Spring 2018 Sports At John Witherspoon Middle School
Baseball JW:
The John Witherspoon Middle School Baseball Team had a successful bounce-back season, showing significant improvement from the previous year under coaches Benito Gonzalez and Patrick Noone. The team finished a 5-7-1 record, with wins over Kreps, Pond Road, Stone Bridge, Lawrence, and East Amwell. Although the record still fell below .500, the team had a chance going into the last week to earn a winning record. A couple of our wins were against teams with strong track records in the CVC, which was very encouraging. Hopefully, the improvement and strides we made this year as a team will continue into the future. One of the special moments earlier in the season was handily defeating one of the strongest teams in the area: Pond Road Middle School. Robbinsville has a strong baseball program, so defeating them 9-2 was a very encouraging win. During the game we pitched, hit, and played defense extremely well. Another win that stood out was our 7-1 victory against Lawrence Middle School. The emergence of one our 7th grade pitchers, Rohan Sheth, was evident during this game. He consistently threw strikes and worked ahead of the Lawrence hitters; to support him, we had consistent at-bats and production throughout the lineup. We can honestly say that all kids, whether starting or on the bench, contributed something to this victory. Overall, we were pleased with the team’s performance and growth this year. Good luck to our 8th grade players heading to the high school, and we look forward to continuing our work next year. Benito González and Patrick Noone
Lacrosse Boys JW:
The John Witherspoon Boys’ Lacrosse Team had a fun and successful season under coaches Lawrence Robtison and Justin Mathews. The team finished 5-7 with wins over Linwood, Northern Burlington,Thomas Grover, J.P. Case, and PDS. The team was led by eighth graders Nick Bazarko, Owen Deming, Jake Denny, Will Doran, Cooper Ealy, Will Erickson, Pranav Guhathakurta, Andrew Koehler, Addison Motto, Drew Petrone, and Matthew Singer. The top scorer and Offensive MVP for the team was Will Doran with a team high 33 goals and 23 assists on the season. Will Erickson earned Defensive MVP honors for collecting 11 Ground Balls and being a physical and vocal leader on Defense. Other offensive leaders included Matthew Singer with 15 goals, 8 assists, 37 ground balls, and 14 faceoffs; Drew Petrone with 10 goals, 12 assists, and 35 ground balls; Jake Denny with 7 goals, 8 assists, and 11 ground balls; and Will Brandt with 9 goals, 3 assists, 39 ground balls, and 30 face-offs. Patrick Kenah earned 6th Grade Rookie of the Year honors for scoring 13 goals, 7 assists, and 22 ground balls. The defense was anchored by goalie Rory Dobson who had 44 saves. Andrew Koehler, Owen Deming, and Gabe Silverstein also added strong defense for JW. The highlight of the season was the game against Princeton Day School. JW defeated PDS 10-4 for the first win against our hometown rival in over a decade! The boys had a successful and rewarding year and we look forward to 2019. Good luck to all the graduating 8th graders.
Lacrosse Girls JW:
The John Witherspoon Girls’ Lacrosse Team finished the Spring 2018 Season with a record of 10-1-1. The top scorer for the team was Kate Becker with 32 goals throughout the season. Kate also led the team in Assists with 4 notable Assists. Other Offensive Leaders included Cartee O’Brien (17 goals, 2 assists), Jordyn Vermut (13 goals, 3 assists), Sarah Glenn (10 goals), Grace Rebak (5 goals, 2 assists), and Devan Morey (4 goals, 3 assists). The defense was anchored by Goalie Gigi Peloso who had 44 saves for the season. Jane Biggs, Grace Brown, and Sarah White dominated the Defense throughout the season. Among the returning 7th grade players, Sophie Feldman showed the most improvement in her stick skills and offensive strategy. Catie Samaan showed her dedication to the team and to the sport through her perfect attendance and positive spirit. Pauline Pluchard-Cole showed promise in her shooting skills with a total of 10 goals. First-time Sammy Renda showed her skills as an athlete by displaying strong Defense and completing 4 goals in the season. This year, several new 6th graders rose in excellence as well. Sarah Henderson completed 10 goals across A and B games, Kate Morey had 8 goals, Phoebe Steiger had 5 goals, and Casey Serxner had 4 goals. The most promising defenders in the 6th grade group were Riley Devlin, Casey Serxner, and Kate Morey. First-time players Leslie Orellana, Sol Del Cid, and Daniela Garcia Perez showed diligence and dedication in displaying significant improvement in their skills and knowledge of the game. Finally, first-time lacrosse player and aspiring Goalie Allegra Brennan braved the net with a total of 15 saves. The girls had a successful and rewarding year and we look forward to another successful year in 2019. Nine of the current 8th grade players have been dedicated players for JW’s Girls’ Lacrosse Team all three years of their middle school lives. Good luck and Best Wishes to all the graduating eighth graders! Coaches Peak and Hughes.
Softball JW:
The John Witherspoon Middle School Girls’ Softball Team finished the season with a win for the first time in four seasons under the coaching of Annemarie Goslin and Andrea Turner. The team was comprised of 8 returning players and 14 new players (to the JWMS program). The coaches brought a group of novice players together to form a cohesive and successful team. This season, players built and developed fundamental skills. The athletes worked tirelessly to improve and grow throughout the season. The success of this season is due to the hard work of many players, however, the team was led on the field by returning player Abby Walden. Abby consistently made impressive defensive plays while leading the team in runs and steals. Our program also benefited from the leadership of player Molly Brown. Molly’s dedication to the JWMS team, as well as her positive attitude, was an inspiration to her teammates. Other notable talents were Frankie deFaria, Clare Johnson, Leah Rose-Sieden, Tatiana Laks, and Kennedy Peck. With the help of their talent, the JWMS accomplished new milestones in nearly every game. Overall, the JWMS program showed tremendous growth and outstanding sportsmanship. We are incredibly proud of the efforts of this team and look forward to seeing continued progress next season.
Track & Field JW:
During the Spring Track Season, the boys went 5-6, and the girls went 10-2. We’ve had a growing number of participants each year, and had over 126 participants this season. One highlight of the season was when the JW Track & Field Team competed against 30 middle schools in the Lakewood New Jersey Middle School Track & Field Invitational. The Girls Team took 1st place out of all the teams, while the boys took 2nd place overall. Athletes who took first place at the invitational were Aaron Munford running a 5:07 mile, Stella Miner running a 2:25 800 meter race, Macayla Rodriguez who won 2 events running a 13.1 seconds 100 meter race, and 27.5 200 meter race. The JWMS throwers showed tremendous progress this season. With each athlete setting new PR’s multiple times throughout the season we were able to place in all of our meets. The throwers were crucial in many of the meets this season. Our top throwers were David Yang and Emma Traylor. There were several other standouts. The throwers all maintained positive attitudes and worked extremely hard this season. Overall, we were able to continue to strive to build a competitive, consistent feeder program with tailored workouts to ability levels in order to compete at a high level! Many athletes set new personal records and we look forward to seeing the athletes grow and improve next year! Coaches Rodriguez, Rylak, Hennessy and Lee.