Amidst the coronavirus pandemic, Montrose’s first-ever virtual sports banquet was held on May 19th via zoom. Starting the evening, Mrs. Boynton gave a recap of the winter season and milestones for Montrose. The new indoor track and field club participated in the first three meets in Montrose history. The middle school basketball team was mentored by assistant coach and head of school, Dr. Bohlin. Varsity Basketball, once again, won another championship in the IGC league. Offering inspiration and hope to the athletes, Mrs. Boynton also shared a quote: “Sports: Even at its best, it’s never any more perfect than the rest of the world. But if, once in a generation or so, sports throws up a glimpse of ourselves at our best, well, that’s enough for me.”- Ice Cube. 

Because this event was held through everyone’s screen instead of the A & A building, Mrs. Boynton decided to take a different approach in showcasing each individual athlete. “I will say that this was one of the most time-consuming banquets I prepared for and it was the shortest! I wanted to come up with a way that recognized all athletes that still felt intimate and gave the same feeling of excitement as if we were in person. That gave me the idea of the PowerPoint, which I thought worked out really well. This way everyone was able to see a picture of every face on each team.”

Each coach had the chance to give a few remarks about the team, and team awards were presented. Mrs. Boynton, the Middle School basketball coach, said that the team was very hardworking and supportive of each other. They played against teams that were mostly older than they were, but they held their own and never gave up. All the girls worked so hard on the Middle School basketball team, but a few girls stood out, winning team awards. Natalia McLaughlin ’26 and Lucy Farr ‘26 both won the Unsung Hero Award, Olivia Lipson ‘25 won the Most Improved Award, Nikki Schuster won the 110% Award, and Ali McLaughlin ‘24 won MVP of the Middle School basketball team. 

The JV basketball team, coached by Mrs. Bettinelli also did very well this season growing both on and off the court. Coach Bettinelli noted the girls’ perseverance. They never gave up when they were down, and they came to every practice with the humility to work on whatever it took to improve the team. The special awards on the JV basketball team went to Theresa Marcucci ‘23 and Grace Cronin ‘25 for Unsung Heroes, Leslie Baker ‘24 for the 110% Award, Lorena Ortiz ‘26 and Lola Garcia Romero ’24 for most improved and, finally Kenzie Cassler ‘24 for the MVP of the JV basketball team.

Through many after school and a couple before school practices, the Varsity basketball truly embodied head coach, Coach Brigid’s, definition of team: “a group of individuals united for a common goal.” Whether practicing their foul shots or doing sets of burpees, the athletes were there to cheer each other on. The team exemplified the idea winning takes talent but to repeat it takes character. Thanks to each athlete, especially the seniors, the Montrose Varsity team won another championship. The special awards voted by fellow varsity players went to Katherine Flynn ‘21 for Most Improved, both Sophie Cronin ‘23 and Devyn Gianino ‘20 for 110% award, Maria Lennon ‘20 for Unsung Hero award, and Colleen Casey ‘22 for MVP. In addition, the league awarded Devyn Gianino, Sophie Cronin, and Colleen Casey with the IGC All-League award and Colleen Casey with the IGC League Co-MVP. Amira Akar ‘21, Katherine Flynn, and Colleen Casey will be our Montrose 2020-2021 Varsity Captains. 

The indoor track and field club consisted of a variety of athletes, some preparing for outdoor track, and some working to stay in shape for the spring season. No matter what their reason was for joining winter track, everyone on the team came to every practice ready to take on anything, whether it was circuit workouts in the mezzanine, a warm-up jog in the snow, or (everyone’s favorite) sprints through the hallways. The Indoor Track and Field team also had the chance to compete in Montrose’s first indoor track meets. These meets were large and consisted of competitors of all ages. For many of these girls, it was their first time ever running in a track meet, but everyone listened to Coach Kerr, stepped out of their comfort zones, and did a great job!

With the exception of minimal connection issues, our school’s first virtual sports banquet was a success! Reflecting on the banquet, Mrs. Boynton said, “I thought all the remarks from the coaches were so lovely and heartfelt. It seemed like a great evening overall!” Thank you seniors for all your contributions to Montrose Sports. Congratulations to all our student-athletes and coaches for this amazing season!

Alanna Hyatt ’22 & Faith Chen ’22, Co Sports Editor and Assistant Copy Editor

22ahyatt@montroseschool.org, 22fchen@montroseschool.org