The Fall 2021 athletic season was full of great competition, and our student-athletes shone as individuals and with their teams. Check out the season recap for each varsity team below, and don’t forget to watch our Rams Rewind video at the end.
Girls Tennis
Patrick Huewe
Second in State and Metro League Tournament
The 2021 Girls Tennis Team season is summed up in one word: unbelievable! The team had a good result in the Metro League Tournament, finishing 2nd. Stella Kreisel ’23 and Bennett Baur ’25 won their singles flights at #5 and #7, respectively. In individual Districts competition, Kreisel had an impressive run to finish in 3rd place in singles where she played teammate Baur, who finished in 4th. Journee White ’22 and Chelsey Nwamu ’23 took 3rd in doubles while teammates Mikaela Mikulec ’24 and Rachel Li ’24 finished 2nd and qualified for the Individual State tournament. Mikulec and Li ended their season with a 5th place medal at the Individual State Doubles tournament. In the Districts semifinal against Viz, the team lost all three doubles matches but stormed back to upset the defending Class 2 State Champion Saints 5-4 with wins from Mikulec, Li, Nwamu, Kreisel, and Baur. The team used this momentum to stun defending Class 3 State Champion John Burroughs with incredible performances from all players in a 5-3 victory, punching their ticket to Sectionals, where they defeated Rock Bridge 5-0. In the State semifinal, the girls defeated previously unbeaten Park Hill from Kansas City 5-0. In the finals against St. Joe’s, the Rams fell 0-5 in a hard-fought match.
Girls Cross Country
Jim Lohr
Ray District Champ, Team Second Place at State
The MICDS Girls Cross Country season was the best season since being moved to Class 5 due to our success in previous years. Three runners qualified for the State Championship. Julia Ray ’23 finished 4th at the State Championship to earn All-State honors for the third season in a row. Ray was also the MSHSAA Class 5 District Champion for the third straight season, is currently ranked in the top 30 in the country in Cross Country, and raced in the Foot Locker Championship. Senior Captain Riley Noonan ’22 made the most of her first trip to the State Championship and earned All-State by finishing in 15th place. She also finished 7th in the District Championship earning All-District in her final season. Noonan was also the winner of the Harriet Green Award given to the team member most inspiring to her teammates. Grace Coppell ’25 earned All-District and competed at State in her first season. She was also First-Team All-League with her top-seven finish on the challenging Priory course. Captains Noonan, Ellie Gira ’22, Cate Cody ’22, and Olivia Rickers ’22 provided excellent leadership this season as the Rams traveled to Indiana and Illinois for meets against some of the top talent in the Midwest Region. The Rams finished runner up in the Metro League Championship and had four All-League runners, including Kate Williamson ’24. In addition, Ray won the Forest Park XC Festival, Noonan finished runner-up at the Border Wars Championship, Ray and Noonan finished 1-2 at the Metro League Championship and both were selected to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch All-Metro Cross Country team, and Cody won the TRXC JV Championship.
Boys Swimming & Diving
Chris McCrary
Rewriting the School Records
This season, the Rams rewrote the team record board while qualifying three relays and seven individuals for the Class 2 State Championships. Overall, the team took 9th place in the first season competing in Class 2. Senior captains Ryan Mauney ’22 and Lee Naber ’22, along with Mason Boon ’23 and Wayne Webster ’23, teamed up to break the oldest remaining record at MICDS in their 200 Free Relay at the State Championships. Naber would finish the season by breaking the team record in every distance of Freestyle events: the 50, 100, 200, and 500 meters. He also broke his own 100-meter Backstroke record from last year. By the time the water settled after the team’s final swims of the season, the Rams had demonstrated to everyone that even the smallest school in Class 2 could make big waves at State.
Field Hockey
Lynn Mittler
Second in Midwest Championship, 18th Final Four Appearance in 20 Years
Varsity Field Hockey finished 2nd in the Midwest Championship on October 30 after beating John Burroughs 3-1 in the semifinals, avenging a semifinal loss last year. Whitney Akred ’23, Caroline Birkel ’25, Kendall Curry ’23, Ellie Lochhead ’22, and Virginia Portell ’24 were all voted Second Team All-Metro. Ella Brauer ’24, Ella Etherington ’24, Brecken Calcari ’22, Anna Lochhead ’22, and Greta Wolfsberger ’22 were named First team All-Metro conference with Kate Oliver ’22 as the Co-Player of the Year. The team finished 15-5, with three of those losses to regionally-ranked, out-of-town teams. The team competed in its 12th Midwest Final in the last 20 years and made its 18th final four appearance in the last 20 years. Calcari, Aishani Chakraborty ’22, Curry, Henley Danforth ’23, Erica Engelhardt ’23, Marina Lea-Bernstein ’23, A. Lochhead, and Oliver were all nominated to the National Field Hockey Coaches Association National Academic Squad.
Football
Fred Bouchard
Historic Season with Conference, District Championships
2021 was a historic season for the MICDS Rams Football Program. A 42-28 win over St. Louis University High (SLUH) was the first win over a Class 6 team in the school’s history. Five touchdown receptions by PJ Behan ’22 in the Park Hills Central game appears to be a single-game record. After decisive wins over Westminster (49-14), Priory (42-7), and a homecoming shutout over John Burroughs (35-0), the Rams took on conference power Lutheran North and came through victorious (56-37), securing a second consecutive conference title. Convincing wins over Lutheran South (44-7) and St. Dominic (47-13) led to the final game versus Chaminade, which ended with an exciting 56-34 win; a 97-yard pass from Reagan Andrew ’22 to Winston Moore ’23 was the longest play of the season. The Rams soundly defeated both Soldan (62-20) and Parkway North (42-6) in the playoffs to earn a District Championship. In the State Semifinals, the Rams played Smithville, the #1 ranked team in Class 4, and fell 36-40 after a difficult fourth quarter. The Rams finished the season 12-1 and ranked #2 in Class 4 and #2 among big schools in metro St. Louis. Andrew was selected the Class 4 Offensive Player of the Year by the MOFBCA. The following players also earned All-State status: Andrew 1st Team QB; Steve Hall ’23 1st Team RB; Nate Schuckman ’23 1st Team OL; Bjorn Sjogren ’22 1st Team DB; Landon Gelven ’22 1st Team Kicker; Behan 2nd Team WR; Gus Baisch ’22 2nd Team LB, and Moore 3rd Team WR. The team captains for the 2021 Rams Football Team were Andrew, Behan, Sjogren, Baisch, Jack Hayes ’22, and Hall.
Girls Golf
Diane Gioia
Team Spirit Drives Mikulec to Success and State Qualification
The Girls Golf team started the season with excitement, potential, and a determination by the seniors to lead and build community. Team spirit and individual success were the hallmarks of this fall. Katie Mikulec ’22 continued her success from the 2020 season, medaling eight times and earning All-Metro League First Team. She kicked off the season by finishing 6th overall in the eight-team Missouri Illinois River Challenge. Mikulec, Maggie Maguire ’22, and Izzy Kimbrough ’22 led as the team captains, and Keely O’Connell ’23 added depth and experience to round out the team. When a player had to end her season early due to injury, Julie Qian ’24 and newcomers Kelly Zhao ’24 and Morgan Withington ’25 stepped in to fill the spot. The team gained experience and confidence and came together during the District tournament under extremely difficult weather conditions. Despite the weather, Mikulec qualified for the State Championship in Springfield, Missouri, and finished 38th overall. MICDS will graduate three starting seniors this year, but the future looks promising thanks to their leadership, friendship, and experience.
Boys Soccer
Jack Fischer
District Champs Build On Last Year’s Success
The 2021 MICDS Boys Varsity Soccer Team followed up their State Championship season with another tremendously successful campaign. The Rams played a grueling schedule and finished with a record of 15-6-1, marking their highest win total since the 2016-17 season. Highlights from the season include victories over Westminster, Lafayette, Priory (x2), Timberland, Whitfield, and a nail-biting last-minute district win over Parkway West. Unfortunately, the season came to an end with a hard-fought 1-0 loss to traditional power Webster Groves in the district semifinal. Senior captains Gordon Walker ’22 and Andrew Kuznetsov ’22 led a hungry group determined to build upon last year’s success against stiffer Class 3 competition. The offense was paced by Novo Onovwerosuoke ’22, who earned all-conference honors with 13 goals and 5 assists. Eric Nohara-Leclair ’22, Philip Ralph ’23, and Aidan Helms ’24 also earned All-Conference honors while anchoring a defense that conceded less than a goal per game. The Rams will graduate eleven seniors from the program, and we are deeply thankful for their contributions over their careers.
Volleyball
Peggy Shelton
Second Place at Districts
The Rams Volleyball team embraced a new season. They welcomed playing in front of their families and friends and continued to work hard to get better with each practice and every match. All volleyball coaches are eagerly building on the mission of a solid Rams Volleyball program. The team clinched a 2nd place District win in a thrilling match against Maplewood/Richmond Heights, coming back from two sets down to win. Post-season honors include team captain Audrey Mahoney ’22, Arya Ramakrishnan ’22, Hannah Forsberg ’23, and Paige Morris ’23 named to First Team All-District. Harper Graves ’22 and Ishika Kanjerla ’24 were named to Second Team All-District. Metro League All-Conference Selections include Mahoney and Forsberg to First Team, Ramakrishnan to Second Team, and Graves and Kanjerla to Honorable Mention. Mahoney received the Best and Brightest Award from the American Volleyball Coaches Association.
Cyclocross
Chris Ludbrook
Fourteen Top-Five Finishes
The small but mighty Varsity Cyclocross team led by Ash Aranha ’23 took the Junior Division of the 2021 Bubba Memorial Cyclocross Series by storm this year. The team’s 14 Top Five finishes were punctuated by wins from Sawyer Merlin ’25 and Connor Paine ’24 and a second-place finish from Amara «Quinn» Autry ’23. The season started as a blank canvas as Cyclocross was new for half the team. Still, they honed their skills throughout the season by working hard and capitalizing on lessons from the best, including former professional cyclist Carrie Cash and former state champion Peat Henry. The team continues to build in the off-season by competing on their own and joining local gravel rides in preparation for the spring season.
Boys Cross Country
Chris Rappleye
Third Place at Difficult Invitational
The highlight of the Boy’s Cross Country season was the varsity squad placing 3rd at the Priory Invitational behind the 9th place individual finish of Wyatt Dickerherber ’24. Under the leadership of senior captains Bas Cosmopoulos ’22 and Jackson Strelo ’22, the entire squad received medals for finishing in the top 30 as individuals at this meet on one of the more difficult courses of the season. DJ Williams ’23 made a charge late in the District race on a challenging course in Linn, Missouri, on October 30, placing 52nd overall and first for the team in a personal record of 18:59.96, besting his previous best ever time by over a minute, which promises great things for our 2022 season next year as Williams and Dickherber return along with junior Will Seemiller ’23 and an up-and-coming squad of underclassmen who pushed their way into varsity contention over the course of the season this year.
Cheerleading
Emilee Lemp and Sydney Eisenstein
New JV Squad Introduced; Growth in Numbers and Skills
The MICDS Cheerleading program had a wonderful fall season cheering on the Rams through the state semifinals! This year’s program contained a full roster of students, which allowed for both Junior Varsity and Varsity squads. The season’s highlight was perfecting and performing the annual Homecoming routine during the first-ever all-school outdoor pep rally. As the program continues to grow in numbers, it does so in talent as well. The team is looking forward to new accomplishments in the winter season.