Say hello to our ‘Social Distancing’ ROARIN’ INTO THE 20’s ‘Ridge Gives Back’ NEEDS YOU RIDGE CLUBS & SPORTS NEWS Plus, FUNFUN Parent Voices

#MyRidgeTeenInSixWords Due to the school closing as a preventative Editors: Prachi Jain measure for COVID-19, some dates and content and Aditi Tandon Submissions may be made via email to within this issue may be revised, [email protected] once schools re-open. RidgePTO.com WASH HANDS. MAINTAIN SOCIAL DISTANCING. STAY WELL. INSIDE THIS ISSUE

Social Distancing ...... 1a A Word from the PTO...... 2 From the desk of PTO Initiatives ...... 3 PTO Executive Board...... 3 School Connection- Prom ...... 4 the Principal School Connection-Ridge Gives Back. 5 School Connection...... 6 Counseling News ...... 7 Music Department -Band...... 8 Greetings Students and Families of RHS! Music - Chorus & Orchestra...... 9 Ridge Recognition & Awards ...... 10 Since arriving to Ridge just eight short weeks ago, I My Ridge Teen in 6 Words FUN ... 11 have come to have a greater appreciation for the com- Drama Club News...... 12 plexity of the high school program and its offerings, as Dance...... 13 well as the student body that it serves. This opportuni- Dance...... 14 Forensic...... 15 ty has afforded me a first hand glance into the social/ Athletes of the Month ...... 16-17 emotional, academic and physical growth that our stu- Girls Basketball ...... 18 dents make as they transition from middle school to high school. These devel- Boys Basketball ...... 19 opmental stages are a paramount component of a student’s overall success. Cheer...... 20 I look forward to spending the next several months entrenching myself further Fencing ...... 21 into life at Ridge. There is much more to learn in the months ahead. Ski ...... 22 Winter Track - Boys...... 23 Winter Track - Girls...... 24 Some of my most valuable experiences to-date, have been my ability to meet Swim & Wrestling...... 25 and work with various student groups. These articulate young men and wom- en are passionate about their school, their cause and their community regard- less of their affiliation. The awkward, shy middle schooler who looked the other direction when walking down the hallway, is no longer afraid to stop and hold a conversation with me about an upcoming school event, offer an idea on how to improve or make things better for their peers, or just make eye contact and Raising say “good morning”. Many have formulated their “persona” and possess the confidence that is often not developed in the middle school years. Each day I Teenagers celebrate those conversations!! I will continue to support efforts to empower the students of Ridge to have pride in who they are and where they come from, because their talents as a collective group are limitless. is so much fun! As we transition into Spring, the Ridge calendar will become extremely busy. Spring sports, AP testing, prom bids, tournaments, NJSLA testing, transcripts releases and academic competitions just to name a few, are all on the horizon -said no one ever! for many of our students. I want to encourage parents and students to find an appropriate and healthy balance. - Karen Hudock

1 Please check the BOE website for COVID-19 Information and Updates.

1a A word from our PTO

RHS CLASS OF 2020 FAREWELL Mar- May 2020 MR. Senior Breakfast KRAUSE! Mar 20 CANCELLED. Stay tuned for updates.

April 6- Senior Prom Bid April 9 Sales During lunch periods

cheons, Junior Prom, Balloons in June Mr. Ridge VP Volunteers’ Message and many more. Apr 16 PAC at 7:00 PM Happy Spring! Additionally, we gather all of the vol- unteers for specific grade level events Senior Prom We wanted to take this opportunity to as well. Volunteering could mean any- May 15 Birchwood Manor, tell you a little bit about our position on thing from sending in requested items, 6:00PM - 11:00 AM the Ridge High PTO Board. We are to working a table during the lunch Co- VPs of Volunteers. periods at school, or June 2020 setting up/ decorat- If you have been feeling ing before an event. Cap & Gown nostalgic for all the fun times There are many Jun 9 pick-up you had volunteering at your ways to help and ev- $25 Fee child’s elementary school eryone’s talents and and want to get involved abilities are welcome. Senior Celebra- again, then we are the ones Jun 12 tion Event to contact. There is no such thing TBA as too much help, so We coordinate all of the vol- we encourage every- Graduation unteers for the many events one to look for the Practice (yes there are many events) Google Form coming Jun 17 Lee Field at 1:00 PM here at Ridge. In May, we soon, and sign up. It - Ice Cream Social, will send out a Google form is a great way to give RHS Cafeteria at 2:30 PM asking for volunteers to ei- back to the school, in- ther chair or work all of the different teract with the students, and meet new Graduation activities offered for the following year. people. Volunteering is an important Practice Some of these events include Home- way that we create community here at Jun 18 Gym A at 1:00 PM - coming, Suicide Prevention Week, Ridge, and it helps such a large school Class of 2020 Ridge Week of Respect, Staff Lun- feel a bit smaller and more familiar. Graduation, Lee Field at 6:30 PM Senior Bash Meet no later than Alicia Martine & Jill Reiss Jun 18- 9:00PM at RHS. 19 5:00AM Return to RHS

Alicia Martine & Jill Reiss Ridge PTO Board, Co VPs, Volunteers RidgePTO.com 2 PTO Initiatives & Executive Board

Luncheon for the PTO entire town looks forward to. On Wednesday, the 29th of January, the BTEA sponsored a luncheon at the During the last week of school, volun- school for the PTO & teacher represen- teers deliver green and white mylar bal- tatives. loons with messages of congratulations to our RHS Class of 2020 graduates.

Balloons are $5 each and will be tied to Balloons in June a house mailbox or front door of condo- minium developments. Are you about to celebrate your grad- uating child, friend, neighbor, relative, Closer to the ordering process, an on- babysitter or employee? line link will be provided to place your orders. For now, we would be grateful Please order Balloons in June! for additional volunteers to keep this amazing tradition going! This Junior Class Fundraiser is an an- nual celebration of our graduating se- Please email Tina Del Giorno at niors. Not only is it a great gift but it’s [email protected] with your interest. also a long standing tradition that the

2019-2020 Ridge PTO Executive Board

Co-Presidents Treasurer Lisa Laurino Katie Chan Achint Kaur

Secretary Board of Education Chau Shearer Representative Also on display were fantastic vas- Elaine DiDario es designed by students of ceramics teacher Bruce Morozko.- Pre Columbi- VP Communications VP Newsletters an style Pinch Pot, animal themed as- Cathy Cheo Isaacs Aditi Tandon sembled bud vases. Prachi Jain

VP Volunteers VP Programs Alicia Martine Becca Moussally Jill Reiss

PTO Advisor Christine Ziegler

Board members may be reached at [email protected]

3 School Connection- Prom

Juniors!!! Announcing the 2020 Junior Prom - It’s the “Roaring 20s.” Appetizers, Dinner, Dessert, DJ, Dancing, Photo Booth.

When: Friday, June 5th, 6 pm -10 pm. (Latest entry at 7:15 PM; Earliest departure at 9:45 PM)

Where: Bridgewater Marriott Hotel

The permission slip for Prom Bids was posted in the February 7th Friday Folder.

June 5th, 2020

4 School Connection- Ridge Gives Back

Ridge High School’s Community Service Initiative Sign Up: Students will be given more information about how to sign up online Dear for a service project this spring. Ridge Community Please note that sign ups will be on a “Never doubt that first come, first serve basis. a small group of Each project has a set limit of partici- thoughtful, com- pants allowed by each organization. mitted citizens can We are excited to announce that this change the world, spring, on June 4th, Ridge High School will once again hold a full day commu- indeed, it’s the only nity service event. thing that ever has”

Ridge Gives Back was started in 2018 -Margaret Mead and has expanded each year since then. By working together, we foster a sense of community and help de- velop relationships within our school while we serve the broader community Questions? around us. Ridge Gives Back also pro- vides students with the opportunity to How can YOU help? Please contact RGB@bernardsboe. develop real world skills, positive cop- com if you have any questions. More ing mechanisms, and to recognize the Supplies information will be disseminated closer impact that they can have on the world to the event. around them. In order to make this day of service possible, we need a variety of mate- Ms. Suzanne Ward and Ms. Mary Pias- Last year approximately 500 students rials- from travel shampoos and ma- ecki - Co-Chairs, Ridge Gives Back participated in service projects orga- terials to prepare lunches, to bolts of nized both inside and outside of the fleece and breakfast foods. We are co- THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT! school. This year, even more of the ordinating with the PTO to gather the student body will be participating as ev- various supplies needed. A link to an Stop & Shop, Great Swamp Green- ery student, not attending the ‘Physics Amazon wish list will be sent out. More houses, Aramark, LUSH, Athleta, Star- Day’ trip, will be eligible to participate information regarding that as well as bucks Riverwalk, Basking Ridge Pres- in Ridge Gives Back. With over 1200 other ways to contribute will be shared byterian Church. students participating, there will be a later in the spring. wide variety of service projects that stu- dents can sign up for. These will range Chaperones from in school events such as making lunches for the homeless, to leaving As there will be dozens of service proj- the school to have breakfast with local ects running the length of the day, we Adolescence is a veterans, doing spring clean-up and will need parents to volunteer to serve period of rapid planting around town, and visiting the as chaperones. We will be coordinating elderly in Basking Ridge. the sign up process with the PTO and changes. more information about this process Details: will be available this spring. Between the ages Date: Thursday, June 4th Support our fundraisers of 12 & 17, for Time: Full school day (7:35 am-2:25 Throughout the year, there will be a example, a parent pm) variety of fundraisers for Ridge Gives ages as much as Back and we would appreciate your 20 years. Location: Please report to RHS by 7:35 support. Please see the attached t-shirt am and all offsite projects will leave order form and look out for upcoming from the school and return by 2:20 pm. options as well.

5 School Connection Ridge Media Center

Ridge students have really enjoyed coming to the Media Center to express their creativity and de-stress in our new craft corner.

We are in need of supplies!

If you are cleaning out your closets or if you have extra craft supplies, we would happily accept donations. Specifically, we could use glass beads, ric rac, paint, foam/paint brush- es, flower embellishments, origami papers, scrapbook stickers and embellishments, embroidery floss, washi tape, sequins, mod podge, etc.

We could also use 100-piece puzzles, etc. With so many spring activities approaching including performances, sports, AP exams, many students find the Media Center a place to relax while spending a few moments with friends doing something enjoyable.

Donations can be dropped off in the entrance lobby. If you have questions, please contact Karen Gorczakowski at 908-204-2585, x123.

Thank you!!!

13 Things to Know About

Board Members

from the NJ School Boards Association.

6 COUNSELING NEWS offer a presentation on applying to col- website. Again, check back often, as News and Notes from the leges for students who have learning we post new opportunities as soon as Ridge Counseling Department disabilities. This is geared toward par- we receive them! ents who have a child with an IEP, 504 Upperclassmen Registration for plan, or other learning disability. The Counseling Website 2020-21 presentation will feature Dr. David Nast, Director of the Students and parents can access and Office of Specialised Ser- review all documents in the Community vices of Ramapo College of Bundle: . • Introduction to the Community Bundle Sophomore Career Les- • Letters for Families son • Course Selection Sheets School counselors present- • Ridge Program of Studies 2020-21 ed to all sophomores in • WAMS Program of Studies 2020- January about their poten- 21 tial interest, careers, and • Presentations career pathways. Students completed an interest Students in each grade level met with inventory called the Ca- counselors on January 30th to review reer Key. The link for the the important Program of Studies presentation can be viewed changes and specific information per- here. We encourage stu- taining to their grade. The presenta- dents to log into Naviance tion can be reviewed in the Community to explore careers further! Bundle, Presentations folder.

Students have until 2:30pm on April 6th General Reminders to change course requests. Students wishing to alter their course selections should email their counselor by this date/time. Please see the Program of Scholarships Studies for additional timelines. All scholarships and spe- cial programs received by Junior Conferences the Counseling Office are posted on Naviance. While Junior Conferences start in March and many are geared toward ju- run through the month of April. niors and seniors, there are a number that any student, • Counselors will meet with ju- grades 9 through 12, can niors to discuss an individualized apply for. Log in, click “Col- post-secondary plan. Students leges,” then “Scholarship will receive a packet of information List” to see the current of- and next steps tailored to them ferings. Check back often, to bring home to review with their as we post new opportuni- parents/guardians. After review- ties as soon as we receive ing the packet and notes, parents them. are welcome to contact counselors with any lingering questions. For a preview of the packet, click here. Outside Program & Op- portunities

Transitioning to College with an IEP Information on outside pro- or 504 grams and opportunities, including those for summer On April 14 at 7pm, the Counseling 2020, will be posted on the Department and Child Study Team will Counseling Department 7 MUSIC DEPARTMENT HIGHLIGHTS

Ridge Band Program Update

From the football field to the concert hall, the Ridge bands have been busy! It truly takes a community effort to build and sustain a quality band program and we hope that this update demon- strates that the investment in the pro- gram has been worthwhile. The only way to maintain the level of excellence is through continued enrollment in our programs, scheduling practices that accomodate music ensembles at all levels, and enthusiastic support from the community. If you have heard of any of our programs, and would like to interested in joining the Ridge March- see the program continue, and grow, Ridge Jazz Band ing Band on April 13 at 7:00 pm in RHS then please register for the Band cours- Room 222, (for new members) and May es that are offered. For those who are The Annual Evening of Jazz takes 11 for the general membership. interested in auditioning for the Wind place on April 7 at 7:00PM featuring Ensemble, information will be avail- the Ridge And WAMS Jazz Bands un- Congratulations to the following stu- able shortly. For any questions regard- der the direction of Daniel Zugale and dents for successfully auditioning for ing the band program, don’t hesitate Wyman Wong. regional, and all-state honors ensem- to contact Daniel Zugale - Director of bles: Bands at [email protected] Ridge Marching Band or Clayton Beyert - band director at [email protected].

Wind Ensemble

The Wind Ensemble will participate in the Metropolitan Wind Band Invitation- al, a regional affiliate of the Music for All National Music Festival, on March 28.

Spring Band Concert

The Spring Band Concert will take place on May 27, at 7:00 pm at the Ridge The Ridge Marching Band will once CJMEA Region Band and Orchestra: PAC. We hope to see many community again honor our military heroes at the members in attendance. The final per- Annual Memorial Day parade on May Karina Yang, Samhita Tatavarty, formance of the school year will be at 25. In preparation for the 2020-21 sea- Benjamin Chee, Stanley Jiang, Allan the RHS Graduation on June 18. son, there will be a meeting for students Zhang, Aidan Zhao, Veronica Fabiano, Zoe Jones, Josh Conklin, and Gautam Namjoshi

NJMEA All-State Band and Orchestra:

Karina Yang, Samhita Tatavarty, Aidan Zhao, Josh Conklin, and Gautam Nam- joshi

Congratulations to all! GO RIDGE 8 MUSIC DEPARTMENT HIGHLIGHTS Blanchard (#4 in her section), Sung- one-night-only production, every CHORUS won Chung, Marlowe Conway, Caitlin member of the class will perform in “all Costello, Patrick Jotz, Christine Ling cast” numbers to include an 80s (#3 in her section), Madison Sinofsky, Dance Party Medley, Time Warp and Welcome Mr. Taylor Hine… Lucas Zuanic. Bring on Tomorrow from the musical Fame. Additional songs programmed Taylor Hine, a student teacher from Treble Choir between these showstoppers will Rutgers, is working with the members include 26 selections from the 50s to of the Choral Program this spring. Rachel Greenwood, Katherine Pinto, present day. Anna Skrobala (#1 in her section), Katie Vollmar. The production will showcase the exceptional talents of the RHS Concert 2020 Region II Chorus Re- Choir and the student-created sults… 2020 New Jersey All-State choreography and costuming. Tickets Treble Choir Members will go on sale in the Main Lobby during It was a great day for the Ridge HS perform… all lunch periods on Friday, March 16th Choral Department when thirteen through Thursday, March 19th from students were accepted to the Region Niyati Kashyap, Namita Kalghatgi and 10 am-1:30 pm. Pre-purchased tickets II Mixed and Treble Choirs. Over 500 Lauren Rus performed with the are $10 with assigned seating & $12 at students in auditioned. New Jersey All-State Treble Choir at the door. Please see a member of the They performed their combined NJPAC on February 22nd. Concert Choir or email Barbara Retzko concert at Monroe High School on for tickets [email protected] Sunday, January 26th. Congratulations! THROUGH THE DECADES… If the MUSIC is too Mixed Choir On March 19th, the Ridge High School LOUD, Concert Choir will present Riley Aviles (#3 in her section), Allie THROUGH THE DECADES. In this you are too old!

ORCHESTRA

Congratulations to the Guys and Dolls Pit Orchestra for an in- credible show. What a great time had by all!

Thanks for all of your hard work. I’m so proud of you.

Ms Curran

9 RIDGE RECOGNITION & AWARDS

Accomplishments

The RHS Media Center recently con- cluded its annual book drive. Thanks to the Basking Ridge community’s incred- ible generosity, we were able to collect over 924 books!

We were able to send books to “Books for Taiwan”, an organization that ships books to Taiwan’s rural elementary schools, jails, public libraries and cu- linary schools; Liberty Corner Presby- terian Church’s Mission to Malawi that provide books for schools serving or- phans in remote villages of Malawi; and the Martin Luther King Youth Center in Bridge- water that Ridge High School wins the Dept. of Energy Regional Science Bowl competition serves lo- (NJ), advancing to the National Finals to be held in Washington DC. cal disad- vantaged youth.

We are truly appreciative of the con- tributions made by so many students, families and faculty members. It was especially heartwarming to see the stu- dents who hand delivered those very heavy bags and boxes of books! We are grateful that the campaign was such a huge success and would like to extend a sincere thank you to all who donated so generously. The books that were donated were truly beautiful and will certainly brighten the lives of many children who would not otherwise be served. Ridge Robotics advances to State Finals!

I’m raising Teenagers! What’s Your Superpower?

We Asked. You Answered! Births Check out the next page for the awesome answers by Krystie Fiorilli and her husband Frank welcomed Baby Joseph Louis on Feb- Ridge parents to our prompt: ruary 7, 2020. Your Ridge Teen in Six Words He joins his big brother, Matthew. Ev- eryone is doing well. 10 #MyRidgeTeenInSixWords

Cathy Ashu Hooray, I’m driving! Wait, it’s lonely. Amazingly smart, hard working, responsible Meeta (mostly) Hardwork, Friends, Arguments, Love, Messy, Beautiful. Achint Kiran Gobsmacked Freshman running in hamster wheel! SOME attitude, ALL heart and soul!

Lisa Prachi Headphones, bathroom, late nights, Hungry, handsome, long showers! nocturnal, kind, messy and busy! Sandeep

Graceful, Conscientious, Alicia Elegant, Industrious, Thanks for the memories Ridge High! Empathetic Teen.

Sanjay Aditi “How was your school today?” Cold. Hot. Clear. Muddled. Mature. Kid. “Same.”

Hansa Loveleen Videos, music, arguments, conscientious, charming, irritable! Happy, sad, excited, tense, loving, angry!!

Jayanthi

Smart, self-sufficient, and a little clueless!

11 RIDGE CLUBS- DRAMA to put on its first production that is al- An Eventful Season most entirely run by the students them- After the success of A Midsummer Recently, the club staged its production selves. Senior McKenna Moore has Night’s Dream in November, the Ridge of Guys and Dolls. After three months helped to prepare a single act show of High School Drama Club has been hard of singing, sewing, and set designing, the 25th Annual Putnam County Spell- at work with a dense slate for 2020. the cast and crews put together a mar- ing Bee that will begin meeting in May. velous show on the stage. That show will be on May 29th and will To round off the 2019 year, The Dra- be hosted at Fellowship Village’s brand ma Club participated in the New Jersey While most of the club’s attention was new performing arts center as one of its Thespian Society Thespian Festival in focused on this exciting production, first shows. Robbinsville, New Jersey. On top of they are looking forward to the two participating in makeup, stage combat smaller shows still left after February. On top of putting on this multitude of and juggling workshops, the students First, in April, the club will be showing off productions, the Drama Club also host- who attended also competed in the the varied skills and talents of its mem- ed a community-wide game night to festival with portfolios, musical solos bers in a series of individual scenes, raise money for the Ronald McDonald and duets and a Tech Olympics group. acts, and songs in Drama Club’s annu- house. The Drama Club will also con- The weekend cultivated with the Dra- al showcase. Year after year students tinue to collect donations during the ma Club producing five nationals quali- have shown off their talents that don’t show via a table set up outside the fying acts, Annika Helgeson and Eileen always come out during the mainstage PAC. Brady for Musical Duet, Abby Marazi- productions and are excited to have a ta for Musical Solo, Vanessa Dresner fun way of expressing what they can While Ridge’s last mainstage show of for Theatre Marketing and McKenna do. This year the production will be on the season has already enthralled the Moore for Stage Management. Senior April 29th, with tickets soon to be avail- audience, you won’t want to miss the McKenna Moore also was the recipi- able at RidgePAC.com. other exciting community events that ent of the Arts Advocacy and Technical the students are earnestly preparing to Theatre scholarships. The Drama Club is also very excited showcase!

MAMA

LLAMA

TEEN

DRAMA

12 RIDGE CLUBS- DANCE

regional dance competitions. WINTER DANCE SHOWCASE RIDGE DANCE COLLECTIVE LEARNS FROM A GUEST ARTIST 2020 Please mark your calendars for our next showcase, which is the Spring The Ridge Dance Department, under On January 24th, Ridge Dance Col- Dance Showcase 2020 on May 14th. the direction of Rachel Miranda, re- lective had a special treat and took a You won’t want to miss it! cently presented their Winter Dance dance class with guest artist, Phoebe Showcase 2020 with record breaking Ballard. The students had a wonder- attendance! 600 people attended the RIDGE DANCE TEAM COMPETI- ful time learning dance improvisation performance. They also had the largest TION SEASON BEGINS and a contemporary dance with Phoe- cast in Ridge Dance history … 93 danc- be. We look forward to having Phoebe The Ridge Dance Team will begin ers shared their love of dance on stage. back as a guest choreographer for the their 2019-2020 season this March. Dances from the in-school dance class- National Honor Society for Dance Arts’ Their first competition is at Starpower es as well as the after school dance dance for the Spring Dance Showcase National Talent Competition in New programs were presented. Students in 2020. Brunswick on March 6th-8th. The sec- Social Skills Dance performed faculty ond competition is at Groove National work. Students in Dance II and Dance Spring Dance Showcase 2020 - May Dance Competition in Bernardsville III performed faculty work, in addition to 14th, 2020 at 7pm at the Ridge PAC on March 20-22. The final competition their own choreographed dances. is at Beyond the Stars in Somerset on The Spring Dance Showcase 2020: March 27-29. Come out and support We had our annual Guys Dance perfor- “Adventure Awaits” will feature the fol- the Ridge Dance Team! mance with guys from grades 9-12. The lowing groups: Dance I, Dance III, So- William Annin Middle School Dance cial Skills Dance, Ridge Dance Team, The team will also attend the New Jer- 8 elective joined the bi-annual dance Ridge Dance Collective, National Hon- sey High School Dance Fest on March showcase for the first time. Ridge or Society for Dance Arts and the return 14th at Union City High School. The Dance Collective also performed in of the “Guys Dance”! We hope to see team will participate in adjudication, the showcase. This is a modern dance you there! master classes and watch a perfor- group that is comprised of students mance of professional dance compa- from William Annin Middle School and nies from New Jersey. This is a festi- Ridge High School. Students in this val that is exclusively from New Jersey afterschool program collaboratively high school dance programs. The choreograph their own dances under dancers can’t wait to attend! the advisement of Mrs. Miranda. The Lastly, the team performed for the half- Ridge Dance Team performed one of time show at the Varsity Boys Basket- their dances taught by Hip Hop danc- ball games on February 6th and Febru- er and teacher Jude Cassion earlier in ary 8th. The dancers had a great time the year. Ridge Dance Team is an au- performing and supporting the basket- RIDGE DANCE TEAM- STARPOWER dition-only group that competes in the ball team! The team nabbed several awards in styles of Hip Hop and Jazz dance at March at Starpower in East Brunswick.

13 RIDGE CLUBS- DANCE

Upcoming Ridge Dance Events High School Dance Fest - March 14th

Workshop and Ballet Hispanico - March 19th,

NJPAC Groove National Dance Competition - March 20th-22nd

Beyond the Stars - March 27th-29th

Ridge Activities Fair - April 30th

Ridge Dance Car Wash - May 2nd

Spring Dance Show- case 2020: “Adven- ture Awaits” - May 14th

I hope you dance.

Photo credit :Anthony Johnson/Narratography

14 RIDGE CLUBS- FORENSICS

An Eventful Season Ridge Forensics continues to shine both locally and nationally.

The Ridge Forensics team competed in the Annual George Mason University Patriot Games and the Princeton Uni- versity Tournament. Ridge was once again awarded the First Place Sweep- stakes Award, beating the team from Riverside High School in South Caroli- na by more than double the points. 2nd place sweepstakes at the Universi- Championships, the Tournament of Ridge Forensics had ten entries ad- ty of Pennsylvania Liberty Bell Classic. Champions, the NCFL Grand Nation- vance to semifinal rounds and 17 en- als, and the NSDA National Champi- tries advance to quarterfinal rounds. Ridge Forensics also competed in the onships. Students perform in various Harvard National Forensics Tourna- events including debate, public ad- While the rest of the school began their ment over President’s Day weekend. dress, and dramatics. Further informa- winter break, eleven students trav- tion can be found here. eled to Minnesota to compete in the By competing in rounds locally and in John Edie Holiday Debates hosted by Virginia, Minnesota, Tennessee, Flor- The Blake School. Sophomore Reya ida, Pennsylvania, and Boston, Ridge Brahmbhatt competed in the invite Forensics has been showing a strong only Congress Round Robin and was national and local presence. As the named the champion of the event. season comes to a close, the team looks forward to competing in the State To start off the new year, senior James Gao traveled to Nashville, Tennessee to compete in the Montgomery Bell Academy Extemporaneous Speaking Round Robin. With only 16 invitees, Gao was the 5th extemper in Ridge history to earn an invitation to this pres- tigious tournament.

Ridge Forensics sent 10 students to the Sunvitational in Sunny South Flor- ida, where they proved that they could hold their own despite small numbers.

In February, Ridge Forensics claimed

15 ATHLETES OF THE MONTH- JANUARY

Ice Hockey - Marcus Fabiunke Senior. Goaltender Fab had a goals against average of 2.12 and a save percentage of .909 for the month of February while leading the Ridge Ice Hockey Team to a 4-1-3 record in the month of January.

Fencing Boys - Lawrence Han Freshman. Dominated frosh-soph tournament to place 1st. Fenced with tenacity and skill. Entertained all with his Derring-Do.

Fencing Girls - Liz Chan Sophomore. Placed 1st at frosh-soph tournament with consistent and unmatched perfor- January mances. Opponents found her hard to beat and had no answer to her incisive attacks. Wrestling - Ryan Duguay Ryan is a skilled and entertaining wrestler every time he steps on the mat. Ryan recently earned a County Championship at 126 pounds.

Swim Team - Boys - Chris Fabian Chris has had an amazing January. This senior swimmer has broken four individual Ridge records and two relay records just this month! He broke records in the 50 free, 100 free, 100 fly, 100 back and was part of the record breaking 200 free relay and 400 free relay. Chris was also an individual County Champion in the 200 freestyle.

Swim Team Girls - Lucy Hess Lucy has really stepped it up in her senior year and has had a great January for the swim team. Lucy is a versatile swimmer, but is a standout sprint freestyler. Her efforts propelled the team to a 2 point victory over Pingry. In addition, Lucy has helped Ridge Girls qualify for Meet of Champions in the 200 free relay and 400 free relay.

Girls Basketball - Lauren Lusardi Senior, Captain Lauren has been one of the most consistent players to help the Ridge Girls Basketball Team going 9-2 in the month of January. She is averaging 8 points per game and 7.2 rebounds per game. Out of the 7 rebounds per game she is averaging, 3.75 of them are offensive rebounds. She leads the team in both offensive fouls taken and free throws made, with 40. Her best games in January came against JP Stevens where she scored 12 points and grabbed 13 rebounds, Hillsborough where she had 7 points and 9 rebounds and 12 points and 8 rebounds vs. Phillipsburg.

Boys Basketball - Stephen Portas Senior. Captain Steve has been a tremendous leader for the Boys Basketball Team the entire year. Recently, he has been inserted as a varsity starter and the team has not missed a beat. The boys team has won 4 games in a row and looks to finish the year strong in counties and states.

Ski Team - Rishi Kundargi, Marisa Tomaru Both have led the way to Conference Championships during the month of January. Each has put in stellar performances that are among the best in the State.

Winter Track & Field - Boys - Luke Roberts and Jackson Barna Both these athletes were huge contributors to the first-ever Indoor Championship win. Luke Roberts won the Long Jump, Triple Jump, 400 and 4x400. Improving his own school records in both the long jump and 400. Jackson Barna won the 1600 and the 3200 that day. Jackson’s time was in the top 5 of Ridge athletes ever in the event. Earlier in the month, both athletes were on the Distance Medley team which broke the school record at the Group 4 State Relays. Jackson and Luke will be major contributors as we go into the state championship season.

Winter Track & Field - Girls - Francesca Miele Junior. Frankie had an outstanding January, recording PR’s in the 55 Hurdles, Triple Jump, Long Jump, 200 and 400 meter run. Her Triple Jump leads the team this season and she placed 3rd in the Skyland Conference helping the team to a 2nd place overall!

Competitive Cheer - Meghan Laffey Junior. Meghan’s hard work all season long was on display, while she was working her way back from a serious injury. Her sacrifice and hard work are exemplary to her teammates. She is a vocal leader in our program who always strives to be great. We are so proud of the growth that she has shown all season long.

16 ATHLETES OF THE MONTH- FEBRUARY

Boys Basketball - Easton Smith Senior. Captain Easton has been a gem on the court the last 6 weeks of the season. He’s a huge reason the boys have won 15 of their last 18 games heading into the state playoffs. His leadership, work ethic, and team first mentality have all been second to none.

Girls Basketball - Captain Taylor Smith She has led the Ridge Girls Basketball Team in scoring all season. During the month of February she averaged 9.9 points per game and the team to a 9-4 record. During that span, she led the team with 17 points and 13 rebounds in the quarterfinal round upset of Top-20 ranked Gill St. Bernards. She also scored 12 points in the first round of the state tournament vs Phillipsburg and 11 points in the semi-final win vs. Watchung Hills. Taylor has been a February catalyst for the Red Devils offense all season. Boys Fencing - Allen Marakov Won all his bouts at the State Final. Finished 1st in the state (mens epee).

Girls Fencing - Diya Kulkarni Placed third in the state (epee).

Boys Swim Team - Alex Fabiano Alex is a freestyler and breaststroker who brings tremendous depth to our team. At our final dual meet of the season vs Ber- nards, Alex swam a personal best time in the 100 breaststroke and swam to a 2nd place finish. That race clinched the meet for Ridge and was a great way to end his senior season. He contributed many points in the sprint freestyle and breaststroke this season.

Girls Swim Team - Zsuzsa Kiss Zsuzsa is an outstanding swimmer and she had an outstanding end of the season in February. Her performance contributed to our overall team record of 7-5 and our victory in the sectional quarterfinals. She is a great butterflyer and freestyler with dozens of points for Ridge this February alone.

Boys Ski Team - Kieran O’Connor Girls Ski Team - Annie Mohan Both helped their teams to conference championships with consistent finishes and times.

Boys Winter Track - James Kisker Sophmore. James was a major contributor in the 4x800 team winning the Millrose Games in New York to start the month. The Distance Medley team ran a US #3 and lowered their own school record time with him running the 800 leg. He was also a major contributor in the team State Sectional win by placing 2nd in the 800 and 3rd in the 4x400. He ran well in the Group 4 meet and earned an individual wildcard into the Meet of Champions and helped our team advance in the 4x400. Throughout the month, James stood out amongst his teammates for showing up in pressure situations. He is currently on the DMR and the 4x400 school records.

Girls Winter Track - Olivia Cicchetti Senior. Broke the school record in the 200 meter dash at the Varsity Classic in a time of 26.39. Won the State section 400 meter dash in 59.92. Helped the team qualify for 4x400 and 4x800 relays at the Meet of Champions.

Ice Hockey - Marcus Fabiunke Senior. Captain Marcus carried the team on his shoulders as a true captain would, through the entire State Tournament Playoff run. The tournament included 3 victories in a row, to get the team to the State final at the Prudential Center where Ridge lost in a sudden death overtime. The Ridge hockey team would like to thank the entire student body for the tremendous support they showed the team by their attendance last night. They made that game a memory that will last forever.

Wrestling - Devon Capato Devon is a 4 year Varsity wrestler who has made an indelible impact on the program. Devon concluded his stellar career by competing at the NJ State Wrestling Championships and placing in the top 16 in the state. Devon also is the career leader for wins at Ridge. His intensity and leadership will be missed.

17 RIDGE BASKETBALL- GIRLS Ridge High School Girls Basketball

The 2019 – 2020 Ridge Girls Basketball team is having another strong season with a current record of 15–5. Ridge started off the season with a record a 4-1 and had big wins over Immacula- ta, Oak Knoll and Hunterdon Central before falling to top ranked Bayonne in the finals of the Len Sepenak Holiday Tournament.

In the month of January, Ridge went 9 – 2 and extended its overall record to 13-3. During that stretch, Ridge beat Hanover Park in the Kyle Kirst Tour- nament by 29 points and had its most thrilling win versus Montgomery on a 3-pointer as time expired against Mont- gomery by Sophie Beneventine! The team’s only two losses in January were against top-5 Rutgers Prep.

Ridge carried the success from January into February and has started with two dominating wins over Bridgewater and Bloomfield by outscoring the two teams combined 136 – 43. Ridge will close out the regular season with games against Northern Highlands, Morris Catho- lic and senior night against Bernards. Following the regular season, Ridge will prepare for the Somerset County Tournament and the state tournament, which it has made for the seventh con- secutive year.

Ridge has a balanced scoring attack led by Seniors Taylor Smith (11.75 ppg), Sophie Beneventine (9.9 ppg), Lauren Lusardi (7.1 ppg) and Junior Delaney Donohoe (9.95 ppg). Ridge Photos credit : has also gotten contributions from se- My Central Jersey nior Ava Haiback (3.35 ppg), Junior TEENS Lauren Feldman (2.25 ppg) and Soph- omores Carly Cambria (4.1 ppg) and The Maddie Herrera. reason parents lose it & the reason they hold it together.

18 RIDGE BASKETBALL- BOYS arch rival Immaculata, in front of a huge Colin Lombardi (2 ppg, 1 spg, 2 apg) Ridge High School Boys raucous home crowd. Couple that with and freshman Nick Losada (4 ppg). Basketball “home and away” wins over North Hunterdon and a non-conference win Looking towards next season, the Red It was December 20th, 2019, the sea- in Franklin, and the young squad had Devils return many important pieces son was just about to start, and Coach firmly positioned themselves into the that will be needed to be a strong con- Brian Feath had been quoted as saying state tournament for the first time in a tender in the Skylands Conference, as

“We have a lot of youth, and we’ve had few years, as well as a #8 seeding in well as the county. In addition to Kreitz, a good pre-season so far, but I’m most the Somerset County Tournament. Hylton, Schapiro, Lombardi and Losa- interested to see how good they will da, Ridge will return rising seniors No- be in a month, and then again in two In the Somerset County Tournament, lan Murphy and Johnny Gannon, as months, once they get adjusted. There the Red Devils capitalized on that #8 well as Juniors Brett Astrin and Chris might be some ups and downs early in seeding, avoided a play-in game, and Dong, all of who saw Varsity min- the season.” upended rival Franklin in an afternoon utes this season. Additional support home game on February 22. In their will come from the hugely success- Yet, did Coach Feath know his words quarter-final matchup on February 25th ful 2019-20 campaigns of both the JV were about to come true? After an the young Red Devils lost at Rutgers and Freshman teams, which notched opening night, hard fought, losing bat- Prep, the #3 team in the near flawless records of 15-2 and 15- state, for the third time 3, respectively. The JV team was led this season. Sopho- by Arnav Arni (9 ppg), Chris Dong (7 mores Gavin Kreitz and ppg), James Zhang (7 ppg) and Johnny Colin Lombardi led the Gannon (6 ppg). The Freshman team way in the loss, with 23 was led by Matt Fabbio (10 ppg), Brad- and 16 points respec- ley Feringa (8 ppg), Liam Reiss (8 ppg) tively. and Liam Clark (8 ppg).

The Red Devils have posted a 16-8 record. GO RIDGE The team is led by an even mix of youth and experience. With soph- tle at Immaculata, the Red Devils var- omores Gavin Kreitz (15 ppg, 2 apg, 2 sity squad was about to start the sea- rpg, and leading the Skylands Confer- son with 2 wins in its first 7 games, and ence in 3pt FG per game) and Jayden was searching for its identity. And then Hylton (10 ppg, 2 apg, 10 rpg – good something clicked. It was Saturday, enough for top 5 rebounders in the Sky- January 11th, and an afternoon game lands Conference) leading the charge, scheduled against Phillipsburg. Ridge there is a strong supporting cast as came out faster than they had looked well, including seniors Nate Herrera(9 all season, and won the matinee in a ppg, 2 apg, 2 spg), Easton Smith (5 blowout. This win started a streak of ppg, 3 rpg) and Stephen Portas (3 ppg, 14 wins in 17 games. The highlight 1 charge taken pg), junior Jake Scha- of the stretch was a huge victory over piro (6 ppg, 2 apg, 2 rpg), sophomore 19 RIDGE CHEERLEADING Ridge Cheerleaders are NJ State Champions!

As our sideline teams have enjoyed cheering on the Ridge Girls & Boys Basketball teams this winter, our com- petition teams have gone into full swing traveling to National and State compe- titions to end our season!

Our Ridge competition teams, a total of 25 student athletes, attended the an- nual UCA National High School Cheer- leading Championships at ESPN Wide World of Sports in Orlando in February. Between practices and competitions, Ridge Cheerleading had a strong pres- ence among the 950 teams and 20,000 Parent athletes attending. We are so proud that the Ridge Cheer Green team had Will you empty our first ever top 10 placement in the the dishwasher Medium Varsity Non-Tumble division! We are also very excited that for the please? first time, Ridge High School Cheer was announced at the National compe- Teen tition as a finalist, among high schools nationwide, in the Spirit Leader catego- I’m good. ry for the Varsity Brands School Spirit Awards!! This is quite an honor! Parent Our season culminated with our last competition at the NJ State Champi- Thank you. onships on February 29th. We are so proud that our Ridge Cheer Black team prevailed winning BOTH the Small Var- Teen sity Division Title and the Overall Group 4 State Championship bringing home 2 That actually New Jersey 1st Place State Champion- means ships! Congratulations- what a way for No... our athletes to finish!

Thanks again to the Ridge community, Parent all our sponsors, parents and coaches for cheering us on! GO RIDGE!

20 RIDGE FENCING

Ridge Fencing Teams have a successful season

The boys and girls fencing teams have had a great season with the following highlights:

The teams participated in the Santelli (girls) and Cetrulo (boys) in January. Touted as the “world’s largest high school fencing tournament”, with over 100 teams participating, it is a premier high school event. Both boys and girls won overall team titles. In addition, the boys epee and foil squads won the gold. The girls epee and and foil each

won the silver for their squad.

On January 25th both boys and girls teams captured the District 4 Champi- onships. The girls epee and foil squads placed first and sabre placed fourth. On the boys side, the boys epee and foil captured the gold and sabre finished in fifth.

The State Squad Championships took place on February 22 and February 23. The boys epee squad finished first in the state for the second year in a row and the boys foil squad secured the number one spot in the state as well. On the girls’ side, the foil squad finished in second to claim the silver medal.

Both teams vied for state champion- ship team titles on Wednesday, Febru- ary 26th. The girls took on Montgom- ery and became State Champions. The boys team went against Newark Acad- emy and were State Runner-Up. Dear Teenager, Be patient while I let go... GO RIDGE FENCING!

21 RIDGE SKI

Ridge Girls Win and Boys JV Ski Team Take Second Place at New Jersey JV Champion- ships

Ridge girls and boys ski team raced at the JV Championships at Mountain Creek. Ridge competed in the New Jer- sey Interscholastic Ski Racing Associa- tion league and raced one GS run and one slalom run at the championship Championships. argi, ninth (1:14.34), Mark Minsch, race. There were seven girls’ teams 13th (1:17.21), Kieran O’Connor, 20th and eleven boys’ teams, competing Ridge Boys and Girls Ski Team raced (1:20.90) and Sean Caricich (1:32.65). with both public and private schools at the New Jersey Interscholastic Ski Brandon Mark and Chris Campione being represented across the state. Racing Association State Champion- rounded out the boys’ slalom team. ships at Mountain Creek, NJ. Ridge Mark Minsch shared “Overall it was a The Ridge JV teams have had a great competed with two giant slalom runs great season, with lots of improvement season, consistently placing in the top and two slalom runs at the champion- from everyone.” two all season with many first-place fin- ship race. There were 12 girls’ teams ishes. and 11 boys’ teams competing with The girls had two in the top 25 sla- both public and private schools being lom race, led by Annie Mohan,13th represented across the state. (1:18.87), senior, Liz Ingraham, 18th (1:22.47), Aidyn Thompson (1:29.43) Ridge boys team placed fourth in sla- and Rachel Novick (1:32.36). MJ Pinto lom with a combined time (5:25.10) and and Sofia Benitez rounded out the girls fifth in GS (6:06.04). Ridge girls team GS team. placed fifth in slalom with a combined time of (5:43.13) and seventh in giant “This season was full of fun but also slalom (6:39.67). hard work... I’m glad we got to see it pay off,” Annie Mohan said. The JV Girls had four in the top 10, The boys had three in the top 25 in GS, led by newcomer MJ Pinto who placed lead by senior Rishi Kundargi, 12th Head Coach Fico shared “We are a first individually with a combined time (1:28.60), Mark Minsch, 19th (1:31.13), young team with only 2 seniors on a of 1:36.20. Kylee Horner placed fourth, Kieran O’Connor, 21st (1:31.45) and squad of 38. While we certainly made Makayla Perrotti, eighth, Yui Kostsu- Zach Pedicone (1:34.90). Brandon some mistakes in these races we did ma, 10th and Petra Deffenbaugh 13th. Mark and Chris Campione rounded out a lot of good things as well. There’s no Pinto shared “The team is a fun; hard the boys’ GS team. questioning their work ethic so I can working group and I’ve learned so live with any result.” much from our coaches.” The girls had two in the top 25 in GS, led by Annie Mohan, 13th (1:34.44), The JV Boys had four in the top 16 senior, Liz Ingraham, 19th (1:36.03), with Sean Caricich placing third with a Aidyn Thompson (1:43.83) and Rachel combined time of 1:26.55, Brian Green, Novick (1:45.37). MJ Pinto and Sofia 10th, David Hilferty, 13th, Ethan Lipset, Benitez rounded out the girls GS team. 15th and Griffin Wiehe, 17th

Head Coach Fico was pleased with the team’s accomplishments, saying “Young skiers have worked so hard and improved tremendously.”

Ridge Ski Team Takes Fifth for boys, Seventh for Girls at States Ridge Boys Ski Team Take Fifth Place and Ridge Girls Ski Team Take Sev- The boys had three in the top 25 sla- enth Place at 2020 New Jersey State lom race lead by senior, Rishi Kund- 22 RIDGE WINTER TRACK- BOYS Roberts and Pinto, both running 1:57 ented athletes and bringing home the December: The Ridge team’s first “stride” for suc- in each of their legs. Two days later at second place finish for Ridge. Jackson cess began with the Somerset County the JV/novice meet, the boys put up Barna also put up the fastest leg in the big performances placing 4x8 only a few hours later in a time of 2nd and 3rd in the freshman 2:01. Later that week, the same team mile, 5th in the novice mile, of athletes made a huge statement at and 2nd in the freshman the prestigious Millrose Games, win- shot put with a PR throw of ning the 4x800m by over 5 seconds in 32-3 by Dawson Deng. a US#1 time of 7:50.02. This is also the The team of Luke Roberts, first time in school history that Ridge James Kisker, Jackson has won an event at the Millrose Games Barna, and Will Pinto set and had all runners under 2 minutes. a new school record in the Championship, edging out a win one Distance Medley relay at the Group 4 The boys track team tied Elizabeth for point ahead of Franklin. The boys won State Relay Championships with a time the North 2 Group 4 Sectional win at the the 4x800, 4x400, and distance medley of 10:35.19, while sophomore Harry Bennett Center in Toms River and were relay. This was the second year in a Hagerman set a new personal best declared co-Sectional Champions! row that the boys won the meet. Anoth- in the High Jump with a vertical leap er big performance this month was at of 5-8. The boys then continued their the Pietrewicz Invitational where Alex strong championship season by clutch- Petric PR’d in pole vault, matching the ing a first time ever win at the Skyland school record at 14’6. Conference championships, taking the trophy home by only ½ a point! There were many notable performances January: across the board, with Alex Petric plac- The boys kept their momentum through ing second in Pole Vault, tying his per- the second month of the season, with sonal and school record with a height of impressive performances across all 14’6 and Jackson Barna winning both levels. To kick off the new year at the the mile and the 3200 meter runs with freshman/sophomore relays, the boys indoor PRs of 4:24 and 9:45, respec- placed first in the freshman 4x400 me- tively. Jake Dobrowolski set a 23 sec- ter relay, fourth in the shot put, and ond PR in the 3200 meter run, running fourth in the 4x200 while the sopho- 10:08 and placing 6th! Luke Roberts mores placed third in the 4x400 and had lights out performances in the 400, sixth in the 4x200 meter relays. The long jump, and triple jump, winning all varsity season picked up at the annual three events with a school record time Ocean Breeze Freedom games, with of 50.53 seconds in the 400, school re- big performances in the mile by Sam cord jump of 20’10.75 Lewis, matching his lifetime best of in long jump, and a 4:26.89. Additionally, junior Will Pin- near school record to ran a stellar time of 2:35.97 in the of 42’8.5 in the tri- 1000 meter run, only 1 second off of ple jump. The 4x400 the school record, while sophomore meter relay was also Andrew McCabe put out a great effort won, and the team running 2:41.07. Also, junior Luke Rob- took home the conference title for the erts and senior Alex Sargen joined the first time in Ridge history! Ridge all-time list in the 600 meter run with times of 1:23.25 and 1:25.45, while senior Jake Vicente puts up a new per- February: sonal best in the pole vault with an 11’6 The Ridge boys continued to build their jump. A week later, the boys raced well momentum into February at the Varsi- at the Molloy Stanner games, standing ty Classic, where the team of Will Pin- out in the 4x800 meter relay. The team to, Luke Roberts, James Kisker, and of Alex Sargen, Sam Lewis, Luke Rob- Jackson Barna broke their own school erts, and Will Pinto ran an NJ #2 and record in the Distance Medley Relay US #5 time of 7:59 and placed first at with a US# 2 time of 10:19.38. Jack- the meet with great performances by son Barna split a lifetime PR of 4:20.4 in the 1600m leg, holding off many tal- 23 RIDGE WINTER TRACK- GIRLS

Ridge Girls Track

The Ridge Girls’ Winter Track team has had a successful 2020 indoor season winning the Somerset County Indoor Championships, tying for co-champs at the Group 4 State Relays, and plac- ing 2nd at Skyland Conference Indoor Championships.

Notable performances include:

6th place finish with a 1:49.24 by the 4x200 relay team (Sonia Goya, Olivia Cicchetti, Morgan Lyons, and Grace LaCapra) at Ocean Breeze Freedom Games. 1st place finish with a 9:36.14 by the 4x800 relay team at Molloy Stan- ner Games (Grace LaCapra, Tatum Peskin, Morgan Lyons, and Ana Goya). 1st place finish in the 4x800 relay with a 9:22.55 at Metropolitan Invitational (Ol- ivia, Morgan, Tatum, Grace)

School records were set by Alexa Mark, who ran the 55m dash in 7.56 (3rd place, Skyland Conference Indoor Championships), Olivia Cicchetti, run- ning 26.39 in the 200m (Varsity Clas- sic), Morgan Lyons with a 2:57.68 in the 1000m (4th place, Freedom Games), My teen is Leila Cheo-Isaacs & Sarah Castronovo each clearing 10’ 3” in pole vault (2nd & turning out 4th place, Hunterdon Winter Field Invi- just like tational), plus dozens of new personal records. me.

The JV team has also posted promising re- sults at Cliff Back Invi- Well tational, Morris County Frosh-Soph Relays, played, Wayne Valentine In- vitational, and The Karma! Armory Frosh/Novice Meet.

Follow our end of sea- son results on Face- Well- book at Ridge Cross Country/Track & Field played. @ridgexctf!

24 RIDGE SWIM & WRESTLING 12 team records were broken this sea- Ridge Swim Team has son! Individual event records were another strong season broken by Chris Fabian (4) and Emily Wang (6) and the boys 200 free relay The Girls Team finished the 2019- and 400 free relay teams of Capizzi, 2020 season with a 7-5 record, placing Chiu, Fabian and Xia broke the existing 5th overall in the Skyland Conference team records. Championships and 6th overall in the Somerset County Championships. All Ridge swimmers also earned spots in participating swimmers contributed, the All Skyland Conference, with AJ with Freshman Emily Wang, Sopho- Capizzi, Chris Fabian and Emily Wang more Tracy Lu, Juniors Maggie Hannis, named 1st team and Ethan Chiu, Mag- Zsuzsa Kiss and Sophie Paul as well gie Hannis, Colin Lee-Au, Andrew as Seniors Lucy Hess and Chelsea Moss and Daniel Xia named 2nd team. Lu scoring individual points in the two And in a spirited night for all the swim- meets. The girls’ 200 medley relay, 200 mers, both the girls and boys’ teams free relay and 400 free relay teams, beat Bernards at the an- consisting of Ayla D’Silva, Maggie Han- nual Senior night swim nis, Lucy Hess, Tracy Lu, Sophie Paul meet in February. and Emily Wang, qualified for and competed at the NJ Meet of Champi- Head Coach Melanie ons (MoC) in March. In addition, Emily Dupuis and Assistant Wang swam in two individual events at Coach Andy West kept MoCs, finishing in the top 16 in both. the team’s spirit up and helped them finish The Boys Team finished with a 7-4 re- strong. Co-captains this cord, placing 3rd overall in the Skyland season were Seniors Conference Championships and 4th Ethan Chiu, Aly Con- overall in the Somerset County Cham- nors, Chris Fabian and pionships. Individual points were Lucy Hess. earned by Sophomores Seif Elnawa- wi, Andrew Moss, Daniel Xia and Jerry Practices are held at the Zheng, Juniors AJ Capizzi and Marshal YMCA Wang, and Seniors Ethan Chiu, Chris immediately after school Fabian and Colin Lee-Au. The boys during the season. also sent three relay teams to MoCs, comprised of AJ Capizzi, Ethan Chiu, Prospective swimmers Seif Elnawawi, Chris Fabian, Andrew interested in trying out Moss and Daniel Xia. Finally, AJ Capiz- for the 2020-2021 sea- zi, Ethan Chiu and Chris Fabian each son should look for in- swam in individual events at MoCs, formation posted on the with both Capizzi and Fabian earning team website next Fall. top 16 finishes at finals.

When we worry about what our Ridge Wrestling teens will be TOMORROW, The results for the wrestling County championships :

Ryan Duguay and Andrew Taddeo took first place. we forget about what they are Devon Capato took 2nd place. TODAY. Jake Fern took 3rd place.

25 Watch out for our next edition SPRING 2020

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