While summer actually ends at the end of September, it sure feels like it has come to an end this past week. Going back on August 4th is definitely very early for some. I often hear older generations talk about how early we go back to school, and how they never went to school before Labor Day, even. While going back to school is always a boring time of year, there’s one thing I know I always look forward to going into the fall – fall sports.

     As we get back into the full swing of school, we have a lot to look forward to in our fall sports. As far as sports go this fall, we have girls and boys cross country, volleyball, football, boys tennis, girls golf, and of course band and cheerleading also. Both the girls and boys cross country teams have many returning runners this year. The girls team lost strong runners in Mackenzie Dockery and state qualifier Makenna Leicht. With Liberty Scott and four other returning varsity runners coming back this year, and with the help of incoming freshmen, the Lady Kings will be a strong contender for county and sectional titles. The boys team also lost another strong runner in Dominic Gilbert, but had four returning seniors in Enoch Hines, Felix Palafox, Braxton Armstrong, and Cole McCloskey. With these seniors, and a few of the freshmen that have joined the team, the Kings are one of the favorites for the sectional championship, and are hoping to advance to semi-state as a team. The volleyball team lost three seniors in Cana Jones, Kendal Johnson, and Ashlee Lindley, but have many returning starters who have practiced in the offseason. The football team is also returning many starters this season. Only losing three starting players, this should be a strong season for the Kings. Also, many of the returning players have gotten in the weight room all of the past year, and will continue to improve as the season progresses. The boys tennis team will also be another highlight for Lewis Cass this year. While losing Jack Salyers and Gannon Davis may hurt the team a little bit, other players like Ethan Johnson and Jensen Burrous are going to be strong players in both singles spots that Jack and Gannon held. Also, the first doubles team of Noah Preston and Bryon Hurst will be sure to help the Kings this season. The girls golf team is also looking forward to a promising season. Kassidy Henry graduated, but returning golfers Kendall Hlebasko and Savannah Bowser continue to improve. As for the cheer team, Hannah Plauschin was the only graduating senior. Savannah Bowser, Kyah Preston, Ashlin Collins, and Kadence Miller are the senior leaders this year for the cheerleading squad. Another involvement going on this fall is the Lewis Cass Marching Kings. Coming back from winning state this past year, the Marching Kings have high expectations to live up to this year.

      As we get into our seasons this fall, I encourage you to go and support as many of your peers as you can. Friday nights I expect to see many students in the student section cheering on the football team. Hopefully we can win 2-3 sectional titles among all the fall sports, which isn’t very common for Cass to do. Overall, this should be a good year for fall sports here at Lewis Cass, with many accomplishments.