Boys basketball displays strong showing in playoffs

By Joseph Zuloaga ’23

capped it off with a win on the road against Sacred Heart Cathedral, capturing a share of the WCAL title along with Archbishop Mitty. Both schools finished with a record of 12-2.

In pool play of the CCS playoffs, however, Riordan fell to SHC and beat Menlo-Atherton and Sacred Heart Prep. The loss to SHC in the first round cost the team the chance to advance to the CCS finals and defend their title from last year.

when the game was called with 1:15 left in the 4th quarter due to an altercation on the court.

For the boys basketball team, this season did not end as they had hoped. On March 4, they were eliminated from the CIF NorCal Division I state tournament in and

After their showing in CCS, the Crusaders were seeded #4 statewide for CIF NorCal state playoffs. The team started off strong, with a win against Campolindo 57-46 in Round 1. However, the strong showing by the Crusaders took a turn when they faced Inderkum in Round 2 on March 2. What was a dominant performance by the Crusaders over the Tigers at home with the band playing along was cut short

The next day, the CIF decided that the final score would stand at Riordan 61, Inderkum 52. However, they also decided that Riordan wouldn’t host any remaining playoff games, causing the team to play on the road at the ninth-seed Granada’s home court. Five players being suspended by the CIF hindered the Crusaders against the Matadors, leading to a heartbreaking 69-57 loss.

Despite all this, the Riordan community was warm and supportive of the team, knowing that all players, managers, coaches, and anyone else involved with the program are hardworking, dedicated, and caring individuals.

Coach Joey Curtin ’01 and the team hope to come back better and stronger, ready to conquer WCAL, CCS, and State next season.

Engineering students cultivate fresh ecological, agricultural opportunities

By

From the outside, Riordan’s inner courtyard may appear as a drab and empty plot of land but behind the scenes, the engineering students and teacher strive to revamp this area into an organic space that can be enjoyed by the entire community.

According to engineering teacher Frank Torrano, the engineering program is a center of innovation where students can build on and expand their ideas. This year, four students from the Engineering Program have been constructing a FarmBot for the plants in the inner courtyard.

Torrano said, “I’m hoping that this project, once it’s in place, is really going to give momentum to this area.”

The original FarmBot project first began in 2011 and was started by student at California Polytechnic State University, Rory Aronson. The FarmBot is an open-source software farming project which consists of an automated planter bed capable of planting and growing crops, along with software built to monitor soil conditions and pull out unwanted weeds.

Riordan students Edward Macdonald ’23, Johnnie Peña-

Muir ’23, Daniel Thomem ’23, and Lucas Chow ’23 are working on the FarmBot as their senior Capstone project. The FarmBot will have a robotic arm that moves on an axis to water and plant seeds for a more efficient gardening system. This project will help to maintain the vegetation inside the inner courtyard, especially during the school’s week long breaks and summer vacations.

“This is going to do the daily maintenance that you just can’t do,” said Torrano.

Not only will this FarmBot improve the image and the efficacy of the inner courtyard, but the power behind the bot is completely sustainable, coming from solar energy stored in 12 volt batteries.

Word of this project has sprouted interest in students outside of the engineering program. Caroline O’Connell ’25 hopes to unbury this forgotten area.

“My mom works at Riordan so I have spent a considerable amount of time here,” she said. “I remember it used to be an area with plants and flowers, but ever since COVID hit, they stopped taking care of it.”

She added, “It is time to bring life back into that area.”