Athletics News, March 28, 2014

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Boys' Varsity Basketball: The team had a very successful season. The Wildcats closed the season with a 16-9 record, reached the semifinal of the FAA, and defeated Berkley Carroll, winning the NYSAIS tournament. The Wildcats were led by a strong group of seniors who will be missed next year. Senior Tyler Fernandez, RCDS boys’ all-time leading scorer with 1526 points, and junior Salim Green made the All FAA team, while senior James McPhail received honorable mention. Salim Green also made second team All New England selection, while Tyler Fernandez received All New England Honorable Mention. The Wildcats look forward to an even more successful season next year with Captains Salim Green and Vincent Conn leading the team.

Girls' Varsity Basketball: The team ended its season with an overall record of 15-9 after losing in the state semi-final to eventual state champion Hackley School, 42-38. We finished 3rd in the FAA with a record of 7-2. Jenn Howland received Honorable Mention All League. Nereida Mendez and Tara Berger received All League honors. Tara Berger was voted the Wildcat Award by her teammates, and Jess Grasso received the Coaches Award. Next year's captains are Tara Berger and Nereida Mendez. We will miss our only senior, Jess Grasso, who provided us with the leadership, dedication, and energy a team looks for in a captain. Good Luck, Jess!!!

Boys' Varsity Ice Hockey: The team finished its season with a 4th consecutive FAA Championship.  Gabe Regan, Blake Beber, Kyle Halloran and Will Halloran were all selected as FAA All League players.  Serafim Rocco was selected as an FAA Honorable Mention player. Kyle Halloran was selected as the next captain of the RCDS Ice Hockey Team, and Will Halloran and Blake Beber were selected as the assistant captains.

Girls' Varsity Ice Hockey: The Team will look for leadership next season from re-elected co-captains Ciara Clare and Jamie Simensky. Congratulations to Wildcat Award winner Sarah Ince and Coaches Award winner Stephanie O’Brien.

Boys' Varsity Fencing: This year, Boys’ Foil finished with a record of 10-7, Epee was 14-3, and Saber was 3-12. Kevin Collado was the Maureen Hartman Award winner and the Coaches Award went to Naropa Perez.

Girls' Varsity Fencing: The Girls’ Foil team finished at 18-1, Foil was 10-9, and Sabre finished at 12-2. The Wildcat Award winner was Maddy Gallagher, and the Coaches Award went to Michael Katzovitz.

Boys' Varsity Squash: As the 2013-14 squash season draws to a close, we wanted to offer congratulations to Carl Shuck, James Pierpont and Will Chai for earning All FAA honors, and Jack Mattson for earning Honorable Mention All FAA. In addition, we are pleased to announce that Jon Singer and Eli Rattner will be the team captains for next year! We are looking forward to another amazing season!

Girls' Varsity Squash: The team finished the season with a 13-8 record. Caroline Kimmel was chosen by her teammates as the Wildcat Award recipient, and Sydney Ginsberg received the Coaches Award. Earning FAA All League honors were Caroline Kimmel and Catherine Kimmel. Mariana Lee earned FAA Honorable Mention. Our captains for the 2014-2015 season are Caroline Kimmel and Mariana Lee.

Varsity Wrestling: The team finished the season with a 6-8 record. The Wildcat Award winner was Dylan Bronson, and the Coaches Award went to George Matelich. FAA All League went to Peter Sanchez, and Sean Chan made FAA Honorable Mention.

Varsity Baseball: The Wildcats Baseball Program got off to an excellent start with five days of training and scrimmages against competition from around the country. ESPN's Wild World of Sports at Disney provided an ideal backdrop for great baseball, along with lots of sunshine and fun. The team came together as a group and looks poised for a special season in 2014. Our varsity team posted a 3-0 record, beating teams from Mississippi, Pennsylvania, and Virginia, 7-5, 9-2, and 9-2, respectively. Our seniors exhibited strong leadership throughout the trip. Captain Peter Shu had several quality at-bats and key hits, played a solid 1B, and gave us multiple innings on the mound. Captain Tyler Fernandez dominated in 3 innings of work, striking out 5, and played an aggressive and athletic centerfield. Quinn Kurzner showed promise on the mound, taking the start in game 2. Quinn Kurzner and Billy Sobol played several roles for the team in Florida. Their versatility will help us throughout the season. Our juniors were excellent as well. Matt Webster picked up where he left off last season. Matt Webster was an on-base machine, played a solid SS, and looked good on the mound, earning the save in our first game. Liam Dalton ably handled the pitching staff from behind the plate. Luke Cappellano was in the zone offensively throughout the trip, smoking line drives in virtually every at-bat. Erik Hanson returned to the starting lineup after an injury plagued 2013, manning leftfield, and picking up a few hits. Joshua Rivera showed great development, both with his glove and at the plate. Returning freshman Enzo Stefanoni was our spring training workhorse on the mound, throwing multiple innings in 2 of our games. Sophomores Billy Grossman, Reed Connor, Ryan Wolitzer, and Dylan Misisco made strong cases for significant roles on the varsity this season. Billy Grossman smacked two doubles, and gave us quality innings on the mound and behind the plate. Many other sophomores and freshman stood out to the coaching staff, impressing us with their hard-work, approach and talent. Sophomores Jackson Shapiro, Kyle Price, Nick Sharpe, Cameron Kinder, Max Pomroy, Robert Newman and Patrick Neafsey, and freshmen, Forbes Crowley, Jesse Lefebvre, and Jack Bronsky demonstrated the strength and depth of our program now, and for years to come. The Wildcats look forward to 3 more scrimmages at home, before our FAA opener on April 1 at St. Luke’s.

Boys' Varsity Golf: The team spent the first 5 days of spring break training at the Saddlebrook Resort in Wesley Chapel, Fla. We arrived on Sunday afternoon, and after settling in our rooms, headed off to the driving range to work off the winter’s rust from our swings. We had an early start each morning, Monday through Thursday. At 7 a.m., we ate a hearty breakfast, which was followed by a 3-hour training session. Our pros, Mark, Eddie, and Joe, worked with the boys on their fundamentals – grip, alignment, posture, ball position, and swing plane. Each day some time was devoted to the full swing, the short game, and putting. After lunch, everyone was off to the golf course to play either 9 or 18 holes. Our regular season is scheduled to start on Tuesday, April 1, with a home match against Brunswick. Hopefully the weather will cooperate.

Girls' Varsity Golf: Spring Training in Tampa was a great success! Eleven golfers, led by Co-Captains Amanda Dubin and Summer Kitahara, trained daily at Saddlebrook Golf Academy. Every player made significant improvements in her swing, short game strategy, and putting. One of the highlights of the trip was the hotly contested scramble tournament. The winning team consisted of Summer Kitahara (12th grade), Katie Lattanzio (12th grade), Sarah Loewentheil (10th grade) and Natalie Alpert (9th grade). The day after the tournament, Summer scored an impressive 79 over 18 holes. Back to Spring Training for the fourth year, Amanda Dubin (12th grade) perfected her Confidence Cycle. Kate Weiss (11th grade) inspired the team with her awesome drives. Demonstrating her dedication to the game, Jasmine Kitahara (10th grade) did not let weather get in the way of her practice and worked on her putting stroke in pouring rain. Always eager to learn new techniques, Nicole Schumaker (10th grade) persisted in her practice. New player Samantha Shyer (11th grade) asked excellent questions, and ninth grader Stefanie Starker was full of enthusiasm and positive focus. The team worked and played hard in Tampa, and is looking forward to continuing the effort back on campus and at Apawamis.  

Boys' Varsity Lacrosse: The team had a great spring training trip. We were able to accomplish a lot of work during our stay at Disney. Captains Tyler Miller, Dylan Bass, and Michael Farber demonstrated great leadership and set a tone that fostered hard work in a positive environment. Due to the players' work ethic, everyone improved during the course of the trip, which was evident in our play from our first scrimmage to our second one. With the loss of only two seniors from last year's team, we return a lot of experience, and it was great to see the continued development of these returning players. Attackmen Justin Weissman and Thomas Chai grew in stature and played with a lot of confidence. Once Riley van den Broek returns fully from the injured list, our attack unit is going to be hard for opposing teams to handle. At midfield, Kyle and Will Halloran continued to show their smarts on the field and their ability to get open off the ball. Defensively, we return every long pole, and this unit continued to mesh through the course of the week. Andrew Antonacci, Matt Farber and Jon Singer will lead this unit. It is great to have so many freshman involved in this year's program. They quickly immersed themselves into the team, and I think the trip was a great experience for them. Next week, we open the season with a busy week - three games in 5 days. If you can't make it out to Portledge (Monday) or Hamden Hall (Wednesday), we hope to see you on Friday for our home opener against Fieldston.

Girls' Varsity Lacrosse: The team ended the 2013 season with a 12-3 record and looks to improve this record during the 2014 season and elevate its standing in the FAA and NYSAISAA tournament. During Spring Break, the team spent time training for the upcoming season at SpringFling in West Palm Beach, Fla. The week consisted of conditioning, skill work, team bonding games, and three intra-squad scrimmages. We would like to send a special thank you to captains Ruby Aresty, Kat DiCaprio, and Stephanie Sabatini for their help before and throughout the trip. The captains were outstanding role models for the younger athletes. We would also like to extend our thanks to Ms. Southard for traveling with the team to Florida and taking such good care of everyone. The varsity team opens its season with a scrimmage at Holy Child on Thursday, March 27.

Varsity Sailing: The team enjoyed a fun and productive week on the waters of Biscayne Bay in Coconut Grove, Fla., during break.  The team focused mostly on boat-handling skills in the morning and racing practice in the afternoons.  The team was fortunate to have Ransom Everglades High School and Boston University to race with in the afternoons, which provided some excellent competition on the water.   Our first major regatta was canceled due to high winds on March 22 at Stony Brook School.  Our next big regatta will be this weekend at SUNY Maritime. This event will be our league qualifier for the District Baker Team Racing Championship Qualifier. The cold weather this week will cause a delay in getting our boats in the water, but we will use the time reviewing videotape taken while sailing in Miami.  We will launch our fleet on Thursday at Indian Harbor Yacht Club in Greenwich!

Varsity Softball: The team embarked on a trip to Wide World of Sports in Orlando, Fla., to hone the players' skills over the break. The team worked hard and enjoyed the sun as players bonded and had fun improving many aspects of their game in anticipation of another successful season. Captains Jess Grasso, Sydney Ginsberg, and Nereida Mendez led the veterans and new comers through drills, batting stations, and scrimmages as the week progressed. During its scrimmages, the team was able to demonstrate what the players had been practicing and did so quite well laying down timely bunts, stealing bases, making defensive plays and getting timely hits. The team has also adopted its new slogan "Never Satisfied." The team looks forward to returning home in anticipation of the first game on Saturday, March 29, at home starting at 12 p.m., versus Rye HS.

Boys' Varsity Tennis: The coaching staff is eager to begin the 2014 season. Many of the boys traveled to the Saddlebrook Resort in Tampa for the annual spring training trip. Captain Paul Leake and the remaining members from last year’s varsity team will play their first match on Monday, April 7, at home against Section 1 powerhouse Byram Hills. This week, members of last year's JV, Freshmen, and new tennis members of the school will be trying out for the remaining four spots that were lost to graduation last year.

Varsity Track: The boys' track team had a successful trip to Florida and benefitted from the change of scenery and the hot sun.  The team worked hard and created some nice bonds among each other that will bode well for the upcoming meet schedule.  The team competed at the Disney Track & Field Showcase at the end of the training week, and was able to test players' skills against Florida's best. The team looks forward to its first relay meet on Saturday, April 5, at the King Relays (Icahn Stadium).

The girls' track team enjoyed the spring trip with some fun in the sun down in Disney. The ladies trained hard, and really took advantage of the facilities at the Wide World of Sports. The team competed at the Disney Track & Field Showcase at the end of the training week, and was able to test players' skills against Florida's best. The 4 x 800 relay team of juniors Caroline Kimmel, Sarah Brodwolf, Christine Campisi, and senior Franchesca Pena medaled with a 7th place finish and established a good time this early in the season. The team looks forward to its first relay meet on Saturday, April 5, at the King Relays (Icahn Stadium).

Squash Clinics

Private Lessons & Clinics: Starting the week of February 24 there will be availability for private lessons or clinics after school or on the weekend.

Clinics: Monday -  from 3:15-4:15 p.m.; Wednesday - from 3:15-4:15 p.m.; Saturday - from 9-9:45 a.m. (2-4 Grade only) & from 3:30-4:15 p.m. (5-8 Grade only)

Private lessons: There are still some times available during the week after school and on Saturdays. Please Contact Alex for more details

Summer Squash Camps: June 4 -27
We have summer camps for all ages. There are morning, afternoon and day sessions.
June 4-6: 9 a.m.-noon, 1 p.m.-.4 p.m. or day camp from 9 a.m.- 4 p.m. (Half Week)
June 9-13: 9 a.m.-noon, 1.p.m.-.4 p.m. or day camp from 9 a.m.- 4 p.m.
June 16-20: 9 a.m.-noon, 1 p.m.- 4 p.m or day camp from 9 a.m.- 4 p.m.
June 23-27: 9 a.m.-noon, 1 p.m.- 4 p.m. or day camp from 9 a.m.- 4 p.m.

For more information contact Alex at Alex_Langerhorst@ryecountryday.org.