The Paw Print

By Maren Theyssen, Staff Writer

After a strong September in sports, the Payton Grizzlies continued with their success and continued to win throughout October. Multiple teams wrapped up their seasons, bringing Payton toward the end of the fall season, but some teams are continuing to play in the state playoffs. 

Girls tennis finished up their season with a strong run in the state and city playoffs. Junior Alexis Keener, senior Siena Shah and sophomore Saya Tanabe competed in the state tournament. Shah and Keener competed as a doubles team but fell short in one of their matches. Tanabe had a strong run as a singles player in the playoffs and ended up finishing in the top 20 of 1A players in Illinois. Congratulations to Tanabe, Shah, Keener and the entirety of the girls tennis team on a strong season. 

Boys golf took second in the city championship tournament, where Henry O’Toole and Mason Fernandez medaled. After winning the regional championship, the team fell short at sectionals. Congratulations to senior Derek Patton and the rest of the golf team on a great finish to a competitive season. 

Girls cross country competed in regionals and finished second place overall, with many personal records as well. They finished third in the city championship. Seniors Emily Cheng and Isabel McCarthy finished All-City after their amazing performance in the championship, with Cheng recording a 19:45.3 and McCarthy recording a 19:55.4 in the three-mile race. They have advanced to the sectional championship and will continue to represent Payon in the state tournament. 

Girls flag football finished up their season, making it to the regional semifinals before losing to Chicago Hope Academy. They had a strong season and represented the Grizzlies well. Congratulations to seniors Sariyah Thomas, Amal Meghani, Henna Im, Julia Ferguson, Athena Corrales, Montserrat Figueroa Ramirez and Lindsey Prochot. 

Girls swim and dive finished third in the city championship, with many swimmers and divers posting personal bests at the championship meet. Sophomore Madeline Bussel finished third for diving, and senior Sam Bratley finished fourth. Both swim and dive will compete in the sectional meet on Nov. 9 at UIC, the dive team competing at 10:00 am and the swim team competing at 1:00 pm.

Girls volleyball continued their amazing season, and they are not done yet. They finished in third at the Montini Catholic tournament, and they made it all the way to the semifinals in the city tournament, where they ended up having a close loss to Lane Tech. They played in the regional championship on Halloween and defeated Westinghouse. The Grizzlies advance to the state sectionals, looking to continue their strong season. Junior middle block Emily Springer leads the team with 30 total blocks on the season, and junior setter Isabella Hughes has over 440 assists on the season, making her second in all of CPS for assists. 

Tackle football defeated Brooks 31-0 on Oct. 4, and they also defeated Clark Prep/Austin Poly/Douglass 25-8 on Oct. 12. After the two wins, they entered a skid where they took a loss to Lane Tech, losing 27-7 on Oct. 18 for Lane Tech’s homecoming, and they also lost to Lincoln Park 14-7 on Oct. 26. The Grizzlies fought hard against some of the top teams in the Chicago Public League. They play in the state tournament on Nov. 2 against Nazareth Academy, and they will play in the city tournament against LP the following weekend.

Boys soccer completed their season after losing to Lane Tech in the 3A state playoffs. They had a very strong season, winning it all at the Windy City Fall Cup. Junior Claudio Lopez secured the win with his game-winning goal. Congratulations to seniors Jacob Martin, Kevin Manzanilla, Ulises Zepeda, William Page, Owen Zolner, Rhett Severns, Dominic Pricco, Anish Bhondwe, Alexander Zhunio, Angel Hernandez and Bartosz Betlej. Also, a special congratulations to Martin and Page for being named All-Sectional for 3A.

The team of the month is boys cross country. The Grizzlies continued their dominative streak in the Chicago Public League, winning the 2024 city championship for the very first time in school history. At the Mather Invite, junior Delcan Slavin set a new school record in the two-mile race, posting a time of 9:35.8. In the city championship, junior Tra’Monti Williams finished as the individual city champion, becoming the first ever to do so in school history. The Grizzlies entered the state tournament, and they recently advanced to the sectional championship, with multiple runners having personal records in the regional meet. 

With fall sports coming to a close, winter sports are approaching. Check the sports weekly newsletter to see news about information sessions and tryouts.