falls church high school jaguar...
TRANSCRIPT
The Director of Student Activities
Jaguar Sports Boosters bulletin
Fall 2015
Falls Church High School
Fall Highlights
I read an article recently in the Public School Review, called “Ten Reasons Why High School Sports Benefit
Students “. The ten reasons were identified as community representation, fitness, improved academics, the
importance of the 3 Ps (persistence, patience and practice), teamwork and cooperation, positive mentors,
social relationships, leadership skills, time management, and success mindset. When I look back at the Fall
Sports Season of 2015, I believe that the Jaguar student athletes are clear evidence of these benefits. Their
dedication, improvement, leadership, sportsmanship, and efforts were outstanding. In addition, many of our
athletes earned the Scholar Athlete award for maintaining a 3.5 or higher grade point average during the first
quarter!
It was an exciting fall season for the Jaguars! Some highlights include… the varsity volleyball team had
their best record in recent years and qualified for the Region tournament, the girls cross country team also
advanced to the Region championship and senior Sandy Kendall competed in the State Cross Country
Championship for the second year in a row, the Jaguar football team finished the season 4-6 and had a
decisive Homecoming victory over Jefferson and ended the season with a big win over Stuart to maintain the
treasured Bell for the 4th year in a row, and the spirited Jaguar Cheerleaders brought home the Conference 13
Championship and advanced to the Region Championship! In addition, our field hockey and golf teams
showed steady improvement and effort! There were also many students who were selected to the All
Conference teams!
The Jaguar athletic programs would not exist if it were not for the financial support of the FCHS Athletic
Boosters! I want to thank the Boosters, under the leadership of new president Tim Harris, for all of their
efforts to raise money (snack bars, Our Fund campaign, memberships, leaf raking, spirit wear sales, etc.)
and boost school spirit. I also want to thank the dedicated members of the Student Activities Department:
Belinda Kim and Bobby Krause, Assistant Directors of Student Activities, and Esther Amenyah,
Administrative Assistant, and our Athletic Trainers, Jon Thompson and Jake Ivey, for their care and support
of our student athletes.
As you may have heard, the Fairfax County School Board and Board of Supervisors will have some difficult
decisions to make in the next few months as they try to solve the budget deficits. The athletic programs are
most likely going to be impacted in some way or another even though much of its funding is done through
Booster fundraising and gate income. As was mentioned in the beginning of this article, the benefits of
students participating in high school sports are tremendous and important. If you agree, please reach out to
your elected officials and reinforce how athletics benefit high school students and how reducing the existing
funding or programs or charging participation fees could have a serious and negative impact on the
education and culture of Falls Church High School students. The Jaguar student athletes need your support.
As we transition to the next season, I’m looking forward to seeing everyone at the FCHS winter events.
Go Jags!!! Jeanne Kelly, DSA
Congratulations to all our Fall athletes! The Falls Church Jaguar Athletic Boosters are very proud of them all! The main purpose of the Athletic Boosters is to enhance the athletic experience of all of our athletes. We not only raise money but work to make the community aware of the athletic program here at FCHS. We have continued our relationship with the Mosaic Shopping District, our sponsor of the annual Mosaic Bowl Football game, and we’re reaching out to other businesses in the area to help promote Jaguar athletics.
Most Fall athletes participated in our on-line fundraiser earlier in the year. We raised over $15,000.00. Our big Winter Fundraiser is the Booster Leaf Raking. Last Saturday the boys and girls basketball and the boys and girls swim and dive team raked 11 yards. This Saturday, November 21st , it’s the dance, gymnastics, track, and wrestling teams turn to rake leaves to raise money for our program!
This coming Spring our fundraiser will be a 3-on-3 Basketball Tournament – stay tuned for more information.
Just as our athletes train and work hard to be successful, so, too, must the Boosters. We invite all parents to participate in Booster activities. You can help by working a shift at the snack bar (no training needed), by finding advertisers for our Winter and Spring sports’ yearbooks and webpage, or join the Booster Board. Talk to any Booster Board member to get involved.
The simplest way to help the Boosters is by becoming a Booster member! Not only do you and your family get free entry into all Jaguar home games, but you’ll be helping to improve the quality of our athletes’ experience. All funds raised by the Boosters go directly to our athletic programs. Fairfax County Schools only pay for the officials, the coaches’ salaries and the transportation to and from games. Booster funds pay for all uniforms, equipment and tournament and invitational fees – anything your student athlete touches in the course of participating in their sport was most likely paid for by Booster funds. If you have any questions, please contact me or any Booster Board member.
--Tim Harris, FC Jaguar Athletic Boosters President
P.S. Make sure you purchase a copy of the Falls
Sports’ Yearbook and our new line of Spirit Wear;
both are on sale at the Fall Awards
Ceremony! [email protected]
A Word from the FCHS Athletic Boosters President
Nov 21 - Boosters Leaf Raking Nov 24 - Winter sports parents/coaches meeting Dec 4 - Winter sports pictures Dec 28-30 - Joe Cascio Memorial Basketball
Tournament Feb 22 - Spring sports Tryouts Begin Mar 5 - Winter sports Awards Night
TBA - Spring sports parents/coaches meeting TBA - Spring sports pictures Mar 21 - Mar 25 FCPS Spring Break TBA - FCHS Prom Apr 30 - Jaguar 5K/1 mile fun run TBA - FCHS Boosters Golf Tournament June 20 - Graduation/All Night Grad Celebration
Mark Your Calendars:
Volunteer Opportunities
The Boosters need your help!
The FCHS boosters run a snack bar at all of our games and it is important to have parents to staff it! Even if you are
tired of making tacos in a bag, you can still help – there are spirit wear sales opportunities, as well. Please use the sign
up link below to get yourself a shift! Teams are assigned specific slots but you are not limited by that. Sign up now for any game or event and do it as many times as you can!
http://www.volunteerspot.com/group/129578468099
Note: VolunteerSpot does not share your email address with anyone. If you prefer not to use your email address, please contact Kelly ([email protected]).
Remember – 100% of the proceeds from the snack bar and spirit wear sales goes towards our athletes
so everyone’s help is needed and appreciated.
Fall Sports Wrap-Up
Cheerleading
Coach Jessica Brown
This was a phenomenal season for Falls Church
Cheerleading! We started the season by welcoming new coaches, Jessica Brown (Head Coach), Jessica McClean (Varsity Assistant Coach), Erika Castedo (JV Coach), and Jade Sloane (Freshman Coach). As always, we set our expectations high and were ready to deliver great results.
Led by senior co-captains Taylor Harvey and Emily Santos, the varsity cheerleaders had a very successful season. They held a spirit night at Silver Diner in Merrifield, hosted a youth cheerleading clinic in September, gave an outstanding performance at the pep rally, and much more. The varsity cheerleading squad claimed the Conference 13 Championship for the Jags by posting a 1
st place finish in each round by a
remarkable margin. They finished the season off by placing 5
th out if 12 schools in the 5A North Region
Competition. In addition to the team accomplishments, many individuals accomplished great things. Named to the 1st team all-district was Emily Santos, Tacey Brown, Darius Bryant, and Taylor Harvey. Emily Santos and Tacey Brown were recognized.as all-region. Great job on this accomplishment.
As new head coach, the most rewarding feeling is seeing the hard work and dedication that I, the coaching staff and cheerleaders put into this season. There are not enough ways to express the thanks I have for each and every one of them. This year, we are losing an amazing group of seniors. The Falls Church Cheerleading program is going to miss Gia Bonilla, Tacey Brown, Zhairah Frink, Taylor Harvey, Emily Santos, Tran Truong, Brena Whitten, and Sydney Witherspoon and will forever be grateful for their dedication to FCHS cheerleading. While we are sad to see the class of 2016 go, we look forward to another successful season next year!
Cross Country
Coach Bobby Krause
The boys and girls cross country teams recently
completed their seasons at the VHSL 5A State Championships. For the third consecutive year Falls Church High School was represented at the state championship. At the state meet, senior Sandy Kendall improved on her 61st place finish from last year by finishing in 54th place. Sandy led the girls team to a 3rd place finish overall in conference 13, just two points behind rival Thomas Jefferson. Along with Sandy, seniors Emily Seracino and Campbell Scheuerman placed in the top 15 at the conference championship to earn all-conference 13 honors. The boys team was led by all-conference senior Carlos Mahuiztl who took 12th place in the conference. The boys team placed 5th in the conference championship meet just 1 point behind Stuart High School. The Jaguars look to build upon their success this year throughout the indoor and outdoor track seasons.
Golf
Coach Seth Richardson
This year’s FCHS golf team was a
group of younger players with immense potential. They finished 5
th
in the conference paced by sophomore Alex Bruning who tied for 13
th place individually. On the
girls side, freshman phenom Sarah Jones was a consistent performer in her first year of competitive high school golf. Senior leaders Thomas
Burke and Lauren Beck were the anchors to the line-up for the Jaguars in our coed matches. With the growth and learning that took place this year, I fully expect the Jaguar golf team to rise through the Conference 13 ranks in the next few years.
Field Hockey
Coaches Minnie Wodatch & Jenny Jacobs
This year, the field hockey team says goodbye to 7
seniors. The season saw a positive progression in
terms of skill, ability and team-play. From mid-season
on, the team’s slim losses of 1 to 2 goals reflected their
ability to keep possession and better move the ball
down the field. Congratulations to Meg Verhagen who
was voted 2nd
Team All-Conference and to Honorable
Mentions Connie Vuong, Sophia Omar, Rachel
Rannazzisi, and Chance Asher. The field hockey
program would like to thank the JV coaches, C. Nair
and Jordan Hales for their incredible commitment to
excellence. Big thanks to all the parents, family
members, and friends who came out to support the
team. We can’t wait for next season!
Football
Coach Said Aziz
The Falls Church Varsity Football team finished the
season 4-6, the JV finished 7-1 while winning the JV Conference 13 Championship, and Freshman football continued to improve every week. The Varsity football team had a youth movement this year, and started out strong vs Eastern in the home opener, winning 49-6. After that, the team faced some adversity, dropping several close games. The Jaguars got back on the winning track winning their homecoming, defeating Edison on the road, and keeping the bell for the fourth year in a row.
Unfortunately, for the first time in three years, the Jaguars did not make the playoffs. The Jaguars hope to build on some of the success they had this past season, returning 7 starters on offense and 6 on defense. Coach Aziz would like to personally thank all of the Seniors, assistant coaches, parents, La Choza Grill, the
Cheerleaders, our Marching Band, and the activities department. Go Jags!
Volleyball
Coach Belinda Kim
The 2015 Volleyball program had a great fall
season. The Varsity volleyball team finished the season with a 10-8 record, beat TJ in a 5 set match to finish 3rd in the conference, and qualified for regionals for the first time since 2005. Micaela Ortiz was named 1st Team All Conference, Amber Ecelbarger and Sarah Halverson were named 2nd Team All Conference, and Shannon Baily and Meaghan Wheeler were Honorable Mention. Coach Kim was also voted Co-Coach of the Year. The varsity team is losing 8 hardworking seniors who were all role models for the program (Ilayda Akgul, Amber Ecelbarger, Sarah Halverson, Nicole Haynes, Leann Loch, Micaela Ortiz, Anna Trinh, and Brianna Zuniga). The Freshman and JV programs worked hard throughout the season, were very competitive against the schools in our conference, and showed improvement with each and every game. Both the JV and Freshman teams ended the season on a great note with wins against Edison and Lee.
We have some room to mention a new Club team that played representing Falls Church this
year:
Fall Sports Wrap-Up (continued)
Congratulations on a great season to Falls Church Boys Volleyball who won Fairfax's first ever Northern Virginia High School Boys Volley-ball League Championship. They defeated the defending champs and #1 seed, Stone Bridge, in the semifinal match and then dominated the final match against Briar Woods. This truly was a team victory.
A big thanks goes out to Coach Jeanne Baily and Coach Nick Schroth for putting together a great season!
Winter Sports Preview
Boys Basketball
Coach Derek Gaunt
Falls Church High would like to welcome head coach
Derek Gaunt and his varsity assistants, Kevin George and Lawrence Lewis, to the school for the 2015-2016 season while wishing FCHS alum TC Papageorge a fond farewell. The Jaguars look to continue the exciting brand of basketball that they have played in the past few years. We would also like to welcome JV coach Mark Hines and Freshman coach David Harrison. Good luck to both you and the teams, gentleman!
Dance Team
Coach Ashley Zimmerman Coach Zimmerman and Coach Chagnon are excited to begin another season with the Falls Church HS Co-Ed Dance Team. This will be the coaches 2
nd
season, returning as head and assistant coach. The dance team will continue to support our Varsity Boys and Girls Basketball Teams. Be sure to come watch our performances at half-time during the home games - our schedule is posted on the website! The dance team will also be traveling to competition in January.
Go Jaguars!
Swim & Dive
Coach Nikki Iselin
Gymnastics
Coach Pete Novgrod
Falls Church High would like to welcome coach
Novgrod back for another season at FCHS. The gymnasts are working hard at improving their skills with each practice. The coaches are looking forward to providing a positive experience.
Wrestling
Coach Dustin Payne
This year’s Jaguar Wrestling team is coming off a
historic season when they qualified 14 out of 14 for
the region championships. After graduating seven
seniors, the bar is set high for this year’s young team
to repeat last year’s success. This year the wrestling
Jags have added two new coaches. Jacob Boisseau,
a former Jaguar wrestler, who will help out with the
JV and Coach Joe Evans who is an Adapted PE
itinerant in the county. Joe comes from New York
where he was a successful wrestler and coached
wrestling in the Buffalo area for 3 seasons. Coach
Payne is excited about this year and hoping that
more people will come to the home matches to
support Jaguar wrestling.
Indoor Track
Coach Bobby Krause
The winter track season officially started the second
week of November. Returning to the coaching staff is Head Coach Bobby Krause and throws coach, Craig Day. The team is very excited about the addition of Mr. Brian Booth to the staff to take over as the new sprints and horizontal jumps coach. Coach Booth did a great job with the freshman boys football team and as a new physical education teacher at FCHS, we are really excited to have him as part of our staff. The biggest change to our team this year is the size. At the end of the first week the boys and girls combined team has 118 athletes. With the largest team in more than five years, the Jaguars are looking to have multiple athletes score points in all 17 indoor track and field events.
Swim and Dive started a new season last week, and we welcomed several new swimmers and divers. We completed time trials, and added dryland exercises before getting in the pool to swim. Coach Ricky, Coach Carlin and I are impressed with the effort we have seen so far, and are going to work hard before our first meet on December 4.
Girls Basketball
Coach Janice Pritchett
The FCHS Girls Basketball Program is looking forward
to bring in the 2015-2016 season with a bang! With eager players and an enthusiastic coaching staff, it is sure to be an incredible season! FCHS Girls’ Basketball needs the support of the Jaguar Family to ensure the success of the program, so come out and support your Lady Jags! The dynamic duo is back! Coach Pritchett and Coach Bailey embark on their third season together. This is Coach Pritchett’s sixth year coaching with the FCHS Girls Basketball Program and second year teaching at FCHS. She has vast basketball experience ranging from being a player herself, to coaching intramurals, AAU, and HS basketball. Coach Pritchett looks forward to an amazing season! Coach Bailey went to Roanoke College where he played basketball for one year. He now teaches at Luther Jackson MS, where he has been a Health and Physical education teacher for six years. Coach Bailey looks forward to continue his journey with the Lady Jags this year! Despite the loss of great seniors, the team is excited to start competing! With six returning varsity players, this year’s team looks to build upon their successes from last year. While the Jaguars will be relying heavily on their returning players, some promising newcomers are excited to make their debut. As a young team with a lot of potential and dedication it appears to be a very competitive season for the Lady Jags! Coach Kearney returns as the JV Head Coach. Coach Kearney coached boys for many years, but when his daughter came along he began coaching girls at the Annandale Boys and Girls Club. Coach Kearney became the FCHS Varsity Girls Basketball Head Coach, a position that he held until 2003. He left coaching for a few years, but stayed involved in FCHS basketball as a Game Manager and Announcer. He is excited to be back! Coach Pendleton is a FCHS alumni and former FCHS basketball player, once coached by her fellow companion Coach Kearney himself. After graduating from FCHS, Coach Pendleton returned to FCHS to coach, but briefly retired to start a family. She is looking forward to being back home with the Lady Jags! The freshman program makes their debut with a new head coach, Coach Jackson and assistant freshman
coach, Coach Boucher. Coach Jackson played high school basketball for Stafford County Public Schools. She is heading up a new basketball program with the Alexandria YMCA, where she is also a personal fitness trainer and youth coordinator. Coach Jackson is excited to join the Lady Jags coaching staff! Coach Boucher is an alumni of FCHS. After her great experience as a student-athlete with the FCHS athletics program, she decided to embrace an opportunity with the FCHS Girls Basketball program. She is extremely excited to join the Lady Jags basketball coaching staff!
Winter Sports Preview (continued)
Boys Basketball Derek Gaunt [email protected]
Girls Basketball Janice Pritchett [email protected]
Dance Ashley Zimmerman [email protected]
Gymnastics Pete Novgrod [email protected]
Swim/Dive Nikki Iselin [email protected]
Track Bobby Krause rlkrause@fcps,edu
Wrestling Dustin Payne [email protected]
Falls Church High School Winter Sports Head Coaches 2014-2015
Sport: Head Coach: Email:
FCHS Student Activities Department:
Student Activities phone # 703-207-4023 Jaguar Hotline – 703-821-5245 Sports Webpage: www.fallschurchsports.org Twitter: @FCJagsAthletics Jeanne Kelly, Director of Student Activities, [email protected] Bobby Krause, Asst. DSA, [email protected] Belinda Kim, Asst. DSA, [email protected] Esther Rodriguez, Administration Assistant, [email protected] Jon Thompson, Certified Athletic Trainer, [email protected]
