gotchanewsdaily.com 
As the autumn arrives, Dana Hills High School’s athletes have been working to improve upon their previous seasons.
Both cross country teams enter the season with high expectations as they look to defend their Division 3 CIF-SS State Championships.
Girls flag football is entering its second season and is trying to build a lasting culture and improve upon its inaugural season in the CIF-SS.
Girls volleyball is battling through adversity to make a push for another run in the CIF-SS playoffs.
Boys water polo will work to return to the playoffs for the first time in two years after a down year last season.
Here is an update on selected Dana Hills fall sports teams:
Boys Cross Country
As the Dolphins’ boys cross country team enters the 2024 season ranked No. 2 in the CIF, the expectations are higher than ever before – but none higher than senior Evan Noonan’s.
Noonan enters the year as the two-time defending CIF-SS Division 3 and State Champion. He was also named the Orange County and Gatorade boys cross country Runner of the Year last season.
Head coach Craig Dunn said the expectations for him this year took a step up.
“The goal is to win everything,” Dunn said.
Noonan ran at the 43rd annual Woodbridge Cross Country Classic in the 3-Mile Boys Sweepstakes on Sept. 21 and finished in 18th place with a time of 14:04.9. He finished nearly 26 seconds behind Owen Powell, the winner from Mercer Island High School in Washington.
Although it wasn’t the best result, it is a long season with plenty of opportunities for Noonan to prove why he is regarded as one of the best runners in California.
The team got much younger with the losses of runners including Jayden Hernandez and Garrett Woodruff. Dunn said there are five new runners with no varsity experience.
The youthful talent will take some time to adjust to competing at a higher level.
Dunn said that despite their age, the kids are working hard to help defend the team’s 2023 CIF State Championship.
“We’re happy where we’re at, but we want more,” Dunn said. “As we start competing, they’ll see their training pay off and see why they’re working so hard and doing that extra stuff to get to the level they want to be at.”
Dunn noted that it will be a tough road while the new faces get acclimated to the varsity level, but the team still has high hopes.
“Once again, it’s tough when you have five guys new to varsity and their level of experience is limited, but we’re shooting to do the best we can,” Dunn said. “We’re currently ranked second in CIF, so we’re hoping to at least achieve that, improve upon that and see where we go from there.”
With it being so early in the season, it’s hard to tell how things will shake out, but Dunn said the team is prepared to show the dominance it displayed last season.
“We’re putting in our work now … that way, once we start competing, we can start to show people who we are,” Dunn said.
Girls Cross Country
Head coach Amber Spina enters her first year as head coach of the girls cross country team, and she is excited to provide stability for the program.
“I have a lot of people coming back. They haven’t had the support that they’ve needed over the last several years, so it’s been a rebuild year for us. But they’re putting in the work, and it’s already starting to show,” Spina said.
The team returns senior Annie Ivarsson, junior Ava Diehl and sophomore Marlo Harris.
Ivarsson is a four-year starter and helped lead the team to a CIF-SS Division 3 State Championship last season.
She set a school record in her first race of the year at the 2024 Woodbridge Classic with a time of 16:33.
Spina said Ivarsson will have to “take some risks” this year to achieve what she wants to do, but noted that she is more than capable of taking on that task.
“(Ivarsson’s) running well. She’s really aware of who she is as a runner now, and I think this season she’s going to need to take some risks,” Spina said. “She’s going to have to take some risks just to challenge herself, to do things she’s capable of doing, but she’s definitely one to watch.”
Spina acknowledged that the team is much younger than years past, with only three returning runners. However, the younger runners have already started to provide results for the team.
Some of the standout freshman runners include Grace Gryzanoski, Tirma Griffiths and Sawyer Plunk.
Gryzanoski led the freshmen to a win at the Laguna Hills Invitational on Sept. 14 with a 3-mile run in 23:23.8.
“(Gryzanoski) is an incredible athlete. She just puts her head down. She listens to what you have to say to her. She takes critiques incredibly well, and she just goes into every single run and executes exactly how you want her to,” Spina said.
Sophomore Cameron Smart transitioned from cheerleading to cross country this season, and Spina said she is someone to keep an eye on.
Smart ran the team’s fastest time at the Laguna Hills Invitational with a 23:20.5 clocking.
Success early can be hard to sustain, but Spina said she expects to see more wins as the year goes on because of the work the girls have put in during practice.
“The very next day, I was like, ‘Look, you guys, this is where the long runs and the hard track workouts and the hot days and the double days . . . like this is where it’s all going to pay off,’ ” Spina said. “So I definitely have high hopes and expectations that the standard that our youngest girls have set, that we just continue to rise to the occasion at every invitational.”
Girls Volleyball
In the world of sports, not everything goes your way. But the true measure of a great program is how it overcomes adversity.
The Dolphins’ girls volleyball team is actively working through some of those issues. Early-season injuries to key players including sophomore Sawyer Rupe and senior Kaity Hoelker have forced younger players to step up and produce.
Head coach Tom Hoff touted their performances this season, especially Rupe.
“(Rupp’s) had a little hiccup, just physically, on the way through the season, but she was good for us last year. I know she’s been good for us this year, and I know she’s going to be really good going forward. She’s a real nice volleyball player,” Hoff said.
The Dolphins had an 11-7 record as of Sept. 23. While the results have been mixed due to some injuries, Hoff said the team is up for the challenge.
“The high school season is a little bit on the fast and furious side. It doesn’t slow down. … This starts to go to two and three matches every week you’re playing. So you’ve got to get into a rhythm, and (it’s) a little more challenging to be real consistent,” Hoff said. “But it’s a great challenge for us, and we’re up for it. And I know the kids … are looking to get better.”
The team has a lot of experienced players to help lead the younger talent through the season. The roster includes 11 seniors.
Hoff said Dolphins’ experience sets an example of what the expectations are in the program.
“We have a lot of people who have been around the program a long time, for one thing, and have played a bunch of volleyball throughout the program, have been in CIF for us. We’ve won a league with a bunch of these players,” Hoff said. “So, I think just that understanding that that’s what we want to do this year. … Those are always great things for the younger kids to see.”
The Dolphins are currently 1-2 in South Coast League play. The team plays in a tough league that includes San Juan Hills, San Clemente and Aliso Niguel.
Hoff said it’s important for the team to practice hard in a league as tough as theirs.
“Nothing’s given in this league. That’s kind of a blessing and a curse. I think it’s great competition. You don’t have any time off. Every match is going to be real good,” Hoff said. “You just got to make sure we stay grounded as a team and keep doing the work in practice, and good things will happen.”
The team has won against some tough competition. The Dolphins beat rival San Clemente, 3-1, on Sept. 17, but fell to Trabuco Hills and San Juan Hills.
Hoff said the team is striving to win the league, adding he enjoys how tough the league is because it prepares the team for its bigger goal – the CIF-SS playoffs.
“This league is just an unbelievable league with great teams, great coaches, always real challenging,” Hoff said. “You can (win) that and then you can get to CIF and then go try to make a run in that tournament.”
The Dolphins continue league play on Oct. 1 in a rematch with Trabuco Hills. They meet San Clemente again on Oct. 3 and San Juan Hills on Oct. 8.
Girls Flag Football
In its second year as a program, the Dolphins girls flag football team has experienced some growing pains but has shown some signs of improvement throughout the season.
Despite a 2-12 record, the team has shut out two teams, Godinez and Capistrano Valley by scores of 33-0 and 27-0, respectively.
Despite some blowouts, the shutout win against Capistrano Valley on Sept. 18 was a sign that the team hasn’t lost its fight.
Some notable matchups for the rest of the season include a league game against San Juan Hills on Oct. 12 and a rematch against Beckman on Oct. 16. Dana Hills lost the first matchup, 16-12.
Boys Water Polo
After missing the playoffs last season despite high expectations, the Dolphins’ water polo team is looking to get back on track.
So far this season, Dana Hills has struggled to find consistency en route to a 1-4 start. In those losses, the team was outscored, 61-30.
The Dolphins beat Grossmont, 15-8, on Aug. 31 and will have some prime opportunities to win later in the season.
Dana Hills plays Tesoro and El Toro twice each, and the combined record by those teams is 1-16.
Despite having to play strong teams including Mission Viejo and Trabuco Hills five more times, there is hope for the Dolphins to see success in their other matchups.
