By Martin Situ

Brian Delapena, an Algebra 1 and Precalculus teacher at Lincoln High School, is also a former Muay Thai champion in three different organizations,WCK, MTG, and IKF, and the coach of the newly established Muay Thai Club at Abraham Lincoln High School.

 The club came into conception when last year’s administration asked Delapena to create it. The old administration told Delapena how the students always mentioned him, and so they wanted him to create a space for students who went unnoticed to become noticed.  

“They would always tell me that kids would talk about me [...] They wanted to find a way to reach the unreached here in Lincoln, and I agreed with them.” Delapena states.

The Muay Thai Club started September 3rd of this year and paused on October 10th, as wrestling season starts.  The future of the club is unsure.

“I will have to talk to the admin about the future of this program, and if given the green light, it will go back up again after wrestling,” Delapena states.

The club meets on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday in the wrestling room.  Each practice session runs for around an hour starting around 4:20 p.m. on Monday and Friday, while Wednesday practices start around 3:30 p.m.  Practices always start with three minutes of jump rope plus shadowboxing to warm up.  Afterwards, the club follows Delapena’s instructions for the lesson of the day.  

A member of the club, Samuel Yu joined the club because he’s interested in combat sports. 

“I wanted to join a combat sport […] so I joined Muay Thai,”  Yu states.

Delapena started Muay Thai at the age of 19 after his brother suggested to do something other than play “World of Warcraft.” Muay Thai helped Delapena develop his hard work and discipline, and eventually in getting his degree as well.

“I used what I learned in Muay Thai to finally finish and graduate college for my math degree,” Delapena states.

  Since then, Delapena has continued to practice Muay Thai and coach the combat sport at both World Team USA and Rise Combat Sports here in San Francisco. 

 Delapena’s motivation to establish the club was to help others gain the discipline that he got from Muay Thai.  

“I started the Muay Thai Club because of what Muay Thai has done for me.  It would be selfish of me if I didn’t,” Delapena states.

Delapena’s goal for the club is to not only teach techniques properly, but to instill the respect and community that comes with Muay Thai.

By Orin Yu

This year, the Lincoln girls volleyball varsity team is defending a city championship title for the first time since 2019. Last year, the Lincoln girls won the city championship against Lowell High School, which has won seven of the past ten city championships. This year is Lincoln’s chance to break Lowell’s back-to-back winning streak and win their first back-to-back title since 2009 and 2010.

The team has representation of all grades. There are 14 girls, including two freshmen, four sophomores, two juniors, and six seniors. Most of their players are returning, having lost only one senior out of the starting lineup. 

Lincoln plays in the Academic Athletic Association (AAA) San Francisco City Section league, which contains SF public schools, but not private schools, such as Sacred Heart Cathedral and Saint Ignatius. In the AAA league, Lowell's recent dominance makes them the biggest threat to the Lincoln varsity team. 

Lincoln’s season so far has been successful. They are more than halfway through regular-season matches, having played every team in the league at least once. They are currently undefeated with a 9-0 record. 

Head Coach Vince Tang’s attitude towards the season is less about other teams in the league and more about making sure the team is playing their best. His focus is on refining the team's skills

“We're just trying to make adjustments, nothing drastic. It’s very minimal what we need to do, and if we handle what we need to do on our side, we should be fine.” 

Kyra Cheung, one of the varsity captains, says, “I think we have a good chance of winning again as long as we stay focused.” 

The team has been working hard, practicing since the middle of summer. Once school started, they practiced every day after school, averaging two hours a day. 

They have also played many non-league games, including a few weekend tournaments. In their overall season they are currently 25-7. This record has pushed them to rank 120th in California, out of almost 1500 teams. 

The League playoffs will happen on October 28th and 30th. The Lincoln girls will host the playoff game they play in if they maintain their top-of-the-league standing. 

After the playoffs, the championship will be held at Kezar Stadium on November 5th. Then, the first and second-place teams in our league go to the state championship, a single elimination tournament.

Last year, Lincoln was eliminated in round one of the Division Two state championship. 

Coach Tang was confident in the team’s ability to make it to the state championship again and hopes to go further, “When we get to the state playoffs, we hope to make a deeper run.” 

By Leo Le

The Abraham Lincoln cross-country team kicked off its 2025 season, starting their training in mid-August. The team practices Monday through Friday for around an hour and a half each day, building endurance and speed in preparation for weekly races. 

So far, ALHS has participated in three major events: the Lowell Invitational, the AAA XC League All-Comer Meet, and the Rams Invitational.

The first race of the season, the Lowell Invitational, on September 6, was held at Golden Gate Park near the Polo Fields. The event featured over 2,500 active participants from 85 schools across the Bay Area. Lincoln finished at around the eighth percentile, meaning they averaged a placement in the bottom 8% of teams.

Only two weeks later, on September 17, ALHS participated in the AAA XC League All-Comer Meet, also held at Polo Fields, with a race distance of five kilometers, equivalent to 3.11 miles. The meet consisted of 215 racers coming from nine different San Francisco High Schools, with 18 of the runners coming from Lincoln. Standout performances from ALHS came from Cyrus Kwan, who placed seventh in the boys division with a time of 18:06, Paulo Rodriguez, who placed tenth in the boys division with a time of 18:22, and JoJo Gregg, who dominated the girls division with a first-place finish of 20:43, nearly 40 seconds faster than second place.

“It’s been awesome! We’ve had some personal records early into the season already. Some people still need to improve their consistency, but everyone is working hard,”states Kwan, a junior at ALHS, who has been on the cross-country team for the past three years.

Kwan described a typical week of training as a mix of  “workouts on Tuesday and Friday, with the rest of the days being easy runs or long runs with six to ten miles each.”

Daniel Kew, who is coaching the Lincoln Cross Country Team for his second year now, is joyful with how far the team has gone. 

Kew states, “The first year I was here, we didn't have that many runners. This year, we have almost triple the number we started with.” 

Kew admits, “I don't think we’ll win overall this year, but I do believe we have a few runners who can make it to the state meet level. When I came to Lincoln, I wanted to build a strong team starting with the freshmen and sophomores, and hopefully soon, become champions.”

Even facing challenges like smaller team numbers and competition from larger schools, both the runners and the coach share the same goal: to get better. The team has improved, grown in size, and become more committed since last year. 

Coach Kew proudly exclaims, “Every year, we’re getting better, and this year is our best one yet.”

By Lola Snopkowski

1969, 1970, 2005, and now 2025: these are the only four times Abraham Lincoln varsity baseball has ever won the AAA CIF San Francisco City Championship. May 14, 2025, was a day that will forever be marked in Lincoln's history. That sunny afternoon, 19 Lincoln athletes stepped on the field after a San Francisco Giants game at Oracle Park and stepped off, hours later, as champions.

The Lincoln Mustangs were down by one run in the third inning to the reigning champions, the Lowell Cardinals. Third baseman Aidan Castaneda hit a single, scoring First baseman Wyatt Toloski, which tied the game. 

The game remained tied until the last inning of the championship fight, when shortstop Everett Carvalho hit a grounder to score Castaneda, after the call was overturned. Subsequently, catcher Nick Chiu hit a single, which scored second baseman Jeremiah Arriola and left fielder Jerry Hou, putting the Mustangs ahead four to one.

A shutout inning by the graduated senior Branson Derrington secured a win for the Mustangs. Derrington's dominant pitching performance was a major factor in this win, as he delivered a complete game, allowing only three hits and no earned runs.

After 15 years of coaching experience, including seven at Lincoln, Head Coach James Burke led the team to success alongside his assistant coaches: Rudolph (Rudy) Serrano, Alejandro (Vlad) Hernandez, Jovani (Jojo) Serrano, Joseph (Marc) Villa, and Dennis Shanahan.

Burke came to Lincoln with hopes of building a successful baseball program and team culture that would allow everyone the opportunity to succeed, on and off the field. This year, he was finally able to show the city what Lincoln was capable of, and that moment was something he truly values.

Proud of their hard work and the way his team played, Burke said, “Our players not only executed everything but also had perfect energy throughout the game, and [they] really played a beautiful defensive game.”

Their journey to success was challenged both internally and externally, as they navigated injuries and major losses.

Senior Nick Chiu, the starting catcher, got injured about halfway through the season, not coming back until four games before the championship. Chiu was a key player for the team and a notable reason for their success, scoring two out of the four runs in the Championship game. 

“I think my injuries were significant — but in a sense, it was a miracle, because we still managed to perform really well despite the setbacks,” reflected Chiu. 

He was able to come back strong and help bring the team to multiple wins leading up to the championship.

 “I told them throughout the year, in our wins, losses, ups, and downs, that we could win, but I repeatedly told them which version of our team had to show up,” Burke stated.

Lincoln lost to Lowell in all three of their regular season meetings and to Washington in two of their three regular season meetings. Captain Xavier Malizia mentions that, despite their previous losses being distressing, they still had faith they could win due to their 11-5 clutch victory in the semi-finals against Washington. 

Their win gave them the initial confidence, but their countless hours of preparation—practicing six days a week for five months straight—ultimately led to their success. 

Burke attributed their win as a group effort, stating, “From the players, families, and coaches, this was the definition of a team win, and it was amazing to be a part of, and a long time coming.”

It meant more than just the first win in 20 years; it meant they had finally defeated Lowell, who had won 11 out of the last 20 city championships and was their biggest rival. Lowell was always seen as the obstacle of the season. They were the team that Lincoln always strived to beat, which is why, when they beat them on such a huge stage, it meant more to this team than anything, particularly for the graduating seniors, who, for most of them, would be playing their last game. 

Chiu stated, “I don't think anything can fully capture that mix of relief, joy, and disbelief all at once.”

Not only was this win a historical moment on a city level, but it also led Lincoln baseball to its first appearance in the state championship tournament. 

Malizia describes the initial feeling of winning, “It felt amazing, but it also felt like we have so much more to do, the job’s not finished.” 

They traveled two hours to play Vacaville Christian, just hours after the seniors graduated on June 3rd. They brought Lincoln baseball their first state playoff win with a 16-4 victory, advancing them into the semifinals, finishing the day with a graduation and a win. Their extended season ended there with a heartbreaking 6-0 loss in Pebble Beach two days later against Stevenson. They placed fourth overall in their division, making history for the Lincoln baseball program.

Despite losing a significant number of seniors, Lincoln baseball is not done. They have already started preparing for their season—three months in advance—ready to defend their championship title, with optimism to go further into the state championship bracket.