An Almost Perfect Big Monday/ Varsity Girls Basketball and Varsity Boys Hockey Post Wins, But Varsity Boys Basketball Goes Down to Defeat

It was a big Monday in Portledge Athletics as the Varsity Girls Basketball team squared off at home v. Upper Room in a critical IPPSAL match up, the Varsity Boys Basketball team traveled to Kew Forest for an important IPPSAL game of their own, and Varsity Boys Hockey faced off at Beaver Dam against the combined team of Locust Valley and North Shore High Schools.

What Happened in the Varsity Girls Basketball Game?

The Lady Panthers were in a tough spot as they took the floor. Junior captain and starting point guard Monique Kelly was home sick and their opponents from Upper Room looked determined to avenge an early season defeat at the hands of the Portledge girls. Thus, the stage was set for a very tough game at Wellington Gym. Juniors Robyn Worrall and Claudia Rogers took turns handling the and remained quite calm against Upper Room's often used full court press. In breaking the pressure the Junior duo created open court opportunities at the other end that the other Lady Panthers took advantage of. Junior Akanksha Trivedi scored 16 points and Freshman Alexa Lodenquai added 13 to lead the Portledge squad. Also making key contributions were Junior Marian Juste, who was all over the boards, and Senior Leah Heffernan, whose experience was essential down the stretch. This great team effort led to many assisted baskets and a very satisfying win over a tough league rival. The Lady Panthers next take the court this Friday (Wellington Gym @ 4:00pm) when they should continue to solidify their play off position against a weak Kew Forest team.

What Happened to the Boys Team at Kew Forest?

Even with Junior Mark Dourmashkin hitting for 25 points, it wasn't enough to propel the Panthers to victory over their foes from Queens. Down by three at the start of the third quarter was as close as the Portledge team came to last year's IPPSAL Runners Up. The IPPSAL Varsity Boys Basketball picture is starting to clarify and the Panthers will need to play much better, if they hope to qualify for the league play offs. That process will start at home this Wednesday when the boys take on Solomon Schechter at 5:45pm.

How Was the Local Darby Hockey Game Down at Beaver Dam?

This was a tough match up for the Portledge team because everyone was expecting them to win, but they were, nevertheless, facing a skilled and determined opponent in the form of the combined team of ice hockey players from North Shore and Locust Valley High Schools. Freshman Winger Jesse Schandler was a big part of the Panthers offense as he tallied twice during the game, and added an assist as well. With Junior captain and lead defenseman David Wilson on the bench resting some bumps and bruises, Sophomores Ron Fishman, Pat Condan and Ryan Gottfried all rose to the occaision and played some great hockey. Freshman defender Mike Conslato also played really well and impressed the large crowd with his strong skating and passing skills. The final score of 6-0 was not indicative of the Panther's total control of the game as Mr. Coope took advantage of the situation to get all his players plenty of ice time. After taking on Morristown (Home/Jan26th) and PDS (Away/Jan28th), the boys will begin the hardest part of their schedule with a very difficult stretch of games during February.

Southern Hospitality/Varsity Girls Hockey Wins Twice During Mid Atlantic League Trip to Maryland

The Portledge Varsity Girls Ice Hockey team raised their overall record to 7 wins and 4 losses by posting two victories during their trip to Maryland this past weekend. The Lady Panthers also remained at the top of the WIHLMA standings by building an mark of 4 wins with no losses in league play.


Who Did the Girls Play and Which Players Led the Way?

Saturday's opponent was Shady Side Academy from Pittsbugh, PA, while Sunday saw the Portledge girls take on our awesome hosts, Holten Arms. The Lady Panthers controlled both games and registered similar 5-2 and 6-1 results, respectively. Saturday's offense was paced by Siena Falino, who led the way with four of the goals, and Junior defenseman Chelsea Caracciolo who added a score when she completed one of her patented end to end rushes. On Sunday, the Sophomores took over as Alyssa Parke had the hat trick, Ashley Wade scored on a beautiful break away move and crafty winger Ali James tallied for the second time in three games. It's great to see the scoring be so balanced and the team play well together. They will need both of these things to remain constant this week, as they play consecutive away games against New England Division I opponents. The Lady Panthers travel to Lawrenceville on Wednesday for a 6:15 start, where the Big Red will be looking for revenge for last years 8-7 overtime loss to Portledge. Then it's up to Millbrook School for a big Friday night tilt (5:30) at Bontecou Rink. The Lady Panthers opponents should know not to try any rough stuff because the Portledge girls ain't no bandleaders! Yeah, we heard that story.

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.

Finale of Abrakadabra / Preview of Upper School Squash and Fencing Programs

OK...we have talked up basketball and hockey, so now it's time to wrap up the upper school sports previews with some discussion about squash and fencing. These are difficult sports to have knowledge about since squash is practiced off campus at the Creek Club and all of their matches are played in NYC and Brooklyn; and Fencing takes place in some far off place called the lower school gym...that's when it's not serving as a venue for the latest Portledge School drama production. I will have to say, 'hats off to the lower school students, faculty and especially Mrs. Carvell for yet another amazing winter pageant". But getting back to these off the radar programs, it is important to note that these fantastic programs would not work without the contributions of some very dedicated faculty members. First of all there is Dr. David Sarles. Dr. Sarles spends a good part of every winter afternoon behind the wheel of the Portledge bus ferrying students to and from the Creek Club, so that we may even offer a squash program. He is a tireless performer and we are all lucky to have his knowledge and wit around us at all times. The second person that deserves serious recognition is Mr. Eric Johnson. This winter Mr. Johnson is running both the middle and upper school squash programs and, as always, is doing a great job. He brings many years of experience to the job and performs it with a light hearted sense of enjoyment. The last of the 'men behind the scenes' is Freshman teacher Mr. Shane Cappucio. Mr. Cappucio has taken over the day to day oversight of the Varsity Squash program and has done a great job acclimating himself to all the responsibilities. Just last month, when the team showed up at the wrong Eastern Athletic Club in NYC, and found no opponents waiting for them, Mr. Cappucio kept his cool. He ascertained that there was another such establishment merely 12 blocks away, and delivered his squad so that the first match began right on time. Way to go Mr. C!!! It's the quiet work of individuals like these that makes Portledge Athletics the successful and inclusive program it is.....so a big thanks to all of you, gentlemen.

What's Going On With Portledge Squash?

The Portledge Squash program took a bit off a hit this winter when we lost the opportunity to field a JV squad. This was because a lack of available court space and it is something we are working on , so that hopefully next winter we will be able to offer squash to more individuals This winter, however, we have only a Varsity team and it is made up of 8 boys and 4 girls. The adventurous quartet of females are three Juniors with a good deal of experience on the court, Stephanie Hegarty, Elizabeth Girgenti and Hannah Fortgang, plus fearless Freshman Rachael Scheinman. Rachel is currently recovering from an injury sustained during play and we all wish her a speedy recovery. The top male players are Juniors John Litke, Miles Works, Sam Scheinman and Craig Renjifo. Sophomore Will Pascucci and Freshmen Sam Melman, Harrison Tanchuk and Zachary Cooper-Vastola all display good ability and a desire to improve their games. With veteran squasher Sam Ticker being the only Senior, this group has the potential to become a solid crew over the next two years. So far the squad has taken on Packer and Friends Seminary in coed matches and the girls have gone head to head with Brearly. While we have not won an overall match several individuals have broken through for single victories. The Varsity Squash team has a busy January as they will play coed matches v. Chapin (twice) and Poly Prep from Brooklyn. Good luck to all the players and Mr. Cappucio for a great season on the hardwood.

How is the Portledge Fencing Program Doing?

The answer to that question is.... that it's alive and well. This winter over twenty individuals are competing in Varsity foil and epee fencing and on a JV squad as well. In the groups first match, v. Horace Mann, the epee and JV teams were victorious , while the Varsity foil squad was defeated. Leading this year's fencers is a group of Seniors that includes Matt Ardito, Ashwin Chichwadkar, Nick Hagedorn, Adam Kravietz and Farone Rasheed. These individuals have been fencing throughout their upper school years and are providing excellent leadership to the younger swashbucklers. A key to the success of this year's epee team, which is arguably Portledge's best fencing dicsipline, will be the skill of Junior Alan Phipps. Phipps had some strong showings last year and he hopes to build on that success this winter. In foil, watch out for 8th grader Evan Solomon. Not only does Evan help coach our middle school fencers, but he is a ferocious competitor at the Varsity level. Good luck to Mr. Johnson and all the fencers as they compete in the very challenging ISFL (Independent School Fencing League). The fencers will host St Ann's and Rye Country Day on Wednesday and Thursday, January 7th and 8th, before heading off to a big quad match at Masters on Saturday, January 10th. The home matches will take place in the lower school gym.

Continuation of Abrakadabra / Blog Moves on to Discuss Varsity Ice Hockey Teams

As the weather turns colder many people in the Portledge community get a big smile on their face because they know it means the start of hockey season. Hockey is a big part of this small school it and has been from the institutions early days. Few people realize that two Portledge graduates were back to back captains of the Cornell University Mens Ice Hockey team in 2002 and 2003, or that two Portledge alums Doug Murray '98 and Eric Nystrom '01 are currently playing in the Nat'l Hockey League, while several others, such as Will Bodine '99, Ryan Vesce '00, Bob Goepfort '00 and Gerard Miller '01, play professionally in the North American minor leagues or in the elite leagues of Europe. In addition, three Portledge graduates, Lois Liotti '03, Garret Vassel '03 and Danny Markowitz '06, are currently among the top collegiate players in the nation, leading their teams at Northeastern, RPI and Dartmouth, respectively. Then there are all the other great players like Evan Wax '99, who starred at Yale, and Kenny Turano '99, who was a four year letter winner at Harvard, that have come through the Portledge program. Even further back we could mention Keith Merkler '89 a Portledge Bowl and Slanetz Award winner who was drafted by the Toronto Maple Leafs and was a collegiate star at Princeton, or Justin Ort '90, who after graduating from Portledge went on to be one of the all time leading scorers in the history of Williams College ice hockey. I guess you all get the picture, that there have been some incredible student athletes and tremendous teams throughout the relatively short history of the school. I do apologize for all those I left out, because there are so many other fantastic and accomplished athletes I failed to mention. One of those is our current Varsity Boys Assistant Coach and former Portledge Captain, Jon Sandos, who has returned to Portledge, after a wonderful four year hockey career at Cortland State, to contribute once again to the legacy of Portledge Hockey. So, let's get on with it and see what's up with this year's Varsity teams.

Can the Varsity Boys Team Make a Move Towards Returning Portledge Hockey to its 'Glory Days' ? ( *Thanks go to to the Boss for the Question)

Head Coach Mike Coope and Assistant Jon Sandos worked hard last year to rekindle the spirit of Portledge Hockey gone by. They received tremendous assistance from last year's captain Zack Lombardi '08, and our best wishes are with Zack, who after taking a year off after graduation is in the middle of the college selection process, and all the other Seniors from the Class of '08. This work really paid dividends as the 08-09 version of Portledge Hockey comes together. It is a relatively young team that has only two Seniors, assistant captain Tim Morrison and winger Renny Kraft, and two Juniors, team captains David Wilson and Sal Magliocco. These four provide the leadership base that is necessary to build a program up. They have all been through many tough games and are very happy, and committed, to seeing the program rise once again. Joining with Morrison and Kraft in the team's attack is the young line made up of of Sophomores Kurt Krotz and Ori Benyamini and Freshman winger Matt Crockett. Both Benyamini and Crockett have older brothers who were successful Portledge Hockey players before them, and it is nice to see this continuity in the program. This is a talented line that has already demonstrated that it can dominate a game even at the highest levels. Playing along side Morrison on another line are Freshmen Brendan "the Governor" McGovern and slick stick handling winger Jesse Schandler. This has also been a great line so far, and gives the offense a real one/two punch. Anyone who knows real Prep School Hockey though, realizes you are only as strong as your third unit. After some fine tuning the coaches made a bold move by pairing returning Sophomore Tom Parise, one of the team's most experienced players, with Sophomore Stephen DiBartolomeo and Senior Renny Kraft. During the Princeton Day Tournament this line worked great together as Parise, who also plays point on the power play, went on to receive recognition ( The Christopher Reeve Award ) as one of the Tournament's top players. A host of other forwards including Junior Sam Cohen and Sophomores Ryan Murray and Anthony Pergola, Freshman Daylin Frantin and 8th grader Dylan Stuart will keep the pressure on the top nine by all consistently making a case for playing time.

On defense the team is anchored by co captain Wilson, but he has a great deal of help in the form of Sophomores Ron Fishman, Ryan Gottfried, Pat Condon and Matt Janketic. The coaches are also developing an even younger core of defensemen that includes Freshmen Matt Sullivan, Zach Pilson and Andrew Reiter, as well as early season surprise, 8th grader Michael Conslato. Behind all of this is returning keeper and team captain Sal Magliocco. If " Mags " can produce the type of netminding we saw last year, this will be a tough team to beat. So far, after early season victories over Fairlawn High and Rye Country Day the young team ran into some really competitive play in losing to Brunswick and Millbrook. Then came the early season highlight of a championship win in the Annual Princeton Day School Invitational Tournament. The Panther's victories over Holy Ghost Academy from Philadelphia and the host school, PDS, brought Portledge its third ever PDS Tournament trophy. The other times Portledge captured this prestigious crown came in 1986 and 1997. Both of these championships propelled the program onto some great runs of form. Hopefully that is what will happen now!!!!

Can the Varsity Girls Team Recapture its Amazing Play of a Year Ago?

We must start the section of the blog by stating that for the first time ever there is a young lady that can be spoken about in the same way as all of the aforementioned former stars of Portledge Hockey. There is no doubt that she will receive many accolades throughout the season, she already has orchestrated a huge early season win over Canterbury that avenged last year's only loss not to Mo' Beard, but it would be remiss if we didn't start the recognition here. You see, I'm not sure there would still be a Portledge Girls Ice Hockey program without the contributions of Siena Falino. She is the last remaining member of the six original girls hockey players who started the program six years ago, and with all due respect to Jess Sarrantonio and Kelly Alefeld, both former recipients of the Craigmyle Award for contributions to girls hockey, it is Siena Falino who put Portledge Girls Hockey on the map. She is regarded as one of the top, if not the top, female player under 19 in New York State. Her decision to remain at Portledge for her prep school career drew other girls to the program, and her subsequent leadership of these players has been unparalleled in all my years of coaching secondary school sports. I have seen Siena, or "C" as she is known around campus, do some amazing things on the ice, but it is really the kind and respectful way she goes about her day to day interactions with everyone that has left such a positive mark on our school. It looks like Siena will be playing her college hockey at Northeastern University; we wish her the best of luck, and strongly recommend that you mark off Monday, January 26th on your calendars, as this will be the last time you will be able to see Siena grace the ice down at Beaver Dam as a member of the Portledge Girls Ice Hockey team.

As great a player as Siena is, she could not have reached a mark of 14 wins and 3 losses last year all by herself. Whenever Siena is on the ice, you can usually find her trusted sidekick Addie Reilly on the wing. Reilly has become an excellent prep school ice hockey player and demonstrated her significance to the team by scoring a huge short handed goal in the third period of the big early season win over Canterbury. Addie is tough in the corners, faster than you think, and has a wicked shot. When Falino and Reilly are not on the ice, the forward tandem of Sophomores Ashley Wade and Alyssa Parke usually are. This dynamic duo is incredible at controlling the puck in the offensive zone, as they regularly cycle it between themselves, eventually drawing down the forwards and opening up the points for wide open shots. These two really love to play the game and are definitely a major part of this year's team. When she is not out there on defense, Maria Robbins can be found playing wing on one of these two lines and getting involved in the play in front of the net, and when she is at the point....watch out for the boomer as she loves to let go of the big slap shot. Freshman Katherine Gahagan is working hard to learn the game and contribute up front, as are Sophomores Sophie Steell and Ali James.

On defense the Lady Panthers are led by the returning duo of Junior Emily Prey and Sophomore Chelsea Caracciolo. Caracciolo was an WHILMA All League First Team choice last year and Prey can skate the puck out of the zone with the best of them. Added to these two fine players is 8th grader Erin Brand. Although she is the youngest player on the team, Brand is one of the most well rounded. She skates, passes, shoots and plays defense like a veteran and has certainly earned her spot at crunch time. Another newcomer to Portledge Girls Hockey is goaltender Olivia Rivera. Rivera is a top notch student as well as an accomplished goalie. She has brought a tremendous amount of athleticism to the Porledge cage and I look for her to be a key down the stretch.

Led by the fine play of Falino and the emerging scoring power of the Wade and Parke line, the Lady Panthers cruised through their early season schedule by notching wins over prep school powers Rye Country Day and Canterbury and registering victories over league foes Princeton High and The Hill School. In the case of the league games, both opponents thought before the game that they had closed the gap on the Lady Panthers from last year, only to find out that this year's version is faster and more well balanced than its predecessor. The girls finished off the pre break part of their schedule by competing in the Deerfield School Holiday Invitational. At this tournament the Portledge girls played against some of the toughest girls ice hockey teams in North America, and even though they were winless in four games, everyone who saw the games said that they played well and gained some excellent experience as they move forward in hopes of capturing a Mid Atlantic Championship. We all know, however, that this road runs through a little town in New Jersey called Morristown. The girls will return to play a big week of hockey against Rye Country Day, Shaddy Side and Holten Arms all on the road, followed by critical mid season games at Lawrenceville and Millbrook, before welcoming Mo' Beard to Beaver Dam on January 26th (4:00pm) for the first of two regular season meetings with the Crimson.

A big congratulations goes out to Mrs. Zoe Schwam for putting together such a great team, as well as a heartfelt 'welcome on board' to Mr. Ian Wisotsky, who has also joined the ice hockey coaching staff at Portledge.

One last note, come out to see the Portledge Middle School Little Panthers as they will compete every Thursday after holiday break down at Beaver Dam in the newly formed Middle School Ice Hockey League. The league includes Portledge, Green Vale, East Woods and Friends Academy and there will be two games every Thursday under the roof; one at 3:45, and another at 5:00. Check to see which time Portledge will play every week and come on down!!

Abrakadabra....The Hey Hills blog is like magic / After a long post fall season hiatus the Portledge Athletics blog is back!!

A very special Holidays and New Year Greetings to everyone and anyone out there who might occasionally find a little time to check out the Hey Hills blog. I'd like to take a quick moment to throw out a very special thanks to The Portledge School's Director of Communications and Marketing, Susan Pagano. It was Susan who came to me last fall with the idea of writing a blog. She had read a few things I had written and thought a blog would be a great fit for the school and me. Well at the time, I didn't really know what a blog was, but after a little research and some wonderful enthusiasm and coaching from Susan, we decided to give it a try and the rest has been history, as they say. Certainly, no pun intended. I would also like to give a special bit of thanks and good wishes for the health and speedy recovery of our beloved former Headmaster, Huson Gregory. Mr. Gregory went through a difficult spell in early December, but I know he is feeling much better now, because I am once again receiving a steady stream of emails from Cape Cod regarding life at the school and the progress of the Portledge ice hockey teams. Best to you, Hugh and Mimi, our thoughts are with you.

What's Going On with the Start of Winter Sports?

After a tremendous amount of organizational thought, and a huge amount of thanks goes out to Mrs. Zoe Schwam for all her help in putting together all of the logistics for the Winter Sports Season, we are off and running with some awesome athletic events. On almost any day throughout the winter you can catch some great Portledge athletes in action. So, I encourage you all to get down to the gym , or rink, or up to the lower school gym to catch some hoops, hockey or fencing, and if you are really committed, you can travel into NYC to see our wonderful squash team compete against the finest schools in the city. I will try to give a little overview of how all the upper school programs have started off their seasons, as well as mention some of the major games coming up for all the teams.

How Have Things Begun for the New Varsity Girls Basketball Coaches and Their Players?

Well, we are starting a new era in Girls Basketball at Portledge. After a successful run of four years Head Coach and Portledge alum Katie Henry passed on the leadership of the girls basketball program to Mr. Skip Amadio. Amadio has a good deal of prior coaching experience working with both girls and boys at the Varsity level during his teaching days in New Hampshire. Mr. Amadio and his top assistant, Mr. Nick Woll, who is also Head Coaching the JV Girls team, have brought a strong work ethic to the program. When you see this team play defense their desire and commitment to success is evident. On the floor, the unquestioned leader is point guard Monique Kelly. When the ball is in Kelly's hands the Lady Panthers are very solid. Her combination of playmaking and scoring ability has been a key to the team's early season success. Joining Kelly as Co Captain in Junior center Akanksha Trivedi. The "A Train", as she is known along coaches row, can dominate a game inside like no one else in IPPSAL can. Consistency will be her goal, as Akanksha continues her development as a top player in the league. Two other key players for the Lady Panthers are juniors Robyn Worrall and Claudia Rogers. These two share the ball handling responsibilities with Kelly, and provide a tremendous amount of energy on the floor. As their respective shooting touches improve, their play will be the key to a late season run by the Portledge girls. Senior Leah Heffernan has shown that when healthy, she can make a tough fifteen footer. Problem is that Leah's ankle has been a bit of a problem all season and has limited her opportunities to contribute. We are hoping that with a few weeks off, Leah will come back feeling stronger and making jumpers. Junior Marian Juste and Freshman Alexa Lodenquai round out what is a bit of a thin rotation for Mr. Amadio as he waits for other players to step forward and earn playing time at the Varsity level.

It was a fast start for the Lady Panthers as they began the season with back to back pre Thanksgiving, league, wins over Waldorf and Solomon Schechter. After some tough losses at the Martin Luther Tournament, and to defending League champ OSNA, the Portledge girls rebounded by defeating Knox in the semi final of the Portledge Invitational before losing a hard fought contest to a very experienced and polished Martin Luther team in an exciting Championship game. Martin Luther's veteran Head Coach, Ann Boyle, commented on how much the Portledge girls improved from one weekend till the next. This is certainly something that bodes well for the future. The Lady Panthers then went on to defeat Upper Room away from home in a critical early season league game, before dropping a tough friendly to Friends Academy at Wellington Gym. The girls broke for the holidays with a solid mark of 4 wins and 5 losses and real sense of confidence about the rest of the season. A spot in the IPPSAL playoffs, with hopes of competing in the IPPSAL Championship game, are some things that can be thought about. The Lady Panthers have two critical league games at the end of the first week back from break, both away from home on 1/8 & 1/9 at Lawrence Woodmere and Mill Neck, respectively. Yet another special thanks should go out to Miss Kelly Luken who has stepped forward to help Mr. Amadio and Mr. Woll with the Girls Basketball program on game days.

Is There Really JV Girls Basketball at Portledge?

The answer to that question is...absolutely!!! Under the direction of Mr. Nick Woll a dedicated group of 10-12 girls has been getting on the court, whenever they can, to prepare for competition in the challenging JV Bracket of PSAA Girls Basketball. While they have dropped their first two contests, look for this team to improve as the season goes on, and hopefully snatch a few hard fought wins from some of their very strong competition.

How Has the Varsity Boys Team Rebounded From Losing So Many Players to Graduation?

Last season the senior trio Kai Stoll, Reid Ericson and Ray Weinmann gave Portledge one of the best front lines in their demanding league. Having lost those players , as well as senior Dan Duffy, the Varsity Boys team was only returning two players, Senior Aaron Lee and Junior Mark Dourmashkin, who saw meaningful playing time last year. Thus, the term 'rebuilding' was being thrown around the gym, yet again. A funny thing has happened though as a group of Juniors that includes Ben Shapiro, Jon Brailsford, Bashir Desgrottes and Vishal Chinchwadkar has stepped up to provide the Panthers with some outstanding play. The inside play of Ben Shapiro has been particularly impressive as has been the strong leadership and great outside shooting from the aforementioned Lee and Dourmashkin, respectively. The Portledge faithful have been treated to some great basketball and there is no reason why it can't continue into the New Year. While their record is only 3 wins and 5 losses, some of the losses have come in extremely close games such as the Portledge Tournament final when Mark Dourmashkin's last second shot rang off the iron sealing a two point win for a talented Lake Grove team. This group is really coming together and I will not be surprised when they fight through a challenging league schedule to earn a coveted spot in the IPPSAL playoffs. Now that Upper Room's semi professional team is no longer competing in IPPSAL play, a playoff spot comes with a legitimate chance to be IPPSAL Champion. Some other key contributors will be Sohpomore forward and energy machine Adeola Adegbite, creative Sophomore forward/guard Steven Dourmashkin and slick shooting Freshman Nick Lobley, who was recently promoted from JV to provide a bit more outside scoring.

The Panthers have critical games with Lexington and Kew Forest on the road, 1/7 and 1/12 respectively, before returning to Wellington Gym for back to back games with Solomon Schechter and Valley Stream Christian on 1/14 and 1/15. Good luck to Mr. Sandoval and all the guys as they "shoot" for the playoffs.

What's Happening With JV Boys Hoops?

Everyone knows, and this is no joke, that the most difficult league of all is the IPPSAL JV Boys Basketball Bracket. It requires and 18 game regular season league schedule (+ the Portledge JV Boys always play the Columbia Prep JV Boys twice each winter) that is very challenging in that some of the teams are the varsity teams of smaller schools, as well as JV teams that come from schools where basketball is the ONLY major sport. That being said, every year Portledge is lucky to have Mr. Erion Clark to work with our JV Boys team and teach them the game of basketball. Mr. Clark does a great job of working the players around the court and getting them to understand the game. So far the team has 2 wins and 5 losses, but their overall play has been excellent. Many of the players, including Freshmen Ben Fortgang, Yousef Macer, Eric Diamataris, TJ Roberts, Zach Hescheles and Joey Brambil, have a bright future in the Portledge Basketball program. If you want to see some students have a great time and support each other to the fullest, come on down and see a JV Boys hoops game. You can catch the team at home on the 7th and the 8th of January.

Well......that's a lot of blogging. I'm going to post this and I'll be back tomorrow to discuss the upper school Ice Hockey, Fencing and Squash teams. All for now... and peace be with you.

It Was Like Amazing, Incredible and Totally Awesome/ Full Recap of Portledge School Fall Sports Season

Well what can you say when there is so much to say? First of all, some recognition of all the hard work, effort and sportsmanship that went into this fall sports season on everyone's part is necessary. As the Director of Athletics I couldn't be more proud of our entire program as I am at the conclusion of this last sports season. From the amazing organizational effort of the Assistant Director of Athletics and Athletic Department Associate, Mrs. Schwam and Mr. Sandoval, respectively, to the incredible sportsmanship exhibited by all of our coaches and players throughout what was a very competitive season of athletic contests, all I can think of is the catchy phrase, "like totally awesome". This is all I can think of because that's exactly what it was...totally awesome. I must also mention the fantastic support our teams received from all the fans of Portledge Athletics. Students, parents, grandparents and friends filled the soccer sidelines, the cross country courses and the tennis stands with cheers for our booters, runners and swatters. On occasion their devotion was challenged by some difficult weather, but the wild cheering for our Portledge athletes always prevailed. So in the end, I just want to say a huge THANK YOU to all, for your continued support of Portledge Athletics.

How Did Things End Up for the Varsity Soccer Teams?

Going back to one of my title words, amazing, is appropriate when describing the achievements of our Varsity Soccer programs. For the second year in a row both the Varsity Girls and Boys Soccer teams were selected to participate in the NYSAISAA Championship Tournaments. Last year, along with the Riverdale Country School, we were one of only two schools to warrant this distinction. This year, however, only Portledge qualified both its girls and boys for these prestigious competitions. The fact that many of the school's in the running for these coveted spots are twice, and in some cases three times the size of Portledge, makes this accomplishment even that much more amazing. While our sides were eliminated in the quarterfinals of both tournaments, and we continue to search and desire our first ever semifinal berth, one cannot help but be amazed at the consistency and overall quality of Portledge Soccer. It is something our school and community can be proud of and continue to buil;d around in the future. A few individual accomplishments deserve special recognition. Senior captains Aaron Lee and Trevor Wolfson were both named All League for their tremendous play an incredible leadership. In addition, Trevor Wolfson was selected by the IPPSAL Boys Soccer coaches as Player of the Year in IPPSAL Boys Soccer. On the girls side of things, Junior Claudia Rogers and Senior Alex Siwiec were chosen by the coaches of the PSAA Girls Soccer League as All League players. A well deserved congratulations goes out to all the coaches and players of the Girls and Boys Varsity Soccer teams for this incredible season.

Was the Varsity Girls Tennis Team Able to Regain the IPPSAL Girls Tennis Championship?

A great amount of respect for all their hard work stands behind the resounding answer of YES to that question. Under the cool and calm guidance of Head Coach Henry Stay the Portledge Girls Tennis team returned to the top spot in IPPSAL Girls Tennis. The final match was a very competitive battle with our cross town rival Long Island Lutheran that ended with a individual match score of four wins to one loss in Portledge's favor. This makes six championships in the last seven years and a totally awesome record of thirteen total championships for Portledge's most historically successful program. Special congratulations goes out to Senior captain Siena Falino who as the PANTHER'S #1 player received the IPPSAL Player of the Year Award. Way to go girls...now let's make it seven out of eight.

How Did the Cross Country Team Do in the IPPSAL and PSAA Championships?

The development of the Varsity Cross Country team at Portledge School is directly tied to the enthusiasm and dedication of our incredible Head Coach, Dr. David Sarles. Under his steady and compassionate hand the Portledge runners are quickly developing into a force on the metropolitan independent school running scene. Freshman Isabella Muratore and Sophomore Millie Stallings have emerged as excellent harriers, while the boys have been paced by the strong efforts of Junior Alan Phipps. In addition to these exceptional athletes a slew of improving runners is ready to take on all comers over the cross country courses of the metropolitan area. While there were no "totally awesome" finishes at the championship meets, the Portledge team put forth some surprisingly consistent performances to place within the top three IPPSAL schools and in the top ten of the more numerous and more competitive PSAA schools. These are great signs for next year as 90% of the Portledge runners will return to race again!

Does Portledge Have Junior Varsity Soccer Teams, and If So, How Did They Do?

I have to admit that the JV Girls and Boys Soccer teams did not get as much attention in the blog this fall as they deserved. Sometimes there just are not enough hours in the day to chronicle all the athletic happenings here at Portledge on a regular basis. That being said, I sure try my best! The interesting thing is that Portledge alums would not even know about the existence of JV teams here at Portledge. They are relatively new, heck the Varsity Girls team is only six years old, and they are still really in the developmental stage. Regardless, I saw many a JV game this fall, including the historic first ever win for the JV Girls program, and the quality of the play and the great spirit of the athletes was amazing. Many of these players will eventually be filling our Varsity sides and doing so with incredible skill and "totally awesome" enthusiasm. Having coached high school sports for twenty years, that bus ride back from the JV Girls win over Chapin was one of the best I've ever been on. It was full of joy and recognition of a great team effort that all the girls were proud off. Many of these same feelings were present when the JV Boys team cam back to defeat the JV side of Columbia Prep after having been beaten earlier in the year. These type of accomplishments, as well as the day to day commitment and sacrifice necessary to be part of a team, fuel the development of our student athletes as overall and complete individuals in our society.

In conclusion, I would like to throw out a special thanks to all the coaches who worked so hard in the Upper School athletic program this fall. We certainly couldn't have all these great stories without your contributions. Well I'm off to watch the Varsity Boys Hockey team take on Rye Country Day, but I will be back to blogging later this weekend and will post a full recap of Middle School Fall Sports soon. All for now....and everyone enjoy their TURKEY!!!!!!!!!!