Mar 25, 2018 | Athletics
By Josie Jahng (V)
The co-ed ski team has enjoyed a fantastic season this year. Led by Head Coach Julianne Coxe and Captains Lindsey Hogan (VI), Nick Ladino (VI), Annie Leithead (V), and Conor Mahoney (VI), the team has been working hard both in the weight room and on the slopes to prepare for their races.
Although the team graduated some valuable seniors, the addition of several newcomers has created great depth to a strong veteran squad. Leithead believes “the team has a really good dynamic this year, which has definitely contributed to [their] success on the slopes.”
Leithead, one of the team’s top performers, has qualified for the NJSIAA Race of Champions for the second time and will be accompanied by talented underclassmen Rosemary Collins (III) and Matt Dispenza (IV). When asked about training plans for the next few weeks, Leithead said, “The three of us are all working hard and focusing on our technical skills to get the best possible results at ROCs.”
The team ended up qualifying for States, where they secured 5th place in New Jersey.
Mar 25, 2018 | Athletics
By Josie Jahng (V)
Led by Head Coach Steve Droste and Captains Billy Fallon (VI) and Victor Vollbrechthausen (VI), the boys’ varsity swim team has had a record-breaking season, flaunting an undefeated 7-0 record.
The team has enjoyed considerable success in the pool during their regular season, captured best by their impressive 119-51 victory over longtime rival Bridgewater-Raritan. Currently in the midst of their championship season, they have continued to demonstrate their dominance, winning the Skyland Conference Championships, the Somerset County Championships, and most recently, the NJISAA Prep Championships.
Assistant Coach Graig Peterson believes this year may be the team’s most successful year yet, especially because “the seniors and the freshmen are two of the strongest classes that we have ever had.” Additionally, Mr. Peterson emphasized that the “leadership that the captain and the rest of the senior class has provided has really set the tone for the team.”
At the NJSIAA Non-Public “B” Semifinals, the team secured their 11th consecutive state title.
Mar 25, 2018 | Athletics
By Darlene Fung (V)
Led by Head Coach Deirdre O’Mara and Captains Naiyah Atulomah (VI) and Kassidy Peterson (VI), the girls’ swim team has raced their way to a 6-2 record in the regular season. The team has excelled in invitational meets, where they compete against up to twenty different teams.
The team swept at this year’s NJSIAA Prep Championships, winning the meet by over two-hundred points and setting multiple school and meet records. Coach O’Mara said, “Our recent Prep Championship meet was a superb show of our swimmers’ talents. We had outstanding swims from almost every member of the team.”
The swimmers are not only flourishing in the pool individually but are also thriving as a team as well. Despite graduating several seniors last year and introducing many new freshmen, the team has become very close over the course of the season.
Atulomah said, “All of the girls on the team are talented swimmers and, even more important than that, amazing people.”
“We have built a strong bond and have created many great memories together as a team,” Peterson added.
The team used their talent and team spirit to reach the Non-Public “A” State semifinals.
Mar 25, 2018 | Athletics
By Ameera Ebrahim (III)
The girls’ fencing team is closing up their regular season with an even 5-5 record. Despite their losing record, the team was extremely successful at the District Tournament. They were the champions of District Three, with the épée squad winning first place and the foil squad coming in second.
By coming in first at Districts, the girls’ fencing team qualified for the Sweet Sixteen Tournament. They made it to the top eight after beating Millburn and losing to Columbia. However, the girls’ épée and foil squads have yet to compete in the upcoming Squad States.
Captain Jessica Li (VI) said, “I’m proud of our team for a great season and especially for coming together so quickly despite being a fairly young team.” She continued, “We had a wonderful performance at Districts. It has been exciting to see the significant improvements in everyone’s fencing over the season.”
Mar 25, 2018 | Athletics
By Ameera Ebrahim (III)
The boys’ fencing team has enjoyed a relatively successful season so far this year. The boys ended the season with a record of 7-5. At Districts, the boys placed third overall and their sabre squad won first. After that impressive showing, the team qualified for the Sweet Sixteen Tournament. This is a very significant achievement, as the team has not competed in Sweet Sixteen for many years.
Captain Michael Sun (V) remarked, “I think this season was probably the best boys season we’ve had so far; we made it to Sweet Sixteens for the first time in many years, we came in third at Districts, came in second at Centrulos, but most importantly, we became really close as a team, and we all invested ourselves into it.”
The sabre team had their final competition at Squad States. All in all, the boys are wrapping up one of their most notable seasons in a long time and hope to continue the success next year.
Mar 25, 2018 | Athletics
By Noah Bergam (III)
The girls’ ice hockey team, led by captains Caroline Petrow-Cohen (VI) and Emma Lombardo (VI), has upheld an even 8-8 record this season as they head into the League Tournament.
“The season has been a lot of fun,” says Head Coach Ms. Kate Whitman-Annis. “We have a really strong team and they make each practice fun and enjoyable.”
The team has had many impressive individual showings as well. Emma Barrison (IV), who had never played ice hockey before the season began, became one of the top four goalies in the state.
Many players were new to the ice this season and improved in skill tremendously. However, more importantly, each teammate has “learned how to trust each other,” according to Mrs. Whitman-Annis. This has proven to be a great asset for them; Mrs. Whitman-Annis said, “When their passing is on, they are unstoppable.”
This year is the team’s last year in WIHLMA, or Womens’ Ice Hockey League of the Mid-Atlantic. Next year, they will join a more local league consisting of teams including those from Oak Knoll, Westfield, and Cranford.
Mar 25, 2018 | Athletics
By Noah Bergam (III)
The boys’ ice hockey team, led by captains George Enman (VI) and Austin Parsons (VI), has had an outstanding season this year, boasting a 15-6-1 record. Pingry is seeded second in the tournament only to Ridge High, a team to which they have lost by close margins twice this season.
“We’ve grown a lot,” said head coach Mr. Scott Garrow. “Our goaltending has gotten better over the year. Our team play has improved as we have gone on.”
This year, nine freshmen—more players than any other grade—have joined the team; these younger additions secure a steady future for the team. “We will only lose four seniors,” said Mr. Garrow. “We will return almost the entire team.”
After Counties, the team headed to the Skyland Cup Tournament, where they made it to the semifinals to play against Hunterdon Central. The team had an overall great showing to end the season.
Dec 24, 2017 | Athletics
By Jessica Yatvitskiy ’21
The Pingry wrestling season began on November 20th. The team consists of 28 members and has “more kids on the team than ever,” said captain Aidan Dillon (VI). “We’ll have almost all the weight-classes filled, which helps immensely with our dual-meet schedule,” said Head Coach
George Sullivan, who has coached Pingry wrestling since 2014. He is aided by Coaches Joseph Forte, Reid Prichett, and William Lagarde. Mr. Sullivan said he chose to coach Pingry wrestling because “[he has] a unique opportunity to build a great program.”
The wrestling team’s first scrimmage was on December 6 against the Peddie School, and its first true meet is on December 16. “The team’s goal for this season is to win 15 matches and send at least one wrestler to states,” Mr. George Sullivan said.
This year’s captain is Aidan Dillon, who has had 13 years of wrestling experience. Aidan said,
“I’m super optimistic about this season. We should have the best team that Pingry has had in my time here. We’ll have the best chance we’ve ever had to win a conference championship.” The wrestling team had a great season last winter. “The team sent our first wrestler in a decade to the New Jersey state wrestling tournament, Frankie Dillon ‘17. We had four regional qualifiers: Aidan Dillon, Frankie Dillon, Tommy Tarantino ‘17, and Brandon Spellman (V),” Coach Sullivan said.
Mr. Sullivan expresses high hopes for this season: “With new freshmen joining the strong team, the future is bright. We have a talented and hard-working team that has been improving for several years, and I can’t wait to see them perform.”
Dec 24, 2017 | Athletics
By Caroline Wargo (IV)
The boys’ squash team had a strong season last year, boasting a 15-3 record and ranking 10th at Nationals. Led by Sam Scherl ’17 and Daniel Hutt ’17, the team had four members that competed in U.S. Squash’s Junior National Championships (Scherl and Hutt included).
With Mrs. Tina Rix-Stout now coaching the girls’ varsity team (Mr. Ramsay Vehslage had previously coached both the boys’ and girls’ teams since 2003), Coach Vehslage is excited to collaborate with Mrs. Rix-Stout as well as to tailor his own coaching specifically to the boys’team.
The squash team has grown tremendously and added many enthusiastic new players this year. With the new Bugliari Athletic Center, which accommodates eight squash courts, more spots for players will be available and post-tryout “cuts” should be more limited. There will be a full varsity and JV team, allowing many players to get opportunities to practice and play.
The team has had a great start to the season, winning 7-0 on both of their first matches against Blair and Princeton Day Academy. Their next game is home against Millburn on December 19th.
Coach Vehslage is “excited to be in [the team’s] new home in the BAC” and hopes for “a great season with captain Krish Bhavnani” (VI).
Dec 24, 2017 | Athletics
By Caroline Santoro (V)
After a tied record of 13-13 last year, the girls’ basketball team is ready for another successful season. Having graduated three key seniors last year, the team has been working hard to adjust since preseason began on November 20th.
Captain Megan Horn (VI) thinks that “it will be great to see how some of the new players step up.” She is excited to see how the team will work as a unit, and she is confident that they will be able to improve greatly and perform even better this year with continued hard work.
In her opinion, the best part of the team is “how close [the girls] are and how much [they] are able to push each other and support each other in practice.”
The team had its first scrimmage on December 7th against Governor of Livingston High School, and they won their first home game 62-29 on December 15 against Belvidere High School.
