Winter Sports Wrap Up : 2013

Winter Sports Wrap Up 2013
By Tom Sheehan and Lam Nguyen

Swimming:

            Our Sterling Swim Team had another great year winning their division with a 7-7 record which makes it the third year in a row that they won the division. The team also made school history making the state team play-offs and winning a meet there too! The team was coached by Stephen Tucker with the assistance of Coach DiBartolomeo and two volunteer coaches, Coach Diane Tucker and Coach Rob Strauss. The team was led by captains Brittany Sims, Ashley Sims, Nicole Kelly, Tommy Sheehan, and Andrew Mottola who displayed all the characteristics of leaders in and out of the pool. Going into the season the team wanted to win the division and make the playoffs, and they succeeded with flying colors. The whole team was commended for all their hard work they put in order to accomplish their goals, but two swimmers were commended for their achievements this year. Ashley Sims was commended for breaking the 50 free, 100 free, and the 100 butterfly this year and Andrew Mottola was commended for breaking every individual record on the board. The team’s future goals are to stay competitive and strive to become better in every event. The team’s season is over but Andrew Mottola has qualified for the State Individual Championships in March, so we wish him the best of luck in this meet!

Wrestling:

            The Sterling Wrestling had a pretty good year ending the regular season with 6-19 but now they are getting ready for the individual portion of the season. The team is coached by Coach Will O’Donnell with the assistance of Coach Brendan Griffin. The team was led by Senior captains Edgar Castellanos, Eduardo Castellanos, Jordin Saur, and Scot Emers who all led by example  being the hardest workers on the mat. Edgar and Eduardo Castellanos were commended this season for their leadership, hard work, help and dedication to the team. They were an integral part of the team and helped the team accomplish what they did this season. Going into the season, the team’s goal was to wrestle to the best of their ability and improve every match.  A typical practice starts with a roll call and stretches followed with 30 minutes of drills. Then they start with top and bottom positions, and specific moves. To end practice they do live wrestling for 30 minutes and then they end practice with hard conditioning. Going forward, the team wants to keep improving by wrestling and training as much as possible over the off season to try and get bigger and stronger for the upcoming year.

Boys Basketball:

             Our Boys’ Basketball Team has had a very good year so far with a current record of 17-8 but their season is not over yet, so they are going to continue to improve this record. The team is coached by Coach Atene along with Coach McCullough, Coach Stuart, Coach Barringer, and Coach Howey who have all been with the team for a while. The team is led by team captains Marcus Taylor, Khalil Howard, Jerry Crismond, and Connor Walsh who have all worked hard and shown good leadership so far, but now they are stepping up and getting ready to lead the team the rest of the way. All the success in their season has been an overall team effort; however, Khalil Howard has been commended for being a “beast” this season day in and day out. Going into the season, the team had high goals like winning the conference, having a 20 win season and winning Group 2. The team didn’t win the conference but their season is not over so their other two goals are still there and very achievable. In the future the team wants to continue to play with a sense of urgency, desire, and passion to improve on both sides of the court offensively, and defensively. Teamwork is key to the success of any team so they want to try and improve this as well. As I said before though, their season is not over and they have their first home playoff game coming up soon against Deptford, so we wish them the best of luck and hope they achieve their goals!

Girls’ Basketball:

            The Lady Knights had another spectacular season, with a record of 21-4, and it’s still not over yet. The team is coached by Kate McDonald, along with the assistance of Matt Macpherson and Chris Jones. The team is led senior captains Tori Shinkowitz, Tyra Satchell, Anyssa Sanchez, and Courtney O’Neill, who all led by example, putting all their efforts into everything they do on and off the court. Every player contributed to the team’s success, but two people had especially remarkable seasons. Both Tyra Satchell and Anyssa Sanchez recorded their 1,000th point this year. Going into the season, the Lady Knights had high hopes to win the conference, have a 20 win season, and go far in the playoffs. So far, they have accomplished these feats, and with an added bonus, had two players shatter the 1000 point barrier. The girls are on a hot streak, winning 15 out of their last 16 games. Playoffs start on Monday, and we wish them the best of luck!

Check out the article from the Philadelphia Inquirer on our Lady Knight, Tyra Satchell - http://articles.philly.com/2013-02-24/sports/37271891_1_tyra-satchell-aau-basketball-grade-school

Winter Track:

            The Winter Track team had a very successful season. The team is coached by Jeff McIlvane and James Blumenstein. Although there are no captains, the team is led by Jimmy Daniels, Randy Gonzales, Devin Thompson, Ateera Wyatt, Ebony Felder, and Chanel Jenkins. The team had one goal this year: to have the most athletes reach their potential and individual goals. They have surpassed this goal. The whole team was commended on their outstanding performances, but several people stood out. Jimmy Daniels made history by running an incredible 9:14 2-mile, setting one of the meet records. Victor “O” did great in high jump this year and Devin Thompson qualified for the Meet of Champions for hurdles.

            A typical practice schedule includes a warm up of running 2 laps around the track and a running drill series. The team then breaks up into groups of throwers, sprinters, jumpers, and distance runners to start their workouts for the day. In the offseason, the team hopes to improve on their fitness and technical skills in events. We wish those who qualified for states the best of luck!

Cheerleading:

            The cheerleading team, coached by Mimma Cammarata and Kelli Badey, had a good season. The season ends the same time as the basketball teams’. A lot of first time cheerleaders came out and they made significant progress. There are five twisting stunt groups and the team is performing difficult cheers. The girls’ improvements in a few short months have been very impressive. A typical practice schedule includes running two laps while saying the cheers, stretching, crunches & pushups, lines/plans for the day’s games, and working on cheers/dances. The team hopes to get better with more practice and experience. We can’t wait to see them next year!