There is never a drop-off in Gilroy High field hockey under coach Adam Gemar. Graduation losses, a fierce schedule and a new Central Coast Section playoff format were encountered in 2025 but the Mustangs excelled nonetheless. The dynasty motors on.
Gilroy finished 7-1-2 in the competitive Blossom Valley Athletic League, Mt. Hamilton Division, just a half game behind Leigh, and ahead of rival Christopher. The Mustangs, 12-4-5 overall, tied their first meeting with the crosstown Cougars 0-0 and won the rematch 2-1.
The CCS playoffs became a two-division structure, after years of a one-division 16-team playoff with multiple byes. In 2025, the top eight went directly into Division I and the next eight competed into Division II. The Mustangs immediately dove into the deep water of Division I.
In the opener, Gilroy lost 1-0 to St. Francis, ending the year in essentially a tie for fifth best in CCS.
That produced the fifth straight post-COVID season with a high finish (and the Mustangs were strong before 2020 too). During the span from 2021-2025, Gilroy is 83-17-10, 39-6-5 in league play.
The Mustangs have finished very high in CCS every year, respectively fifth, third, fifth, second, and now fifth. And in 2025, they did it with many new players and underclassmen. The team was led by a brilliant trio.
“Our midfield is strong,” said Gemar, near the end of the season. “Kam (Krejdovsky) is an amazing athlete. We have Kiara (Prophet) and then we have Hailey (Moncada), who holds down the back, but can also play offense.”
Gilroy’s success in 2025 began with those three. Senior Krejdovsky was an unstoppable force on the ball, winning 1-on-1s, passing superbly and unleashing her lethal shot for scores. She finished the season with 18 goals, 12 assists and 64 steals, capping a spectacular career with a total of 59 goals and 29 assists.
Kiara Prophet sparkled in the midfield and versatile midfielder/defenseman Hailey Moncada was rock solid all over the field. The Mustangs featured many other bigtime contributors. Emma Moreno and Makayla De Castro were strong forces up front. Lexi Osaki and Emma Tait were stellar. Cynthia Flores, Stella Rhodas and Lalita Solis bolstered the defense. Lea Kim was a brick wall in the goal. London Madrid, Emma Hinojosa, Gabriela Gonzalez, Naveah Parra, Kylie Davidson and Jazlyn Ramirez added depth.
Gemar’s Mustangs pride themselves on team success, a family environment and having fun. There are no individualists and field hockey teams only succeed with a large number of players making big contributions. With a thin bunch of returnees, the outlook at the start of the season was hopeful but far from certain.
“Coming in, we thought last season was a rebuilding year, but this season was rebuilding times two,” Prophet said. “We were very young. Coming in, we wondered how we were going to adapt to these changes.”
The crew gelled early in the season, and improved through tough matchups. Steel sharpens steel. Iron sharpens iron.
In the pre-season, Gilroy collected victories over Hollister 4-0 and Valley Christian 1-0 and tied Los Altos 0-0 and Redwood of Larkspur 1-1.
The Mustangs challenged themselves with a trip to the field hockey hotbed of San Diego and fared well. During Sept. 19-20, they lost to Scripps 1-0, routed Valley Center 4-0, lost to Torrey Pines 2-0 and beat Cathedral Catholic 3-1.
“The San Diego tournament had several really good teams,” Krejdovsky said. “We kept up with them. We played well as a team and that gave us confidence.”
Back home, they beat Stevenson 1-0 before commencing league play. Gilroy added one non-league match later in the season, tying St. Francis 0-0 on Oct. 8.
“We adapted to each other rather quickly,” Moncada said. “We became a very tight team.”
Blossom Valley Athletic League, Mt. Hamilton division competition was fierce with a double round-robin. No weak teams in the Mt. Hamilton. Results showed sweeps of Prospect, Branham and Willow Glen.
Coincidentally, the Mustangs beat those three opponents by identical scores. In each case, they won once by 4-0 and once by 5-0.
The remainder of the schedule included the games against Christopher and a pair with Leigh, a 0-0 tie and 1-0 defeat.
Season highlights always include the friendly matches with Christopher. The first meeting was a scoreless tie. In the Oct. 30 rematch, the Mustangs erupted with two first-half goals on the road. Midway through the second quarter, with 6:45 to play, Prophet scored on an assist from Krejdovsky.
“Lexi (Osaki) stole the ball,” Krejdovsky said. “Gabby (Gonzalez) threw it to me. I hit it right to the goal.”
Prophet deflected the ball in mid-air and knocked it down. It went in the back door.
Not quite a minute later, the Mustangs tallied again. At 5:51, Gonzalez tipped in a shot from Krejdovsky.
In the second half, the Cougars came back hard. The Mustangs held them off until, with just 3:06 left in the contest, Ryan Hemeon found the back of the net to narrow the score to 2-1.
“In the second half, they really had us on our toes,” Moncada said.
Gilroy held on for the victory.
“We’re friends and (club) teammates off the field, but it’s always great to beat our rivals,” Krejdovsky said.
Other highlights during the season were many. Krejdovsky scored three goals against Branham on Oct. 2 and four goals against them on Oct. 21. She also tallied three against Willow Glen on Oct. 9.
In the win over Prospect on Oct. 16, she picked up four assists. Moncada delivered seven steals in the second Willow Glen game and in the regular season finale against Christopher. She also collected six steals against Leigh on Oct. 7 and six versus St. Francis on Oct. 8.
The future is bright for Gilroy. Prophet, Moncada and Kim are only juniors and in fact, this year’s squad contained just three seniors. One was Krejdovsky, who leaves big shoes to fill. But the Mustangs have carried on for more than a decade with superb seasons. And will likely do so again.
Going back 11 years, Gilroy is 163-37-19 overall, for an .815 winning percentage. In league play, the Mustangs have racked up a mark of 95-10-8, a blistering .905 clip. Every year, Gilroy is among the best in the CCS. Look for that to continue.
