On Oct. 30, the day before Halloween, our football team squared off against Burbank and battled till the very end but, unfortunately, fell short of a win with a final score of 27-33. The backdrop of Homecoming fireworks and ceremony stood in a stark, almost cruel contrast to the reality of the team’s valiant effort.

The Apaches then channeled their frustrations of losing their Homecoming Game and made it fuel for their effort against Hoover on Nov. 6, when they decisively stamped out the Hoover Tornadoes in a 42-28 win. When asked how they achieved this impressive margin of victory, senior Garrett Tuck explained, "We played well against a not very talented Hoover. Overall it was a good game for us." Senior Philip He provided the specifics when he added, "We just ran the ball and passed against them fairly well. Taylor was able to catch three touchdowns, and David Maldonado came up with two rushing touchdowns and then a screen pass for a touchdown."

The team, however, turned up short on Nov. 12 in their game against Crescenta Valley, in which they lost 42-13. However, the game was not without its redeeming moments. According to Philip, "it was close for the first half, and the best part was when David Schuil intercepted a pass and gave us great field position where we were able to score on a pass from Garrett Tuck to Robby Haines." He then added, "Unfortunately, we couldn’t stop Crescenta Valley’s run game because after David’s interception, he was out for the rest of the game with a shoulder injury. He’s the leader of our defense and our defense could not handle the run game."

"For one reason or another it wasn’t happening this year," said Coach Dimalante when he gave his honest assessment of the season gone. But, "Like Mike Ditka said, `You’re not a loser until you quit trying,’ and these kids never quit trying. I love my kids and I’m proud of them." As for his seniors, "I think the world of them. I was proud to be their coach. They will always be a part of our football program’s success in the future."

Garrett captured the season’s sentiment of frustration mixed with hope when he said, "It was a struggle for us because we weren’t winning and were always a play or call away from winning. We never gave up and continued to work hard during practices and games throughout the whole season."

And despite the disappointments and a final league score of 2-5 and overall score of 2-7-1, this year’s Varsity Football team remains optimistic about the fruits of its labor. The team may not have made it to CIF this year, but as Coach Dimalante reflected, "The outlook for next year’s team is very good. We played many underclassmen this year who gained valuable experience." Philip concurred, "Even though we had high expectations, I’m not disappointed. I feel that this season was part of the building process for the football program. In the next few years my teammates will come back successful and stronger with the experience."

Freshman Francis Dean was titled Pacific League Champion for singles but how she received such a name was incredible. Eagerly awaiting, she was put up against Burbank’s number one singles player who happened to beat her two times before; once because Francis lost and another because she had to forfeit due to a wrist injury. Naturally, Francis was aware of this and was worried about their next match against each other because she had the potential to lose again. However, Francis toughened up and pulled through, leading her team to success. She will be competing in the CIF individual tournament as well. Sophomore Nadia Pacheco also received fourth place for singles. She was consistent throughout the season and at Pacific League Championships, she played exceedingly well.

Freshman Elizabeth Lieu and junior Michelle Zhu received third place for doubles while seniors Amy Qiu and Nicole Gandasutisna got fourth place. When at Pacific League Championships, both doubles teams had to compete against each other, which was intense because both wanted to win. In the end, Elizabeth and Michelle were victorious, but the thought that two out of the three Arcadia doubles teams placed is already a huge accomplishment. According to Coach Jerry Dohling, "it’s really exciting to be undefeated because you know that this means no one else can ever have a better record than us."

As the team entered the first round of CIF, they wallowed in nervousness. Their opponent, San Marcos from Santa Barbara, was extremely tough, but all of the girls played their hearts out and successfully beat them 11-7. The team then went onto the second round of CIF against Newport Harbour and scored 12-6, making it eligible to move on to the third round which took place three days later.

Their next opponent was Palm Desert, which was number one in CIF. Of course, the team’s expectations decreased when it soon found out that its competitors were extremely talented; however, the team tried to put that fact aside. Although they lost 17-1, the team was glad to even make it this far into CIF.

The memories the Girls Varsity Tennis team made throughout the season will surely stay with the members for years and years to come. Michelle described bus rides home from away games as fun and entertaining because "half of us would sing while the other half played ‘Who Wants to Be a Millionare’ on someone’s iPhone." It’s these little things that helped create the special bond this team has. And as the season comes to an end, the team realized how tennis took up a lot of time after school many days a week, and even though some of them may be glad that the season is finally over, they are going to miss all the time they spent together, as a team, and as a family.