Boys Winter Track
Last year, the boys winter track team finished as the runner up in the conference, and they sent then-senior James Burns to states. The team looks to stay on track this season behind junior and captain Peter Kirgis, who has extremely high expectations for the team this year.
“Our goal is to win the conference and send a relay and some individuals to the state meet. We are eager to compete to become conference champions and to hopefully have some qualify for the state meet,” said Kirgis.
Look for Kirgis, along with several teammates, to try to keep up his play from the cross country season. Last fall, Kirgis recorded a personal record of 16:47 on his 5k and was the only member of his team selected to participate in states.
Girls Winter Track
The girls winter track team, led by key runners such as senior captains Jenny Aguiar, Neve Devine, and Laura Russo, is hoping to contend for a conference title. Besides those runners, many others hope to improve and succeed.
“I think that for us to win a conference title, we will need every runner to individually step up and put in the hard work,” said junior Ashley Randall.
Head Coach Jeremiah Pope stresses a hard working mentality, which he hopes will pay off at the conference meet in January.
Boys Bowling
Despite the graduation of former captain Jameson Santelli, who scored a perfect game for the Vikings last season, the boys varsity bowling team still has high aspirations. Last year, the varsity bowling team came in second in its conference, and it has several returning members of last year’s team.
Without the leadership of both Santelli and then-senior captain Murphy Siegel, it will be up to these returning members to try to fill in the void.
“Like last year, I believe our only real competition for the conference will be Manhasset. They have been very good competition for us, but I still believe in our team,” said junior Matt Spier.
Girls Gymnastics
The girls gymnastics team has a high goal for its upcoming season: going undefeated in the regular season. One major factor in this goal is the team’s chemistry from several seasons together.
“It is important to develop strong relationships on the team so that we can work together to achieve a common goal,” said senior Olivia Ressa. “Although gymnastics seems to be an individual sport, it really takes teamwork and cooperation for everything to come together.”
Expected leading performers include seniors Sam Hoffman, Lauren Rudman, Jackie Labbe, Olivia Ressa, and junior Sera Ellerson; incoming underclassmen will attempt to balance out a roster including many returning members.
Boys Wrestling
The boys wrestling team has been working hard in the offseason to improve its success for this season.
“The coaching staff has been making a huge push to get guys working out and wrestling all year round, which is really what it takes to be successful in the sport,” said senior captain Sam Goldman.
Although the team has lost Nick DiLucia, a graduating senior and the third place finisher in the county, the team has a returning senior class led by Goldman and Elmer Mendez, along with junior Teddy Tanenbaum, all of whom are ranked wrestlers in Nassau County.
Underclassmen such as sophomore Henry Burns are hoping to have breakout seasons to further contribute to the team’s success.
Boys Basketball
Losing graduating members such as Ryan Kriftcher, David Kobus, and Jermaine Brown has left a void in minutes and leadership for the boys varsity basketball team, but it does not seem to be affecting their confidence.
“We expect to make it to the playoffs. We lost a lot of key players from graduation but that doesn’t lower our expectations for the team,” said junior Zach Jimenez.
Many teammates expect senior Noah Linder to lead the team, followed by seniors Kyle Cohen and Cole Block. Younger players like Jimenez and sophomore Adam Mizrahi look to fill in the void left by departing seniors.
Overall, the team has its sights set on the postseason.
Girls Basketball
The girls varsity basketball team is full of experienced seniors, who have built chemistry over the years.
“The seniors on the team this year have played together since elementary school and we know each other’s strengths and weaknesses really well,” said senior Kate Kerin.
Along with many talented underclassman, senior Mia Walker is expected to be a main focus for the team this year.
“She’s the glue to our team,” said Kerin
Boys Swimming
Last season was one of the boys swimming team’s better seasons in recent memory. The team finished at 8-4 in Conference II, with a season-defining win against Cold Spring Harbor, a team that the Vikings had not beaten for several years.
This upcoming season, the team will have to deal with the graduation of former seniors such as Will Smith, who qualified for the Nassau Country Final Meet in all five of his seasons for the team.
“Reilly Beckstrand and Matt Terbancea, who are now seniors, will both be big contributors this season in their respective events. In addition, Thomas Vincent and newcomer Derek Knight, in eighth and ninth grade respectively, will be valuable assets for the distance events. While these I feel will be the key contributors, I can guarantee that everybody will contribute greatly to the team this year,” said junior Owen Walsh.
Girls Bowling
After having multiple seniors graduate last year, the girls bowling team will need its younger players to step up in order to keep up the team’s success over the past few seasons.
The team is eyeing a win in its division.
“I expect the team to improve their techniques and become closer with each other,” said junior Vera Puglisi, who has been on the team since her freshman year.