Xavier Cross-Country Takes 1st at McQuaid, Ranked 5th in State

By Michael Batten '10

Select members of the cross-country team bussed to Rochester over the weekend to compete in the 50^th McQuaid Invitational, hosted by a fellow Jesuit high school, McQuaid. All levels performed well. The varsity eight took 1^st place in the AA race, narrowly defeating both Pittsford Mendon and nearby rival Fordham Prep 87-89-94. John Rice ’15 set the school record for McQuaid’s rolling hills with a time of 15:10.6, and now holds the three best Xavier times for the course. Christian Raslowsky ’16, Giancarlo Cipri ’17, and  Dominick Ronan ’16 all broke the elusive 16-minute barrier, Raphael Otell ’18 recorded the fastest time ever recorded for a Xavier freshman on the course, and Louis Vazquez ’15, Garrison Schwer ’15, and Ben Karam ’16 provided much-needed support from the rear. For the second meet in a row, varsity has beaten Fordham Prep by a small margin, so look to future articles to see how this emergent and exciting Jesuit rivalry pans out.

The J.V. team at McQuaid also performed well, coming in second and losing only to upstate powerhouse Pittsford Mendon 32-74. Thomas Sternglass ‘15 led the team with a 5^th place performance. In addition, Jonathan Kaufman ’17, Will McCann ’17, Dante Perez ’15, Thomas Clark ’16, and Frank McVeigh ’17 all hit great times for their first time at McQuaid.

The rest of the track team returned to Van Cortlandt Park for their home meet, the Xavier Invitational. It was much hotter than the previous week, which made the course more challenging, but nevertheless, several runners managed to set personal records, including Michael Crorkin ’18, Aidan Donahue ’18—both won their respective races—as well as Donovan Brady ’17, and Neil McEnerney ’16.

Recognized for their hard work, Xavier is now ranked 5^th in New York State by ArmoryTrack.com.

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Xavier Football Has Fantastic Week on All Levels

On Saturday, September 27, Xavier varsity football squared off against St. Joseph by-the-Sea. Xavier trailed the Vikings for most of the game, but they came back and won 10-7. Zach Cilmi ’16 contributed to the winning effort with a tremendous all-around game, both on offense and defense, though most importantly, his leading of a great 4^th-quarter drive that gave Xavier the final lead. Marked by a 40-yard toss to Malik Fisher ’17, this drive was likely one of their last chances to get ahead. “We entered the 4^th quarter extremely determined,” Cilmi said. “We made the most of every opportunity we had in the 4^th, so it was great to get our first win that way.” Though Cilmi’s heroics led the way, it was truly a team effort, so we would like to extend our congratulations to the Varsity Knights for their first win of the season. The team is now 1-2.

Also on Saturday, The J.V. Knights put on perhaps their best performance of the year, dominating Fordham Prep 36-12. Aidan Gallagher ’17, Joe Morelli ’17, Bobby Harding ’17, Ifeanyichukwu Emeh ’17 each tallied a touchdown, and Morelli also rushed more than 100 yards. Asked to comment on the game, Coach Jose Aquino ’07 said, “It’s always a great game when we play our rival, Fordham Prep. It was also great to see players step up who don’t normally get enough playing time." The team is now 2-1.

In the final game last Saturday, the freshman squad bested the Chaminade Flyers, a traditional football powerhouse, 12-7. Coach Mr. James Costa ’02 has graciously provided an account of what proved to be a historic game:

Chaminade HS came to Marine Park on Saturday, September 27, having won its previous game by a score of 45-0. Chaminade scored on its first drive to take a 7-0 lead against us. Xavier quickly answered with a scoring drive of its own. Unfortunately, on our 2-point conversion attempt, one of Xavier's captains, Alex Botwin ‘18, suffered a game-ending injury. He is the third captain that we have lost to injury this year. The score, therefore, remained 7-6 for most of the game. Xavier's defense was strong all game, and Xavier's offense moved the ball effectively, but could not find a way to score. Chaminade had the ball, in Xavier territory, with less than 2 minutes remaining in the game. Xavier's defense stopped Chaminade from gaining a first down and the Xavier offense took the ball with under one minute remaining and no timeouts. On Xavier's first play, Pat Dunne ’18 took a short screen pass and ran for over 60 yards to the Chaminade 8-yardline. On the next play, Brendan Gallagher ’18 caught what looked to be the game winning touchdown. As Xavier players, coaches, and fans celebrated, the game official indicated that Gallagher did not score. Xavier then stopped the clock with a spike, and then had to run one final play. With time expired, Eli Schuchert ‘18 caught a pass in the corner of the end-zone.  This time, the official signaled that it was a touchdown; Xavier won 12-7.  This was the first freshman game, and win, against Chaminade in over ten years.  The Xavier frosh are now 2-1 and play Fordham Prep this weekend.

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Soccer Hits Season's Halfway Point

Varsity soccer had one game postponed this week against Molloy and lost one game to St. Francis, 2-0. Their record is 3-3-2. When asked what the team needs to accomplish moving forward into the halfway point of the season, head coach Mr. Aidan Byrne said, “We need to become more consistent and hold on to the leads we get.” Coach Byrne cited the play of Andrew Kiarie-Mumbi ’16 on offense, Joe LoPinto ’16 at goalie, and captain Joe Boyce ’15 at sweeper as particular defensive strengths.

The J.V. soccer went 2-1 this week, with 1-0 victories over Christ the King and Molloy. Their one loss came to St. Francis, whose team defeated the Knights 5-0. In their two victories, Pat Devlin ’17 and Kevin Lopez ’17 footed one goal apiece, while Chris Montano ‘17’s leadership and play at sweeper bolstered the team’s defense. Looking back at the game against Molloy, coach Mr. Paul Wendel said, “We lost to them twice last year, and they eliminated us in the playoffs, so, in a way, defeating them felt like vindication.” The team now has a 6-4-0 record.

Bowlers Begin Season

Last week, the Xavier bowlers hit the lanes for their first games of the year. The varsity team has a 4-2 record after beating Cardinal Spellman 2-1 and Archbishop Stepinac 2-1, while the J.V. sport a 1-5 record since losing 1-2 to Spellman and 0-3 to Stepinac. Coach Mr. Christopher McCabe looks to captain Mike Martell ’15 to continue the success he has experienced over the last few years, as well as Kyle Leahy ’17 and Rob MacPherson '17 to provide strength from the underclassmen side. Nick Tucker ’17 and Mike Spencer ’17  will captain the J.V. team and can be counted on to provide leadership. Mr. McCabe hopes that a new training regimen will be beneficial; with new workouts intended to improve strength, coordination, and flexibility, one can hope that all members of each team will be bowling strikes in no time.

Baseball and Swimming Prepare For Respective Seasons

Baseball players continue to compete in the fall season in preparation for the spring, while freshmen swimmers are preparing for the beginning of their season, which will start soon.

As always, stay tuned for next week’s edition of This Week in Sports, and for more, up-to-date information regarding teams and schedules, check out Xavier Athletics online.

Schedule for this Week:

Thursday, October 2^nd: Var. Soccer: 4:30pm v. Xaverian @ Verrazano-Narrows Complex

J.V. Soccer: 4:30pm v. Xaverian @ Aviator

Friday, October 3^rd: Cross-Country: 3:00pm @ Fordham Prep Development Meet @ Van Cortlandt Park

Var. Soccer: 4:30pm v. Iona Prep @ Iona

J.V. Soccer: 8:30pm v. Iona @ Aviator

Var. Baseball: Johnny Ray Tournament @ Richmond County Youth Complex                                                     

Saturday, October 4^th: Var. Baseball: Johnny Ray Tournament @ RCYC

Var. Football: 1:30pm v. St. John the Baptist @ SJB

J.V. Football: 10:00am v. Xaverian @ Aviator

Frosh Football: 10:00am v. Fordham Prep @ Marine Park

Sunday, October 5^th: Cross-Country: 10:00am @ Mayor’s Cup @ Van Cortlandt Park

Var. Baseball: Johnny Ray Tournament @ RCYC

Monday, October 6^th: Bowling: 4:00pm v. St. Ray’s @ Homefield Bowl

Tuesday, October 7^th: Var. Baseball: 4:00pm v. St. Ray’s @ Randall’s Island

Var. Soccer: 4:30pm v. Msgr Farrell @ Aviator

J.V. Soccer: 4:30pm v. Msgr. Farrell @ Farrell                                                                     

Wednesday, October 8^th: Var. Baseball: 4:00pm v. Stepinac @ Randall’s Island

(Note: leftmost thumbnail image to be credited to Bill Lyons, Staten Island Advance.