There is no better time to be a Greyhound sports fan; fall playoffs are in full swing — read below for a recap of water polo’s complete team effort in winning their third crown in four years Saturday night, winter practices begin next Monday, or in the case of ice hockey, this week, and rivalry week begins today in the lead up to the 106th Gilman-McDonogh football game Saturday. Volleyball and cross country championships go this week, so keep reading for those schedules. Go Hounds!

Cross Country

After a thrilling win over MSJ last week, the distance Hounds head to Shawan Downs on Tuesday for the MIAA championships. Running against MSJ this past week, Gilman’s Ryan Collins and Jemmel Green finished 2 and 4, but it was Gilman’s depth that provided the one-point victory. Collins continues a standout season; he pulled ahead late to win the home senior day meet across the street at the Cathedral running against Loyola and Curley. With the win over MSJ, the Hounds enter the championships nipping at the heels of #1 CHC and #2 Loyola. 

Football

Needless to say, all eyes will be on Brown Field Saturday for the renewal of the Gilman-McDonogh rivalry. Keep an eye on defensive standouts Ahmir Crawley (who blocked his third punt of the year last week against Loyola), linebacker Carson Mingo, and safety tackling machine Al Gushue. On offense, Matt Morelli had six catches and Hayden Carpenter led the Hounds with 85 receiving yards as part of Matt Parker’s aerial attack against Loyola (2-31 for 209 yards).

Soccer

The varsity Hounds wrapped up their season this past week. A final highlight was a week ago Friday at home against St. Joe for senior day, when the Hounds scored a 1-0 win. The JV soccer Hounds finished a successful regular season last week and now travel to power Calvert Hall on Tuesday for the semifinals of the JV playoffs. Good luck, boys! And good luck to Coaches Hastings, Zealand, and Matthews!

Volleyball

Gilman dropped a tough match to end the regular season at Loyola Friday night. Thanks to all the students that came out to cheer on their team. There is no rest for the weary, though; Gilman hosts the quarterfinals today at 4:30 p.m. in the Arena against Boys' Latin. The JV then hosts BL for the semifinals of their playoffs Tuesday at 5:30 p.m. Varsity semifinals will be at 4:30 p.m. Wednesday at MSJ, with JV championships Thursday, and the varsity finals Friday at MSJ.

Water Polo

Saving the best for last! Saturday night saw the official emergence of a dynasty, as Coaches Smith and Bhalla dove into the pool at McDonogh with the boys to celebrate the 23-15 win over Loyola to earn more hardware, the program’s third championship in the past four seasons. Earlier in the day, the powerhouse JV program fell just short of an undefeated season, dropping the championship to CHC. Congratulations to the JV Hounds for an outstanding campaign — it looks like the future for the Hounds program is as bright as the present. 

Back to the varsity match, though; after taking care of the Eagles in the semifinal Friday, Gilman drew the Dons for the final. The teams split in the regular season, so everyone anticipated a great match for the championship. The Hounds took an early lead — after Timmy Brooks secured possession to start the match, he found Ryan Coleman to get Gilman on the board first. Drew Garvey, Mason Murphy-Lenk, Jackson Barnhill, and Brooks added early goals as the match quickly turned into a shootout. Gilman led throughout, but Loyola always responded to runs by the Hounds with their own runs. A Murphy-Lenk goal stretched the first half lead to 11-6, but Loyola closed the half on a run, so Gilman led at the break 11-8. The Hounds continued the scoring barrage to start the second half, and looked to run away with the match when GK Nick Lutzky forced a Don turnover while leading 17-10. However, the Dons scored three straight to close the third quarter. Gilman’s depth, as it has all season, proved too much to overcome for the opponents, though, as Barnhill, Murphy-Lenk, and Garvey dominated the final period for the 23-15 final margin of victory. Eight different Greyhounds scored at least one goal in the final. Drew Garvey was named Most Outstanding Player for his efforts, and the Hounds bring the hardware home to Roland Avenue again. Congratulations to all of the players and coaches!