Cavaliers Claim State Titles, All-State Nods in Fall Season
By Andy Pogach, Director of Athletics
The fall season has come to a close and our student-athletes have a lot to be proud of on and off the field. Led by our girls golf team’s third straight state championship, our postseason honors include an individual state champion (Jenna Kim ’27, who won her third straight individual state golf title), 10 All-State student-athletes, 28 All-Conference honorees, four conference titles and lots of growth and life lessons.
Here are our final updates for our seven varsity teams:
Girls Golf
Team & Individual State Champions
The girls golf team held off a tough Providence Day School for their third consecutive state championship. Playing at Keith Hills Golf Club in Buies Creek, the Cavs led by nine strokes after the first day and then had to play a spectacular back nine on day two to pull away from a Chargers team that had cut the DA lead to three strokes early in the second round. Jenna Kim ’27 won her third straight individual state championship by shooting a two-under par 142. Saia Rampersaud ’25 (5th, 158) and Chloe French ’25 (7th, 161) had strong performances — especially on day two — to help seal the win. All three girls earned both All-State and All-Conference honors. Congrats to head coach Kevin Wicker on another incredible season!
Boys Cross-Country
2nd at NCISAA State Championships
The DA boys turned in an impressive performance at the NCISAA (N.C. Independent Schools Athletic Association) state meet, placing second overall at WakeMed Soccer Park in Cary. Led by All-Staters Angus Cook ’25 (8th, 16:09) and Nick Friga ’26 (10th, 16:13), the Cavs’ team score of 113 beat out contenders Metrolina Christian Academy, Charlotte Latin and Providence Day — all of whom ranked ahead of the Cavs entering the state meet — for the silver medal. All-Conference runners Eli Kraskin ’26 (26th, 16:47), Redmond Thorne ’27 (31st, 16:54) and John David Spatola ’28 (41st - 17:14) rounded out the five DA scorers.
Girls Cross-Country
5th at NCISAA State Championships
The DA girls placed fifth at the NCISAA state meet in Cary. Audrey Crowder ’25 earned another All-State honor with a third-place time of 18:05. Helen Barritt ’28 (18th, 19:31), Harper Maxwell ’28 (30th, 20:27), Evan Register ’25 (36th, 21:05) and Liesl Walukewicz ’28 (59th, 22:37) rounded out the five DA scorers as the Cavs’ score of 146 trailed Covenant Day for fourth by four points and bested Forsyth Country Day by three points. Crowder, Barritt, Maxwell and Register also earned All-Conference honors as the girls took home the TISAC crown on Oct. 17.
Girls Tennis
State Quarterfinals
Overall Record: 14–4
The DA girls tennis season came to an abrupt end Oct. 18 with a 5–3 home loss to Cary Academy in the state quarterfinals. After two tough wins over the Chargers in the regular season, the Cavs could not complete the season sweep, and their run of nine straight state semifinal appearances came to an end. Zara Miller ’25 and Leah Yang ’29 won their singles matches in straight sets after teaming up for a convincing win at first doubles. Annika Lee ’26 and Shriya Dharmapurikar ’26 lost in a tiebreaker at second doubles, which gave the Chargers the 2–1 lead heading into singles play. Congrats to Miller (All-State and All-Conference) as well as Yang and Lee (All-Conference) on their accomplishments.
Field Hockey
State Quarterfinals
Overall Record: 12–7
After winning just nine games over the previous three seasons combined, the DA field hockey team finished 12–7 and advanced to the state quarterfinals in the NCISAA tournament. After a convincing 5–0 home win over Greensboro Day in the first round, the Cavs ran into a strong Charlotte Latin team and fell by a score of 3–0. A huge congratulations to Caroline Kantz ’26 for earning All-State honors. Kantz was joined on the TISAC All-Conference team by Leah Lipsitch ’25, Logan Freedman ’26, Avery Hilton ’27, and Mae Sauer ’29. Sydney Supica, who completed her first year as head coach at DA, has a lot to look forward to in 2025.
Boys Soccer
State Quarterfinals
Overall Record: 11–7–2
After pulling off a first-round upset win in the state tournament, the DA boys soccer team’s season came to an end in a 3–1 loss at Covenant Day in the state quarterfinals. In the Cavs’ 2–1 first-round win over Charlotte Latin, DA rallied from 1–0 down thanks to goals by Max Claar ’27 and Gavin Lamb ’26. Zeke Kalla ’26 assisted on both goals. While the Cavs could only manage a goal from Garrett Zhou ’27 in the quarterfinal loss, head coach Julian Cochran and his squad once again had a strong season, winning their fourth straight TISAC title. Goalkeeper Jack Kelley ’26 was named to the All-State team, while Kelley and seven of his teammates earned All-Conference honors: Kalla, Chase Brown ’25, Lamb, Camden Hughes ’26, Quinlan Vorenkamp ’26, Pieter Sauer ’26 and sophomore Zhou ’27.
Volleyball
First Round, State Tournament
Overall Record: 8–11
The DA volleyball team finished its season 8–11 after a first-round loss to Cannon School in the NCISAA state tournament. The Cavs battled in all three sets, but they fell 25–18, 25–17, 25–17 in Concord. Hayley Skye ’27 led the team in assists (11), kills (5) and aces (3). Mailyn Moore ’26 added four kills and four blocks. Congratulations to Moore, who was named to the All-State and All-Conference teams, while Amelia Fay ’25 was named All-Conference.