Loomis Chaffee School 2009 Spring Athletic Awards Ceremony
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The Loomis Chaffee School 2009 Spring Athletic Awards Ceremony Baseball Golf Lacrosse Softball Tennis Track and Field Water Polo Loomis Chaffee School 2009 Spring Athletic Awards Ceremony Tonight’s Program Welcome Bob Howe ‘80 Softball Betsy Conger Boys Golf Kurt Winkler Girls Tennis Karl Schweiger Boys Lacrosse Ted Garber Girls Golf TJ Reap Presentation of the three‐sport athlete awards: Bob Howe Boys Tennis Cheryl Stone Girls Track & Field Lilian Hutchinson Boys Track & Field Scott Purdy Girls Water Polo Bob DeConinck Baseball Jeff Ross Girls Lacrosse Lisa Parsons Loomis chaffee SOFTBALL 2009 PLAYER YEAR YEARS ON VARSITY Morgan Caswell** Sr 3 year Varsity player Elisabeth Day Jr 2 year Varsity player Avalon French** Jr 2 year Varsity player Claire Kokoska So 1 year Varsity player Laura Iglehart So 1 year Varsity player Melissa Marris** Sr 4 year Varsity player Halle Murdock So 1 year Varsity player Melissa Nolan Jr 3 year Varsity player Abby Ostrom Jr 3 year Varsity player Rachel Rosenblatt Fr 1 year Varsity player Caroline Russell Sr 2 year Varsity player Rebecca Scanlon So 1 year Varsity player Amanda Swinton So 1 year Varsity player Heidi Taggart Fr 1 year Varsity player Kate Timko Fr 1 year Varsity player ** denotes CAPTAINS GIRLS VARSITY SOFTBALL 2009 We knew from the start that this would be a building year, we just didn’t realize how deep we would have to dig in order to build the platform! Due to some tough injuries and illnesses throughout the season, we were constantly reorganizing, regrouping and rebuilding along the way. According to the record books, it was a losing season, but on the team, it was anything but that! This group of athletes never stopped learning, never let a loss get them down and never, ever gave up hope of playing better than the day before. Each athlete reached deep within and built their skills higher than they thought possible. They rose to any challenge we threw at them and always looked for the next opportunity to play hard. For example, when we played Kingswood‐Oxford toward the end of the season, we played a good game; we got 7 hits off of a very talented K‐O pitcher, but couldn’t string them together for runs, and the K‐O hitters were relentless. Going into the 7th inning, we were down 12‐0; instead of assuming that the game was lost and just going through the motions, our team rallied, continued to play with pride and that’s when we scored our one run of the game. On a similar note, we went into the last game of our “losing season” with determination and energy; we had two terrific practices on Monday and Tuesday and even had a new strategy to encourage unity and energy during the game; we WON that last game with 20 hits and nearly flawless play in the field. This is a team that dug deep, believed in themselves and wanted to be the best softball players they could be. AND…they had fun along the way! Congratulations and THANKS to all of our players! PLAYER HIGHLIGHTS… We will always remember Melissa’s humor, team spirit and “gun” from shortstop and Morgan’s ability to be the tallest first baseman in history! How about Caroline’s tireless work in the outfield and knowing just where to throw the ball? Rebecca earned the best nickname this season – “DIRT” – for her aggressive base running and picture‐perfect slide! Kate’s willingness and ability to play 3 different positions this season was amazing – she was definitely our most improved player. We truly valued EDay’s tough and graceful play in left field…we could always count on her to make the catch and get the out. We won’t soon forget Abby’s DOMINATION at the plate this year with a batting average of .649 and two homeruns [one of which was a grand slam!]; nor will we forget Avalon’s desire for fly balls, fly balls and more FLY BALLS! We will always value Nolan’s continued positive energy even when it was clear that her injury would keep her out for the season; her work as pitching coach was invaluable. What about Mandy’s extra base hits and aggressive base running? – we will surely miss that next season. We so appreciated Halle’s tireless work at 3rd and at bat, as she earned herself a starting position in the offensive line‐up; Laura’s joyful approach to practice and games and her true “coachability” was also greatly appreciated. Heidi, too, was so coachable and her desire to work hard at all aspects of her game was impressive; her debut on the mound was fantastic! Claire’s willingness to step onto the mound when we needed her was so key, but even more amazing was her meteoric improvement from game 1 to game 9…talk about digging deep! What would we have done without Rachel’s tireless efforts in the outfield all season long? Her development as an outfielder was terrific. These players never ceased to impress us! Along the way, during the big and small moments, what we learned this season was the importance of the shared experience on the field, of supporting teammates during both fun and challenging times and of always being grateful to be able to go out to the field each spring and play this game that we love! Lastly, many thanks to Walter Allen for his tireless and joyful work with our team; your love of the game and players, in addition to your intricate understanding of how to play has been invaluable over the years. We also thank Bob Howe, Sue Billera, Joe Billera, Keith Armstrong, Glenn Buckley and Craig Lamenzo without whom things would never run as smoothly as they do! SOFTBALL AWARD WINNER CITATIONS I want to say a few words of Special thanks before I call up our award winners; To Captain Avalon French whose love of and dedication to softball is evident each and every day. She lead by example with enthusiasm and energy during both practices and games and we’re very lucky to have her on the team for one more year! To Senior Caroline Russell for two years of “winning practice” on a daily basis and for her endless positive support for her teammates. We will miss you! And to freshman Kate Timko who was asked to play 3 different positions this year; each time she made the switch, she worked willingly and diligently and made it appear effortless. You can imagine how excited we are to be able to work with Kate for 3 more years! We have 3 award winners this season: Abby Ostrom, Morgan Caswell and Melissa Marris This year’s MVP award goes to catcher [and sometimes pitcher!] Abby Ostrom. Hmmm…where to begin? We could start with Abby’s phenomenal batting average of .649 or her on‐base % of .738 Or, we could mention the numerous doubles, 4 triples and 2 homeruns, one of which was a grand slam. But, let’s not talk numbers…one of Abby’s teammates said of her “A true leader of the team, Abby always sets the bar high”; indeed, Abby has high standards and always expects great things from herself and her teammates. As catcher, Abby set the tone on the field and opposing teams had great respect for her behind the plate; in fact, there was not one team this season who sent a player to 2nd base on a straight steal. In addition, Abby caught 4 different pitchers and made it look easy. She worked closely with the younger pitchers as they developed over the course of the season and both pushed and supported them in their journeys. Another teammate of Abby’s sums it up: “Abby is a great catcher and great hitter, but most of all, Abby is a great teammate.” “Morgan Caswell plays as if she’s 6 feet tall” noted one of her teammates. Smart, knowledgeable and consistent…Morgan’s approach to softball is a perfect combination for a 1st baseman…of course it didn’t hurt when she stepped in as pitcher either…and it sure helped her out when we needed her behind the plate as catcher! Morgan’s versatility was just part of the reason why she was such a successful captain and player on this team. As another teammate said “She’s always so supportive. As a captain, she does her job well by picking up the other members of the team and making sure we all stay alert on the field” . A defining moment for Morgan’s leadership was during our game at Miss Porters, when we were struggling a bit in the field; Morgan called her teammates in and gave them an inspirational talk; encouraging them to both challenge themselves and to believe that they could get the job done. After that, you could see the team make a huge turn around, which left us proud of how we played in that game. It is clear that her teammates respect Morgan ‐ “It’s obvious that Morgan plays with passion and that’s something I really admire”. We all admire Morgan and honor her with this Coaches Award. Melissa Marris is our only 4 year varsity player. For 3 years she played 2nd base for us, but this year she switched to Shortstop, knowing that that was where we needed her; it is not an easy change, but she made the transition with grace and was a formidable shortstop all season. As a captain, Melissa lead by example; for one, she plays with INTENSITY, which inspires her teammates to work really hard.