Wyvern Nation Sports Wraps – October 31, 2019

Cross Country

The Boys’ Cross Country team finished eighth out of 11 schools during their Shaler Invitational Cross Country Meet at Williston Northampton on Oct. 26. Captain Ethan Pinkes ‘20 finishing 14th overall to earn a medal (top fifteen) in a time of 18:12. Kevin Graziosi ‘22, was 22nd overall with a time of 18:45. Finishing out the varsity race for KO were Sam Merkatz ‘22, captain Will Burstein ‘20, Sam Bromberg ‘23, and Elan Stadelmann ‘20.

*At the time of this writing, JV results were not available from the timer. However, Justin Rios ‘22 was the first runner for KO in the JV race, followed by Braeden Rose ‘21, Aakash Gunturu ‘22, Nate Brodrick ‘22, Marrich Somridhivej ‘22, and Shumayl Sheik Syed ‘22.

The Middle School Cross Country team attended the 1.8 mile Dodd Invitational at Cheshire Park on Oct. 28. Besides KO, the other schools racing were Kennedy, Holy Trinity, Dodd, Shelton, Depaolo, Washington, and Moran. The weather was partly cloudy with low humidity and low winds. The temperature was about 64°F at the start of the race. Sasha Dausey ‘25 came in first place for KO in the girls’ race and 20th place overall, and Jaden Smith ‘24, came in first place for KO in the boys’ race and placed 49th overall. There were over 300 runners in the race. The course consisted of two loops, starting with a loop around a field and a small portion was in the woods. The second loop included the same portion of the field but the part of the loop that was in the woods was much longer and included a steep, rocky hill. After going through the woods, the loop continued around the tennis courts and finished again, on the field. There was mud in many places and the grass was very wet on the field but overall, the conditions were mild. For some of our runners, this was their last meet of the season and it was this was their chance to show off how they’ve improved throughout the season. Everyone has made so much progress since day one and this meet shows the improvement the whole team has made.

Field Hockey
The Varsity Field Hockey team lost to Berkshire in overtime 1-0 on Oct. 26. The Wyverns played a tough game, fought hard, and dominated the field; however, receiving three cards hurt KO and put them a man down in our 7v7 OT. Despite their win, Berkshire had a tough time keeping up with Wyvern speed throughout the game. The Wyverns’ skill was impressive, but by the end of the game both teams were exhausted. Our midfield played a solid game with Tori Swanson ‘21, Abby McLaughlin ‘23, Arie Lang ‘23 and Allie Kotowitz ‘23. Our defenders fought hard to keep Berkshire out of our circle and were led by Keegan McMahon ‘21, Margo Dogiewicz ’21, Cami Forslund ‘21, and Alex Arnold ‘23. Goalie Caitlin Budzik ‘21 had seven saves and played a great game with her dives and quick feet. 

The Varsity Field Hockey team won 3-1 against Gunnery on Oct. 30. We started off great and ended the same way. We connected with our passes beautifully and executed plays and made them work the entire way down the field. Goalie Caitlin Budzik ’21 had a great game with 10 saves. Our first goal was scored by Abby McLaughlin ‘22 who stayed low in the circle and put the ball in the net as it came across the goal. Tori Swanson ‘21 had the assist on that goal. As time ticked off the clock we kept on frustrating Gunnery due to our speed and stopping at almost every chance we got. Our speed seems to be no match for any team we come up against. Our midfield which has most of our speed held us together with their constant pressure led by Abby McLaughlin ‘22, Tori Swanson ‘21, Arie Lang ‘22 and Allie Kotowitz ‘23. Arie had made some great plays all game to get us down the field. Cici Chagnon ‘21 scored a beautiful goal on a breakaway. Gunnery’s goalie came out to challenge her but she took a quick shot that was too fast for the goalie to react to and it went in. Alyssa Pavano ‘22 also scored a beautiful goal that was sent into the circle by Cici. The ball popped up into the air and as it came down Alyssa raised her stick and tipped it in. Other game standouts were Alex D’Addabbo ‘20, Madeline Pelletier ’20, Izzy Burke ‘21, Lucia Gomez ‘23, Issy Rome ‘21, Katharine Doar ‘22, Hannah Shames ‘20, Alex Arnold ‘23, Keegan McMahon ‘21, Margo Dogiewicz’21, Cami Forslund ‘21.

The Middle School Field Hockey team won against Renbrook 3-0 on Oct. 26. The team adjusted nicely to their second grass game in four days immediately putting pressure on the Renbrook defense. Early on in the first half, a hard KO shot from the top of the circle caused a defensive rebound by Renbrook to dribble back into the goal for the KO lead. The offensive movement continued throughout the first half where Hadley Crowther ’25 had a strong pass to Lia Arnold ’25 for the 2-0 lead. KO took advantage of an offensive corner late in the first on a beautiful play from Crowther to Arnold, who then passed to Charlotte Sorensen ’24 who tallied the final goal of the game! Renbrook came out strong in the second half having made some adjustments to their line up. Still, Ysabel Albert ’25 was tremendous in goal with five powerful saves and clears. Emma Barringer ’24 led the defense while Eleanor Farquhar ’26 created fast break moments with her quick passes. Brigette Russell ’26 and Victoria Layden ’24 had great opportunities at the goal with continued pressure in the second half. Meghan Jo ’25, Meredith Decker ’25 and Jenna Kanaan ’25 were important midfielders in the game, as they continued to feed the ball to our offensive lines. Ava Pear ’25 and Nika Garfield ’25 also had strong contributions defensively. The team remains undefeated at 8-0 with their last game honoring our Form 2 players on Wednesday, November 6 on the turf.

Football

The Varsity Football team lost 29-32 against Proctor Academy on Oct. 26. The Wyverns played another close game but came up short against visiting Proctor Academy 32-29. KO received the opening kickoff and proceeded to march sixty yards in 10 plays to score first. The pass-and-catch combination of Sam (‘20)and Nate (‘21) Capodice quickly moved the ball into Proctor territory and Justin Edwards ‘21 barreled in from the one-yard line to make the game 6-0 Wyverns. Not to be outdone, the big-play Proctor offense answered with a drive of their own and evened the score 6-6 with a five-yard touchdown pass on the very next series. The Wyvern offense responded with some tough runs by Edwards that set up a twenty-two yard touchdown run around the right end by Nate Capodice. Capodice took the handoff running full speed and picked up great blocks from Nick Stolfi ‘20 and Sam Smith ‘21 to dive into the corner of the end zone. Tyler Cavo ‘22 added the extra point and KO led 13-6. KO’s opportunistic special teams struck next, with Chris Hudson ‘22 recovering the ensuing kickoff. Unfortunately, the Wyvern offense could not capitalize and gave the ball back to Proctor. The Hornets could not get anything consistent going on offense, but sprung a wide receiver screen on third and long to tie the game at 13-13 going into the half. The second half would go back and forth between the two teams. A huge third-down sack by Mike DeMio ’21 put the Hornets team on the field in the shadow of their own goal post. The snap then sailed high over the punter’s head and out the back of the end zone making the game 15-13 and giving KO the ball back with good field position going into the fourth quarter. Captains Sam Capodice and Wes Pierce ’20 hooked up twice on the next drive. One, on an incredible fourth-down conversion to keep the next drive alive and just plays later finding paydirt with a twenty-yard touchdown pass. The Cavo extra point increased the Wyvern lead to 22-13. As they have done all season, the Hornets would not go away scoring on an eighty-yard screen pass. KO special teams came up big again, blocking the extra point to keep the Wyverns ahead 22-19. Proctor forced a KO fumble on the next series and scored on a 58-yard touchdown run. The extra point was good and the score tilted 26-22 in their favor. KO’s high flying offense responded with a long pass down the left sideline from Capodice to Jeff Davis ’21 and a touchdown pass to Nate Capodice in the back corner of the end zone. With the Cavo extra point, the score swung back to 29-22 Wyverns. Proctor would come back with a pitch-and-catch of their own hitting their tight end on a crossing route for the next score. The extra point sailed wide and Proctor took the lead back 32-29. With time running out the KO offense marched seventy-five yards in ten plays but Capodice was intercepted in the end zone and Proctor was able to take a knee and the victory.

Soccer

The Varsity Boys’ Middle School Soccer team tied Renbrook 1-1 on Oct. 26. On Saturday morning, the Wyverns traveled to Renbrook for a rematch of the tightly contested 1-0 victory on Hewett Day the previous weekend. Just like last week, this game proved to be much the same. After a scoreless first half that saw both defenses hold firm, especially with the efforts of KO’s Griffin O’Shaughnessy ’24, Renbrook got on the board early in the second half off a direct kick from 20 yards. KO goalie Finn Boyd ’24 did well to prevent the kick from going in the top right corner but was unable to stop the rebound from being tucked in the net by an oncoming Renbrook player. KO trailed until four minutes to go, as we pressed forward and sweeper Cole Banning ’24 moved upfront. He struck a long ball from about 30 yards that got over the keeper’s head and towards the goal line. It is debatable whether the ball was already over the line when KO’s Scotty Cloud ’25 touched it. Either way, the result was a game-tying goal! For the record, considering that Cole is a three-year player and a defender with no previous goals in his KO career, the official scorekeeper has ruled that it was indeed Banning’s first career goal. More importantly, this was an exciting, hard-earned tie for the team. This tie definitely feels like a win.

The JV Girls’ Soccer team won 5-0 against Hotchkiss on Oct. 26. After having the week to prepare and nurse some injuries, the girls were ready to get back at it and dominated possession of the ball for much of the game. Molly Jones ’20 scored less than two minutes into the game off a cross from Natalia Correa ’22. Natalia then scored less than two minutes later on a breakaway from a throw by Sattah Phouthakoun ’23. Correa scored her second goal of the game in the middle of the half off a cross from Tess Chapman ’23. Remy McCoy ’20 scored with 11 minutes left in the half off a cross from Sloan Duvall ’21 and the Wyverns took a 4-0 lead into the break. While the second half played out much of the same way, the Wyverns only found the back of the net once. Annabelle Jacobs ’23scored at the far post off a cross by Tess Chapman to put the Wyverns up 5-0. Cai Kuivila ’20 made two important saves in net. The back four of Sophia Kaufman ’20, Noelle Wilkes ’23, Brooke Seaver ’21, and Sattah Phouthakoun ’23 kept the Hotchkiss attack at bay for much of the game. The girls are 7-4 heading into a game home on Monday vs. Greenwich Country Day.

The Varsity Girls’ Soccer team lost 0-2 to a very talented Hotchkiss team on October 26 (Senior Day). It was a beautiful day for soccer and KO stuck together for the entire eighty minutes. Several injuries created the opportunity for others to step up and KO did a fantastic job adjusting to the changes. Hotchkiss pressed early and often, but KO’s defense held strong with Jamie Scarpantio ’20 leading the effort. Hotchkiss got on the scoreboard midway through the first half, and the score would remain 0-1 until late in the game. Jillian Wells ’20 had her best game of the season in the net, making several key saves and directing the defense in sorting out their marks. Mai Lin Pomp-Shine ‘20 also had one of her best games, leaving everything she had on the field. KO hits the road for its final two games of the season, first traveling to Berkshire on October 30th and then to Taft on November 6th.

The Varsity Girls’ Soccer team lost 1-3 to Berkshire on Oct. 30. Berkshire came out with speed and intensity. KO initially had trouble containing a very talented striker from the opponent but as the game progressed, the team was able to regroup and truly compete for the remainder of the match. Jamie Scarpantonio ‘20 had another solid performance in the back and also had a beautiful strike towards the end of the first half to get KO on the scoreboard. With multiple injuries, KO really stuck together and left everything on the field.

Volleyball

For the first time in recent history, KO Varsity Volleyball beat Loomis Chaffee at home in an exciting five-set match on Oct. 30. The match was an exciting one going to a five-set tiebreaker (25-19, 16-25, 25-18, 14-25, 15-9). The girls worked so well together as a team and fought hard to the end, with the help of an energetic and loud KO fan base. Sydney Smith ‘21 continued to be an offensive force, with many kills in every game. Audrey Decker ‘20 had an excellent game in the middle, with her off-speed hits and some great blocks. Lucy Gardner ‘21 was equally as effective as the outside hitting around the big block and finding the holes with her off-speed attacks. All three of these hitters had a great day due to the good sets they got from Kathryn Westrick ‘20, who had a few key tips in the match as well. Bella Leuschner ‘20 had a good day on the serving line, earning a string of points in the first three sets, and Trinity Hudson’ 20 had an excellent day defensively, passing well off many Loomis attacks, and Mackenzie Caruso ‘22 continued her consistent libero play. A special shout to Jillian Plaut ‘23 who entered the match when Hudson sprained her ankle in the final set. Playing a position she hadn’t yet played in the game, Plaut held her own as KO won the final two points. It was a great day for KOVB! KO is now 10-4 and will travel to Berkshire on Saturday.

The JV Volleyball team won 3-1 against Miss Porters on Oct. 26. The Wyverns have been working on their consistency and focus in games all year, and their performance against Miss Porter’s was the product of that hard work throughout the season. Powerful hits from the front row and deep serving from Serafina Squatrito ’22 and Rinese Sterling ’21 helped put the team on the board and get their momentum going in the first game. Melissa Hasbrouck ’21 made her mark from the front row with hits at impossible angles. In the back row, Risha Ranjan ’21 held her ground to ensure that the deep serving from Miss Porter’s was met with high, playable passes for the rest of our team. Because some Wyverns were missing, they had to make some adjustments to cover the gaps. Co-captain Esha Kataria ’20 provided effective setting in a 5-1 setup (we are used to a 4-2) for the entire game, and Eve Repp ’23 made play after play, offensive and defensive, from the right side for all four games. This was an impressive group effort, with everyone pitching in to make up for our absent players and contributing to all aspects of the game.

The Varsity Volleyball team lost 2-3 against Miss Porters on Oct. 26. KO lost an exciting five-set match to Miss Porters on Saturday 2-3; the set scores were: 19-25, 25–18, 25-22, 10-25, 12-15). Sydney Smith ‘21 continued her strong offensive record, finding the holes from both the front and back rows. KO was able to put up some strong blocks, most notably from Audrey Decker ‘20 and Trinity Hudson ‘20 in the middle and from Smith and Kathryn Westrick ‘20 on the outside and right side respectively. Bella Leuschner ‘20 had strong serving in the second set to put KO in the lead, which they maintained for the remainder of the set. Smith did the same thing in the third set, getting to the line at 16-18 and bringing KO ahead to 20-18. KO then held the lead and won the third set. Lucy Gardner ‘21 used her off-speed hit at some key times throughout the match to score points for KO. Mackenzie Caruso ‘22 also had a very busy day in the libero position, picking up some hard-hit balls from the Porters’ offense. The fifth and final set was exciting, as KO fought back from 7-10 to tie the score before Porters pulled ahead closed out the match with strong serving. KO is now 9-4 and will face Loomis Chaffee at home on Wednesday.

In an incredibly suspenseful and tight match, the Middle School Volleyball team won 3-2 (out of five games) against Ethel Walker on Oct. 26. Over the course of an exciting five sets, KO players fought hard to keep the serve and communicate with each other on the court. Ava Cashman ‘24 and Els Morris ‘25 both had a powerful run of serves! We also want to thank all three of our Upper Prep players, Lola Peck ‘26, Betsy Mandell ‘26, and Sanya Sadiq ‘26 for supporting their team and working hard to improve their skills on the court. We can’t wait for our final two games of the season!

The Middle School Volleyball team won 2-1 against Hopkins on Oct. 30. Our players took feedback from the previous game and worked hard to communicate with each other on the court. During today’s game, Alexa Prahl ‘24 delivered a nice serve over the net and had some well-placed hits! In addition, Maia Killory ‘24 and Lola Peck ‘26 did a nice job calling the ball. We also want to thank Form 2 player Jillian Alexander ‘24 for her great leadership during today’s sets. Finally, Margaret Kinney ‘25 ended the last set with a strong hit to the other side of the net! We’re looking forward to finishing the season with an exciting final game next week.