In its final league game on senior night on Nov. 8, football lost to Los Gatos 44-6.
Junior and kicker Lara Saslow said the team didn’t prioritize winning, knowing Los Gatos was one of the top teams in the league.
“We were just focused on putting in our other players that hadn’t really played yet and getting ready for playoffs,” Saslow said. “It would be nice to win, but we weren’t really focused on winning. We knew that it was unlikely and that we should focus on what’s next because we’re hoping to have a long postseason.”
However, Saslow said this mindset may have hurt Paly’s performance.
“We were definitely scared going into it and didn’t have much hope,” Saslow said. “It was just hard for us to compete, but we did show them a bit of what we have towards the end of the game, and we picked it up a little bit and were able to score.”
Head coach David DeGeronimo said several players were injured going into the game.
“It’s not an excuse, but we just have a limited number of guys, and we have a lot of young guys playing that haven’t played before; to go in and play against a top team like that is a great challenge,” DeGeronimo said. “Our goal is to improve every week. I think we’ve been kind of stuck for a little while, and that comes on to coaching … but everybody’s doing the best they can. They’re playing hard. Guys are stepping up.”
Senior and captain Joseph Kessler said the team was distracted throughout the week, which likely contributed to its loss.
“We weren’t very focused at practice, and that’ll translate into the game,” Kessler said. “They’re a very good ball club over there, Los Gatos, and we’re banged up, so we came in just playing one for the seniors, and I think we had a lot of young guys step up in the big moment. They finally got a good taste of what it’s actually like, and I’m really proud of how they performed and handled the tough challenge.”
Kessler said he is also proud of the seniors’ leadership this year.
“I’ve stepped up in the place of some very big shoes,” Kessler said. “We lost a lot of guys last year, and I think together the senior core has done a very good job leading this program.”
Saslow agreed and said the seniors brought both skill and energy to the team.
“A lot of them are really good players, and they helped us win, but they were also just motivating us and keeping the energy up in practice,” Saslow said.
For DeGeronimo, senior night is always a special night.
“I really enjoyed watching our guys,” DeGeronimo said. “These seniors really were a big part of changing the culture the last three years, and they really did a good job of getting the younger guys to buy in.”
Kessler said he has mixed emotions about his final game of the league season.
“I spent four years of my life playing football here, and this was the last one, so I’m kind of short for words right now, but I’ve had a blast,” Kessler said. “I’m proud of the brotherhood that we’ve continued to create, form and shape. A lot of these guys I might never see again, but we’ve had a hell of a time flying together.”
