Athletics News for the Week of January 19-25, 2013
US, MS, LS
Winter Wildcat Games: We want to invite everyone, RCDS families and students of all ages to come out and cheer on the Winter Wildcat Teams.
Jan 25 - Boys Basketball 6:00
Jan 26 - Wrestling 3:00; Boys squash 3:00
Jan 30 - Girls Hockey 4:00; Boys Hockey 6:00
Jan 31 - Girls Squash 4:30; Girls Basketball 5:45
Varsity Wrestling: The team dropped a few matches last week due to a combination of injuries and illness. Never the less, we battled hard against Dalton, Martin Luther, and Harding High. Dylan Bronson won all three matches last week. George Matelich won two of his three, but had a very tough overtime loss against a quality opponent versus Martin Luther. This week, we prepare for the FAA Duals at home this Saturday. It starts at 3:00 p.m. and will go throughout the early evening. We hope to get a strong RCDS following for support.
Varsity Fencing: Last week, RCDS Fencing faced Masters, a formidable foe in the ISFL (Independent School Fencing League). The Wildcats fenced with strength and honor, but fell to the Panthers in all six events. The girls' foil team, though, nearly toppled their opposition, jumping out to a 4-2 lead. Despite three exciting and very close bouts, the girls could not quite make it over the hump to secure the victory, losing 4-5. Both epee squads and the girls' saber squad also had exciting events, each team falling 3-6. Despite the result, the team is resolved to take the losses not as failures, but, rather, as learning opportunities. Collectively, the team is very excited about applying that learning in coming meets -- and especially February 8, when Masters will make the trip from Dobbs Ferry to Rye for the second match of the season.
Girls' Varsity Basketball: The team has improved to 12-1. Our first game back after a 4-week layoff proved to be our toughest yet. Trailing Chapin by 8 points with just over 4 minutes to go, we turned up the pressure, causing two turnovers, which resulted in two 3's by Carolyn Binder, cutting the lead to 2. Tara Berger then followed with a blocked shot, and Maria McEnroe tied it up from a great assist from Zoe Verni. Foul shooting proved to be the key to the game. Collectively, the team was 12-12 from the line going 8-8 in the second half. We won 42-39. On Saturday, we traveled to Hopkins and won 73-37. Tara Berger, 8 points, 4 blocks, 7 rebounds, was solid. Carolyn Binder contributed 19 points to go along with 6 assists. Melanie Mandell came off the bench to chip in a quiet 18 points, including 8-10 from the foul line. Zoe Verni (2 points), Jenn Howland (14 points), Jess Grasso (4 points), Nereida Mendez (4 points), Olivia Sullivan (4 points), and Maddy Cooper (2 assists) all played solid in the win. The team travels to King on Tuesday, January 22, and will host Greens Farms on Thursday, January 24.
Boys' Varsity Basketball: The team wrapped the week up with a huge win over conference rival King and a tough loss down at Packer Collegiate. Sophomore Salim Green led the way against King, scoring 23 points. Junior Tyler Fernandez added 21, as he continues to come up big for the Wildcats. James McPhail, Ignacio de Lera, Jack Zenkel, Vince Conn, and Andrew Waite are all playing well and contributing with points, rebounds, steals, assists, and hustle plays. Each week we get better and better, and there is no matching our effort! The Wildcats hope to pick up two wins this week against Dwight and conference rival Masters.
Boys' Varsity Ice Hockey: The team traveled to the Harvey School on Wednesday, January 16. It was a hard-fought game that saw RCDS come out on top 4-2. Matt Crowley recorded his first-ever varsity goal in the second period. Zach Coppola got the game-winning goal in the third period and Patrick Kissell sealed the win with an empty net goal in the final minute. On Saturday, January 19, the team hosted Kent's Hill School from Maine, a top boarding school. The team battled hard and made the bigger Kent's Hill squad work for everything they got, but in the end fell to a very talented Kent's Hill team. This week the team welcomes Rye High School on January 22, and Iona Prep on January 25. Both games should be highly competitive and fast-paced.
Girls' Varsity Ice Hockey: On Wednesday, January 16, the team traveled to Bridgewater, NJ, to play against Pingry. The Wildcats were victorious 7-3. Rose Rather scored 4 goals and 2 assists, Ciara Clare had 1 goal and 2 assists, and Sarah Ince netted 1 goal and 2 assists. Charlotte Fleischman had 1 goal, and Georgia Kleiner also added 1 assist. On Friday, January 18, the team then matched up against Princeton Day School, winning 3-0. Sarah Ince, Rose Rather, and Ciara Clare contributed with 1 goal each. Assists included: Charlotte Fleischman (2), Rose Rather (1), Stephanie O'Brien (1), Ciara Clare (1), and Georgia Kleiner (1). RCDS will next face off against WIHLMA rival, Morristown-Beard on Tuesday, January 22. The Wildcats current record is 11-1.
Girls' Varsity Squash: It’s hard to believe that The US National Championships are just around the corner. Unlike past years, this year's tournament will be played in Hartford, Conn. Trinity College will host the tournament on February 8-10. Matches will be played at all the local prep schools, as well. Last year, RCDS had a tremendous showing, making it all the way to the Division II finals but was edged out of the Championship title 4-3. This year, we hope to bring home the big prize! Last week, the lady Wildcats hosted neighbor Holy Child. Nine matches were played, and the girls focused on playing matches with no unforced errors. All nine matches were won 3-0 with most only giving up a few points each game. Samantha Cooper played an extremely clean match giving up a total of only 3 points for all three games. Her scores were 11-0, 11-0, and 11-3! This week RCDS will host a fierce competitor, Taft School at 4:30. Please come support the team.
Boys' Varsity Squash: After one of the toughest weeks of the season, the team emerged with three solid wins and two tough losses, moving our overall record to 10-4. Right now, we are ranked 8th in New England and are playing some excellent squash. Last Wednesday, we headed up to Millbrook, NY, to play both Millbrook and Suffield in a tri-match. After several hours of squash, we came away with two 4-3 victories. Matt Swain, Will Chai, and John Shuck set the tone with excellent wins in both matches. Carl Shuck demonstrated amazing stamina and solid strokes as he played two five-game matches. In the end, his victory over Suffield gave us the 4-3 win in the match. In the second match, Eli Rattner sealed the win over Millbrook with an easy 3-0 win. He mixed great drops with a good deal of deception to keep his opponent off balance. On Friday, we traveled up to face the Taft School in a match that featured James Pierpont dominating his opponent in the number-three spot. He hit straight rails and was able to control each point on his way to a 3-0 victory. John Shuck battled for nearly an hour only to fall 10-6 in the fifth, and Carl Shuck never gave up as he tracked down every ball in a 3-1 loss. Will Chai, Jared Yanis, Jack Mattson, Kyle Eagan, and Eli Rattner also played some excellent squash and continued to show marked improvement. On Saturday, the team headed over to the Brunswick School to play matches against Salisbury and Hotchkiss. In the first round, we played Hotchkiss to a tight 4-3 match. Matt Swain, John Shuck, and James Pierpont all won 3-0 in the top three spots to give us 3 wins, but we could not find the elusive fourth to earn the overall victory. Right after that, we played Salisbury and won convincingly 6-1. Matt Swain was the man of the match, as he remained calm and cool in a five-game victory against a relentless opponent. After five matches in four days, the team certainly earned a well-deserved rest day. All of this hard work will help the team in the U.S. High School National Championship, where they are currently in the top draw, which means U.S. Squash recognizes them as one of the top 16 teams in the country! Please come out and support the team against Trinity-Pawling at 3 p.m. on Saturday, January 26!