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SPRING SPORTS 2010

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Baseball By Billy Cannon, Head Coach

Another year, another conference title! As the season began, both Coach Gillerlain and I had no idea what to expect from the team. We were pleasantly surprised by the attitude, work ethic and desire as this team bonded like few in the past.

We completed the season undefeated in the Independent Conference, going 12-0 and had an overall record of 14-4. The team was rewarded with the 8 seed in the state tournament and a home playoff game, but fell to a strong Hodgson team in the first round. Overall, this senior class led by captains Max Friedman, Evan Kreshtool, Michael Kreshtool and Andrew

Post Season HonorsBaseball:Ryan Chenault 1st Team All-Conference - PitcherMax Friedman Honorable Mention All-State - Utility 1st Team All-Conference – Pitcher, Out fielder, Conference Player of the YearAndrew Kreshtool 1st Team All-Conference - UtilityEvan Kreshtool 1st Team All-Conference – ShortstopMichael Kreshtool 1st Team All-Conference - OutfieldEvan Mitchell 2nd Team All-Conference – 3rd BaseGeorge Searle 2nd Team All-Conference – 1st Base

Girls’ Tennis:Sydney Butler 3rd Singles State Champion

Track and Field:Noah Chodos All-County: 2nd Place 3200 meters

Girls’ Lacrosse:Katie Applegate 1st Team All-American, 1st Team All- State, 1st Team All- ConferenceKali DiGate 2nd Team All-State, 1st Team All- ConferenceGaby Dressler 1st Team All-ConferenceCaroline Holliday 1st Team All-State, 1st Team All- ConferenceLexi Saunders 2nd Team All-ConferenceEmily Schuckert 1st Team All-American, 1st Team All- State, 1st Team All- Conference, News Journal Player of the Year Taylor VanSickle 2nd Team All-State 1st Team All-Conference

Boys’ Lacrosse:Trip Ashley 1st Team All-Conference, Defense, 1st Team All-State Defense, All-American, Senior All-Star GamePreston Boyden 1st Team All-Conference DefenseStone Lieberman Honorable Mention All-ConferenceDemetrius Murray 1st Team All-Conference Goal, 1st Team All-State Goal, Senior All-Star GameRipley Nielsen 1st Team All-Conference Offense, 1st Team All-State Midfield, All-American, Senior All-Star Game, News Journal Player of the YearChas Robino 1st Team All-Conference Offense, 1st Team All-State Attack

Girls’ SoccerJordan Bills 1st Team All-ConferenceZoe Blake 1st Team All-ConferenceJenny Cusack 2nd Team All-ConferenceElise DeDominicis 2nd Team All-ConferenceGrace Firestone 1st Team All-State, 1st Team All- Conference, Conference Player of the YearChristina Freibott 2nd Team All-State, 1st Team All- ConferenceBrooke Kelly Honorable Mention All-ConferenceHailey Lawler 2nd Team All-ConferenceKelsey O’Donnell 2nd Team All-State,1st Team All- ConferenceChristie Pletz 2nd Team All-ConferenceKendal Robino 1st Team All-State, 1st Team All- Conference

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losses. Jamie Tigani came onto the team as an 8th grader. She took on the other schools with a great sense of maturity way above her years and finished her season with 11 wins and 2 losses. Sydney Butler went from doubles to singles this year and flourished. She swept through the season with 12 wins and no losses. She has matured into a steady, very worthy opponent. Annie Hobbs played 2nd doubles with Darcy Dobis. They have proven to be a very formidable doubles team. They show great mental toughness and never give up. They finished their season with a record of 11 wins and 2 losses. In second doubles we have Abbey Thompson and Lauren Boudreaux. They played with maturity and with a great desire to always do their best. They finished their season with 10 wins and 3 losses, a great record for a new team.

We went into the state tournament with all five teams seeded. Each team reached the exact spot we asked them to get to which resulted in a state tournament victory. Every player did their part in securing this well deserved victory. It was truly many parts coming together. I am very proud of all seven girls and couldn’t ask for any more from them than what they gave. Lucy, Jamie, Sydney Annie and Darcy all reached the finals and Abbey and Lauren reached the semi-finals. Sydney won the 3rd singles championship.

IT WAS A GREAT YEAR!

Boys’ Tennis by Deanna Nagy, Head Coach

Tennis matches are won or lost by the sum total of physical conditioning, technique, intelligence, courage and experience. It’s a lot to ask of an athlete, but there is even more. Imagine playing a game that the appropriate moral judgment must be made not by a referee, but by the player involved in the action. With every ball hit tennis players are put in this role. The line calls they make directly impact the score and often a player must make that call at the expense of his own outcome in the match. Tennis players must know before they step onto the

Kreshtool had a great run at Tower Hill, compiling a record of 65-16 and going 43-3 in conference over the last 4 years.

The team was well represented on the All Conference team as well. Freshman Evan Mitchell (2nd team 3rd baseman), Junior’s George Searle (2nd team 1st baseman) and Ryan Chenault (1st team pitcher) and Coach Paul Gillerlain (assistant coach of the year) were named. Seniors Andrew Kreshtool (1st team utility), Michael Kreshtool (1st team outfield) and Evan Kreshtool (1st team shortstop) were also named. Max Friedman (1st team pitcher and outfielder) was named the Player of the Year for the conference and was named to the All State team as an Honorable Mention Utility player. Friedman and the Kreshtools were also picked to participate in the Blue-Gold All Star Baseball game for their efforts.

Both Coach Gill and I are already looking forward to next season and going after another conference championship.

Girls’ Tennis By Wendy Berkover, Head Coach

This has been a very successful year for the girls’ varsity tennis team. Our captain Lucy Nutting led by example, showing the team what hard practice and dedication are all about. She’s been on the team for 5 years and has grown into a mature and accomplished player. She finished the season with 11 wins and 2

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court that they will always be true to this ethical code. Tennis is always a game of honor.

We finished 3rd in the state championship which is our strongest placing in recent history. Our outstanding varsity seniors, Will Martinez (3rd year captain, 5 year letter winner, 2nd singles) and Brian Felzer (3 year letter winner, 1st doubles), were very much a part of this result. If the saying “you’re only as good as your competition” is true, this team was very good. Highlights of our season included wins over the number 1 and number 2 teams in the state in regular season play. In the state tournament, junior Nolan Bacchieri achieved a berth in the finals at 1st singles and the freshmen team of Ryan Bosse and Zach Rosen also made it to the finals at 2nd doubles. Other members of the varsity were Chris Martinez (3rd singles) and Konnor Houff (1st doubles). On the exhibition team were 4 seniors: Neilay Dedhia, leader in spirit and play, Nicket Dedhia, Juan Montalvo and Phil Deardorff. Congratulations to all our team members for an exciting and outstanding season.

Golf By Rich Pierce, Head Coach

Another competitive Hillers golf season comes to close this year. At 3-10-1, a look at the team record does not accurately reflect the level of play this year. Most matches were very tight and decided by only a small number of strokes or holes. The team stayed tough and

persevered through some hard battles, always working and constantly trying to string some wins together. The defining moment, however, had to be our second match against Westtown this year. Already beaten once by this team in a tight match at Wilmington

Country Club, the Hillers headed out to Applebrook Country Club, a notoriously hard course, two weeks later. The wind was blowing hard that day, making conditions extra difficult, but TH came out to play. In an exciting match that seemed like it could go either way until the last cards came in, the Hillers were victorious, scoring 5.5 to Westtown’s 3.5. Spirits were definitely riding high after that win, as we finally realized what we were capable of. Perhaps this was not our year for the record books, but with our solid line-up of sophomore Maddie Silverman, junior Critter Stott, sophomore Mason Lester, and junior Michael Mistras, and two new rising talents in 8th grader Zach Nitsche and freshman Davie Saunders, the Hillers golf squad will be returning in full force next year and will definitely be the team to watch. Let’s go Hillers!

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Track and Field By Steve Sinko, Head Coach

This season’s track and field team was defined by unity. A small group had to overcome the lack of numbers by being unified to become the best team they could be. Lone senior and captain Sam Greenberg led the way and did his best to make sure our group stayed focused on the task at hand. Working with the coaches, Greenberg helped lead the team by example by achieving numerous personal records (PR’s) throughout the year. Six other athletes followed suit and earned PR’s of their own. Juniors Sarah Garland, Noah Chodos and Rory Slatko all qualified for the state championships in multiple events, with Chodos earning all county honors at the N5CTA Championships

and scoring points at the state meet. Juniors Margie Saunders and Andrew Gates, and freshman Mason Nickel also had very strong campaigns and provided much needed depth. Freshman Zion Thomas, despite injury, showed great support of his teammates with encouragement along the way. The season concluded with both Garland and Chodos competing at the Meet of Champions, with Chodos scoring a third place finish and narrowly missing the school record in the 3200 meter run.

Despite being a small group, this 2010 team was able to achieve many successes, and the reason behind was a group working together to achieve their goals, together and unified.

Girls’ Lacrosse By Wiz Applegate, Head Coach

Behind the strong leadership of nine talented and enthusiastic seniors, this year’s 11 – 5 girls lacrosse team had great success. This group pushed one another to strive for excellence each and every day, especially relishing the early morning Florida spring break practices while the boys’ team worked on their beauty sleep! Additionally, this team liked to make things exciting. Four of the team’s five losses were by a margin of three goals or less. An early season one goal loss to The Hill School was followed by close losses to St. Andrew’s, Cape Henlopen and St. Mark’s. The team’s lightning delayed 14 – 13 Worcester come

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back win in overtime was a very exciting victory. Entering the state tournament with a 10 – 4 record and ranked 5th, the Hillers disposed of a skilled Ursuline team 13 – 7. In the semi-finals, Tower Hill was matched up against last year’s state champions Cape Henlopen. A tight game to the finish, the Hillers clawed their way to within one goal only to watch the last seconds on the clock tick away as the scoreboard read TH 8 – Cape 9. Cape Henlopen repeated as state champions. Oh, to come so close is a tribute to the skill and talent on this team. It was be quite a challenge to replace senior attackers Katie Applegate, Caroline Holliday, Taylor Martel, Molly Rosen, Lexi Saunders, Logan Weaver and senior defenders Remy Denner, Gaby Dressler, Emily Schuckert, but next year’s team is eager and ready to make its own mark. Congratulations to all for a great season!

Boys’ Lacrosse By Brad du Pont, Head Coach

Undaunted by the foot of snow and ice on DeGroat Field only two days before the official start of the spring season, the boys’ lacrosse team used their sticks as shovels to clear the turf. Before being thrown off the field, the intrepid players and coaches had managed to clear about half the field. Two days later Tower Hill was the only team in New Castle County that practiced outside on opening day! The same leadership, enthusiasm, dedication, and hard work that characterized the team’s efforts to remove the snow by the first practice were evident throughout the season.

After a productive spring training trip to Florida, the boys returned before classes resumed to host St. Andrew’s under the lights at DeGroat Field. An impressive win versus the

Saints began another successful season that saw the team win eleven of fourteen regular season games, claim a second consecutive Independent Conference title, the #3 seed in the state tournament, and a return trip to the finals of the state championship.

In the state tournament the Hillers had to work very hard to defeat #6 ranked Archmere, a team they had beaten handily a few weeks earlier. In the semi-final game versus #2 ranked Cape Henlopen, the team scored six consecutive goals to overcome a two-goal deficit with seven minutes remaining in the game to win 12-8. This victory set the stage for a rematch of last year’s state championship finals against Salesianum, a team that had won 11-7 in the regular season. Despite trailing 4-1 entering the fourth quarter, the Hillers never gave up. After intercepting an outlet pass, senior Blaise Taylor fed sophomore Michael Pettit who scored his second goal of the game to trim the deficit to 4-2 with less than eight minutes to play. A timeout with 1:43 remaining in the game allowed the coaches to draw up a play for Blaise Taylor to set a pick for junior Chas Robino who scored and pulled the team to within one goal. A fortuitous off-sides penalty against Salesianum with 0:25 remaining gave the team one last chance to tie the game. Senior co-captain Jake Graham, who had missed most of the season with a broken thumb, took the ball, beat his man, and tied the game with only 0:12 remaining in regulation. Michael

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Pettit’s third goal of the game on an assist from Chas Robino in the second overtime period sealed the victory and ignited a wild victory celebration that lasted for forty-five minutes.

The program’s second state championship was the direct result of outstanding leadership from the eleven seniors: attackman, Fletch Singles; midfielders, Ripley Nielsen (co-captain), Jake Graham (co-captain), Hunter Bolling, Ben Keller, & Blaise Taylor; defensemen, Trip Ashley (co-captain), Preston Boyden, Khaalid Lucas, & Victor Walker; and goalie, Demetrius Murray (co-captain). In addition, The News Journal honored Ripley Nielsen as its Player of the Year and rated the 2010 boys’ state championship game (“The Miracle on Turf”) as the best high school sporting event of the year!

Girls’ Soccer By Garry Chandler, Head Coach

The girls’ soccer team capped an incredible 2010 season with the ultimate achievement: a state tournament championship. The Hillers claimed the title with a stunning 1-0 win over a powerful Caesar Rodney (CR) High School team loaded with talented seniors, including a three-time state player of the year widely known as a goal-scoring machine.

Virtually no one anticipated that this matchup of attacking teams would feature a single goal. CR looked unbeatable as it menaced its way through the playoff bracket to the final game. But the Hillers were prepared and poised, and in the 27th minute, junior midfielder Gracie Firestone rose to the occasion on a 25-yard free kick attempt. With precious

little margin for error on a kick of such distance, Firestone arced a shot that split the slight gap between the crossbar and the CR goalkeeper’s outstretched fingertips, giving Tower Hill a 1-0 lead. It was a spectacular goal, one to be long remembered for its astonishing pinpoint precision.

With the lead established, the Hillers got to work, determined to maintain their advantage. Taking attacking opportunities as they arose, the players were careful to show discipline on defense. Along the back line, juniors Christie Pletz and Elise DeDominicis, sophomore Jenny Cusack and senior Jordan Bills were outstanding in closing down CR’s forwards and taking them out of their rhythm. Cusack was especially remarkable in winning the ball in several key encounters. Midfielders Firestone, junior Zoë Blake, and freshmen Kendal Robino and Hailey Lawler combined for effective ball control and pace of play in the vital middle-third area of the field. Up top, sophomore Christina Freibott showed a fiery determination to attack despite a nagging leg muscle strain. Junior Brooke Kelly complemented Freibott with physical strength and hustle. Sophomores Kaitlyn Rollins and Kianna Collins, and freshman Hope Jennings gave a crucial lift off the bench, with Rollins and Collins nearly adding a goal each with shots that just missed the mark.

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Join the Green and White Club Today!

The Green and White Club is an organization of

parents, teachers, coaches, students and alumni

supporting the Green and White Club’s mission:

To support and enhance athletic experiences for

Tower Hill students by generating spirit, raising funds,

providing services, and organizing and sponsoring

activities that require resources beyond the financial

and professional means of the school.

The Green and White Club is dedicated to the belief

that competitive athletics make for a healthy and

integral part of a balanced education.

To join send a $40 check made out to “Tower Hill

School Green and White Club” and mail to:

Green and White Club, Tower Hill School

2813 West 17th Street, Wilmington, DE 19806

If you have any questions, email

greenwhite@towerhill.org.

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Tower Hill School 2813 West 17th Street, Wilmington, DE 19806

www.towerhill.org

Green & White Newsletter Courtesy of the Green & White Club Editor: Beth FriedmanLayout: Nancy Schuckert

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The Hillers needed exceptional, championship-caliber goalkeeping in this match and they got it from sophomore Kelsey O’Donnell, who was on her toes and locked in for the full 80 minutes. O’Donnell made the defining play of the second half when she stopped a breakaway at the top of the box, brilliantly stripping the ball off the foot of the attacker before the shot could be taken.

For Tower Hill in 2010, the number 1 resonated far beyond the scoreboard of that championship game. This was the school’s first-ever girls soccer state championship. It came just in time for the team’s lone senior, Jordan Bills (a five-year varsity player), to cherish. During the regular season, Tower Hill lost only one game (a 3-1 defeat to Charter, which was avenged in the state semifinals with a 3-1 win). Exactly two weeks before the championship, Tower Hill learned it had earned the No. 1 seed in the tournament (CR was No. 2, setting up the classic 1 vs. 2 state finals matchup). And the Hillers honored the top-seed distinction by winning all four playoff games, scoring a total of 18 goals while surrendering – you guessed it – one.