Honor roll: The week’s best performances by San Mateo County high school athletes

Cason Mitchell, Evan Chopra and Aidan Sharp, Menlo-Atherton boys’ cross country. M-A this season has given a masterclass in running as a team, and those clusters of Bears will be reflected in the history books. Two weeks after M-A captured the first Central Coast Section Division I boys’ cross country championship in program history, the team advanced to the CIF state meet to produce a program-best fifth-place finish at Woodward Park in Fresno. Mitchell, Chopra and Sharp fronted the performance, all finishing in the top 25 and within just over one second of each other. Mitchell paced the Bears by placing 21st in 15:18.7; Chopra was 23rd in 15:18.9; and Sharp was 25th in 15:20 flat.

Teddy Dacey, Menlo-Atherton football. The senior quarterback put on a show Saturday night in the CCS Division III championship game in San Jose. The Bears rolled to a 31-21 victory with Dacey leading the way, gaining 270 total yards with four touchdowns. Three were passing TDs, but perhaps the most critical of his completions amid his 15-for-24, 202-yard night were his first few passes to settle down the offense and put his team in rhythm. He capped that opening drive by lining up at the wide out position, then taking a handoff on a fly sweep and tried to throw, only to readjust and scramble 8 yards into the end zone for his one rushing score.

Bella Fong and Violet MacAvoy, San Mateo girls’ basketball. A week into the season and tandem is already proving to be a potent outside-inside force. Fong, a junior guard, posted a pair of 20-points games in two wins, while MacAvoy, a junior post, has recorded two double-doubles. In a 58-46 season-opening win over Sacred Heart Prep, Fong scored 20 while MacAvoy had 14 points and 11 rebounds. In a 57-40 win over Summit Shasta, Fong went for 23, while MacAvoy had 16 and 12.

Tyce Copus, San Mateo football. With senior quarterback Lukas Fitzgerald suffering a leg injury that ended his night early in the second half of the CCS Division III championship game, Copus was thrust into action. The senior had never taken a snap from center in the sophisticated read-option veer offense, but refused to let the Bearcats go quietly. While Menlo-Atherton went on to a 31-21 victory, Copus entered at QB to watch the Bears open up a 31-7 lead, only to helm two scoring drives, including a 34-yard scoring run of his own.

Austin Prado, Westmoor boys’ basketball. The senior forward helped the Rams to a split of their first two games of the season. Prado started with a bang, scoring 23 points on 11-for-15 shooting in a 55-40 win over Design Tech. He then had 9 points on 4-of-5 shooting in a 48-46 loss to Balboa-SF.

Carlmont boys’ wrestling. The Scots took home five championships at the Carlmont Holiday Invitational. Gabe Osorio, Rowan Sheng, Alan Goldberg, Nicolaas Foks and Wesley Kron all went 3-0 in their weight classes, with Osorio, Sheng, Foks and Kron winning all their matches by pin, or in Osorio’s case, technical fall. Goldberg was the only Scot to win by decision, posting a 8-1 in the title match.

Ben Lange, Woodside boys’ soccer. The senior midfielder was in midseason form as the Wildcats opened the season with a pair of wins. He netted three goals and assisted on the fourth in a 4-2 win over Jefferson. He then notched three assists in a 5-0 win over Mills.

Kai Gieraths, Terra Nova boys’ basketball. The senior filled it up in the Tigers’ season-opening win over Wallenberg. And he did it the hard way, knocking down 11 2-point shots, with just two made 3s and 2 for 2 from the free throw line en route to scoring 30 points. He then helped Terra Nova stay in the game in a 56-50 loss to a St. Francis-Mountain View team that is already 3-0, scoring a team-high 14 points.

Anna Salter and Kira Dye, Crystal girls’ cross country. The senior tandem have proven the backbone of the most prolific era in Crystal cross country history. Salter and Dye both cracked the top 10 in the CIF Division V girls’ championship race Saturday in Fresno, with Salter taking fourth place in 17:43, and Dye eighth in 18:01.9, to lead the Gryphons to the team championship in the small school division. It’s the third time in four years the Crystal girls have topped the team podium at the most prestigious race of the season, along with a third-place finish last year. All four years, Salter and Dye have carded among the team’s top-five times.