athletics highlights

SPRING 2022 WRAP-UP

Potomac’s varsity BASEBALL team had another successful season in 2022. After suffering a series of injuries early in the season, the team rallied behind the leadership of seniors Kayden La Force, Luke Froeming, Tim Mellis, Andrew Ruggeri, and TJ Takis. Following a successful spring training trip to South Carolina, the team rattled off a series of wins against tough MAC rivals, including a pair of back-to-back seasonsaving performances in the MAC Tournament. The Panthers look forward to building on the success of this past season in 2023 and beyond!

Panthers varsity SOFTBALL continued to be a powerhouse in 2022, not only in the DC metro area but also statewide. The team compiled a 19-2 record and was ranked #8 in the final Washington Post rankings. In the Virginia Independent School Athletic Association (VISAA) final poll, Potomac was ranked second among Division I schools. And in the final MaxPreps rankings for all 350 public and private school softball teams in Virginia, Potomac was ranked #13.

The Panthers have played in the VISAA softball championship game every year since 2019, except for 2020, when the tournament was not held. Potomac finished second to Bishop O’Connell in each of those tournament finals.

The 2022 team was led by seniors Yanna Bravewolf and Eva Butler. Bravewolf was 10-1 in the circle, and Butler hit .537 while playing outstanding defense at shortstop. The team compiled an overall .468 batting average, with Abby Rebhan ’24, Erika Castellano ’23, Shelby Willcox ’23, and Alexis Vaughan ’25 all hitting .500 or higher. In addition, Bravewolf, Paige Schedler ’25, and Hayley Richardson’ 24 hit above .430. Strong performances were also turned in by Fae Butler ’24, Sloane Escobar ’25, Sam Taylormoore ’23, and Zora Burrell ’25. With just two graduating seniors and 10 varsity players returning for 2023, the team is looking forward tto another successful season.

The BOYS LACROSSE team finished the spring season in style with an 11-5 victory over Sidwell Friends in the MAC Championship game. The team amassed an 11-8 record, including wins over Episcopal, St. Andrews (in the MAC semifinals), and rival Flint Hill (twice!) The championship marks the first banner for Potomac’s program since 2017 and the 19th since 1995.

The team, led by captains Owen Diesenhaus ’22, Weston Hicks ’22, and Andrew Lay ’23, saw five players earn All-MAC honors – Drew Ambrose ’23, Diesenhaus, Lay, Miles Monroe ’23, and Max Revis ’23. Ambrose also received Honorable Mention All-Met, as awarded by The Washington Post, for his impressive total of 74 points (48 goals, 26 assists). Diesenhaus was recognized by the Potomac Chapter of USA Lacrosse as an Academic All-American for his exemplary lacrosse skills, good sportsmanship on the field, and high academic achievement in the classroom.

After a season to celebrate and remember, the team returns several key contributors and looks to the future with optimism.

GIRLS LACROSSE had its most successful season since 2016, finishing with a 14-6 record, an ISL Tournament semifinal appearance, and a final ranking of #5 in Virginia. The Panthers were led by Co-captains Caroline Lesher ’22 and Kate Motley ’23. After a successful Spring Break trip to Virginia Beach, the team had big league wins over Holton-Arms, Holy Child, and Bullis. Amory Imperatore ’25, Motley, and Stella Pence ’25 were major contributors on offense, while Lesher, Catherine LeTendre ’25, Helen Otteni ’22, and goalie Cate Dannahey ’23 anchored the defense. The Panthers will return 18 players next spring and are poised to take another step forward in 2023.

Spring Honors

Congratulations, Potomac Panthers!

ALL-MET

Eva Butler ’22 (first team, softball), Yanna Bravewolf ’22 (second team, softball), Erika Castellano ’23 (honorable mention, softball), Drew Ambrose ’23 (honorable mention, boys lacrosse)

ALL-ISL

Caroline Lesher ’22 (girls lacrosse), Stella Pence ’25 (girls lacrosse), Catherine LeTendre ’25 (girls lacrosse), Hayley Richardson ’24 (softball), Paige Schedler ’25 (softball), Shelby Wilcox ’23 (softball), Eva Butler ’22 (softball), Yanna

Bravewolf ’22 (softball), Abby Rebhan ’23 (softball), Erika Castellano ’23 (softball), Fae Butler ’24 (softball)

ALL-MAC

Charlie Ortmans ’23 (track, 3,200m), Hudson La Force ’22 (track, at large), Drew Ambrose ’23 (boys lacrosse), Owen Diesenhaus ’22 (boys lacrosse), Andrew Lay ’23 (boys lacrosse), Miles Monroe ’23 (boys lacrosse), Max Revis ’23 (boys lacrosse), Eli Butler ’24 (boys tennis)

ALL-STATE

Aneesh Edara ’22 (second team, boys tennis), Owen Peterson ’24 (second team, baseball), Paige Schedler ’25 (second team, softball), Shelby Wilcox ’23 (second team, softball), Fae Butler ’24 (second team, softball), Abby Rebhan ’23 (first team, softball), Erika

Castellano ’23 (first team, softball), Eva Butler ’22 (first team, softball), Yanna

Bravewolf ’22 (first team, softball), Stella Pence ’25 (first team, girls lacrosse), Caroline Lesher ’22 (first team, girls lacrosse), Kate Tuttle ’24 (track, state champion 800m), Reagan Exley ’24 (track, state champion 1,600m), Kate Tuttle ’24, Mackenzie Fulgham ’24, Tenley Overdeck ’24, Evie Kim ’22 (track, state champions, girls 4x400), Mackenzie Fulgham ’24 (track, third place 400m), Maya Davis ’23 (track, third place, 200m), Arielle Kouyoumdjian ’25 (track, third place, 3,200m), Sasha Minsky ’24 (track, third place, 3,200m)

Potomac’s BOYS TENNIS team had another strong season, achieving an 11-7 record. The team finished as runner-up to nationally ranked Sidwell Friends in the MAC and ranked #6 in Virginia.

The season got off to a rocky start with a 1-4 record as the team faced three of the top teams in the DMV, but the Panthers finished strong, winning 10 out of 13 matches to close the year. They lost to Sidwell Friends in the MAC Tournament finals and to Trinity Episcopal in a highly competitive State Tournament match.

The future looks bright, as the team has 11 returning players, including three of its top singles players – Eli Butler ’24, Andrew Mu ’25, and Alexander Zhou ’23. The lineup is bolstered by a number of strong doubles teams, which gives hope for a great 2023 season.

Building on a strong indoor season, our GIRLS outdoor TRACK AND FIELD team placed third out of 15 teams in the ISL and fourth at VISAA States. Both team scores were Potomac’s highest in more than a decade! Maya Davis ’23 tied the school record in the 200m and joined Reagan Exley ’24, Mackenzie Fulgham ’24, Evie Kim 22, Arielle Kouyoumdjian ’25, Tenley Overdeck ’24, and Kate Tuttle ’24 in earning All-State honors for their excellent performances. At Nationals, our girls 4x4 relay (Fulgham, Kim, Overdeck, and Tuttle) finished fourth in the emerging elite division, and the Panthers also achieved a fourth-place finish in the distance medley relays (Exley, Fulgham, Genevieve Harris ’23, and Tuttle). Exley finished 16th overall in the girls emerging elite mile, with a time of 5:09. The future looks bright, as most of the runners return next year!

BOYS TRACK AND FIELD posted many strong performances on the state and national levels this past spring. The team finished third out of six teams participating in the MAC Championships, with Charlie Ortmans ’23 and Hudson La Force ’22 earning All-League honors. The Panthers placed 12th at VISAA States, with Sasha Minsky ’24 earning All-State honors. Several of the boys went on to compete at Nationals: Matt Brow ’24 earned All-American honors in the Race Walk event; Donovan Dais ’25 (100m) and Zach DalvaBaird ’25 (1 mile) qualified in the freshman division; and Ortmans competed in both the Championship 1 mile and 2 mile. This season, Ortmans also set stellar school records in the 1,600 and 3,200m with times of 4:11 and 9:15 respectively.

Front row (l to r): Helen Otteni (Washington and Lee, soccer); Kayla Rolph (William & Mary, basketball); Evie Kim (Johns Hopkins, track and field)

Back row (l to r): BJ McNeil (Dickinson College, basketball); Kevin Check (Wake Forest, football); TJ Takis (Hamilton College, baseball); Atiba De Souza (Washington and Lee, football); Andrew Ruggeri (University of Pennsylvania, baseball); Austin Smith (Virginia Wesleyan University, basketball); Ryan Huppe (Wabash College, golf); Alexander Akbari (Williams College, squash)

2022 grads slated to play at the college level