Season Opener Highlights

By Eliza Statile

The winter athletic season is in full swing and we could not be more excited to see our athletes compete. With 11 teams practicing and competing against local schools, this season is destined to be action packed. Here are the highlights from our first competitions of the season:

On Friday, December 6, the Girls Varsity Basketball Team travelled to the Ethel Walker School to compete. At first glance, according to Coach Hanniford and Coach Vorenberg, “there was some nervousness on the part of our players, who made comments like ‘look how tall they are!’” After only a handful of practices, the team was still figuring out who they are as a group. But, after the first jump, all the worries that the team had just faded way, with everyone contributing to the team’s success, including newcomers competing in their first basketball game ever. The team used their quick burst speed to shut down passing lanes and keep their opponents out of the paint, remaining patient until they could steal the ball and start some fast breaks. Emma Ohler (Grade 7) was able to convert some fast breaks to baskets, with Genesis Villegas (Grade 7) tallying an impressive amount of points including at least three 3 pointers. With effective rebounding from Rosie Muzaurieta (Grade 7), Esther Lee (Grade 8),  Kelly Lee (Grade 9), and big steals from Genesis, Emma and Yaps Yapi (Grade 9), the team fought hard, shook out the nerves and brought home a win. The final result of the game was 37-19. 

The Boys Varsity Basketball team continued the streak on the court for IMS, travelling to compete against Kent, resulting in a winning performance and score of 62-34. All players on the team were able to gain valuable playing time on the court and continue to dig deeper into the strengths that each player has, individually and as a unit. Jayden Hernandez (Grade 9) led the team’s scoring with an impressive 20 points, John Maida (Grade 9) contributed 8 points, while Peter Bai (Grade 9) and Jose Jimenez (Grade 8) each tallied 6 points. On the defensive end, Jeremiah Coty (Grade 8) played particularly well and finished with 6 steals! The team will compete against Westminster on Friday, December 10. 

The Varsity Squash Team has had a busy start to the season, travelling to Canterbury for their first match on Friday December 6, and shortly thereafter competing on Sunday, December 8, in a Mini Tournament with Berkshire School and Eaglebrook School athletes. On Friday, the team won 5-2, with students winning on the ladder in positions, 1, 2, 3, 4, and 7. Competing in a round robin style tournament at the Berkshire school, each player competed in 8-10 games against at least 5 different players to gain valuable experience competing on the court. James Teng (Grade 8) placed in first overall, with Dailyn Simancas (Grade 8), Santiago Meza Rivera (Grade 7), and Benjamin Jiang (Grade 7) placing in 3rd, 4th, and 7th places respectively. Overall, the tournament was a huge success with players improving throughout the day. There was even a special appearance by the former World number 1, English Professional Squash player Nick Matthew!