Covenant Christian High School

Fall sports are in full swing! Here is a snapshot of how things are going for the Warriors so far and what you can expect for the next few months. Cross Country Composed of nine boys and three girls, the CCHS Cross Country teams are young, hungry, and developing. Mia Dubke is the lone returning senior and has proven herself a stable rock of a leader, modeling commitment and consistency. Mia is running with two freshmen girls, Helen Kamer and Sicily Sopko, so her example will help set team standards for years to come. On the boys side, sophomore Tristan Witter looks to be the number one runner on the team this year, looking to build off of promising freshman cross country and track seasons. Fellow sophomore Jack Smitherman, juniors Eli Allman, Jonah Hawk, and Gerald Kamer, as well as freshmen Andrew Herbert and Bennett Myers are all training like they could be runners 2-7 any given meet. Sophomore William Thomas and freshman Ryan Bohm will be in the mix in many of our meets this season as well. It was a stellar summer conditioning season for the team—the potential of this young squad is exciting to consider. The cross country team is looking forward to competing in some new meets this season, mixing small school competition with some serious sectional-like environments. Head coach Tyler Wildman is excited for what the season will hold for the Warriors. “There are many opportunities for personal bests and running on all sorts of terrain in the rapidly changing Indiana fall climate,” he said. “This year’s young team becomes next year’s experienced juggernaut. We’re ready to run!” Key dates: September 21: ICC Conference Tournament, October 12: City Tournament, & October 19: IHSAA postseason begins Football Covenant Warrior football is celebrating its 10th anniversary as a varsity program this season—ten years that reaches much further than the achievements and actions that happened on the field on so many Friday nights. Covenant football has always been a special program, instilling values of family, servant leadership, character, and integrity into the many young men who were willing to receive them. Head coach Evan Cottle said this about the anniversary season: “This being our 10th year as a varsity program is special, and I'm excited to celebrate it. We have had a lot to celebrate over the last decade, on and off the field. I can't wait to see how this group comes together and becomes a team!” The 10th year begins a new era in which the Warriors will compete in the Indiana Crossroads Conference. An increased school enrollment also graduates them to IHSAA class 2A adding an extra layer of challenge that would prove difficult for any team. Senior skill players Sam Lyons (WR) and Jeremiah Dowdell (TB), also the team’s two starting cornerbacks, are up for the task. They will be difference-makers on offense and defense. The offensive line is young, but learning quickly what it takes to compete at the varsity level. They will be working hard to protect two freshmen quarterbacks, Blake Stewart and Zeb Cox, marking the first time a freshmen will start at QB since 2014. “Blake and Zeb are both hungry for the opportunity to show what they're made of,” Coach Cottle commented. “Defensively, we are going to fly around and be disruptive. Our secondary and linebackers are more than solid and going to give opposing QBs fits.” Expect FS Noah Sebree to make a ton of plays on the back end, and Henry Schafer will be a tackling machine on the defensive side. Sophomores Bryce Eagen (LB) and Reece Tincher (DE) will also be making an impact on defense. Bryce led all freshmen in the state in sacks last year—look for them both to cause havoc in opposing backfields this year. Current record: 0-1 Key dates: October 4: Homecoming, October 18: Senior Night, & October 25: IHSAA postseason begins Girls Golf The girls golf team always gets a good head start on the rest of the fall sports, and they have already competed in six matches and one invitational already! They finished with a team 405 in the Ben Davis invite—good enough for eighth place in a very large field. The Warriors are led by lone senior Elissa Jeffries. Other regular varsity competitors include junior Izzy Kornmeyer, sophomores Carly Neville and Sienna Graham, and the top five is rounded out by the promising young talent of freshman Hannah Keen. Key dates: September 3 - ICC Conference Championship, September 16 - City Tournament, September 20 - IHSAA postseason begins, & October 4 - Senior Night (at football game) Boys Soccer Boys soccer is hoping to build off back-to-back sectional titles and a regional runner-up finish with another strong postseason showing. With a current state ranking of #3, hope is renewed for this group to make a deep run into October. “While we graduated 7 seniors, we return a wealth of experience with the return of 13 letter winners and several multi-year starters,” said third-year head coach, Josh Brown. “This is a group that will go far TOGETHER (which is our theme for this year) and when they play together, they are very difficult to beat.” Two of the team’s top three goal scorers from a year ago return with Nathan Afolayan (13 goals) and All-City Tourney team member Caleb McCrory (10 goals). Other senior leaders include Zach Jackson, Josiah Swearingen, and Logan Thom. Braden Ransberger and Titus Faulk return as experienced defenders with sophomore Owen Hitchcock taking over in goal. Other previous letter-winners like Ephraim Brock, Will Doan (Doan has already been nominated for Indy Star’s player of the week honors—vote here: www.indystar.com/sports/high-school), Elias McCrory, Jordon Nees, along with newcomer Jordan Green, will be counted on to step into more significant roles this year. The team is excited to compete for the first time as members of the Indiana Crossroads Conference! Current record: 2-0 Key dates: September 14: Senior Day, September 26 - October 2: City Tournament, & October 7: IHSAA postseason begins Girls Soccer The girls soccer team is off to a strong start behind the leadership of new head coach, Seth Baker. The group has found ways to put the ball in the back of the net in its first two games of the year—2-1 wins over University and Triton Central. The Warriors rely heavily on the skills of midfielders Quinci Gumbel and Jaiden Dare to control possession, while fellow senior Maddy Howard centers the defense and keeps things clear in front of freshman keeper Brooklyn Unger. Juniors Ana Eiler, Claire Blackney, Selah Howard, and Tarike Rohrbach provide another layer of upperclassman leadership as they also work to contribute heavily on the offensive end. The Warriors are excited to compete in a much more balanced Indiana Crossroads Conference and hopefully get back into position to once again secure some postseason hardware. The girls’ last sectional championship came in 2022. Current record: 2-0 Key dates: September 14: Senior Day, September 26 - October 2: City Tournament, & October 7: IHSAA postseason begins Boys Tennis Check out our full boys tennis season preview here: https://covenantathletics.org/Article/32482. The Warriors are off to a great start with their only loss of the season coming so far at the hands of the Lebanon Tigers. They also made a great run at their first ever ICC conference tournament, finishing second to Triton Central. Congratulations to 1S Max Carter, 3S Brandon Hilliard, and 1D Mark and Isaac Crane on earning All-Conference honors for their tournament performances! Current record: 3-1 (2nd Place at ICC Conference Tournament) Key dates: September 17: Senior Day, September 26-28: City Tournament, October 1: IHSAA postseason begins Girls Volleyball There is great excitement building behind the mix of old and new coming together to drive an anticipated next wave of success for Covenant volleyball. Three generations of coaches and their former players will be stepping in to guide the 2024-25 season. Erin and Mick Oppy have returned to help as interim head coaches alongside their former player Brooke (Stamper ‘11) Behnke, and one of Brooke’s former players Liz (Pelley ‘18) Niese has been a huge help. Michelle Flatt has also stepped up to help with the development of one of the largest groups of players in the history of the program. Last season, we ended the year sending off eight seniors and a semi-final loss in sectionals. The program graduated eight seniors, and coming into this season, defensive specialist Shelby Olmstead is the only member of the senior class. She will provide leadership for a varsity team full of strong juniors ready to make their mark. Third year varsity outside hitter Kenzie Mann is poised to have an amazing season with her versatility in her hit selection as well as her strong serve (she has already been nominated for Indy Star’s player of the week honors—vote here: www.indystar.com/sports/high-school). She is joined by emerging middle hitter, Raven Russell, that will look to hold the middle of the court in check with her huge block! We are looking to returning Varsity players Anna Fowler and Kadison Oppy to contribute solid leadership and game experience for this group as well. The program is also ecstatic at the arrival of a massively talented freshman class that promises to support and build the program for years to come. “The mixture of experienced and fresh talent in both the players and the coaches makes us bullish about our season filled with teamwork, dedication, and exciting matchups as we join the Indiana Crossroads Conference and our realigned Sectional #42,” said coach Mick Oppy. “We hope to see our community of students, parents, and fans come out and support us!” Current record: 1-4 (5th Place in the Warrior Invitational) Key dates: September 5: Warriors Helping Warriors, September 18: Senior Night, October 7-10: City Tournament, & October 15: IHSAA postseason begins