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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Scotty Sports Corner: Spring Teams Start on a Winning Note
By Kelly Proctor '02
Special Correspondent
Tappahannock (April 8, 2002) - As St. Margaret's student-athletes came back to campus from spring break, they officially kicked off the final sports season of the year-with a bang. Lacrosse, softball, tennis, and crew participants flocked to the playing fields and down to the river to train. They are already displaying their hard work and talent in what is shaping up to be a winning season
Photo left: St. Margaret's victorious novice four celebrates after a win at the Crawford Bay Crew Classic. Left to right: Palmer Ware of Dunnsville, Neillee Katona of Dunnsville, Annie Arnest of Kinsale, and Catherine Farland. Front: Coxswain Anne Czechanski.
Lacrosse: Varsity lacrosse can already boast its first win, as the SMS Scotties vanquished the St. Gertrude's Gators on March 21 at home. St. Margaret's battled for the ball through a dusty melee, and blasted enough goals from a giant tangle of legs, arms, and sticks to send St. Gertrude's back to Richmond in defeat. Coach Cupper Dickinson credited senior captain Susie Aguirre, junior co-captain Cassy Cormack and sophomore Sarah Copeland of Tappahannock with good play throughout. The stat books reveal goals by Aguirre and sophomore Ali Hord, with assists by Cormack and Copeland. Sophomore Margaret Moncure of Tappahannock won each draw at center.
"Lacrosse played a controlled game," Dickinson said. "We had many newcomers who jumped right in and quickly picked up on the pace." She and her team are lacing up their cleats for a winning season.
Tennis: St. Margaret's tennis team played its first match at Christchurch School on Friday, March 22. SMS girls served and ran with grace, despite the fact that their breath left clouds in the 40-degree chill. By the end of the singles matches, junior Maggie Kite, senior co-captain Danielle Magid and sophomore Roz Morrison had all won 8-0, but the overall score stood tied with three wins and three losses. As they advanced to doubles, Kite and Magid won their match 8-1, while the team of sophomore Maggie Ransone of Kilmarnock and junior Jee-Sun Lee blew their opponents away with an 8-0 win. By the time CCS sent the last yellow sphere hurtling into the net, SMS had triumphed, 5-4.
On March 27, SMS traveled to the Covenant School of Richmond. There, Kite, Magid and Lee won during singles play, tying the score at 3-3. As the Scotties advanced into the finals, Kite and sophomore Marin Brown won their doubles match. Once senior co-captains Kristina Bethea and Danielle Magid beat their opponents, SMS had won, 5-4.
Coach Katie Speigler of Tappahannock said of the match: "That was a really big win for us, as Covenant beat us by one point during last year's tournament. To date, Maggie Ransone and Danielle Magid are undefeated. We're looking forward to a fun season!"
Crew: St. Margaret's crew team launched what promises to be a successful spring with two victories at the Crawford Bay Crew Classic in Portsmouth on March 23. The novice four shell (or boat), consisting of senior coxswain Anne Czechanski, freshman Annie Arnest of Kinsale, junior Catherine Farland and Dunnsville freshmen Neillee Katona and Palmer Ware set a consistent velocity as they rowed down the lane towards the orange buoy marking the finish line. Competition was fierce until the boat closest on their heels, Maury High School of Norfolk, caught a "crab" (dragged an oar under the water, thereby stalling their shell). With oars in synch, the Scotties pulled together and crossed the finish line well ahead of the four other boats in the race.
Later, the junior varsity four, consisting of freshman coxswain LuLu Fiscella, junior Beth Brinkley, senior Kelly Proctor of Urbanna, senior Virginia King and senior Rae McCrae, took first place in its race. Despite a mistake that cost them precious seconds of time at the start, the Scotty boat pulled out from behind to clench the win.
The varsity boat, consisting of freshman coxswain Emily Hodkins, senior Sarah Taliaferro of Center Cross, sophomore Cariad Shepherd, junior Laura Caton and sophomore Jessica White, made a disappointing run that resulted in a medal-less race for SMS, but have vowed to redouble their efforts at the next regatta on April 6.
The SMS crew team is coached this year by Skye Elliot, Kary Fronk and Andrea Robinson. Coach Robinson said, "We are very proud of our novice rowers. They fought until the end for their first-place finish. Maury High School gave them a run for their money, however, so we are going to keep working hard at our conditioning in the upcoming weeks."
