(Members of cross-country team with NYCHSAA Sophomore Championship trophy)
This Week in Sports
By Michael P. Batten '10
The cross-country team won at each of the three meets it competed in last week. The sophomore runners led the way with a victory at the NYCHSAA Sophomore Championships on Wednesday, October 15. Giancarlo Cipri ’17 won the 4000-meter race with a time of 13:29, which is the fourth straight year that a Xavier runner has taken the top prize. Will McCann ’17 and Jonathan Kaufmann ’17 took second and fourth places respectively, each breaking the elusive 15-minute barrier. Frank McVeigh ’17, John Doyle ’17, Matt Mirto ’17, and Ted Colter ’17 rounded out the scoring. This is the third time in four years that the sophomores have taken the team title.
On Saturday, varsity, junior varsity, and sophomores traveled to Bethpage State Park in Long Island for the Nassau Coaches Invitational. The sophomores took fourth place out of ten teams, and were led with strong performances by Will McCann ’17 and Jonathan Kaufmann ’17. J.V. raced next, and the team took second place, narrowly edged out by the Chaminade Flyers for first. Henry Camacho ’15, Christian Watch ’15, and James Bradley ’15, all came within the top five, and the remaining scorers came within the top twenty. Varsity concluded the day with a win in the championship race. The six runners who finished all came within the top seven overall, and they nearly completed a sweep with sixteen points out of a possible fifteen.
While most upperclassmen traveled to Long Island for the Nassau Coaches Invitational, the freshmen returned to Van Cortlandt Park to participate in the storied Fordham Prep Frosh Relays. The premise is simple: each school that participates divides its runners into as many five-man teams as possible, with each team racing through the Van Cortlandt backhills. The first freshman on each team runs 1.2 miles, while the other four run .9 miles each. This year, Xavier won the Frosh Relays for the first time since 1997, and in doing so, the five-man A-Team set a new Xavier record for the course. The accomplishments of the A-Team are featured extensively in this week’s Faces at Xavier column. Meanwhile, the B-Team came in eighth place in the B-Race, and each member of the other four five-man teams ran well, especially Dylan Brosnan ’18, Rob Farage ’18, and John Kehoe ’18.
The whole team will compete on Saturday at the NYCHSAA Freshman, J.V., and Varsity Championships. We wish the best of luck to all competing runners.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
With High Expectations, Xavier Soccer Enters Playoffs
Varsity and J.V. soccer are both in the playoffs. On October 24, varsity will match up against the second-ranked seed of the Brooklyn/Queens AA Division, Christ the King, whom Xavier lost to earlier in the season 3-2. Nevertheless, expectations are high. Coach Aidan Byrne said, “We are three wins away from winning the City Championship. That’s it. We’ve played tight games against every team we’re projected to go against, so we think we have a great shot.”
J.V. soccer advanced to the second round of the playoffs on October 22, with a 2-1 win over Christ the King. Richie Terranova ’17 and Ethan Bazan ’18 both scored. They will play Archbishop Molloy in the next round of the playoffs, on October 23.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Bowling Strikes Again
Varsity bowling had a great week of competition. The team swept both All Hallows and Mount Saint Michael, taking wood on each. Ranked second out of eleven teams in the CHSAA, the team is firing on all cylinders, with strong performances by Mike "The Hammer" Martell ’15, Connor Mulvena ’16, and Kyle Leahy ’17.
Last week, J.V. bowling challenged Mount Saint Michael twice. In the first game, the team won 2-1, though they lost the second 1-2. In the J.V. division, the bowlers are ranked seventh out of eleven teams, undoubtedly a respectable showing, and led by the outstanding play of Michael Spencer ’17, they look to keep things rolling as the season continues.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Football Meets Challenges with Resilience
Though varsity football lost to Holy Trinity 14-28, the team controlled the flow of the game and played well overall. Michael Chiarovano ’16 rushed 23 times for 104 yards with 1 touchdown, and in his first game after returning from injury, Giuseppe Orlando ’16 launched a 53-yard touchdown caught by Kevin Baker ’16. Coach Chris Stevens ’83 said, “In the past, our defense was carrying the majority of the workload, and our offense showed signs of development, which is encouraging. Though we lost today, we’re going to be competitive in the next few games, and we hope to get everything working together at the same time.” Their record is 1-5, and the team will play next against Mount Saint Michael on Saturday.
On Saturday, J.V. football tied Holy Trinity 24-24. Almost all football games end with a definitive winner and loser, so this game was unique in that it defied these expectations. Tied 24-24 at the end of regulation, each team was given one chance to score from the 10-yard line. Though Xavier shut down the Trinity offense in overtime, the Knight’s offense gave up a fumble in extra time, and since neither team was able to score, they tied as such. As a whole, they played well, and team members should be commended for their control and discipline throughout the game, even as it grew tense in the second half and in overtime. Their record is even at 3-3, and the team will play against Mount Saint Michael on Saturday.
Freshman football lost to St. Francis Prep, a team that is strong and well-coached, 28-6. The offense moved the ball well throughout the game, but suffered from numerous turnovers that resulted in St. Francis touchdowns. According to head coach James Costa ’02, “It was a bad day to have a bad game, especially against one of the top teams in the division. We’re facing competitive teams in the last two games of the season, but I know that when we play our best, we’re one of the best teams in the league.”
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Frosh Swimming Suffers Tough Loss
Freshman swimming lost to Jesuit rivals Fordham Prep 80-50. Among the Xavier highlights include a win in the 200-yard freestyle relay. According to head coach Dennis Murphy, “I think that our toughest competition is behind us. The kids are all improving and working hard at practice.” The team has a bye this week, and it looks to get its first win against Molloy on November 1.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Student Athlete Alumni Spotlight
Welcome to a new section of This Week in Sports. Every now and then, we'll feature a recent alumnus who has seen success in collegiate athletics. This week's spotlight is on Andy Raiola '14, who swims for Le Moyne College and has been named the NE-10 Rookie of the Week.
Taken from the Le Moyne Athletics website:
"Le Moyne College freshman Andy Raiola (Brooklyn, N.Y./Xavier) has been named the Northeast-10 Conference men's swimming rookie of the week, as announced by the conference office on Tuesday afternoon.
Raiola, honored by the conference for the first time in his career, registered four top-three finishes to lead the Dolphins to a third-place finish at the Ninth Annual Hartwick College Relays on Saturday afternoon. He placed second in the 3x200-yard IM in 6:19.18 with sophomore Tim Buff (Latham, N.Y./Shaker) and junior Ben Verdi (Buffalo, N.Y./St. Joseph's), second in the 3x100-yard butterfly in 2:45.0 with junior Daniel Tarbrake(Beltsville, Md./Gonzaga College High) and classmate Travis May (Mount Kisco, N.Y./Fox Lane) and second in the 850-yard crescendo relay in 8:06.54 with Buff, juniorRonnie Lowe (Middletown, N.Y./Pine Bush) and senior Ricky Divaccaro (Woodstown, N.J./Woodstown). He capped his performance by teaming on the third-place 800-yard medley relay in 8:23.55 with Verdi, Buff and Lowe."
Congrats to Andy on his accomplishments!
As always, visit Xavier Athletics for the most complete, up-to-date information, and stay tuned for the next edition of This Week in Sports.
Schedule:
Friday, 10/24: Var. Soccer v. Christ the King – 7:15pm @ Randall’s Island #10
Saturday, 10/25: Var. Football v. Mount Saint Michael – 3:30pm @ MCU Park
J.V. Football v. Mt. St. Michael – 10:00am @ Marine Park
Frosh Football v. Iona – 10:00am @ Iona
Var., J.V., and Frosh Cross-Country @ NYCHSAA Sectionals – 12:00pm @ Van Cortlandt Park
Monday, 10/27: Var. & J.V. Bowling v. Salesian – 4:00pm @ Homefield Bowl
Wednesday, 10/29: Var. & J.V. Bowling v. All Hallows – 4:00pm @ Homefield Bowl