Winter Sports Round-Up

2/21/2020

Chatham Hall

On Monday, athletes and coaches gathered in St. Mary's Chapel for the Winter Awards Ceremony.

Each team had their chance to share the highs and lows of the season that was, with special recognition of outstanding performances. Certificates were handed out to the Most Valuable Player and Most Improved Player, as well as a Coach’s Award, for each team. We checked in with Swim Team coach, Anna Bodnar, and Varsity Basketball coach, Ryan Bradley to hear their highlights and reflections on the season that was.

Anna Bodnar, Varsity Swim Team- “The season was truly a success for each and every swimmer. Both returning and new swimmers alike made significant improvements over the course of the season and all accomplished the goals they set for themselves.

At the Blue Ridge Conference meet, we tied with the Covenant School as runners-up and sent seven swimmers to the state meet. Then, at states, we placed 28th in the 200 free relay and 27th in the 400 free relay. Those relays were comprised of Stephanie Zhang ‘20, Lucy Blackwell ‘21, Stella Liu ‘21, and Taylor Xu ‘23. Taylor placed 31st in the 50 free and Stephanie placed 37th in the bonus 50. It was such a joy to watch everyone improve as swimmers and grow together as a team!”

Ryan Bradley, Varsity Basketball- “Our conference is incredibly strong, but we had a few close games that could have gone either way. The Turtles almost squeaked by Fuqua, Eastern Mennonite, New Covenant, and VES this year. Several opposing coaches commented that our kids have come a long way and they fear that we are closing the gap between our programs. That improvement showed up in our stats as well. Kala Saliu ’21 was top ten in the league in rebounds, Emma Denny ’21 ended up second in blocks, and Zion Andrews ’22, winner of the Coach’s Award, led the team with 30 “hearts,” our team hustle stat.

As for the graduating seniors, I’ll miss our first-year varsity players: Taylor McLaurin and her affable spirit and Sarah Miller-Richards’ competitive fire. Christina Fast, a three-year veteran of the team, will leave a big hole in our lineup and our team personality. I’m excited about the potential we have next year and look forward to seeing what this year’s juniors can do.”

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