As this school year comes to a close, the Vikings will bid farewell to their senior athletes. Whether they are four-year captains or players with less of a starring role, these students’ contributions will be missed in some way by their teams.
The void that these players will leave needs to be filled in the upcoming season, partly by this year’s underclassmen. Here are several underclassmen that The Schreiber Times expects to take on lead roles on their respective teams during next season.
Sophomore Steven Sandoval,
Boys Soccer
Current sophomore Steven Sandoval will begin his third season with the boys varsity soccer team next year. All three captains of the soccer team, seniors Luke Rizzo, Eren Alkan, and Shogo Yamamoto, are graduating after having a successful season—excluding an early loss—this year.
Sandoval is one of the three players selected to replace these captains and hopes that he can live up to his teammates’ expectations.
“Everyone on the team has an important role and I feel that as a captain I could help everyone understand their role and play well,” said Sandoval. “If this happens, we can make a run.”
In preparation for next season, Sandoval and his fellow captains have already scheduled a practice for the team so that they can hit the ground running at the start of the season.
“I’m excited to see how the season will be, but it all starts with training to improve,” said Sandoval.
Sophomore Emma Rosenberg,
Girls Tennis
Next season, sophomore Emma Rosenberg will be playing in her third season for the girls varsity tennis team. Rosenberg has been on the roster since entering Schreiber.
During her freshman year, Rosenberg played doubles with her older sister. This year she played alongside fellow sophomore Sydney Levy.
This season, the pair won their match by a score of 6-3, 5-7, 6-2 against Manhasset in the Nassau County Championship to clinch a 4-3 overall win for the Lady Vikings.
This upcoming season will likely be Rosenberg’s first season playing singles for the team.
“Personally, I’ve been working hard on improving my game and hopefully I will be able to win most of my matches again,” said Rosenberg. “As a team, we still have a bunch of strong players and some really good players moving up from JV, so hopefully we can continue our streak.”
In her new role, Rosenberg hopes to continue improving her game. In particular, she has been working on strengthening her backhands, which she considers one of her less-developed skills.
Freshman Aaron Siff-Scherr,
Cross Country
Freshman Aaron Siff-Scherr, a runner for the Vikings for the past three seasons, is looking to keep up the strong statistics he recorded during his freshman year.
“Aaron defied his age this year with his performance, and I definitely think that he has a lot left in store for the next few years. What he did this year speaks for itself, but I definitely think that there’s much more in the tank,” said sophomore Andrew Adelhardt.
During this school year, Siff-Scherr ran a 4:40 mile, a 2:04 800 meter, and a 17:29 5k.
For this upcoming season, look for Siff-Scherr to contribute to Viking wins and fill whatever role the captains require him to fill.
“I believe that, like I have this past season, I can contribute by going hard both in practice and at meets,” said Siff-Scherr. “For me, the most important thing is helping and inspiring my teammates towards getting that ‘W,’ so I will do my best to assist with anything the team needs.”
Sophomore Zach Jimenez,
Boys Volleyball
In his sophomore year, Zach Jimenez was already a two-sport varsity athlete, making the roster in both volleyball and basketball. In volleyball, Jimenez wants to help the team repeat winning the Nassau County Championship.
“For both sports, I feel that I bring good energy to the team and I am very committed during practices,” said Jimenez. “Being a returning teammate, I’ll make sure that the team has good chemistry and is bonding very well. Not everyone is going to be the star, so you have to learn to embrace your role, whatever that may be, to try to maximize the team’s success.”
Now, as a returning player, Jimenez is working to integrate newcomers like the now-graduating seniors did when he joined the team. He is hoping that he will be able to repeat this year’s success with the new roster.
“He has a lot of potential, and it’s up to him to reach that potential,” said senior Simon Shapiro.