Baseball

Coming off a season where they finished 13-8 en route to a deep playoff run, the baseball team is preparing to go farther this year.

Last year under seniors Alex Clark, Sam Berson and Andrew Cashmere, the team advanced to regional semifinals.

Despite the loss of these key players, the team hopes to make it farther in playoffs this year.

“We really want to win regionals this year,” right fielder Danny Mills said. “The team has never gotten past regionals. This year we can do it.”

The team turns to younger talent this year in place of last season’s seniors.

“We don’t have any superstars on the team, but we have really good team chemistry,” Mills said. “We have a lot of good juniors on the team and freshman Tyler DeMartino at third base. We have a lot of depth.”

The team prepares for their first game March 21 at Seneca Valley.

Softball

After ending the 2015 regular season on a three-game winning streak with a final record of 8-7, the Vikings are looking forward to another successful season.

“I am really excited about this season and love the energy that everyone has been bringing to practice,” pitcher Jenny Williams said. “In just a few weeks we have really pulled together and have been strong on defense and offense in our first few scrimmages.”

The team lost two of their best players from last season in shortstop Elena Kozak and pitcher Lauren Furst.

“I think everyone will need to step up—everyone has a new role,” outfielder Lauren Evoy said,  “whether it’s leadership or whether it’s proving their skills in the upcoming games to keep their spot on the team.”

Although the team has to deal with some key departures, plenty of seniors are ready to become new leaders.

“Gennie [Anderson], Leah [Gordon], Layne [Shinaberry] and Taylor [Shinaberry] have done a great job in leading our team so far and making sure we develop a strong connection,” Williams said. “It’s going to be a great season.”

Boys Lacrosse

Last season, the lacrosse team finished 12–5 and advanced to the fourth round of the playoffs, before falling to the Churchill Bulldogs in heartbreaking fashion. 

The team is poised to make another playoff run this season, but it will have to do so without some of  last year’s most valuable members. Key players including captain Alex Hosker and All-American goalie Colin Hains graduated last spring, leaving holes in the Vikings lineup.

“You can’t replace guys like that,” goalie Jackson Parker said, “but I think we have some great players to carry the load this year.”

While the path back to the playoffs will be difficult, there are several players who can pace the team this season, defender Liam Pierce said.

Upperclassmen like Montemarano, Fraser and midfielder Alex Hilsenrath won’t be the only ones guiding the team this spring—younger players including sophomore Owen Roegge are set to have success as well.

In the offseason, the team spent time adjusting its playbook and working on the mental aspect of the game, Pierce said.

“Our main focuses have been formations and plays,” Pierce said. “We want to make sure we can outsmart the other team and use our skills to our advantage.”

Additionally, the team participated in frequent workouts and played indoor lacrosse, which helps the offense work in tight spaces,  Parker said.

The team hopes its intense preparation pays off—preferably with another trip to the playoffs and possibly even a state championship.

“We have very high expectations this year as we came within a goal of states last year,” Parker said. “We definitely want to go to states and win it but that will take a lot of hard work and dedication.”

The team will open its season March 22 against the Springbrook Blue Devils at 7:15.

Track

After the boys and girls teams finished 6th and 13th, respectively, at states last spring, this year’s runners have a hard act to follow. However, both groups have the talent and dedication to place even higher this season.

Despite losing state champion Evan Woods, the boys are primed to have an impressive season thanks to the return of a healthy group of upperclassmen, junior Dylan Madden said.

“I believe that we will have a great season, and with the return of seniors Ben Gersch and William Ryba, we will have a strong team,” Madden said.

Madden himself placed 12th at the state championships, and hopes to improve on his own personal records, he said.

The girls team also lost a state champion in Clare Severe, but they too have a plethora of runners who are ready to step up. Among them are senior Erin O’Connor and junior Olivia Woods, who placed third in the 800 meters at states.

The track team’s achievements this past winter will also contribute to its success this spring, senior Erin O’Connor said.

“We had a good indoor track season with lots of sprinters and distance runners qualifying for the regional meet [and] we had one runner qualify for states,” she said. “We will definitely be more competitive during the outdoor season.”

While the number of runners on the team continues to rise, as evidenced by the creation of an A team and a B team, the amount of people participating in field events also increased this year.

“This year we have a greater turnout for field events such as jumping and throwing,” Madden said. “These members are crucial to us doing well in dual meets because we haven’t had much of a field team in the past.”

The team will look to use its expansion to improve not just for regions and states, but also for regular season meets.

“Our main goal this season is to send people to states,” Madden said, “and for both guys and girls, [to] win a dual meet, because we haven’t won a dual meet in more than a few years.”

Boys Volleyball

The boys volleyball team, led by coach John Floyd, took a big step forward last season, going 2–5. It was the team’s first two wins in their past four years.

The team must win four games in order to make it into the playoffs, and players made it clear that that was their number one goal headed into the year.

The squad has returning players in senior Stefan Greenberg, junior Harrison Jacobs and senior Andrew Gates. They have also attracted lots of new talent to the team in senior John Lydon, senior Graham Clifford and sophomore Colby Fong.

Due to talent show and other busy events, the team has not been able to garner much practice time.

“I hope we can learn to play together as an efficient team as quickly as possible so we can take advantage of every game,” junior Kueho Choi said.

Coed Volleyball

The coed volleyball team boasted an 8–3 record last year under coach Elizabeth Keating. This year, they will look to improve with Jessica Warner, the former girls volleyball JV coach, taking the helm.

The team added multiple freshman to the team along with junior Andrew Constable. They also have senior hitters Elie Shnerson, Nick Battan and Gideon Crawford to help out the offense.

In order to do well this year, the squad will have to make it past rivals Churchill and B-CC.

“Our biggest competition, as always, is Churchill and B-CC,” defensive specialist Maddie London said. “B-CC has a strong group of guys on their team and Churchill always has a really good volleyball program.”

The Vikes are hoping that with new players and their new coach they can make it far in the playoffs this year.

“We’re going to be a lot more competitive this year than last year,” junior Michael Azimi said.

Girls Lacrosse

After ending last year’s season with a 13-3 record and a trip to the state semifinals, the girls lacrosse team is determined to claim the regional title for their third year in a row this spring.

Since 2000, the girls have been regional champions seven times. However, they hope to make it even farther into playoffs this year.

“We would love to make it past state semis, as that is where we have been stopped the past two years,” attacker Hannah Ginsky said. “We don’t take any win for granted however, and will have to work hard to make it back to the state final four.”

Under coach Katie Bitoni, the team graduated only five seniors last year, meaning the group will feature 17 returning players with previous playoff experience.

“Eden Gray is our center and won over half of the draws last season, so she will be a big deal,” Ginsky said. “We have a ton of sophomores who have grown a lot and improved a lot and are ready to help the team.”

The team said they anticipate Sherwood to pose the toughest competition this year, but will rely on the entire squad to help them beat the Warriors.

“We all have high expectations for one another regardless of our grades, and know how to work together as a team,” Ginsky said.

Boys Tennis

Following an 11–1 season and their second consecutive county championship, the boys tennis team hopes to continue to dominate on the court this year.

“We have high expectations this year due to the fact that we have strong new players and did not have too many seniors playing for the team last year,” junior Jack Welch said.

Last year the team suffered its only loss against Churchill; Welch and sophomore Andrew Leung make it to the state finals in doubles, where they lost in the third set. The boys hope to keep up last year’s momentum to propel themselves through the playoffs this year.

“Hopefully we can send a bunch of people to states,” Welch said.

Last year, Whitman, Churchill, and B-CC all ended their seasons with an 11-1 record, though this year Wootton may pose more of a threat than B-CC.

“[B-CC] lost all their seniors so I don’t think they’ll be as competitive, but it’ll be Wootton and Churchill, and that’s usually what it is,” coach Jasen Gohn said.

The team adds freshman Evin McDonald to their lineup. He is expected to help the team as one of the top singles players, along with Welch and Leung.

The boys began their season with a 7-0 shutout of Poolesville on Monday.