Here Comes Winter Sports / Previews of the Varsity Basketball Teams

There is enough chill to the air that the amazing ice down at Beaver Dam is already hosting games, and at night, the lights of Wellington Gym shine out like a beacon alerting all around that their is some Basketball action going on. So here we go with the Winter Sports Season at Portledge School. We have a unique variety of Varsity offerings that range from the big four teams, Girls and Boys Basketball and Girls and Boys Ice Hockey, to the more boutique programs that make up the coed Fencing and Squash teams. The fencing program actually has several components that combine to make up the overall team.

Let's start today by concentrating first on Basketball.

Last year was an important one for the Varsity Girls team as it improved significantly under new Head Coach Skip Amadio. This season, with almost all of the significant players returning, the Lady Panthers have their eye on an IPPSAL Championship - something that the girls program has not achieved since the 1999 season. Wouldn't it be great to see our girls claim the title a decade after their last championship. Things pretty much start with Monique Kelly and Robyn Worrall, a talanted duo of senior guards. These two have been playing together for a long time and do a great job of handling the ball. Worrall can be deadly from outside when she is hot, and Mo Kelly is showing real confidence taking the ball to the hoop. She had 21 pts and 12 pts in the first two games , respecrively, for a 16.5% per game average so far. This type of back court scoring will be key if the girls want to build on their early season success. Inside there are the twin towers of Senior Akanksha Trivedi and Freshman Ceci Mulry. The two, over six footers, give the Lady Panthers a real presence under the hoop. Mulry went for twelve points and ten rebounds in Monday's 39-19 win over league rival Solomon Schechter, and certainly looks like she is going to have a big impact on the future of the girls program here at Portledge. The glue to the team is Senior swing player Claudia Rogers who is an expert defender with lightning fast reflexes that can play multiple positions. It doesn't matter whether she is playing guard or forward though, because she is consistently stealing the ball and disrupting the opponents offense. Senior Martian Juste is another player who can play guard or forward, and her incredible leaping ability gives Coach Amadio a nice option in the starting line up or off the bench. Junior guard Tatiana Parris has also found some playing time early on and provides another ball handler when needed. If Parris can learn to get her outside shot off at the Varsity level it will give the Lady Panthers another strong outside shooter. Right now the team's record stands at 2-0 and they will be @ Waldorf on Tuesday (5:00pm) and Home for Knox on Wednesday(4:15) during the upcoming week, before competing in the always challenging Martin Luther Tournament next Saturday and Sunday.

On to Varsity Boys Basketball and the debut season of new Head Coach Nick Woll. Enthusiasm and excitement are the terms that best describe Woll's practice sessions as he consistently puts the Panthers through tough and fast paced workouts. Up tempo basketball will be the emphasis as Woll tries to blend some experienced players with some fresh faces to the Varsity Team. Senior swingman Mark Dourmashkin is the most experienced player on the team and he returns for a fourth Varsity season without a championship so far. It would be great to see this exceptional athlete lead the team all the way to an IPPSAL crown in his last season on the wellington Gym hardwood. Right along side will be Senior transfer Christian Sbarro. The sleak, but powerful Sbarro has shown in pre season that he can do everything on the floor and certainly gives a big boost to the overall talent level of this interesting team. Probably the most important player to the ultimate fortunes of this pride of current Panthers is Senior center Ben Shapiro. If Ben can play with dominance inside and free up Dourmashkin and Sbarro for open looks on the perimeter, this will be a tough group to defend. Another key will be the play of Senior guard Jon Brailsford. Patiently waiting to play big minutes for a long time, Brailsford will get his chance this winter to hopefully lead the Panthers all the way. A variety of underclassmen provide Coach Woll with some depth, but we will have to see which of them emerge to play significant roles during the season. An opening night win over St. Demetrios from Queens, NY was a step in the right direction, but we will learn more about the Pathers when the suit em up exactly opposite the girls this week with a game Tuesday at Home v. Waldorf (5:00pm) and another contest Wednesday @ Knox (5:30) as part of a double header with the JV Boys team. Then next Saturday and Sunday, the 5th and 6th, come tough games at the Martin Luther Tournament where Portledge has failed to win a game in several years.