Spring Sports Season to Kick Off at Wooster School

Spring Sports at Wooster School

The preseason practices are over; the snow is melting as the weather is getting warmer, campus is starting to bloom and the spring sports season is about to begin! Upper and Middle School students will begin competing in baseball, cross country, golf, lacrosse, tennis, and ultimate frisbee!

Boys Baseball

The Wooster varsity baseball team is looking to have a very good season with a mix of senior leadership, returning underclassmen, and some new players joining the team. The squad will turn to seniors Stephan Perrault, Michael Ambrosio, and Arda Buyuklu to provide veteran leadership as the team navigates the tough HVAL schedule.  Stephan returns as the No. 1 starting pitcher, Michael will help anchor a strong infield, and Arda brings speed to the outfield. 

Joining the seniors will be returning players Bennett Wattles and Max Morales-Thomason, both infielders and pitchers, Silas Munk - infield, Jarrett White - outfield, and Owen O’Connell - infield/outfield. The team welcomes back Josh Carone - infield, Revan Lazarus - catcher, Ben Everett - infield/outfield, and Michael Lynch - super utility player. The Baseball team’s goals are to compete every game, show improvement throughout the season, have fun, and make a statement in the HVAL’s.  

The Generals open up their game schedule at home vs. Harvey School on April 5.

Coed Golf

The Wooster golf team is coming into the spring looking forward to adding to the momentum of last year. Many of the top golfers are back from the 2016 season, which should make for an even more competitive 2017 season. There are a few newcomers, who will undoubtedly challenge our returning golfers for playing time in our match-play tournaments.

The team is led by Coach Dan Hannibal, of the Golf Performance Center. He is a very experienced and licensed golf instructor with a vision and method for individual and team improvement. The Wooster School golf team plays in the Housatonic Valley Athletic League.

The Generals open up the season with a match vs. Chase Collegiate and South Kent School at Candlewood Valley Country Club on April 5.

Boys Lacrosse

The Generals varsity boys lacrosse team is anxious for the 2017 season to start. The bulk of the team is returning to defend their Western New England Championship. On attack, Cosme Navarro and Cole Hollett return and Gib Shea looks to contribute in a more direct way this year. The midfield is going to work hard. Chris Gephardt, Jacob Smith, and Tyler Wagnblass will run the first line and we are looking for Thomas Da Cruz and Sawyer Moore to step up and contribute more significant minutes. 

The defense is solid with Natty Heyman back in goal for his senior year with his classmates Matt Costello, Vincent Eckstein, and All-American Kern Byrnes protecting him. Ben Holloway and James Rapp will help all over the field. 

Our team’s first attitude and belief in high standards for one another will make this a great season for the boys. Last year we surprised a lot of teams. This year, they will be gunning for us and in addition we added challenging games - St. Lukes, King, Hamden Hall as well as keeping Rye Country Day - all very good DII teams.  The focus will be getting better with each and every opportunity.  It won’t be easy, but we don’t want it to be.

The Generals season opened on March 29 with a 6-13 loss to King School.

Girls Lacrosse

After losing only two seniors to graduation in 2016, the 2017 varsity girls lacrosse team has a strong core group of returners. Seven seniors will be leading the pack -- Brianna Clarke-Ellis, Marie Klepacz, Paige Storrier, Sarah Fried, Venus Okwuka, Tess Cicala, and Josie Morales-Thomason.

We also expect major contributions from our juniors Brittany Reid, Morgan McCutcheon (last year’s MVP), and we welcome the return of Lizzie Nicoletti after missing all of last season. Sophomores Nicole Caraballo (last year’s Most Improved), Kayla Morales-Thomason, Kate Hynes, and Libby Hinshaw will use their experience from last year to make a bigger impact on the field this season. The team also looks forward to new additions, yet lacrosse veterans, freshmen Alicia Nicoletti and Kate Casey; and we are excited to have soccer goalie Emma Delattre stepping into our vacancy in net.

This will also be the second year for Head Coach Brooke Thaler, which alleviates the getting-to-know-you part of preseason, and allows the team to jump right in where we left off last spring. The team ended the 2016 campaign with a 3-10 record, and Coach Thaler feels confident that we’ll end our 2017 season with a record that more accurately reflects the success, hard work, and abilities of Wooster Girls Varsity Lacrosse. We are all looking forward to a great spring season! 

The Generals open up their season at home vs. The Master’s School on April 5.

Boys Tennis

The Varsity Boys Tennis team will once again have a largely young squad led by only a few seniors. We look to improve upon our 4 - 9 record of last year and hope to return to the top of the league standings, and ultimately the New England Tournament. Several members of the team have continued to play through the off-season which will only make us more competitive coming out of the gate.

The Generals open up their season on April 3 on the road at Christian Heritage School.

Girls Tennis

Girls Varsity Tennis is on the rise this year. With only two seniors leaving our squad last year, we are poised to have a great year of development, competition, and fun!  Serena Sheth (Sophomore) returns to the Generals off of a first-team all-star campaign and MVP season as a Freshmen. We also expect great things from Junior Liz Fanzilli, who spent much of the summer training and making sure she would be in good form for the tennis season! Players who are returning this year and are expected to make significant contributions include Caitlyn Strauss, Olivia Edelman, Catherine Wang, Ruiying Wang, and Emily Glazer. Joining us and looking to break into the line-up are Emmanuela Aspras, Mimi Pelton-McCormick, Karelin Dominguez, Monisha Mohan, and Melanie Vazquez.

This year we are looking to build endurance, confidence, and resilience. The 2016 season brought about a 3-10 record; but, we expect to make strides as players and as a team. Coach Sacco is planning to set doubles teams earlier this season so that girls get more time with their partner and, hopefully, we can squeak out more points from the doubles teams. Additionally, in our best Jay-Z style, we are going to install the "Go-on Brush Your Shoulders Off" way of letting go of our errors and focus on the next point. Tennis is one of the most difficult games to play because it is often only one or two people in the arena combating interpersonal and intrapersonal forces! We plan, as always, to do the best we can and improve every day! Come on out this spring if you can and let's go Tennis Generals!!!

The Generals open up their season at home vs. Christian Heritage School on April 3.

Ultimate Frisbee

The Wooster Ultimate Frisbee Team has an ambitious agenda for the 2017 season. The team is returning twelve of our top fourteen players with the possibility of adding three or four more quality players to supplement that roster. The returning players are Brogan Heneghan, Drew Schnaudigel, Brandon Reid, Cooper Byrnes, Anthony Vines, Jack Barsh, Simon Felicione, Matt Eskenazi, Oliver Brown, Lucas Fink, and Nick Wyckoff. Possible additions to the team will come from the pool of Trixie Betz, Sam Cox, Ian McBrayer, Juan Espinoza, Charlie Stuhr, and Haktan Ceylan. 

Our first goal is to win the HVAL title for the first time for Wooster. We are returning all seven starters and will have even more depth this year than last. Our second goal is to make the A Division of the Connecticut State Tournament. Our third and final goal will be to play in the New England Prep School Ultimate League Championship Tournament for the first time ever. The depth of the team and the proven athleticism that they collectively bring to the sport, leave the team in a unique position in the history of Wooster Ultimate. We now have to go out and fulfill the promise that the season provides for us!

The Generals open up their season on April 5 on the road at The Master’s School.

Support our students and coaches this spring season! See the spring sports team schedules and latest results here: http://www.woosterschool.org/page.cfm?p=610  

Go Generals!

To learn more about Wooster School visit http://www.woosterschool.org/ or contact Wooster School Admissions at (203) 830-3916.

D
Submitted by Danbury, CT

Become a Local Voice in Your Community!

HamletHub invites you to contribute stories, events, and more to keep your neighbors informed and connected.

Read Next