A Night to Remember!

Probably very few people know that the title of this post is also the title of a very famous black and white movie from the 1940s. That story was about something going slowly down - the Titanic to be exact. My story, however, is about how something that is slowly coming up, and how on one special night this winter the movement became apparent to everyone.

Eleven long days and nights had passed since the IPPSAL Varsity Girls and Boys Basketball Championship games had been postponed because of snow. The excruciatingly long delay in playing the games occurred because some of the schools involved had mid winter holiday and were not able to get all their players together during the break. Both the Portledge Varsity Girls and Boys teams had qualified for these ultimate contests, and in some ways the time off had benefited the Lady Panther and Panther sides. Lots of bumps and bruises had a chance to heel, and a few extra practices enabled the coaches to implement some special game strategies they had tucked away for just such a special occaission. Still, now the time had come - it was 4:00pm on Tuesday, February 23rd and the Girls Championship game was to begin in an hour. The Lady Panthers were dressed and ready and were recieving good luck wishes from the Varsity Boys players, as well as from all the JV players and other people milling around the gym. As they boarded the bus for the short trip to Solomon Schechter, site of the 09-10 Championship Double-header, I remember thinking to myself this has the makings of something really special. I knew the Boys team was planning on going over early to support the girls and that some other Upper Schoolers had spoken about being there, so I was confident that our teams would get at least some support at this venue so close to home. When I arrived at the SSDS Gymnasium, more commonly called the Lion's Den, I could see that my earlier thoughts were not only correct, but had actually been surpassed. An incredible collection of the Portledge community had come together to root our teams on to victory. There were all sorts of classmates, brothers and sisters, and parents of the players. Then their were many of the coaches in the Athletic Dep't, a slew of other teachers, parents of students not participating this night, alumni, and even some alumni parents. All come together to see if these Lady Panther and Panther squads could pull something off that had not been done since 1992 - a Varsity Girls and Boys Sweep of the IPPSAL Basketball Championships.

The Varsity Girls team seemed in control of the first Championship game from the start. Senior Akanksha Trivedi dominated inside as she made one "cash money" turn around jumper after another. The Lady Panther defense was suffocating and it seemed that every Claudia Rogers steal turned into a Mo Kelly made basket for Portledge at the other end. Twice the lead reached 12 points as the Lady Panthers flirted with a first half blow out. Somehow though, The Lady Tigers of Lawrence Woodmere hung tough. Spurred on by the fine play of their excellent point guard, and the very athletic endeavors of their #12, the LWA girls reeled the Portledge side back in. At the half it was only a six point Portledge lead, and sitting in the stands I knew the girls from Woodmere had at least one more good run in them.

Throughout the season the Portledge girls had struggled at times in the 2nd half finding the offensive flow that was their trademark. This night turned out to be another one of those occaissions. It seemed like the Lady Panthers were stuck on 36 points forever, until late in the third quarter when senior Monique Kelly appeared to settle down and realize what was at stake. Kelly drove for one basket, then was fouled and sank two from the line, before finishing the quarter with a deep three pointer just before the buzzer. Some sense of calm had been restored, but we now had a dead even game just sitting there for the taking. The Lawrence Woodmere Lady Tigers made the first run of the quarter and actually took the lead by two at one point, but then the Portledge defense stiffened. As the Lady Panthers started to grab rebound after rebound and make steal after steal, the aforementioned tightness came off their offense as they whipped the ball up the court leading to some impressive fast break baskets. As time wound down Coach Amadio made sure Kelly had the ball in her hands and she calmy sank several free throws after being intentionally fouled by the opponents. The final horn set off a wild celebration and all I could think of was, "now we have one"!

Little did I know what I was in for with the 2nd game of the evening. The churning storm outside was only precursor to what you felt when you entered the SSDS Gym for the Portledge v. Waldorf Varsity Boys Basketball IPPSAL Championship game. Both sides were very well supported with fans as the Lion's Den was packed. OK....maybe you could have squeezed a few more people in here and there, but really, it was already standing room only. This game was a seesaw affair swinging back and forth time and again. Each time a team threatened to run away by more than four the oposing coach would calla timeout and the balance would seemingly immediately turn back his way. The incredible junior standout and probable IPPSAL Player of the Year Landon Twine dropped three ball after three ball on the Panthers, but he was always answered by someone on the Panthers. Sometimes it was Christian Sbarro nailing down his own three pointers, or senior Mark Dourmashkin driving again and again to the basket while being hacked at all the time. Lastly, there was the inside presence of Big Ben Shapiro. His put bascks and interior baskets were really the difference between these teams. Waldorf started to foul with Portledge up about six in the final minutes. The Panthers made some of their free throws, but not all of them - and the boys from Garden City came roaring back. In the end Waldorf trailed by only two as Twine lauched a lst second three pointer for the victory - only to have it glance off of the front ofthe rim and fall helplessly to the floor. Jubilation over took the Portledge faithful as they ran onto the floor to congratulate the players. Once order was restored and the trophy was handed out the seniors from both the Varsity Girls and Boys team posed for one final picture - togehter as simultaneous IPPSAL Champions.

This certainly was a Night to Remember. What had risen was the Portledge spirit, as this was the best night of community support for the Portledge Athletic program in the last twenty years. All of these athletes learned valuable lessons about team work, belief in a goal, playing a specific role for the good of the whole and, lastly, that you can play the game with excellent sportsmanship and still wind up on top!! Congratulations to all the Varsity Girls and Boys Basketball players and coaches - this was some season on the hardwood for Ol' Portledge!

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!!