Beyond the Books - May 2026

At Cretin-Derham Hall, students have important opportunities to grow, learn and thrive both in the classroom and 'beyond the books!' In fact, 98% of students participate in one or more sports or activities. 

Beyond the Books is our brag book on all of your favorite co-curriculars at CDH: athletics, activities, JROTC, Campus Ministry, and the Arts. This can also be a place for occasional school-wide athletic department updates and current news on some of our activities.

ATHLETICS | ACTIVITIES | CHOIR | THEATER | BAND | JROTC

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Athletics

Baseball

By Buzz Hannahan ’94, Head Coach

Boys Baseball moves into the last week of the regular season, currently sitting at 13-6 and fourth overall in a very talented conference. 

On May 9, the Raiders defeated rival St. Thomas Academy by a score of 10-0 and a remarkable comeback win (9-3) vs Rogers. 

The team celebrated a special day at Shrode Field on May 11 when they celebrated a 15-0 win vs Roseville and sent off a very talented and special senior class.

Congratulations to our seniors on a great season and best wishes for their next adventure: Davis Fleming (University of Minnesota), Joe Fenlon (University of St. Thomas), Harrison Falk (University of San Francisco), Jack Drieman (University of Sioux Falls), Sam Rosga (IU), Ryan Endrizzi (entrepreneur), Sam Heath (Augustana) and Pedro Yanez (Saint John's, Collegeville) 

Looking ahead, the Raiders will be on the road for their final three games:

• May 13 - vs Woodbury @ Woodbury
• May 14 - vs White Bear Lake @ Target Field (tickets available in the Athletic Office: $10)
• May 17 - vs Stillwater @ Stillwater

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Boys Golf

By Bob Kinne ’11, Head Coach

Boys Golf has enjoyed a strong start this spring.

To date, the team has demonstrated exceptional performance. We have remained undefeated in SEC Conference matches and have secured first-place finishes in all four events we have participated in. This consistency is a direct reflection of the team’s preparation, focus, and dedication.

What has been particularly encouraging is the depth of our lineup. We have had multiple players step up with strong individual performances, contributing to our overall success. It has been a true team effort, and the competitive mindset across the roster has established a positive tone early in the season.

While we are off to a promising start, our focus remains on continued improvement and maintaining consistency as we progress further into the schedule.

Thank you for your continued support.

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Girls Golf

By Megan Fee Smith ’00, Head Coach

Girls Golf is working to continuously improve as they reach the midpoint of the season! The team has already competed at some outstanding courses, including River Oaks Golf Course, Highland National Golf Course, Tanners Brook Golf Club, Prestwick Golf Club, and White Bear Yacht Club. Upcoming matches at Troy Burne Golf Club and Stillwater Country Club will provide more opportunities for the Raiders to continue building momentum within the conference.

The JV team has also been hard at work and will showcase their growth and determination in upcoming competitions at Midland Hills Country Club, Eagle Valley Golf Course, and Applewood Hills Golf Course.

Both the Varsity and JV teams are looking forward to competing in the Conference Championship on May 21 at Oak Glen Golf Course, while the Varsity team will advance to the 4AAA Section Tournament on May 27 at Goodrich Golf Course.

With dedicated preparation, strong leadership, and a positive team spirit, the Raiders are focused on competing with a strong second half of the season. The energy and commitment across the program continue to push the team toward lower scores, competitive success, and memorable moments together.

Go Raiders!

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Boys Lacrosse

By Matt Hourigan, Head Coach

Boys Lacrosse has continued to build momentum this spring while competing against one of the toughest schedules in Minnesota. The 4-5 Raiders have been led by a strong mix of junior leadership (four junior captains), emerging young talent (13 underclassmen), and a team-first mentality that has helped the program continue to grow throughout the season.

Offensively, CDH has been paced by junior captains Austin Novotny '27 with 36 points and Danny Runyon '27 with 30 points. Both Novotny and Runyon each also eclipsed 100 career points this May! Defensively, the unit has been led by junior captains Elias Brasel '27 and Alex Waud '27. Contributions from players across all grade levels have highlighted the depth of the program and the bright future of Raider Lacrosse.

Beyond the field, the team has emphasized accountability, toughness, and representing the CDH community the right way. The coaching staff is proud of the commitment and growth shown by the players this spring and grateful for the continued support from families, students, faculty, alumni, and the greater Raider community.

The Raiders now turn their attention toward the upcoming Section 3 postseason tournament, which begins shortly after Memorial Day Weekend. With playoff lacrosse approaching, the team is excited for the opportunity to compete for a section championship and continue building momentum for the future. 

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Girls Lacrosse

By Jeff Rosga ’89, Head Coach

Girls Lacrosse is continuing to find its stride with a 9–1 overall record and sitting 7–1 in the Suburban East Conference, placing the Raiders near the top of the conference standings. Through the first 10 games, CDH has shown strong consistency, with key conference victories over Irondale, Woodbury, Forest Lake, Park, Mounds View, White Bear Lake, and Roseville. Their only loss came in a narrow 8–7 battle with Stillwater.  

A key element to the team’s success has been a balanced offensive attack and a stout defense.  CDH has outscored opponents 128–37, averaging 12.8 goals per game while allowing just 3.7 goals per game. The Raiders have also generated 213 total points, collected 170 ground balls, forced 87 turnovers, and controlled the draw circle with 128 draw controls compared to 70 by opponents.  

Individually, the Raiders have been led by a balanced and productive offensive core lead by Lilly Selander'28 and Jordin Rosga '28. Jaclyn Lundeen '29 (Mounds Park Academy), Olivia Struve '29, Paloma Kronschnabel '27, and Clara Polcari '29 have also provided important scoring depth, giving CDH multiple threats across the field.  

Defensively, CDH has been equally strong. With a core group of veterans, Annie LeClaire '26, Emma Kennefick '26, Ellie Witte '26, Channing Haycraft '27, Sidney Lundeen '27 (Mounds Park Academy), and Ella Henningsgard '28, along with Caroline LeClair '29 in goal has anchored a 9–1 record.

As the regular season moves into its final stretch, CDH is positioned well with momentum, depth, and strong team chemistry. The Raiders have proven they can win close games, control games defensively, and create offense from multiple players. With upcoming matchups against East Ridge, Benilde-St. Margaret, and Mahtomedi, the team has a great opportunity to sharpen execution and continue building toward section play.  

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Softball

By Carolyn Osdoba, Head Coach

We are nearing the end of the regular season with just 4 games left.

Our highlights this season have been beating Mankato East and Hill-Murray (both top teams in AAA) as well as defeating East Ridge and Mounds View/Irondale after losing to them earlier in the season.

We will reset with section play starting in just over a week. We expect our top competitors to be Hill-Murray, St. Anthony and Totino-Grace.

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Boys Tennis

By Randy Muetzel, Head Coach

Boys Tennis is a hard working group that has gradually improved throughout the season.  With captain Will Bischoff ' 26 and Griffin Merrit '26, who are 11-3 on the season at first doubles, leading the way, we are hopeful going into section play.

We won our first round section match 6-1 over Hastings.  We play St. Thomas Academy tomorrow at Visitation in the quarterfinals.

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Boys Track and Field

By Chris Babcock, Head Coach

Boys' Track and Field is entering the championship portion of our season at the end of the month.

Team members like Cartier Russell Jr '27, Solomon Grenardo '27, Henry Malloy '26, and Shaheed Suggs ' 28 are leading the team into this phase of the season. Russell has one of the best times in the 100m in the state and has been working hard to improve on that. Grenardo has been improving in the pole vault and long and triple jump events this year, while Malloy has been seeing hard work and consistent efforts over time pay off in the shot and discus. Suggs has been moving up right behind Russell and he has taken on the high jump. Also in the high jump, Oscar Bailey '26 has been making some moves in this event recently clearing 5' 8" as a first year high jumper. The Suburban East Conference meet is on May 19 and 21 at White Bear Lake High School North Campus. The following week will be the section 3AA meet at Macalester College on May 27 and 29.

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Girls Track and Field

By Chris Babcock, Head Coach

Girls' Track and Field continues to improve as the season progresses into the championship weeks at the end of May.

Ninth grader Maddie Hamel has put up some great performances in the 100m and 200m events while hurdling teammates Becca Chestovich '28 and Terenata James '27 continue to push themselves in the 100m and 300m hurdle events. Ani Kachmarek '27 has brought her sister Bethany into the throwing circle. The pair of them have been trading team leads in the shot and the disc over the course of the season. Fellow thrower Marguerite Kiemde '28 stepped up recently in the shot put to lead the Raiders throwers.

The girls will be joining the boys at the Suburban East Conference Championships and the Section 3AA meets in the coming weeks.

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Boys Volleyball

By Daniel Willaert

Boys Volleyball is wrapping up their regular season with two non-conference away matches at St. Paul Central on Friday, May 15 and at Fridley on Tuesday, May 19.

Middle blocker Asger Smestad '26 leads the team with 58 kills and is tied with fellow middle blocker Caleb Kukuroboman '26 for the team lead in blocks with 10 apiece.

The Section Tournament will start on Tuesday, May 26.  
 

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Activities

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Clay Target 

By Jason Naber, Head Coach

Clay Target's spring season is going well.  Our Skeet team and Trap team are both currently in second place in the conference.  We also have some individuals in good position to win medals in Skeet and Trap.  Our Skeet and Trap teams are looking forward to the State Championships in June. 
 
Thanks for supporting the team!

Girls Flag Football

By Chad Anderson, Head Coach

Girls Flag Football began its inaugural season the last week of April.  

Double header games are played Sunday evenings. The Raiders are currently 4-0 playing in District 12 against most of the St Paul public schools. The league grew to 105 teams this year and we are looking at making a strong run in the playoffs. Records and stats can be found at stribvarsity.com in the Flag Football hub.

Boys Ultimate Frisbee

By Carl Koepke, Head Coach

Boys Ultimate Frisbee competed in our first two tournaments of the season.

At the Matoska Classic in White Bear Lake on April 25, we battled some stiff competition and the weather for a fun, exciting weekend. With a thrilling 9-8 upset over Prior Lake, we broke seed for an 8th place finish.

At the Westopolis Cup on May 3, we secured 4th place by avenging an early season loss to Wayzata with a hard fought 7-3 win.

We're continuing to train and practice with our sights set on the State Tournament at the end of May. 
 

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Choir

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By Delilah Schuster, Choir Director

This week: Spring Choir Concert on Thursday May 14 at 7pm in the Theater.

Join us for an evening of songs that explore the theme of nature vs. nurture. We will also celebrate our annual awards and our departing seniors. It is free and open to the community. See you there!

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Theater

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by Cullen Wiley, Theater Director

On May 10, we closed our final performance of the 2025-2026 school year. The spring musical, The Little Mermaid, had 2 fully sold out performances and several that had less than 50 seats left. This production was one of the largest CDH shows in recent history. Between the cast, stage crew and pit orchestra, there were 100+ students involved in making the show happen. 41 of those students are graduating seniors.

The show received several awards from Spotlight Education by Hennepin Arts including several individual awards:

• Outstanding Performance in a Leading Role - Natalia Wallace as Ursula
• Outstanding in Technical Leadership - Josie Dahlheimer as Assistant Director, Isa Langer as Stage Manager
• Honorable Mention in a Leading Role - Ellie Nelson as Ariel, Ja'Dale Thompson as Prince Eric
• Honorable Mention in a Supporting Role - Olivia Hoff as Flounder
• Honorable Mention in Technical Leadership - Maggie Hughes as Sound Board Operator 

You can see these students perform at Spotlight Showcase on June 8th at the State Theater!

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Band

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By Teddy Williams, Band Director

The band has been busy at work all year playing music for concert participation, school Masses, football, volleyball, hockey, basketball, soccer, Holy Spirit's Marathon fundraiser, pep rallies, lots of champions parades, Fall Review and Twilight Parade for JROTC, Suburban East Conference Music Festival, a competition at White Bear Lake High School, solo, ensemble, and Pit Orchestra for the theater department’s “The Little Mermaid.”

We also were able to take part of a fantastic trip to New York City with choir and theater in April this year! We were able to learn many new things about music and experience memories that will last a lifetime. Additionally, the band received a Superior Score at the Large Group Contest for the first time in many years. 

The band just performed their Spring Concert on Tuesday May 12, the final concert for seniors and a send off for the year. On May 13, the band will be accompanying the JROTC Twilight Parade. 

We are so proud of what we have accomplished and look forward to continuing to improve in the future.

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JROTC

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By SGM David Berrisford '81, COL Scrocca, and SFC Thingvold

The Raider Brigade just completed its annual “Best Company” Competition and the
Corps of Cadets is working hard on their Drill and Ceremony as they prepare for the 108th
Twilight Parade and Awards Ceremony.

The Twilight Parade and Awards Ceremony will be held on Wednesday, May
13 at 6 pm on Wingerd Field.  This is an opportunity for us to distribute awards, celebrate
the conclusion of another academic year, bid farewell our departing seniors, and symbolically
transition leadership of the Raider Brigade Corps of Cadets to the Class of 2027.  A number of
CDH JROTC alumni should be in attendance as well so it is a great opportunity to catch up with past students.    

This is the last call for permission slips for the final event of the school year – the
JROTC Cadet Leadership Challenge at Camp Wilderness in Park Rapids, May 27-31. In this CDH-led event, 12 Raider Brigade cadets will join approximately 60 other Army JROTC cadets
from other Army JROTC programs throughout the region to participate in a host of individual
leadership and team-building activities to include: rock wall climbing, rappelling, a high ropes
course, archery, kayaking, and orienteering.

After 18 years of instruction and mentorship to our JROTC cadets, the Twilight Parade
will be the final farewell to SGM David Berrisford '81, who will be retiring from teaching this summer. His dedication and enthusiasm will be dearly missed by all, but the lessons he taught will remain with our cadets and shape their lives for years to come.