Heat on the Mesa: March's Record-Breaking Heat Wave and Cate Athletes

By Maree Hawkins '28

With spring break ending, students returned to the Mesa and brought the heat with them.

From Monday, March 16, through Friday, March 20, 2026, the National Weather Service forecasted a long-duration heat wave throughout Santa Barbara County. Temperatures were 20–35 degrees above normal, reaching the 90s in some areas and breaking daily and monthly records for March. For a community like Cate, built around an outdoor campus culture, the timing couldn't have been more disruptive.

Student athletes, returning fresh off spring break and diving right back into spring season practices, felt the brunt of it. The heat, for many, affected how students moved, felt, and performed.

Sloan Harwell '28, track runner, put it simply: "The heat made me tired, and also I don't drink water throughout the day, [which] added on to my fatigue...I was honestly just pretty tired, which made me feel like I wasn't 110% of myself." Sloan’s fatigue proved to be normal around campus. Returning from spring break, Cate’s geographically diverse population is adjusting to the Mesa’s minute differences that add up fast: time difference, elevation, air quality, proximity to water, and so many more factors that Cate's students must readapt to. 

Cate’s Ellis House and Athletic Training Center, in preparation for the heat wave, reached out to coaches and students in an attempt to minimize the repercussions of such a drastic heat wave. Emmanuel Brine '28 described the adjustments his lacrosse team made during the week: "During practice we had to modify and take off most of our gear... another day we had practice at 4:30 (rather than 3:30). The school was taking measures to help students, which was very nice of them and made it all super fun... we had a ton of water and water breaks.” 

The shift to later practice times aligns with guidance from the Ellis House, specifically Nurse Margaret Coyne, who encouraged students to take frequent water breaks throughout practice times and sit aside if need be. These are all small logistical changes, but the difference between a 3:30 and a 4:30 start (on average 4 degrees), or an additional 30 second water break during a heat wave can be significant for athlete safety and morale.

For some athletes, the challenge was layered. Aleema Bowo '27, a varsity lacrosse player, was navigating the heat wave while fasting for Ramadan, meaning no food or water during daylight hours. "Playing varsity lacrosse and fasting for Ramadan this year was extremely challenging," she said. "The extreme heat on the Mesa during the week coming back from spring break made practices much harder for me, and I found myself having to sit in the shade and catch my breath during as well as between drills very often. While it was difficult, the coaches and captains were super supportive and made sure I knew to put my body first and take breaks when necessary." Aleema's experience speaks to something beyond weather: the intersection of athletic demand, religious practice, and institutional care. The fact that her coaches and captains centered her well-being over performance is worth acknowledging.

What these three accounts collectively reveal is that the March 2026 heat wave tested Cate student-athletes not just physically but mentally. Heat affects morale. It drains the motivation to push through the next sprint or stick to the next drill. But it also brought out something else: the adaptability, community support, and resilience that are unique to the Mesa.