Never To Old To Learn Something New

This past weekend during the Portledge Varsity Girls Ice Hockey team's participation in the WIHLMA Championships I learned a few things. First, that winning is not everything. Secondly, it certainly is not the only thing. Finally, and definitely most importantly, that sometimes when the score does not end in your favor, you can really honestly still win by giving absolutely everything you have to give. You see that way, "you can hold your head up high, and as long as you do that, you can walk with Kings". Thank you Portledge Varsity Girls Ice Hockey, and thank you Joe Lapchick. Somehow the actions of the former proved the words of the latter to be true, and suddenly an ol' dog had a new trick.

The epic 5-4 double overtime loss to Morristown Beard was a game for the ages, and one of the most exciting Portledge sporting events I have ever witnessed. Neither team led by more than a goal, and the lead changed hands three times. Both teams battled and fought and struggled and overcame right up until the final shot tickled the twine. Mo Beard ran three lines regularly and the Lady Panthers countered with a strong rotation of eight, sometimes nine players. Still, the Portledge girls out shot their opponents and had every chance to win this thrilling clash. Unfortunately, the Hockey Gods didn't smile on the Royal Blue and White this day, and I was left to ponder and conclude the aforementioned theory. A theory, by the way, that in my opinion, is not reflected on enough in our "win at all costs" society. So girls...Joe Lapchick would be proud of you, because you all walked out of the Hill rink like hockey royalty.

Now Things Are Really Getting Interesting / Portledge Varsity Sports Teams Positioned to Possibly Win Four Winter Championships

The excitement of last week's Varsity Girls and Boys IPPSAL Basketball semi final victories over the opposing teams from Solomon Schechter, although still palpable in Wellington Gym, has toned down a bit as it has been buried under several feet of snow. Even so school will eventually reopen on Tuesday or Wednesday, and the reality that Portledge is seven wins away from holding the Championship trophies in Girls and Boys Basketball and Girls and Boys Ice Hockey will eventually sink in. This is something incredible and unheard of at a small school like Portledge. To have all four major Winter Varsity teams challenging for titles is really special. A great deal of credit has to go to all the players, particularly all the Senior leaders, and the coaching staffs of these tremendous teams. This Saturday will start an eight day stretch during which all these championships will be decided, so if you have any lucky charms or know of any lucky chants, well by all means get them out or let's hear 'em, cause the Panthers smell trophies and they are on the hunt.

Things will start off with the WIHLMA Championship Tournament to be held at the Hill School next Saturday and Sunday, February 2oth and 21st. There our Lady Panther skaters will try to defend their title from last year against the likes of the home team Hilltoppers, long time rivals Rye Country Day School and the always tough girls from Morristown Beard School. Portledge plays Hill in one of the semis and the girls will have to find a way to put some pucks behind the leagues best goalie, while still holding down an improved Hill attack. If they can manage that, they will almost assuredly face the undefeated in league play ladies of Morristown Beard. Twice the Crimson has topped the Portledge girls by one goal during the season, so the Lady Panthers will have to come up with a formula for turning the tables on the favorites, if they hope to hoist the Championship banner once again. This Portledge team has a lot of experience in the presence of defensemen Chelsea Caraccilo, Emily Prey and Erin Brand, as well as some good fire power up front in the form of Senior Addie Reilly and Juniors Ashley Wade and Maria Robbins. Two freshmen players, goaltender Gaby Pilson and sharp shooting winger Julie Devlin will also have to play well if the Lady Panthers are to skate with the trophy. Go get em girls!!!

Then on Tuesday, February 23rd it's the turn of the Girls and Boys Varsity Basketball teams as they will take on the battle tested squads of Lawrence Woodmere Academy and The Walsorf School, respectively, for a chance at IPPSAL glory.Ironically, the last time the Varsity Boys team won the IPPSAL Basketball Championship in 1982, the Varsity Girls team also hung a Championship banner. The Lady Panthers then went on to win championships in '97, '98 and '99, but the banner wall has not changed in the basketball section since then.

The Girls game will come first and should be a real battle. Both games between Portledge and LWA during the regular season resulted in hard fought wins for the Lady Panthers, and to pull off a third straight victory it will take a really sound effort. Coach Amadio will certainly count on starters Robyn Worrall, Mo Kelly, Akanksha Trivedi, Marian Juste and Claudia Rogers, as well as the other Senior leaders to bring the championship home. That 15 - 1 regular season league mark tells me that these girls are up to the challenge. Finish it off right girls!!!

There is no secret that the key to the Varsity Boys game will be how Portledge decides to defend Waldorf's leading scorer and certain IPPSAL Player of the Year Landon Twine. The big guard has netted over thirty points on avarage and has gone off for more than 40 on several occaissions. Once again the play of Portledge Seniors will determine the outcome as starters Mark Dourmashkin, Jon Braisford, Christian Sbarro and Big Ben Shapiro will look to leave Portledge with a victory and a banner in their name.

Last but not least, will come the Empire Cup Boys Ice Hockey Tornament held at the Millbrook and Trinity Pawling Schools on Friday and Saturday, February 26th - 27th. The recent flurry of activity surrounding basketball has somewhat obscured the fact that Portledge Varsity Boys Ice Hockey team is having its best season since at least 2003. Currently standing at 13 wins and 3 losses the Panthers will play twice more, on Tuesday, Feb 16th @ Morristown (5:15) and on Monday, Feb 22nd v. Brunswick @ Beaver Dam (5:30), in preparation for the big season ending tournament. If they can play well in these last two regular season games, Portledge might have the best winning percentage of all the teams heading to the tournament. The boys will not have it easy though as they will have to face some combination of Millbrook, Albany Academy, Lawrenceville, Trinity Pawling, Brunswick, Wyoming Seminary and Hoosac to claim the prestigious title. This group just might have the depth to do it though as several injuries have forced coaches Coope and Sandos to dig deeper on the bench and develop more players. It all might be a blessing in disguise though, as some of these late season bloomers could play some critical shifts during this very tough tournament to win. The Panthers will not go far though, if there big guns don't have a stong finish to the season. Up front the line of Benyamini, Goldstien and Conslato has been tremendous all year, while the play of sophomores Matt Crockett and Jesse Schandler and Junior Matt Janketic is coming on strong. The return of Junior power forward Kurt Krotz could also really help the Portledge squad. Junior Tom Parisi, after filling in up front earlier in the year, has been playing as a very skillful defenseman lately. This has allowed the strong Junior duo of Pat Condon and Ron Fishman a chance to breathe and heel up a bit. While Junior Ryan Gottfried and Sophomore Matt Sullivan have been steady throughout. Finally, this will be the last few games in net for Senior Sal Magliocco, whose career between the pipes here at Portledge is surpassed by only the great Bobby Goepfert. A skate around the Millbrook rink with the Empire Cup sure would be agreat way to send ol' Sal out. Good luck fellas...we are behind you all the way.

So, as you can see, there certainly is plenty to get excited about as the Winter Athletic Season comes to a close. If you have missed all the action, come join us for what should be some incredible tournament play, or catch some of the highlights filmed throughout the season by Cablevision's MSG Varsity channel, which can be accessed through the Athletics section of the Portledge website by looking for Portledge on MSG Varsity found on the left side of the Athletics landing page. GO PANTHERS!!!

KNOCK....KNOCK - Hey Hills What's Dat ? - "No Worries Dude, That's Only Opportunity Knocking For the Portledge Basketball Programs"

Yeah there's a little pressure out there. The Colts feel it, the Who Dat Saints feel it....even Eli Manning who isn't even playing feels it. There are also some other teams on our athletic radar that will feel a little pressure this week as the IPPSAL Girls and Boys Varsity Basketball Championship Tournaments come around. Who Dat ? Well it would be the Portledge Lady Panther and Portledge Panther Varsity Basketball teams - Dat Who ! In an incredible turn around from a few years ago the Portledge Girls and Boys Varsity teams have managed to secure a first and second seed, respectively, in the IPPSAL Championship Tournaments. There will be a double-header Semi Final extravaganza this Tuesday night with the Girls playing first at 4:30, followed by the Boys at 6:30. Wouldn't it be grand to see both squads take advantage of the 'home court cookin' and reach the IPPSAL Championship game. That possibility definitely exists as the Lady Panthers come in with a league mark of 15 and 1. They have dominated IPPSAL play during the season and deserve a spot in the Championship. Deserve does not garuantee, however, and the Lady Panthers will have their hands full with whoever they play, but particularly so if the opponent turns out to be the Upper Room. The Lady Royals match up well with our girls and played them very tough in the teams' first meeting back in December. If Solomon Schechter is victorious on Monday over Lexington, however, the Portledge / Upper Room match up will not take place and we will see an even more traditional rivalry game between the Lady Panthers and the Lady Lions of Solomon Schechter. Either way, the Portledge girls have to play their game and take it to the opponent.

On the other hand, in the case of the Portledge Varsity Boys team we have a bit of an underdog story. Mirred in 5th place just ten day ago, and out of the play offs all together, the Panthers caught a big break when Lake Grove folded their team, thus forfeiting their last game - to be played at Portledge, and Kew Forest won a tough game on the road at Waldorf - where the Big W hadn't lost all season. These events seemed to energize the Panthers as they went on to win their last three league games over Lexington, Solomon Schechter and Knox to finish with a final league mark of 8 and 4, which turned out to be good for 2nd place and home court advantage in IPPSAL play. The Scechter game was particularly impressive as the Panthers, led by Chritian Sbarro's twenty something points, came back from a 13 point 4th quarter defecit to keep the dream of home court alive. Whether they face Solomon Schechter, in what would be a fierce rematch, or have to take on a Waldorf team that has already beaten them three times this season, the Panthers face a significant challenge on their way to Championship game play. Like both Super Bowl teams though, the Panthers are HOT, so why not make a place for them in Thursday's Championship game. Hold onto your hats Portledge Bsketball fans 'cause it should be quite a week. To get you psyched everyone should catch the MSG Varsity broadcast of the aforementioned Portledge comeback game at SSDS this Monday night at 8:00pm on Cablevision CH. 14, and by all means be at Wellington Gym on Tuesday afternoon / evening for some exciting play off basketball. Goooooo Panthers!!

A Long and Winding Road/ Varsity Boys Ice Hockey Team Overcomes Adversity of Travel to Build Some Strong Credentials

The Varsity Boys Ice Hockey teams will play somewhere around 23 games this year, and except for 7 games played at Beaver Dam, they will all be on the road. This extensive amount of travel and lack of "home cooking" has become a tradition of Portledge Hockey and something that makes it unique. The Portledge squads even seem to relish their roles as "road dogs", as they travel from school to school thinking of nothing but ruining the home team's night. There is just something about going into a hostile environment and coming out with a win that makes it all that much more special. If anything, the amount of road games the Panthers play make them a tougher and more focused unit. Both the historic, and recent, success of the Boys Ice Hockey Program bares this out.

The Portledge Varsity Boys team currently stands on a record of 9 wins and 2 losses, with one of those losses coming in overtime against a very highly ranked Junior team from New England. The Panthers are coming off of an impressive 5-2 victory over the Lawrenceville School (see the team page @ portledge.org for a recap) and plays an up tempo style of hockey committing two forwards to a high pressure forecheck that usually rattles the opposition and forces many turn- overs. To use this system a team must have strong skaters from top to bottom and be willing to play the game on the edge. This is exactly the type of team that Portledge coaches Coope and Sandos have put together. The Panthers feature two equally adept scoring lines centered by Juniors Tom Parisi and Yuri Benyamini, respectively. They also have an incredbly stout defense anchored by Juniors Pat Condon & Ron Fishman and supported by Sophomore Matt Sullivan & Junior Ryan Gottfried. The last thing that has separated the Portledge team from their oppenents has been the stellar goaltending of Senior/Captain Sal Magliocco. Mags has been incredible game in and game out, and always gives his team mates a chance to win the game. One thing that could really help the Panthers as they go down their final stretch of games towards the Empire Cup would be the healthy return of Senior Defensemen / Captain David Wilson. Wilson, who has been out of the line up since opening night with a badly separated shoulder, hits hard and has a nice set of hands, just like his grandfather the famous American amatuer Peter Bostwick. It would be tough to imagine the team without Captain Dave's presence at the Empire Cup Tournament in late February. So let's all hope for a sound recovery! Now let's see....with either 11 or 12 games remaining, depending on Empire Cup results, a 15 win season looks probable, and even the magic 20 win mark is not out of the question. The Panthers will play home games at Beaver Dam on Monday nights throughout the month of February, so check their schedule, and come on down to see the #1 ranked secondary school in New York State play some awesome puck.

Checking the Hardwood Compass / Where We Are with the Varsity Basketball Teams

As we take a short break this week for mid year exams it is a stark realization that we are two thirds of the way through the winter sports season. There are still all sorts of great games to be played, so no one is down in the dumps yet, but we are closer to the end than the start. The question I hear a lot is Hey Hills - How we doin? Well the answer to that is... pretty darn well. Let's take a quick look in on the Varsity Basketball teams shall we. The Portledge Varsity Girls Basketball team has an overall record of 10 wins and 3 losses and the Lady Panthers are 8 and 1 in IPPSAL play. They are well positioned to earn a home playoff game in the IPPSAL semi finals and have certainly shown themselves to be a legitimate threat to win the IPPSAL championship. The girls had a bit of a stumble against OSNA last week here at Wellington Gym, but they will have the opportunity to avenge that loss during the stretch run of the regular season in February. There is also a strong chance that the Portledge and OSNA will come up against each other somewhere in the playoffs. If the future meetings are anything like the first tussle, we are all in for some great hoops. The squad continues to be led by an exceptional group of seniors that include Monique Kelly at point guard and Akanksha Trivedi at center. While these two are the focus of the offense, maybe the most important aspect of the team is the defensive play of Senior forward/guard Claudia Rogers. When Claudia is getting steals and helping to generate fast breaks, the Lady Panthers get a lot of easy baskets. Also critical at the defensive end is the rebounding and all around fine play of Senior Marian Juste. " Air Juste" as she is sometimes called, really gets up on the glass and her rebounding is a key in the team's success. Senior Robyn Worrall hasn't been shooting as much lately, concentrating instead on keeping the ball moving and getting everyone else involved. Sophomore Alexa Lodenquai has scored some points off the bench and looks to be a key player in the future of Portledge Girls Basketball. The other impressive youngster is Freshman Ceci Mulry, who combines with Trivedi to give Portledge a twin towers effect, or simply takes over the pivot giving Akanksha a chance to catch a breather. The Lady Panthers still have to venture to Lawrence Woodmere and to OSNA, and a victory at at least one of those hostile barns is necessary for a first or second place regular season finish. The girls will take part in a big triple header at home on Saturday, January 30th when they and both the Varsity and JV Boys will host the respective teams from Evangel Christian, in what should be a fun day of basketball here at Wellington Gym. Please also note that we will host a special Senior Night when the Varsity Boys and Girls take on Lexington and Waldorf , respectively, on Monday, May 1st. The Boys team will play first v. Lexington @ 4:00pm, and the Girls will have the night cap when they take on Waldorf @ 5:30.

Moving on to Varsity Boys Basketball - we see a team right at the crossroads of its season. The Panthers overall record is 7 wins and 7 losses, and they are 4 up and 4 down in IPPSAL play. In league games remaining, they have a winnable away match at Knox followed by tough home games versus Lexington and Lake Grove, before finishing their regular season at Waldorf in a game that will be a featured broadcast on the MSG Varsity channel. To be assured of a spot in the IPPSAL playoffs the Panthers will need to make sure of things at Knox, and then go on to win at least two of their final three league games, if not all three, depending on other school's results. Each contest will be vital to the teams chances for post season play, but the home game with Lake Grove will probably be the most critical result of the season. Senior Ban Shapiro has been a dominant player in the paint for Portledge. He has scored over twenty points several times and has given the team a real presence down low. Senior swingmen Christian Sbarro and Mark Dourmashkin have traded off leading from the outside, but I think for the Panthers to really make a move down the stretch, the squad will need both of these talented players to get hot at the same time. The plot is set....now this interesting group of players must finish the script. I don't know about you all, but I like the finish to Hoosiers.

Come on down to Wellington Gym and catch a game as this exciting season of Portledge Basketball plays itself out!!

Boutique Sports Continue to Thrive at Portledge

I call Squash and Fencing "Boutique Sports" because they are hard to find. Many schools do not have these offerings, and even when they are offered they are relegated to out of the way places not on the usual path of winter sports fans. This is pretty much the case at Portledge as the Fencing Program is tucked away in the Lower School gym where it has to do battle with the Lower School Holiday play and other events just to get some solid practice time. The fencers don't complain though, they just go about there business and perform. In 1999 our Lady Fencers won the ISFL Championship and several of those girls went on to have very good college fencing careers. During the last decade Naomi Johnson, daughter of long time Varsity Coach Eric Johnson, dominated the ISFL Individual bouts, and just recently an Epee squad led by Nick Hagedorn '09 and Alan Phipps '10 has steadily climbed the ISFL ladder and is in position this year to possibly win the school's second ISFL Championship. So good luck to Alan, Niko, Ryan and all the other epee fencers as they move on into the meat of their schedule.

In terms of squash, the sport had been growing at Portledge over the last eight years and we are starting to see the kind of development that marks real progress. This spring Portledge will be graduating its first college bound squash player as Chris Gerry moves on up to Amherst College with every intention to be part of the squash program there. Chris met with the coach during his visit and knows some of the players on the team from his matches here at Portledge over the years. This is ceratinly a significant moment for the development of the sport at our school and a lot of credit should go to Mr. Shane Capuccio who has done a great job of running the program since taking it over last winter.

Both programs are fully enrolled and we look for their continued development during the next decade. We hope to see all the Portledge faithful out supporting our winter teams as a big January of competition opens up next week. Check the website for game schedules and we'll see you at the games!!

Hockey Sticks and Holiday Dinners

After my last blog posting there was a comment from longtime Portledge Hockey friend, Neil Bliss. Evidently Neil had been reading the preview of this year's Varsity Ice Hockey teams while he was watching a professional game. Low and behold two Portledge alums, Doug Murray '99 and Eric Nystrom '01 were both playing in the game. Neil's comment was that he couldn't believe that he was seeing former Portledge players in the NHL. When you really think about it, however, it makes perfect sense because these two individuals were part of some very important Portledge traditions. Things that have gone on since the school's early days, and are still happening today. An obvious tradition that both were part of is Ice Hockey. We have been playing Varsity Ice Hockey at Portledge School for almost a half century and I have mentioned many times all the great players that have been part of this tradition. Certainly Doug and Eric are included in this group. The thing about a tradition though, is that it goes on and on in perpetuity, meandering through strong showings and some meeker ones. Sometimes the meeker showings might actually be the most important, because of the effort it took just to keep the tradition going that year. This can be true of hockey programs, as well as family celebrations

I am blessed to be part of a great family that cares very deeply for one another. Some years we have had a small table at holiday time because people were living in other parts of the country or were traveling to see other friends & family, and sometimes we have had very large and boisterous tables where the conversations were so plentiful you could always find something to listen to and comment on. Many times the table was so large because we had included friends who were visiting, or we had extended an invitation to someone who didn't have anywhere to celebrate that year. Regardless of their size of the table, however, is the warmth, inclusiveness and dedication that those who participate always bring to the tradition .

Just as break started I traveled north to Boston to watch the Varsity Boys Ice Hockey team compete in the 39th Annual William E. Barber Tournament held at the St. Mark's and Middlesex Schools. To people at those schools this tournament is an important tradition and I was very proud that Portledge was being included this year. Free from the focus of being behind the bench I was able to mingle in the crowd of Portledge parents, and the parents and friends of our opponents, and see just how special everyone felt to be there. Just like the size of the holiday table, the strength of the Portlege Ice Hockey program has been evident at times and yet not so apparent at others. In some ways this is an inevitable cycle at small independent schools like ours, but at this time, during this celebration of ice hockey tradition in Boston, Portledge Hockey was not only alive and well, but dominating the competition in a way that would bring great pride to our community. We skated fast, moved the puck beautifully, played with tremendous support for each other and displayed outstanding overall sportsmanship. Every player who took the ice contributed to the whole, and those that did not get a chance to play were there with tremendous spirit every step of the way. The heartbreaking 7-6 overtime loss in the Championship game was not really a loss as much as it was a vital celebration of tradition because more important than who won or lost was that it added another great chapter to the ongoing story of this wonderful tournament and to the tradition of Portledge Ice Hockey.

Meanwhile, there was a storm brewing, which would eventually force myself and the Varsity Boys team to stop in Danbury, Conn for the night. This turned out great as I was able to go to the Canterbury School the next day and see the Portledge Varsity Girls team play for third place at the Mike Oronato Holiday Classic. This tournament is named after a beloved member of the Canterbury School community Michael Kevin "Mo" Oronato who passed away in 2007. Thus, I found myself right in the middle of a new tradition that was just taking shape, and one that the people at Canterbury School were giving great respect and pride. Once again I realized how our tradition of playing this incredible game was bringing us in contact with a whole new group of people and how the desire of people to include others was creating a great experience for these Portledge athletes.

As I was driving home my mind wandered through many subjects - one of them was Neil Bliss' comment about how incredible it was that these two former Portledge players were playing in the NHL. My thoughts turned particularly to Doug Murray who came to Portledge from Sweden for his Junior and Senior year. Doug wanted to go to college in America, but at that time he couldn't speak English too well, and was unknown to American college coaches. The Portledge community embraced Doug in a very inclusive way. Students spent time tutoring him in many subjects and helping him understand the language. When Doug's parents and siblings came to visit during the Holiday Break of his Senior year, I remember they commented about how much Doug felt a part of the Portledge community, and how good they felt about him being here. Portledge certainly played a big part in Doug's life as he was accepted to Cornell University, where he went on to captain the Men's Ice Hockey team.

Thus, there was a certain symmetry to the whole thing. Inclusiveness and Ice Hockey, two strong traditions at Portledge had both been a part of Doug's experience, and had also been a part of everyone's experience this past weekend . I am indeed happy that our Portledge athletes and coaches could join with all those participating at St. Mark's, Middlesex and Canterbury, also that Mrs. Schwam was smart enough to reserve some rooms in Danbury for us, and finally, that I was able to see so many of my family members and friends at our holiday table this year. I hope everyone has a great Holiday season...Happy New Years to all.... and we'll see you soon.