country and brings them together to showcase their talent on the field in front of a national audience. The 69 players are chosen through ESPN’s recruiting process, and Poly’s own Malik Henry, a 5-star recruit and Florida State University commit, made this year’s team.

Former players awarded with this honor of being invited to the game include Poly’s very own Iman Marshall last year.

The All-Americans are flown to Florida and have only 5 days to practice and interact with one another before playing a game five days later, but when you’re dealing with some of the best that doesn’t seem to be a problem.

“We aren’t the best for nothing,” Henry said when addressing the limited practice time. Other quarterbacks selected for the game include Palmetto’s Jack Allison, Glendora’s Matt Fink, Bullis’s Dwayne Haskins Jr., and Calvary Baptist Academy’s Shea Patterson who will all have one quarter to play to show what they are each made of.

Malik is eager to have a part in carrying on Poly’s longstanding tradition of excelling athletics, so when it came to selecting a school for his senior year of high school, the choice was simple.

“I really liked Poly’s tradition of football and the strong fan base here and that’s what I want to play in front of,” Henry noted.

Be sure to tune into to Under Armor All-American game to see Malik Henry on January 2, 2016. in Orlando, Florida broadcasted live on ESPN2.

On Thursday, September 25 Lakewood’s gym was booming with excitement and cheering from opposite sides of the stands as the long-time rivals, the Lakewood Lancers and Poly Jackrabbits girls volleyball teams, faced off for the first time in the 2015-2016 Moore league season.  Along with this game, the Poly girls played Millikan in Poly’s gym on Thursday, October 1.

The Jackrabbits practiced hard all week for the long-awaited game against their old rivals.  The Poly girls fought hard against the Lancers, with a 3-2 win.  The Poly fans jumped and yelled along with the girls after a hard battle.  This was a memorable win for the girls considering that the Poly girls volleyball team hadn’t defeated them since 2012.

“It was a team effort and we all stuck together through the whole match supporting each other,” said libero Franny Camandang.

Though the team worked efficiently together a few girls stood out in the match.  Senior Sammie Ah-Hong and junior Penny Tusa had a great day starting off with some amazing kills in the first set that put Poly ahead of Lakewood.  With scores of 25-19, 22-25, 25-17, 22-25, 15-9, the Jackrabbits shook hands with the Lakewood girls and head their heads high as they pushed the next team out of their way towards CIF playoffs.

“You had to be there to feel the heat and competitiveness of the game.  It was one to remember,” said senior Madi Hectus.

The Jackrabbits also faced the Millikan Rams on Thursday, October 1.  Millikan’s team showed some strength but Poly pulled out the win in 3 sets easily.  The back row definitely helped the team pull out the win along with hitters Sammie Ah-Hong, Penny Tusa, and Kalyah Williams leading in the front row.  Coach Leland McGrath also put in his 2nd and 3rd string players to give them court time because the Jackrabbits had a strong lead on the Rams.

In addition, the Jackrabbits played Long Beach Wilson on Tuesday, October 6 pulling out another win and managing to sustain their undefeated Moore League record so far.  Poly took the first set against the Bruins then Wilson came back in the second set pulling out a win with a score of 25-17.  The Jackrabbits came back to win the last two sets before beating their old-time rival.

The jackrabbits will continue in their Moore League season Thursday, October 8 against the  Compton Tar Babes and will continue going into round two against Cabrillo Tuesday, October 13.

Boys water polo has had a rough start to the beginning of their season, with a overall record of 0-4 as of Wednesday, September 23.

Most recently boys water polo traveled to Irvine, playing Irvine High School on Tuesday, September 22.

Throughout the first three quarters,  the boys were able to get a total of four goals past Irvine, with two from senior Brody Wells and two from junior Jack Calhoun.

Despite their efforts, it was a deep end struggle for the Jackrabbits, who gave up a total of thirteen goals.

Even though Calhoun was able to up the score for the Jackrabbits with two more consecutive goals in the fourth quarter, the Jackrabbits took the loss with the final score of 13-6.

“I tried to spark the offense,” said Calhoun. “But it just wasn’t enough.”

Before they took on Irvine, the boys went against Crespi High School, on Thursday, September 17. With a mainly junior-sophmore team, the Jackrabbit’s offense was not able to get past Crespi’s defense,  losing 15-7.

Two days before, Tuesday September 15,  Poly suffered yet another devastating loss, falling to University High School with final score of 13-7.

As their first game of the season, the boys faced Fountain Valley High School on Thursday, September 10. Even though the Jackrabbits were able to put five goals up on the scoreboard, they were not able to match Valley Fountain’s 21 goals.

“We need to try to coordinate our defense better and start working harder at practice,” said junior goalie Andrew Moskovitz.

The boys have their first Moore League game against Lakewood, on Wednesday, October 7th at 6 PM at the Cabrillo Aquatic Center.

The girls tennis teams has been moving forward into the season.

They are striving to have intense workouts and practices in order to be the best that they can possibly be.

Tennis coach Ricardo Montecinos is an excellent teacher and motivator for the tennis team.

He sees the potential in each player regardless of whether the athlete is big or small, girl or boy, and he encourages them to be able to work hard and dedicate themselves in every game and practice.

The old saying is “practice makes perfect.” What players do at practice affects what they bring to the stage, court, or field.

Their upcoming match is on October 29, when the girls will bring forth Poly pride and determination to take the title as champions on the court.

“We’re looking forward to winning the Moore League title and beating Wilson all over again,” said senior Jasmine Roberts.

The girls tennis Moore League Doubles will be located at El Dorado Park. This year, the girls will certainly conquer and overcome obstacles along the way.

“I’m looking forward to playing Millikan and Wilson because they are going to be a tough match,” said senior Amani Lyles.

The Lady Jackrabbits made volleyball look easy last Thursday, September 17, with their win against Cabrillo in the Poly gym.  It is clear that the Poly girls volleyball team is ready for a great season, especially since Poly won in the first thre sets against the Cabrillo Jaguars, earning the Jackrabbits their first Moore League victory of the 2015-2016 season.

Although the girls beat them in three sets, Cabrillo did manage to rally some points against the Jackrabbits in the third set, with scores of 25-10, 25-14, and 25-20.  Sophomore Kalyah Williams assisted the win as a middle blocker managing 14 kills throughout the match.

From September 18 to 19, the volleyball team travelled to Las Vegas for the infamously competitive Durango Fall Classic.  Poly finished with five wins and two losses, taking second place in the silver bracket.  The Jackrabbits ended the tournament above the two other Moore League teams, Lakewood and Wilson.  The girls placed tenth out of 64 teams in tournament, which was a great accomplishment for the team.

“We fought hard and never gave up.  We supported each other no matter what the score was,” said senior libero Frances Camandang.

The girls have great team chemistry and play as a unit, which aided them in defeating some really tough teams at the tournament.

“Why not us?” said Sammie Ah-Hong.  The team was considered to be the underdog but the girls proved their critics wrong.  Nobody had any expectations for the girls volleyball team this season, but so far, they have shown the higher level teams that they can compete  and proved why the Jackrabbits are the volleyball team to look out for this year.

The girls fought the tough teams and showed endurance through both long days of playing.

Outside Sammie Ah-Hong had a great run that weekend averaging about 12 kills per match.  Freshman setter Elizabeth Schuster had the team’s back on both days, showing her endurance and reliability to the team.  Junior Penina Tusa, who is usually a setter but plays outside hitter out of necessity, averaged ten kills a set as Poly’s other outside hitter.

“The tournament was very nerve-racking but I’m glad I got to experience it with these girls,” said sophomore Kalyah Williams.

Poly will continue playing in Moore league this week, going up against Jordan on Tuesday, September 22 and Lakewood on Thursday, September 24.

The Lakewood vs. Poly game is expected to bring a crowd,  being that the Lancers have been a competitive rival for Poly girls volleyball for a number of years.