Lions Sports Update (Jan. 22)

BASKETBALL
The St. Mark’s varsity basketball team captured a pair of thrilling SPC counter victories last week. On Tuesday, the Lions defeated Cistercian at home, with underclassmen Westley Jackson and Trevez McMiller reaching double figures and seniors Whit Turner, Sam Blumenthal, and Andy Li closing strong. On Friday, the team traveled to Greenhill for a conference showdown in an electric atmosphere. Junior Dawson Battie was unguardable for stretches, pouring in 30 points, while senior Spencer Hopkin attacked the rim relentlessly.

Greenhill erased St. Mark’s eight-point fourth-quarter lead—despite outstanding defense from junior AJ Thomas—and the Hornets went up one with five seconds remaining. After a missed contested layup, the ball bounced into the hands of senior Pranav Danda, who tipped in the putback just before the buzzer. The shot banked off the backboard and slid through the rim for a dramatic road victory. Incredible.

This week, the Lions travel to Bishop Lynch and Trinity Valley before hosting Fort Worth Country Day on Friday at 7 p.m.

SWIMMING
The varsity swim team traveled to Southlake to face perennial 6A power Southlake Carroll in a meet filled with strong midseason performances. In years past, this meet served as a midpoint taper in “big water” ahead of SPCs. With the new Levering Pool, however, the Lions now train in big water daily. As a result, the team raced “dog tired” and still delivered outstanding swims against top competition.

Senior Ethan Wang posted his best 200 Freestyle of the season, joined by juniors Cade Daigle and Emiliano Mayo with their top times in the event. In the 200 IM, senior Oliver Geheb battled through and finished near his goal time. In the 50 Freestyle, Wyatt Melvin, Grant Bowers, Nicholas Sun, and Andrew Zheng all recorded season-best efforts. Cruz Santana matched his best time of the year in the 100 Butterfly, with Daigle again close to his top mark, and Armaan Newaskar posting his best St. Mark’s time in the event.

The 100 Freestyle saw personal bests from Luke Nguyen, Saketh Chebrolu, Grant Bowers, Emiliano Mayo, and Wyatt Melvin, among others. In the 500 Freestyle, Eddie Stehel and Will Behnke finished just two-tenths apart, with Behnke dropping 15 seconds from his previous best. Nicholas Sun shaved a second in the 100 Backstroke, with strong swims from Newaskar and Ilan Gunawardena as well. In the final individual event, Wang took the top spot, with Oliver Geheb and Judah Isaacs-Sodeye close behind.

Up next is Senior Night on January 22, as St. Mark’s and Hockaday host Parish, Greenhill, Cistercian, and Alcuin. The Senior Night presentation begins at 5:15 p.m.

WRESTLING
On Friday, January 16, Lion wrestling hosted the North Zone Duals in Spencer Gymnasium. St. Mark’s went 1–3 in the annual event. Co-captains junior Zach Golle (four pins) and senior Jackson Barnes (two pins), along with junior Oliver Loehr (two pins), were named Wrestlers of the Tournament for the Lions, each finishing undefeated. For Golle, it marked his season debut after recovering from injury.

St. Mark’s 46 vs. TCA/MCA/LCS 21

St. Mark’s 21 vs. St. John 57

St. Mark’s 29 vs. Fort Worth Country Day 54

St. Mark’s 37 vs. Bishop Lynch 39

The Lions were scheduled to compete at the Prep State Dual Tournament this weekend, but the event was canceled due to forecasted winter storms. Senior Night is Thursday, January 29, when St. Mark’s hosts Episcopal School of Dallas at 5:30 p.m. in Spencer Gymnasium.

SOCCER
The varsity soccer team opened SPC counter play with two close losses last week, falling to Cistercian 1–2 and Greenhill 2–4. The Lions return to action this week with two more SPC counters against Trinity Valley on Tuesday and Fort Worth Country Day on Friday, weather permitting.