Sports
May 24, 2017
20
The Merionite
Boys’ tennis secures third district championship
Boys’ track takes league title Kelly Harrigan ’17 Sports Editor
Zach Simons ’18
Seeing how talented this roster is, matches generally are going this team’s way. But their coach has a certain level-headedness about him that keeps these boys under control. During their matches, the team rallies around each other and consistently encourages one another. One of the most vocal duos play in two doubles that consist of Harrison Axelrod ’18 and Jordan Robinson ’17. The two of them, along with the rest of the team, always hype up their matches and try to spread the positivity across the courts. They have this modest yet confident persona about them that is just infectious and drives them to compete and play even harder. Above all else, this team just has an enormous amount of fun on and off the court which contributes to their team chemistry and the success of this year’s tennis team.
As spring slowly transitions into summer, the last season of the year’s sports come to an end. However, following the end of the regular season is that of playoffs and championships. One LM team that has ended the regular season strong is boys’ track and field. This spring, LM’s collective boys’ track athletes won the Central League Title for the first time since 1973. This title is significant not only because it marks the success of this year’s team, but also because it displays the hard work and determination dedicated to the improvement of the team in over forty years since the boys were last ranked first in the league. Track team championships are unique in that, while being recognized as an individualized sport, each competing athlete has to improve his own speed, which therefore scores more points, in order to increase the team’s collective ranking. This qualification provides evidence that the boys’ success must be attributed to the entire team. Unlike some sports, it is very difficult for one runner to carry the entire team. A team is more likely to earn a higher ranking if a larger
Graphic courtesy of Chris De Santis ’20
As the boys’ tennis season comes to a close, they can already deem this season another successful spring. The Aces cruised through their regular season with a remarkable undefeated record of 160. They were led by senior Matt Chen and junior Sean Attebery. Attebery played one singles while Chen played two. Collectively, their power, along with that of freshman Matt Robinson at thrid singles, collectively boasted an astounding record with merely two individual losses through their regular season and district run. The Aces won districts along with the Central League Title this season. After losing the title to rival Radnor last year, the Aces bounced back to beat Conestoga in the finals this year. Additionally, the team dominated throughout districts and impressively beat Unionville, another highly ranked program like LM, in the finals. The Aces are very confident that they will win states for the third time in a row. The Aces have recently become a powerhouse in Pennsylvania tennis and look to continue that success at states and next year as well. The boys’ Tennis Team has created a winning culture that “is great on and off the court. We became friends first and encourage each other to keep getting better and working hard. We have faced some adversity this year compared to previous years with a few members of the team quitting, but we rallied around each other and continued to push on through the season. We have had a great mindset and have had a ton of fun winning this season,” remarked Attebery. This adversity that Attebery mentioned was a serious mountain that this team had to climb throughout the year. The way the team joined together and has continued to push each other to succeed this season is a true testament to the culture of Aces tennis and to their coaching staff as well. When asked about their coach, Attebery proclaimed, “Our coach motivates us to succeed, and he is a great mentor when we faced this adversity this year. He knows how to keep us calm and collected when matches aren’t going our way.”
Girls’ crew takes Cities
group of the athletes does well than if one or two athletes score far above the rest of the competitors. Although most teams have high hopes upon starting a fresh season, these athletes needed to have strong motivation from the very first meet in order for them to place first in the Central League. Captain Erez Potok-Holmes ’17 recalls, “Our biggest challenge would probably be our first meet. Penncrest really gave it to us and we had to bring our A-game.” Moving on from a tough first meet, the team had to focus all of its energy on improving throughout the spring. As Captain Matt D’Aquila adds, “The tough part was staying focused on our goal because the target was on our backs when we raced our league competitors.” Being that track is a highly mental sport, the athletes had to increase both their physical and mental strength if they planned on placing highly in the league—which, as we now know, they were able to do. Having battled throughout the season, the boys found themselves faced with the final meet of the season. With all of the Central League teams present, this meet was quite populated, so stress was high. However, after the meet—as LM was announced as the 2017 Central League champions, stress was exchanged for shock and excitement. Potok-Holmes elaborates, “knowing that we’d brought this program back to life and swept through the entire league was a feeling of pure ecstasy.” Compiling each of the Central League teams’ scores for both that of last meet and overall, LM scored more points than the others. Now, as the team prepares for the 2018 season, they have the responsibility to uphold their competitive status. Most athletes motivate both themselves and their teammates to work hard and succeed in whichever form of participation they partake. The LM boys’ track team looks forward to the upcoming season, as well as the preseason that precedes it, with the same motivation and focus that led them to their achievements this year. D’Aquila elaborates, “The future of this team is bright. We have stellar athletes in all events who are eager to replace the seniors who have made this team a Central League cross-country and track powerhouse.” After all, accolades in the world of sports usually parallel the team’s effort and dedication. Especially for a large team, closeness is also a key to success. As Potok-Holmes states, “above all I think it’s important to keep that aspect first and foremost.” Keeping this mentality, the team looks forward to continued enthusiasm and more victories in the forthcoming years.
Zack Slogoff ’18 Sports Editor
ment a boat hopes to achieve during the season. The girls really had to come together as one boat in order to pull out the victory. The team hopes to find continued success with this core group during the nationwide competition. When asked about the success of her fellow teammates, Simpson states, “My boat (JV 4 +) has improved so much over the season so far and we’re only getting faster. We had to make a few changes to the lineup of our boat that caused some emotional tension on the team. Through many hard workouts and training we developed our swing that made it possible for us to win cities. I remember my body collapse underneath me when we past the finish line. Our whole boat was exhausted and shocked because we just beat 27 boats and took the gold. Winning cities was something was only speculated about doing. My favorite part was rowing up to the grandstand and having our medals placed around our necks with all our parents there to watch.” It is important as a part of Aces Nation to go out and support the girls in their hunt for success at the next level. The energy at regattas is incredible and the boat really feeds off the motivation their supporters give them. In their next com-
petition at nationals, the team hopes to have some support from their peers. Come support the team onto National glory on May 26 and 27 on the Cooper River, NJ.
Pictured above is the winning boat holding up their victory medals. The whole coaching staff is very proud of the girls.
Photo courtesy of Minori Cohan ’18
On May 6, the girls’ crew team had a huge victory that defined their season up to this point. A boat containing Annika Edwards ’19, Eva Nates ’18, Morgan Simpson ’18, Valentina Frusone ’19, and Minori Cohan ’18 won a critical race at Cities in which they finished eight seconds ahead of any other boat. This is a feat not easily accomplished. The whole LM crew family is extremely proud of the girls for this great victory. Girls’ crew has put in a ton of work this season, practicing almost every day in harsh weather conditions for long hours. This process can be very draining, but all their hard work has paid off with this victory. The girls defeated 23 schools in the race, including two Mount Saint Joseph boats that were powerhouses in races earlier in the season. Harriton also competed in the race, but fell short to the Aces placing sixth. The power displayed by the Aces on the water was extremely impressive, drawing attention from many local websites. With this win at Cities, the girls qualified for Nationals which will be later this month. Qualifying for Nationals is a rare feat that not many LM boats have done in the paJust like any other sport, Nationals is the pinnacle accomplish-