Claremont sports seeing a resurgence?

Maybe it's the fact that Claremont is in a new league. Or it could just be the Claremont High School sports teams are getting better.

The years of records .500 and below may be coming to an end as CHS is making the 2010-2011 season of sports a year to remember. And with many of Claremont's wins coming outside of Sierra League play, the switch from the Baseline League is not the biggest difference for the Wolfpack.

One of the big differences is that we are seeing many juniors and seniors that have had time to gel within the same system for a few years. If we were to take a look at football for example, this was the senior year of quarterback Daniel Kessler, defensive lineman Brandon Tuliaupupu and receivers Aaron Dockery and Tanner Kuramata. Translation? Claremont finishes the season with a 7-4 record and makes the playoffs for the first time in several years.

Let's continue with CHS boys cross country. The team had its best finish in school history this year behind the efforts of seniors Paul Ross, Colin Domonoske and Henry Falotico. Once again, senior leadership pays off.

How about applying the same idea to the CHS basketball teams? With teams led by strong season classes, the boys team has jumped out to a 9-9 start and the girls are currently above .500 at 9-7. And the girls water polo team, also filled with lots of seniors, is also off to a great 10-3 start. We can also put the varsity boys soccer team (9-0-4) in this category as well of CHS teams with seniors dominating the roster.

But CHS freshmen and sophomores are showing they can get the job done as well. The strong efforts by the CHS girls cross country and girls tennis teams this year the result of many younger standouts such as Cindy Liu and Drew Espinosa. The varsity girls soccer team has used a blend of both underclass and upperclass talent to kick their way to a 10-4-1 record this season.

It's the players who are making the difference this season and the coaches have done a great job in growing talent in the players over a 4-year period. With a new start in the Sierra League, Claremont is beginning its ascent at just the right time. Other sports programs will come along as well but just need a bit more seasoning before they're ready.

All I know is that I'm seeing a difference in Claremont teams this year, a good difference. And I'm hoping that this is the start of something good for years to come.