M-A’s sports teams are known across the Bay Area for their talent and success, but they couldn’t reach those heights without the hardworking coaches who lead them. Get to know four of M-A’s coaches and their distinct coaching styles.
Chris Saunders: Football
Ethnic Studies teacher and varsity football coach Chris Saunders first came to M-A in 2020. “M-A is a great place, and there’s a lot of really great people, and that’s really been kind of front and center, as far as things that really create a lot of passion,” Saunders said.
Saunders comes into every practice with excitement and positivity. Even though he teaches and coaches, he’s learned to balance his different roles. “I’m very passionate about the game and competitiveness,” he said. “I’m very competitive.”
His appreciation for football comes from his own high school experience, and from his time playing in college. “I fell in love with the game itself as well as what football particularly provides. It’s a big team, a big group of guys compared to some other teams. And that excitement, that energy of being in a big group and working together and succeeding is really fun,” Saunders said.
He aims to coach M-A to the Peninsula Athletic League Championship and playoffs every year. Saunders also hopes to see the number of students on the team increase. He thinks being on a team is a great opportunity for a high schooler to experience.
Saunders’ advice for high school athletes: “You really got four years to play as many organized sports as you can and want,” Saunders said. “I think it’s just something that might seem like it might last forever. It might be too much right now, but the opportunity to play for your school and as many sports as you want is really actually a short window of time.”
Eric Wilmurt: Cross Country
P.E. teacher and cross country coach Eric Wilmurt has been working at M-A since 1995. He came to M-A to be a full-time P.E. teacher, but had to also take the other jobs to get the position. “I had no experience coaching cross country. I’d done some running in college with the cross country runners, but for the most part, I did sprinting and jumping through high school and college,” Wilmurt said.
“We’ve had a lot of success this year, which has been a lot of fun,” he said. “At league championships, the girls placed second in the league, and the boys scored a perfect score.”
Wilmurt motivates his runners during practice by reminding them that they’re lucky to run, and that it’s an exceptional experience. “I would say, [at] the very beginning of the season, people struggle to do their first workout of three miles, and they’re scared of it. [But] within two or three weeks, they don’t even blink, and they’re happy to go out and go for a run because they know how great it feels,” he said.
Wilmurt’s advice to high school athletes: “When it’s all over and your high school sports career is over, what story do you want to tell people on how it went? And if you want to tell an interesting story, you should get to work.”
Kate Lynn Roberts: Dance Team
Dance team coach Kate Lynn Roberts started dancing at a young age and immediately fell in love with the sport. She runs a dance studio called Studio 650 and coaches both the JV and varsity dance teams at M-A.
Roberts loves the year-round aspect of the dance team and enjoys coaching JV and varsity practices simultaneously because of the supportive atmosphere. “So far, it’s been going really well,” she said. “I like the year round. It keeps the girls in the mindset of working on the technique and making sure that their stamina stays year-round.”
Her job as the coach is mainly to provide support throughout dances. “I’d say my coaching role is pretty much like guidance. So I let the girls, the captains and officers, pretty much choreograph most of the dances,” she said.
Robert’s advice to high school athletes: “I think hard work really pays off. I think that you shouldn’t practice for perfection, you should practice to make things better. So much of being in practice is like, if you can come to practice, have a positive attitude, and while you’re there be 100% invested in the practice.”
Steven Canalez: Boys Water Polo
Varsity and JV boys water polo coach Steven Canalez has been coaching at M-A since 2019.
Before he came to M-A, Canalez coached in Sunnyvale for five years as a JV coach, and one year as a varsity coach. After six years of coaching in Sunnyvale, he came to M-A as the JV coach for three years. He then switched to varsity coach in 2022. This year, he coached both JV and varsity.
Canalez played water polo throughout high school and for one year in junior college. He carries his love and excitement toward the sport and brings that to every practice, creating excitement for the players. “I’m energetic. I would say that I’m very, very passionate. I think my passion for the sport and for what I’m doing is very easy to pick up on,” he said.
This season in particular has brought many exciting victories for the team. “This season has been probably one of the most, I would say, the most successful I’ve had while I’ve been coaching here,” Canalez said.
