The leaves turning to a beautiful array of orange, yellow, and brown signifies not only a change in seasons but also the start of a new year for all athletes. For fall athletes, it’s an exciting challenge to become accustomed to the new school year as well as the rigorous schedules of their respective sports. Let’s see how they fared.
Girls Cross Country: 12-1
Perhaps the most dominant team this season, the girls finished with the best record of all fall sports teams as they only had a single loss. In addition, the girls won the division for the first time in over 20 years! They qualified for the county championship and placed fourth in the county. The girls have been a tightly knit group of friends who maintain a closeness unlike any other team I’ve seen before. Coach Georges Hudson wanted to give the following athletes a shoutout for their daily contributions to the team at practice or their support at the meets: Dana Siong Sin, Grace Liao, Ruby Gimondo, Amber Sun, Lydia Wang, Isabel Wang, Hannah Fisk, Julia Oh, Olivia Yeung.
Individual Honors
All County: Juniors Kyra Au and Sabrina Lin; Sophomore Nyree Bacchus
All Conference: Seniors Alessandra Saponara and Joelle Siong Sin; Sophomore Chloe Chan
Girls Soccer: 11-2-1
The girls soccer team, yet again, had an exhilarating season, with both the offense and defense looking as strong as ever. Leading the defense was senior goalkeeper Maya Pfeiffer, who recorded 80 saves and 5 complete game shutouts. On the opposite side of the field was the two-headed snake of senior Vivian Vlantis and junior Kristina Garcia. Vlantis, returning from a season-ending ACL injury, tied for the second-most goals in the conference with 15. Kristina was the fifth highest scorer in all of Nassau County with 31 total points: 19 goals and 12 assists. This was despite missing 5 games while she was playing for the Dominican Republic National 2020 Olympic qualifying team. The team placed second in the conference and are, yet again, set up for further success.
Individual Honors:
All State, All County, & Conference Player of The Year: Junior Kristina Garcia
All Class: Senior Vivian Vlantis
All Conference: Senior Emma Forstner and Junior Emily Gal
Girls Volleyball: 11-4
What a bounce back season for the girls! Not only did they finish with a winning record , but they also finished second in the conference. They put up two very strong performances against the eventual first seed, Mepham, with a total of 3 sets to Mepham’s 5. The girls made the playoffs, but unfortunately, lost in the first round. Still, this season was a great rebound season for the program.
Individual Honors:
All County: Senior Kiele Hwee
All County Honorable Mention: Senior Lauren Wong
All Conference: Senior Sophia Mao
Girls Tennis: 9-5
It was an impressive year for the girls tennis team, as they captured third place in their conference. The team had contributions from a diverse cast of players from all grades. Senior Sophia Schutte made it to the quarterfinal round in singles, and senior Elizabeth Louie went an impressive 12-2 on the season in doubles. The team is looking forward to another winning season next year.
Individual Honors:
All County: Senior Sophia Schutte
All Conference: Senior Elizabeth Louie
Girls Field Hockey: 4-8
Although not exactly a winning season, the girls field hockey team made a statement. The girls played tough and lost quite a few heartbreakers in overtime; one game even went to a shootout. Similar to the football team, the middle school does not have a field hockey team. However, between both junior varsity and varsity, there are over 50 field hockey players at the high school. If the girls continue to compete and show the athletic directors it is a program worth saving, perhaps the “farm system” in the middle school can bring more polished players into the high school. Coach Casey wanted to give a shoutout to sisters Katherine and Elizabeth Grosul and Kayla Law.
Individual Honors:
All Conference: Seniors Alice Qian and Julia Duval
All League: Senior Sabrina Chu
Boys Badminton 10–3
Year after year, the badminton team dominates the competition, steam rolling anybody in their way. This season was no different. The boys made it all the way to the Nassau County Championship and eventually lost to Jericho. Nevertheless, it was an outstanding season, as usual, for the boys. Sophomore Ryan Wu won Nassau County’s singles championship to wrap up the absolutely stellar individual season. Perhaps the most notable part of their season, aside from a trip to the County Championship, was every single person on the lineup earned at least All Conference honors. One word to describe the boy’s season? Excellence.
Individual Honors:
All County: Senior David Fong, Junior Stanley Wong, Sophomore Ryan Wu, Freshman Justin Choi
All Conference: Seniors Eric Wang, Alan Lin, Peter Liu, Kevin Lin; Sophomore Yang Wang; Freshmen Aidan Din; and Seventh Grader Haoran Xia
Boys Volleyball: 11-5
The boys volleyball team continued their success, placing third in their conference. They fought their way through the season, competing well throughout all their matches. They never went through a match without giving their heart and soul into every serve. However, they weren’t just robots. They had fun and were friends—not just teammates. Coach Patterson wants to thank all of his seniors, as they helped build the positive culture that surrounds the team.
Individual Honors:
All County: Senior Kyle Choi
All Division: Senior Martin Lev
All Conference: Junior Ryan Kim
Boys Cross Country: 10-3
What an impressive year from the—boys cross country team. The team had the honor of competing at the State Qualifiers Meet. Not only that, they placed sixth place in all of the County Class 1 conference. The team had their fair share of contributions from everybody. Senior Kareem Allen-Austin was a daily motivator, pushing everybody to be their best and holding them accountable for their actions. Alan Gu placed third in the individual freshman championships. The boys carry their success into the winter track and field season hoping for the same result.
Individual Honors:
All County: Senior Justin Hu; Junior Eric Shu
All Conference: Senior Spencer Lee; Senior Richard Kanders; Junior Avnoor Deol
Boys Soccer: 1-8-2
With defeat comes experience, and with experience comes success. The young team got a taste of high-level varsity and will learn from their mistakes. While, yes, they were plagued with the injury bug, those who stepped up gained valuable experience. Despite their record, all of the players, and Coach McCann, look forward to the off season, and the growth each player will go through.
Individual Honors:
All County Honorable Mention: Sophomore Saul Fuentes
All Conference: Juniors Logan Golia and Jibreel Hussain
