Beyond the Books - June 2025
June 11, 2025
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 | BAND | CHOIR | JROTC | THEATER
Athletics
Boys Baseball
By Buzz Hannahan ’94, Head Coach
The baseball team defeated White Bear Lake 7-6 on June 4 to win the Section 4AAAA Championship for the first time since 2007. The Raiders earned the #1 seed and are playing Rosemount on June 11, 4:30 pm at CHS Field in St. Paul in the MSHSL State AAAA Quarterfinals.
Boys Golf
By Bob Kinne '11, Head Coach
A Season to Remember!
The CDH Boys golf team capped off an incredible season as Conference Champions, finishing the conference schedule undefeated winning 4 of 6 invites during the season. The team’s consistent excellence was evident throughout the season, highlighted by multiple individual medalists at various tournaments.The momentum continued into postseason play, where the team delivered a dominant performance, capturing the Section Championship by an astounding 44 shots. Their depth and talent were on full display, with five of the six team members earning All-Conference honors. The Team also won Academic All-State Team honors. Joe Honsa ’25 earned Academic All-State as an individual. Adding to the accolades, two of our athletes were in the running for the prestigious Mr. Golf award, recognizing the top high school golfers in the state. Joe Honsa ’25 and Sam Udovich ’25 were both in the running and Sam Udovich '25 was named Mr. Golf. Sam also advanced the final stage qualifying for the US open on June 2 as he tried to chase down one of the qualifying spots for the United States open played at Oakmont. We’re proud to announce that the team has officially qualified for the State Tournament, which will be held June 10 and 11. This is an exciting opportunity to compete against the best in the state and cap off a historic season.
Girls Golf
By Megan Fee Smith ‘00, Varsity Head Coach
The CDH Girls Golf Team had another excellent season! The JV and Varsity teams competed in the conference championship at Oak Glen on May 22. Sophomore Alayna Peterson '27 received the individual medal for “All-Conference” in the Suburban East Conference! Sophomore Regan Zimski '27 was named first in the JV Suburban East Conference standings - congratulations!
- All Conference for JV: Regan Zimski '27, Kendall Klecatsky '26, Paige Wieland '26
- Honorable Mention (JV): Hope Hadac ‘25 and Avery Rich ‘28
- All Conference for Varsity: Alayna Peterson ‘27
- Honorable Mention (Varsity): Maeve Junius ‘27 and Delaney Schwab ‘25
The team celebrated the season with a banquet held at Mendakota Country Club, and the following Varsity and JV golfers were recognized for their accomplishments:
- Rookie of the Year: Regan Zimski '27 (JV); Avery Rich '28 (JV)
- Raider Spirit: Alayna Peterson '27 (V); Paige Wieland '26 (JV); Sophia Sosa ‘25 (JV)
- Strength & Conditioning Athlete: Ava Perry '25 (V), Katherine Campbell ‘26 (JV), Fiona Smith ‘28 (JV)
- Most Improved: Keira Goossens ‘27 (V), Kendall Klecatsky ‘26 (V/JV), Eme Dietz ‘28 (JV)
- Best Work Ethic at the Course: Maeve Junius ‘27 (V), Hope Hadac ‘25 (JV), Stella Hadac ‘25 (V)
- Positive Teammate: Leah Neil ‘25 (V) and Meghan Muckala ‘27 (JV)
- Captains 2026: Katherine Campbell ‘26, Kendall Klecatsky ‘26, Alayna Peterson ‘27
The Varsity team finished the season at the MSHSL 4AAA Section Tournament on May 28-30 at Goodrich Golf Course.
During the season, the girls golf team works closely with their teachers to achieve success in the classroom and on the golf course. We are proud of the seven seniors on the team; they ALL received the Individual Academic All-State Awards. These awards are presented to seniors with a 3.7 or higher cumulative GPA by the Minnesota State High School Golf Coaches Association.
Thank you to Molly Ploetz ‘17 (Varsity Assistant Coach) and Callie Dahl (JV Coach) for their dedication, commitment, and support to the team.
Congratulations and Go Raiders!
Boys Tennis
By Randy Muetzel, Head Coach
The CDH Tennis team started sections with a nice 5-2 win over Hastings. In that match CDH got two very nice individual wins. At third singles Ronan Traynor ’27 beat his opponent, who he had lost to one week earlier, 6-2, 1-6, 6-2. Another impressive individual win was at fourth singles where Louis Bilek ’26 beat his opponent 6-4, 4-6, (10-5).
In the next round CDH lost 6-1 to Eagan. Eagan won all of the singles positions and first and third doubles.
Track and Field
By Chris Babcock, Head Coach
Track and Field Boys: The 2025 season will come to an end the week of June 9 as the boys head to the state meet in St. Michael-Albertville. Michael Seifu ’25 is making his third appearance at the state meet in the 300m hurdles. This year he is among the top competitors in this event. He is also near the front of the pack in the 110m hurdles. This year he is taking junior Luke Hilger ’26 in the triple jump. Hilger won this event at the section meet with a personal best jump of 44' 8". Sophomore Cartier Russell Jr ’27, in his first season of track and field earned a spot on the starting line at the state meet in the 200m when he won that event at the section 4AAA meet in a personal best time of 21.95 seconds. Seifu is the current record holder in the 110m and 300m hurdles at CDH. Hilger is sitting number 2 all time in the triple jump, and Russell is second all time for sophomores and 4th all time for the program in the 200m.
Track and Field Girls: 2025 has been a good season for the girls we have seen improvements in all areas of the team from the throws and Ani Kachmerick ’27 in the discus to Abby Chestovich ’26 in the 1600m, and the triple threat of Clare Lasure ’25, Terenata James ’27, and Becca Chestovich ’28 in the hurdle events. Lasure and Becca Chestovich earned all-conference awards for their performances at the Suburban East Conference Championships. High jumper and sprinter Eliana Meyer ’25 earned honorable mention in the high jump at that meet along with Abby Chestovich ’26 who earned honorable mention in the 1600m. James will be making her first trip to the state meet this year. She will be competing in the 300m hurdles.
Boys' and girls' cross country: This summer the boys' and girls' cross country teams will be gathering to run from the monument on the west end of Summit Avenue in St. Paul at 9 am Mondays and Fridays in July, and 6 pm Wednesdays in July. We will be running what you are prepared to run - 15 minutes, 30 minutes, 50 minutes and times between. All ability levels are welcome. Runners who would like to run with a group, but are not necessarily sure they are going to run cross country in the Fall are welcome too. Contact Coach Chris Babcock.
Band
By Teddy Williams, Band Director
The CDH band had a wonderful wrap-up to their year. Over the course of the year, the band has been busy playing music for class time and concert preparation, school mass, football, boys and girls volleyball, hockey, basketball, soccer, Holy Spirit's marathon fundraiser, pep rallies, lots of champions parades, one-on-one lessons, Fall Review and Twilight Parade for JROTC, Suburban East Conference Music Festival, a competition at White Bear Lake High School, Solo and Ensemble, and pit orchestra for the theater department's The Addams Family. With the addition of drum line for soccer games, non-percussion members got the opportunity to learn some new skills. Their skills were brushed off again in midwinter when they marched in the Saint Paul Winter Carnival Parade in January.
The band performed a fantastic final concert at the end of May. It featured the Jazz Band, String Ensemble, student rock band "Yield", and the concert band. It was a wonderful wrap-up for the year and a great sendoff for all our band seniors!
NYC Trip
CDH Choir, Band and Theater are going to NYC in April 2026!
Choir
By Delilah Schuster, Choir Director
NYC Trip
CDH Choir, Band and Theater are going to NYC in April 2026! Spots are filling up quickly!
JROTC
By SGM David Berrisford '81, MSG Ken Peloski, COL Scrocca, and SFC Thingvold
Congratulations to our graduating senior cadets! The work they put in this year as leaders and mentors, especially the Diamond Officers, was truly outstanding and will undoubtedly have a lasting and measurable impact on the Raider Brigade for years to come. This is clearly evident by the number of incoming 9th graders once again already pre-registered for JROTC next year! For the third straight year, more than 40% of the incoming class is already enrolled in JROTC in 2025-2026.
The Raider Brigade closed out the 2024-2025 school year in style with eight cadets participating in the JROTC Cadet Leadership Challenge at Camp Wilderness in Park Rapids, MN, from May 27-31. In this CDH-led event, Raider Brigade cadets joined approximately 30 other Army JROTC cadets from Devils Lake and Grand Forks High Schools in North Dakota.
While there, the cadets participated in a host of individual leadership and team-building activities that challenged each cadet in different ways. The activities included daily Army physical training, rock wall climbing, rappelling, a high ropes course, archery, kayaking, and orienteering.
The Junior Officer Exam will be offered on Tuesday, June 18, 8 am or on Monday, August 4, 8 am for those rising seniors who would like to be promoted to the officer ranks and take on increased leadership responsibilities during their senior year. Additionally, Diamond Promotion applications are due in hardcopy to the JROTC office no later than Thursday, August 28 by 2:45 pm and Class A inspections and interviews will be conducted September 3-4 from 7-8 am each day.
Incoming 9th grade uniform fitting will be held on Tuesday, August 12 from 7 am - 2 pm. Uniform exchange for current cadets who have grown out of their uniforms will take place on Wednesday, August 13 from 7-11 am. The makeup day for uniform issue or exchange is Wednesday, August 20 from 7-11 am.
We wish all the cadets and families a safe and enjoyable summer. The JROTC office will be open most days during the summer should anyone need anything.
Theater
By Cullen Wiley '16, Theater Director
Introducing the 2025-2026 Theater Season!
Fall Musical: 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee
Children's Show: Charlie & The Chocolate Factory
Starring:
Mr. Mark McGuire as Grandpa Joe
Dr. Claire Bischoff as Grandma Josephine
Mr. Joe Kruse as Grandpa George
Ms. Christina DeVos as Grandma Georgina
Winter Play: The Outsiders
Spring Musical: The Little Mermaid
NYC Trip
CDH Choir, Band and Theater are going to NYC in April 2026!