Athletics News

St. John’s is proud to welcome back Greg Cook (Class of 2006) as our new Head Coach for Boys Cross Country and Head Coach for Track & Field.

A standout student-athlete during his time at St. John’s, Cook served as team captain for both Soccer and Track & Field. He continued his athletic career at Rhodes College, graduating in 2010 as a 12-time All-Conference honoree across the 400m, triple jump, javelin, and 4x400m relay.

Cook’s coaching journey began back at St. John’s in 2011, where he assisted with the long jump and triple jump. He later moved to Austin and spent five successful years as an assistant coach at St. Andrew’s Episcopal School, contributing to both Cross Country and Track & Field programs. Most recently, Cook has served as Head Cross Country Coach at St. Stephen’s Episcopal School while also supporting Track & Field across sprints, jumps, throws, and distance events.

 

Congratulations to Nick Hensel ’24 and the Denison University Big Red for winning back-to-back NCAA D3 championships. Denison scored 437 points ahead of NYU (388.5) and the University of Chicago (353). Hensel was a 6-Time NCAA D3 First Team All-American (50 freestyle 5th, 100 freestyle 5th, 200 freestyle 6th, 200 freestyle relay 2nd, 400 freestyle relay 2nd, and 800 freestyle relay.  Hensel swam the anchor leg of the winning 800 freestyle relay that broke the NCAA D3 National Record by 4.5 seconds for a total time of 6:22.37. The Big Red also won the NCAC (North Coast Athletic Conference) title with Hensel contributing as a 4-Time NCAC Champion (200 medley relay/NCAC & Varsity Records; 200 freestyle relay/NCAC, Varsity & Pool Records; 400 freestyle relay/NCAC, Varsity & Pool Records; 800 freestyle relay/NCAC, Varsity & Pool Records.

Girls and Boys Varsity Tennis won the 2026 Private School State (coed) Tournament for the third consecutive year. The Mavericks defeated Nolan Catholic, Dallas Jesuit/Ursuline, and Kinkaid. Next up for the Mavericks is a spring break trip to Indian Wells, California.  

Girls Soccer led things off last weekend, going 2-1 for a gritty fifth-place SPC finish, which included an extra-time loss to the eventual champions. The rest of the Maverick winter season teams competed in the Metroplex Thursday-Saturday. Wrestling won its 12th SPC championship.  Boys Swimming & Diving finished 4th. Girls Swimming & Diving finished 6th.  Boys Basketball finished 6th, Girls Basketball finished 7th, and Boys Soccer finished 4th.

 

St. John’s hosted the Prep State Wrestling Championships on Saturday, February 7, 2026. A week prior, the Mavericks won their seventh Texas State Duals title, edging out St. Thomas for the crown. The Mavs had also won the past seven (eight total) Prep State championships. It would seem like a foregone conclusion that they would win again, but St. John’s led only 156.5 to 156 over St. Thomas going into the finals.  

 

Congratulations to Gracey Crawford ’26 and Montgomery Ferguson ’26 for being named to the Max Field Hockey National High School All-American teams. Crawford received first-team honors, and Ferguson received second-team honors. They both were named to the Max Field Hockey 2025 All-West/Mid-West All-Region First Team, along with Valentina Baizan’27. Way to go, Mavericks!

St. John’s Varsity and Middle School Wrestling both won state titles on the last weekend in January. The Varsity won its 7th State Duals title, and a day later, the Maverick Middle School team won its 10th state title. Cornerstone Christian (San Antonio) hosted both competitions.

 

Congratulations to Valentina Baizan ’27, who was named to the U18 USA Field Hockey National Team! Next up for Baizan is the training camp at UNC Charlotte on February 13-15, where players will be selected to compete in a 6 Nations Tournament to be held in Tonbridge, England, in late March and early April. 

In the quarterfinal round of the Prep Slam Wrestling tournament in Atlanta, GA, Head Coach Alan Paul took quick notice of Jet Ligums’ ’26 opponent. At stake were Prep Slam All-American honors and breaking Mason Lum’s ’25 record of 138 individual match wins. 

“He was a big, strong, muscled-up kid who looked like he did not weigh 157,” said Paul.

When the whistle blew to start the match, Ligums was driven back off the mat. It was not an auspicious start, but no points were scored on that move. At that point, Coach Paul knew what to say and Ligums knew what to do. 

According to Coach Paul, Ligums trains as hard as anyone in the mat room, yet what takes him to the next level is his competition mode. 

“He is a tournament guy,” said Paul. “He has a switch that turns on in matches. We say ‘Cowboy up’ to help him reset.”

Coaches Paul and Danny Henderson came up with the phrase “Cowboy up” to help Ligums ignite that switch. Ligums works on a ranch in the summers, and the slogan was a good fit. 

Ligums heard it loud and clear when he returned to the circle after being on his heels in the first seconds of the match. 

“The match started out a little rocky, and I got driven out of bounds,” said Ligums. “I had a few seconds to reset and took a deep breath. I trusted a move I’ve worked on since I was six years old.”

Ligums pinned him in 45 seconds, time enough to “Cowboy up!”

Congratulations to Taylor Synnott ’28 for being named the 2025 Vype Girls Cross Country Private School Athlete of the Year! Synnott finished first at the SPC Championships, leading the Mavericks to a runner-up team finish.