May is just around the corner, which means league championship races for the spring sports teams will be decided and the Central Coast Section playoffs are on the horizon. Several of the Los Gatos High School sports teams are primed for postseason competition and looking in solid shape going into the final month of competition.
But first, here is a rundown of the LGHS student-athletes who have won the biggest awards for the 2025-2026 school year. Zach Otoupal, a standout in football, basketball and lacrosse, won the Ed Howell Award for outstanding senior male multi-sport athlete. On the gridiron, Otoupal was a key contributor to a team that won the Peninsula Athletic League Bay Division championship and reached the Central Coast Section Division I title game.
On the hardwood, Otoupal earned SCVAL De Anza Division First Team honors on a squad that advanced to the CCS DI championship game. He’s also the three-time reigning league Defensive Player of the Year in lacrosse. On the girls side, Leighton Ozawa won the Ed Howell Award as she was a three-sport standout in field hockey, soccer and lacrosse.
Last fall, Ozawa earned SCVAL Defensive Player of the Year honors for a Wildcats’ field hockey squad that won the CCS DI championship. She transitioned to the pitch in the winter, making key contributions for one of the greatest seasons in girls soccer program history. Los Gatos won the CCS Open Division championship before advancing to the CIF NorCal State semifinals.
In other notable news, Ojas Shastri won the Male Scholar Athlete of the Year. In the winter season, Shastri was crowned the CCS champion at 190 pounds. He’s headed to the University of Pennsylvania to continue his academic and wrestling career. Leaya Cleary won the Female Scholar Athlete of the Year. The senior was a tour de force on the field hockey team that completed one of the most dominant seasons in program history. Cleary will continue her academic studies and athletics at MIT.
Softball
Los Gatos is 17-1 overall and 5-0 in SCVAL De Anza Division play, charging toward its fourth league championship in the last six years. The Wildcats have outscored their last two league opponents by a combined margin of 23-5. In an 11-3 win over Los Altos on April 17, Los Gatos finished with 19 hits, including three doubles, a triple and two home runs.
Grace Tucker and Danica DeSantis continued their tremendous seasons with monster games. Tucker went 4-for-5 with a triple, two RBIs and a home run, while DeSantis went 4-for-4 with two RBIs and a home run. Kendall Feichtmeir and Tessa Lilienstein collected three hits apiece, and Ava Norquist had a two-run double.
Norquist was equally strong in the circle, allowing two earned runs and striking out eight in a complete-game effort. Los Gatos has beaten all but one league opponent—Mountain View—by five runs or more. The Wildcats had to rally for a 5-3 win over the Spartans in the league opener on March 25. Lilienstein had a key triple and Feichtmeir drove in a run. The two teams play in the league-finale on May 15.
Baseball
The Wildcats took their first loss in SCVAL De Anza Division play but still remain in the pole position to take the championship. They enter this week at 17-3 overall and 10-1 in division play, 1 ½ games up on second-place Palo Alto with seven regular-season contests remaining. Los Gatos split a two-game set with Los Altos last week, winning the first game 7-1 on April 22 before the Eagles answered with a 4-2 victory two days later.
In the first Los Altos game, Ethan Williams delivered five innings of one-run ball in leading the team to victory. The senior right-hander allowed just two hits and struck out six in an ultra-efficient 61-pitch outing. Nicholas Olcott was just as stellar in his two innings of work, striking out four of the six batters he faced. Rowen Smith led the way offensively, hitting a bases-clearing double in the decisive fifth inning. Brady Simon and Max Thomas also drove in a run in the victory. Simon and Chase Frolich combined to steal four bases.
Track and Field
The Wildcats compete in the SCVAL De Anza Division Finals on April 30, an event that will determine which athletes gain entry into the upcoming CCS Semifinals. One of the section’s breakout stars is senior Kaylee Cross, who has the fastest time among all CCS girls in the 400 meters (54.37 seconds) while ranking the third fastest in the 100 (11.93) and 200 (24.56). Cross’ time in the 400 ranks No. 5 in California, which along with Florida and Texas boasts the richest prep talent in the nation.
Fellow senior Madison Kohli ranks third in the CCS in the 400 (55.18) and sixth in the 200 (24.84). The 4×400 relay team of Cross, Kohli, Bridget Moore and Elise Greenstreet finished in 3:54.98 at the Stanford Invite, the No. 3 time in the section. On the boys side, the Wildcats 4×400 relay team of Kai Jordan, Hayden Benjamin, Han Tang and Aydin Hussain has the section’s top time in 3:18.65, which they established at the CCS Top 8 Invite on April 18.
Sophomore Charles Fugit leads the CCS with a personal-best throw of 173 feet, 4 inches in the discus, a mark that has stood since March 21.
Girls lacrosse
After a slow start, the Wildcats are hitting their stride. Before facing Palo Alto on April 27, Los Gatos was 7-8 overall and 7-2 in SCVAL play. After losing six of their first eight games, the Wildcats have gone 5-2, avenging a loss to Gunn. After the Palo Alto match, Los Gatos has games remaining against Wilcox, Burlingame and Saratoga. The Wildcats are in a battle with Gunn to finish in second place and earn the league’s final automatic CCS playoff berth.
Boys lacrosse
The Wildcats enter this week’s action at 10-6 overall and 6-0 in the Pacific Coast Athletic League Gabilan Division. They are the clear frontrunners to clinch the league title, perhaps as early as this week. They’ve been challenged just once in league play, a 7-6 victory over Palma on April 1. The teams meet again in the league-finale on May 7, a contest that will decide whether Los Gatos runs the table in the Gabilan Division this season.
