The Continuation of the Continuum of Portledge Athletics/ The Return of a Class of '87 Alum to Take on Panthers @ Beaver Dam Highlights a Great Week

On Monday night not only was the Assistant Coach of the Portledge Varsity Boys Ice Hockey team a former captain of Portledge Hockey, but so was the Head Coach of the opposition. Of course the first individual in question is our very own Mr. Jon Sandos '03, who has returned after college to coach and teach at his alma mater. While the second person referred to above is Michael Goodrich '87. Mike, or Goody, as he was known during his days on the ice for Portledge School and Norwich University, is a successful businessman in the financial markets and has also become an accomplished coach in the New Jersey Public School ice hockey ranks. His Fairlawn High team has been a perennial playoff participant in the New Jersey State Championships, that over the last three years has developed a solid and exciting rivalry with their coaches' former school, Portledge. Goody captained 86-87 squad at Portlege and was a team mate of such Portledge Hockey legends as Keith Merkler and Justin Ort. Last year, right here at Beaver Dam, he led Fairlawn High to a dramatic 4-3 cvertime victory over our very own Portledge Panthers. Goody loves to compete v. Portledge and the Panthers always know that they will get a determined effort from the Fairlawn players. Thus, it was with great respect and a real sense of purpose that the Panther skaters laced em up Monday night for this exciting tilt.

How Did the Game Unfold?

It was obvious when Ron Fishman sent a beautiful cross ice pass for a wide open Kurt Krotz tip in to give the Panthers an early 1-0 lead that Portledge had the more talented and experienced team. Goodrich's Fairlawn team was determined to make it a game though, and much of the play during the first two periods was quite scrappy. A beautifully executed drop pass by Freshman winger Jesse Schandler sent Senior Renny Kraft in alone, and the smooth skating Kraft suavely put a backhander over the Fairlawn goalie's shoulder to make it 2-0. Gorgeous goals by Sophomore Pat Condon and Freshman Matt Crockett contributed to the final score of 6-1, but the real winner on this night was Portledge Hockey, as it welcomed back one of its own for a great game that was really enjoyed by all.

Did the Varsity Boys Hockey Team Play Any Other Games This Week?

They most certainly did, as the Panthers went on to register the first Portledge win over a New England Division I squad in quite some time. The victory came against Albany Academy on Wednesday night and it goes a long way in showing that Portledge Boys Hockey is on its way back. Albany was a hot club coming into the game, having recently knocked off South Kent, a recent victor itself over Avon and according to Hockey Night in Boston one New England's top teams this year. Facts like these really make you think that Coaches Coope and Sandos are building a very special club here on the Island. Early in the game the Panthers put a great deal of pressure on Albany and finally took the lead when Kurt Krotz found the puck on his stick in front yet again. The big Sophomore centerman made no mistake and the early goal gave Portledge some much needed confidence. The Panthers made it 2-0 early in the second when Freshman Brendan McGovern converted a rebound opportunity and the Panthers really started believing they could leave the capitol region with a very meaningful win. You knew it wouldn't be easy though, and Albany took care of that when they scored twice to even the score. The pressure was on the visitors to step up their game and that is exactly what happened. The Panthers broke the tie around the 12 minute mark of the third period when Sophomore defenseman Pat Condon finished off a Panthers rush with a neatly placed slapper into the top corner. Portledge played a solid last six minutes to secure the win and really make a statement about the direction of the program. A huge shout out goes out to Mr. Conslato and Mr. Magliocco for making the long trip up to Albany to support our team. Portledge will next take the ice on Monday, January 12th @ Beaver Dam (5:30) in what should been a real backyard brawl against the combined team that represents North Shore and Locust Valley High Schools.

Did the Varsity Girls Team Have Any Games This Week?

The Portledge Varsity Girls Hockey team traveled just across the Throgs Neck Bridge to take on one their biggest rivals the Rye Country Day Wildcats. This would be the second meeting of the season between the teams and the Rye girls were looking for some pay back after the Lady Panthers smacked them 9-1 earlier in this winter. Rye definitely showed improved play as the up and down action was spirited during the early going, but the Portledge girls also displayed development after playing all that really tough hockey at the Deefield Tournament. During one of the irst shifts of the game, Sophomore center Ashley Wade made an incrdible behind the back wrap around pass to a wide open Siena Falino in the slot. Falino buried the opportunity and the Lady Panthers were on their way. Falino later returned the favor setting Wade up in front, and the dominating combo of Addie Reilly and Alyssa Parke broke the game open as they were virtually unstopable in crashing their way through the Rye defense time and again. Sophomore Olivia Rivera was sharp in goal and the defense really controlled the play with slik puck movement. The Girls have some big Mid Atlantic League games this weekend as they travel down to Laurel, Maryland to face Shaddy Side of Pittsburgh, Pa and Holten Arms of Baltimore. Good luck girls and a very huge congratulations to my advisee Ali James on scoring her first goal for Portledge in the victory over Rye.

How Did the Varsity Basketball Teams Do This Week?

It was a quiet week on the hardwood as basketball picked up again after the Holiday Break. The varsity Boys team only played once and lost disappointingly to Lexington. The offense didn't seem to be able to get on track and the tough team from Jackson Heights went on to dominate the glass. The Panthers will have the chance to rebound this coming week though as they will play a critical IPPSAL game at Kew Forest on Monday, followed by home games v. Solomon Schechter and Valley Stream Christian on Wednesday and Thursday, respectively. There is no time to waste for the Panthers as they must get on a hot streak to be a factor in the IPPSAL season.

The Varsity Girls team also had a less than glorious week as they played what some called their worst game of the season on Thursday night in losing to LWA by a score of 36-13. Mr. Amadio's post game chat seemed to take hold though as the girls came back to play a very solid game v. Mill Neck on Friday night. Freshman Alexa Lodenquai led Portledge with 13 points as every player on the team scored on route to the victory. The girls have two must win games at home this coming week as they face Upper Room on Monday and Kew Forest on Friday. As mentioned both games will be at home and will start at (4:00PM).

Anything Else Exciting Happening in Portledge Athletics?

There is the start of something special occurring with the Epee component of the Varsity Fencing program. Led by Senior Nick Hagedorn and Sophomore Alan Phipps the epee fencers are unbeaten through three sets of bouts. So far they have registered wins over the epee teams at Horace Mann, St Ann's and Rye Country Day. Each of those schools has great fencing teams, so this is no small accomplishment. The fencing team will now go back into training until after exams when they will resume their season with the individual and team championship meets, as well as several tough dual meets with rivals such as Hackley and Chapin.