Athletics News for the week of February 23 - March 1, 2013
Presentation for Award Recognition for JV and Varsity Winter Athletes:
WINTER JV ATHLETES: JV Coaches will hold a recognition meeting at the completion of the season with the players. At this time, all players will be presented with a "JV Letter" and Presentation by the Coaches. This meeting is mandatory and the final commitment to the season.
WINTER VARSITY ATHLETES: The Winter Athletic Awards' Evening is on Thursday, March 7. The format has been slightly adjusted from last year to provide meaningful time for coaches to speak, present awards, and provide a more intimate environment for the players, coaches, and parents.
5:30-6:50pm: Players, Coaches, and Parents will meet in a previously assigned area for dinner (as in the past organized by the team parents). Each player will be presented with his/her varsity letter/plaque and the coaches will summarize the season in addition to highlighting all of the athletes.
7:00-8:00pm: All varsity teams will move to the Performing Arts Center, where presentations will take place for All League and Honorable Mention awards, and the Wildcat and Coaches Awards.
JUNE CAMP INFORMATION
JUNE CAMPS! Attention all students in grades 8 through 11: Information on June Camps (10th through 14th) will be published on the RCDS Web site at the section for athletics. It is a great chance to receive some excellent coaching in preparation for next year’s seasons.
Varsity Fencing:The team ended the season with a strong showing in every weapon at the ISFL Team Tournament at Hackley. While several of our squads did not finish with the results that they wanted, everyone competed with heart and lived up to our team slogan: we fought "with strength and honor." In terms of results, we are very proud of the showing that the girls' saber squad -- Annie Canning, Rosie Nelson, and Olivia Nichols -- had on the day, finishing second in the league. (It should be noted that injured squad leader Maddy Gallagher, who couldn't fence on the strip, did participate with her support of the team from the sidelines.) The girls lost narrowly in a head-to-head matchup against eventual champion Masters. Though the other squads did not place, it was the conclusion of a strong year. Girls' foil had a winning season at 10-8, and the other squads all showed remarkable growth and improvement throughout the course of the season. That growth was undoubtedly due in no small part to the leadership of this year's captains: Bonnie Ishiguro, Riley Kaminer, Michael Katzovtiz, and Robert Kim. We thank them for all of their hard work both on and off the strip.
Girls' Varsity Basketball: The team had a fantastic week capturing the FAA Championship versus Hamden Hall with a score of 70-57. The week started out with a win versus Greenwich Academy 62-37. Carolyn Binder led all scorers with 35 points including 7 three-pointers and 6 assists. Nereida Mendez added 11 points and 6 assists. Other contributors included Tara Berger, 6 points/10 rebounds, Maria McEnroe, 4 points, and Jess Grasso and Melanie Mandell with 3 points each. Maddy Cooper, Olivia Sullivan, Jenn Howland, and Zoe Verni also contributed on both ends of the court even though they did not score. In the semi-final game, we faced CSH, a team that we had previously beaten twice. It was a tight game until the final 4 minutes when Tara Berger (8 points/12 rebounds), Jenn Howland (2 points) and Carolyn Binder (17 points) each hit key baskets to propel us to a 41-35 victory. Nereida Mendez (8 points), Zoe Verni (4 points) and Maria McEnroe(2 points) were also solid in the win.
In the final versus Hamden Hall, the gym was packed and the White Out was in full force!! The team displayed the composure and tenacity we have been waiting to see all year. Our enthusiasm was evident from the tip off to the buzzer. After trailing by 1 point at half time, the team exploded for 40 points in the second half. Carolyn Binder (26 points/5 assists) surpassed the 2,000-point mark, now with 2,017 and counting!! Nereida Mendez (16 points), 13 of which came in the 2nd half including 3 three-pointers. Tara Berger notched another double - double (13 points/20 rebounds). Jenn Howland ended up with 9 points, 10 rebounds and 5 assists, while Zoe Verni chipped in 4 points and Maria McEnroe added 2. The team is now 21-4 and has earned the #2 seed in the NYSAIS Tournament which will held at RCDS on Thursday, February 28 @ 5pm.
Boys' Varsity Basketball: The team lost a tough game at Brunswick in the first round of the FAA tournament. After leading by 16 points in the first half, Brunswick fought back and beat the Wildcats by 5. The game was really a direct reflection of our regular season. We have led or been in nearly every game this season, but struggled to finish and put teams away. Tyler Fernandez finished the regular season averaging 22 points per game. We are excited about receiving a bid in the NYSAIS Class C tournament. We will play York Prep on Wednesday, February 27 at home at 5:00 pm.
Boys' Varsity Ice Hockey: The team took on Fieldston in a FAA Semi-Final matchup on February 21. After a slow start, the team eventually broke the game open in the second and third periods for a 6 - 1 win. Goals were scored by James Kissell, Serafim Rocco, Patrick Kissell, Peter Duncan, and Billy Grossman, who got his first-ever varsity goal. Michael Mossman and Eric Herbst got the combined win in goal for the Wildcats. The win led to a FAA Championship rematch with the King School, which finished the FAA with the #1 seed. The team took the play to King from the opening minutes and carried the play for the majority of the game. The Wildcats were able to get on the scoreboard first with a breakaway goal from James Kissell in the second period. Twelve seconds later, a great pass from Zach Coppola to Kyle Halloran resulted in the team’s second goal. In the third, James Kissell was able to find a rebound for his second goal of the game. Will Halloran finished it off with an empty net goal for a 4 - 1 win. Michael Mossman got the win in net for the team. The win secured a third straight FAA Championship for the Wildcats. The team was led this season by senior captains Michael Rocco, James Kissell, and Jack Carroll, as well as seniors Peter Duncan and Matt Crowley.
Girls' Varsity Ice Hockey: On Wednesday, February 20, the team lost to Millbrook 8-2. The Wildcats got an early lead, scoring two quick goals by Rose Rather and Maddy Lyons (assists by Ciara Clare and Rose Rather, respectively), but unfortunately, the team could not hold on. On Saturday, February 23, RCDS matched up against Worcester Academy for its final game, losing 3-1. At the beginning of the game, we honored our seniors: Georgia Kleiner, Rose Rather, and Rebecca Mendelsohn, as well as managers Eve Wulf and Julie Kahn. Maddy Lyons netted the Wildcats only goal, assisted by Rose Rather. The team finished the season with a 14-6 final overall record.
Girls' Varsity Squash
This past weekend, the girls ended up placing 12th at the New England Squash Championships at The Brooks School in Andover, Mass. The top sixteen teams in New England participated.
The tournament is run in a straight draw format, where each player plays all the other teams' equivalent players. There are seven draws. We were thrilled with our finish since we went in as the bottom and lowest seed, #16. Below are the position #'s, the Player, their individual place in their draw and their year in school. We have good depth on the team and the results supported that. Our bottom players had the best showings and progressed furthest in the draw.
1. Caroline Kimmel. 16th Sophomore
2. Liz Judd. 15th Senior Captain
3 Clare McClintock, 14th Senior Captain
4. Catherine Kimmel, 9th Eighth Grader
5. Madeline Pierpont, 11th Freshman
6. Mariana Lee, 8th Sophomore
7. Michelle Haut, 7th Sophomore
First year varsity players Michelle Haut and Mariana Lee had the strongest tournaments of the RCDS players. We shared a bus to Brooks with fellow FAA league member Greenwich Academy. It was a great experience bringing the two teams together and hopefully forming new friendships. GA swept the tournament, winning all seven draws. The New England tournament is always a tough weekend due to it falling right before finals. The girls were able to divide their time between playing three matches Saturday and two matches Sunday. They were able to redirect their focus onto the game as they walked on the court. It was a good lesson on how to be present in the moment and pinpoint your attention on the task at hand even with a great weight looming overhead. The team ended up with a record of 10-4 with two of those loses being to GA. The Winter Sports Awards take place on Thursday, March 7. Please plan your schedules so you will be able to attend.
Boys' Varsity Squash: After three days of squash at Deerfield Academy, the team finished 12th in New England. Senior Matt Swain led the way in the third flight with a 6th place finish, losing a tight match in 4 to Will Shadek from Nobles. He also beat Brandon Chiulli from Taft in five, Justin Curtis from Andover in 4, and Jeremy Van from Choate in five. Carl Shuck came in 8th place in the fifth flight, which was an amazing result for a freshman in his first New England tournament. His biggest win was a five gamer over Saaketh Krosuri from Exeter. Senior John Shuck finished in 11th place in the 1st flight with a couple of five-game matches. Junior Will Chai also finished in 11th place in the 4th flight. Freshman Jared Yanis, junior James Pierpont and 8th-grader Jack Mattson all finished in 13th place in their respective flights. In the end, we finished the season with a fantastic 14-4 record. The team had wins over Millbrook, Suffield, Loomis-Chaffee, St. Luke's, King, Greens Farms, Hopkins, Hackley, Riverdale, and Trinity-Pawling. With so much young talent, the future of RCDS Squash looks to be in good hands. Thanks so much to senior captains Matt Swain and John Shuck,who were an excellent steadying presence and led by example with a lot of class and character on the courts throughout the season.