By John Knebels • Posted September 11, 2026

For most Philadelphia Catholic League students, the first week of September signals the end of summer vacation and the beginning of another school year.

For fall athletes, however, summer ends considerably earlier.

Official fall practices began Aug. 17, approximately three weeks before many students returned to their classrooms after Labor Day. That mid-August starting date means adjusting family vacations, leaving summer jobs and shore houses early, and trading relaxed summer mornings for practices conducted in oppressive heat.

The sacrifice is particularly noticeable in sports whose Catholic League schedules do not begin until several weeks later.

Girls’ tennis opens its league season Sept. 10, followed by girls’ volleyball Sept. 15. Field hockey and boys’ and girls’ cross-country begin Sept. 16, while the girls’ soccer schedule starts Sept. 17.

Football teams spend several weeks playing nonleague opponents before the PCL Blue Division opens during the weekend of Sept. 18-19. The Red Division does not begin league competition until Oct. 2.

Although those dates may appear far removed from Aug. 17, the athletes understand the importance of the preseason preparation.

“Starting conditioning and practice in the summer is honestly a great thing,” said Bonner-Prendergast field hockey senior Mia Lamberto. “It gets exciting leading up to the regular season and being with all my teammates again. Vacation time will come when we are off, but in the meantime, the grind never stops and we are always on the go.”

Lamberto’s schedule is even more demanding because she also plays travel softball. Her softball season continues through June and July, providing only a brief break before fall preseason begins.

“I really don’t have a break until the first week of August,” said Lamberto. “When we travel for softball, we use that as a ‘vacation’ if we are in Florida or at any type of beach. Other than that, some weekends we are off, and we will use that time to go to the beach.”

For La Salle College High School senior soccer player Brady Donovan, summer preparation involved much more than reporting for the official opening of practice.

Donovan worked at Angelo’s Pizza in Ocean City, N.J., during the summer. Despite being at the shore, he and fellow senior captain Jack Siravo regularly commuted home to participate in team workouts.

“We had ‘optional’ practices for soccer on Mondays and Wednesdays and scrimmages against other schools on a few Thursdays throughout the summer,” said Donovan. “I would commute back with another captain, Jack Siravo, to make sure we were at those practices and showed our commitment.”

That commitment helped La Salle prepare to pursue a fourth consecutive PCL championship. Although the Explorers entered the season as three-time defending champions, Donovan said the players understood that past success did not guarantee anything.

“There’s definitely pressure defending a title, let alone three of them,” said Donovan. “But at La Salle, we feel a certain type of pressure every time we put on a La Salle jersey. There’s a type of pride we need to have playing for our school, and we know teams are always coming for us.”

That pursuit encountered an immediate obstacle when Archbishop Wood stunned the three-time defending champions, 2-1, in the league opener Sept. 9.

Other opening-day boys’ soccer results included Holy Ghost Prep making an emphatic PCL debut by defeating Archbishop Carroll, 10-1. Roman Catholic and Lansdale Catholic battled to a 1-1 tie, Cardinal O’Hara defeated Bonner-Prendergast, 4-0, and St. Joseph’s Prep blanked Conwell-Egan, 3-0. Devon Prep and Archbishop Ryan also finished in a 1-1 tie.

Donovan said the long, hot preseason helps players prepare for the most important portion of the schedule.

“Getting in shape this time of year is always brutal because of the hot weather, but it’s something that we know will benefit us greatly come the end of October and into November for the postseason,” said Donovan. “We usually take advantage of the time we have before the PCL games start to do some conditioning and get in some scrimmages and games against good competition from other leagues.”

While soccer players wait several weeks for league competition, the PCL golf season follows an accelerated schedule dictated largely by available daylight and autumn weather.

Golf began Aug. 13, four days before the official starting date for most fall sports. More than half of its regular season is already complete, and the league schedule concludes Sept. 24.

La Salle senior golfer Liam Littleton views golf as a sport with two connected seasons. Many scholastic golfers compete in individual tournaments throughout the summer before immediately transitioning to their school teams.

“With both the individual summer season and the school season starting in August, you definitely have to sacrifice some vacation time,” said Littleton. “It is not ideal, but it’s just part of the process.”

The compressed schedule makes every match significant and leaves little time for teams to develop after the season officially begins. Much of that preparation occurs informally during the summer.

“A lot of guys on the team love to play with each other in the offseason, which helps our chemistry for the upcoming season,” said Littleton. “I’m extremely excited to see what’s in store for the team this year.”

The willingness to sacrifice vacation time extends across the league and across sports.

Father Judge senior soccer goalie Jake O’Neill said surrendering part of his summer was an easy decision because of what his final high school season means to him.

“Sacrificing some of my vacation wasn’t a problem for me,” said O’Neill. “I know what this year means to me and my teammates, and at the end of the day, I will give up any amount of vacation for a Catholic League championship.”

Archbishop Ryan senior football player Ryan DeMas acknowledged that returning to football while summer is still underway requires an adjustment.

“You definitely have to sacrifice some of your vacation and summer time to get ready before the season,” said DeMas. “It can be difficult to adjust at first, but once you get back into the rhythm, you see the hard work paid off during the actual season.”

DeMas did not personally have to cancel a vacation, but he watched teammates rearrange their plans.

“I know others on the team who had to either cut theirs short or delay it a bit,” said DeMas. “But most of it was worth it to prepare for the season.”

Cardinal O’Hara senior soccer player Leah Hudak offered a similar perspective. Beach trips may become shorter and late-summer schedules more complicated, but the return to the team provides its own rewards.

“It definitely takes some sacrifice, but it isn’t bad because we had all summer to relax,” said Hudak. “It’s super nice and fun to be back with the girls. It is an investment that all of us are happy and willing to make and be able to go into the season confident and strong.”

For Philadelphia Catholic League fall athletes, therefore, the academic calendar does not determine when summer officially ends. That moment arrives when practices begin, teammates reunite and the pursuit of a championship replaces vacations and trips to the shore.

“Yes, some beach trips and things like that,” said Hudak, “but our results at the end of the season are worth it.”

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Contact John Knebels at jknebels@gmail.com or on ‘X’ @johnknebels.