13 minute read
Unfettered & Supercharged Varsity Bruins Reach Highest of Levels
FOCUS. ANTICIPATION. ENERGY.
FREEDOM. EXCELLENCE.
BY MIKE KENNEDY ’99
Unfettered & Supercharged, Varsity Bruins Reach Highest of Levels
AS THE SPRING ATHLETIC season began — sailors and rowers hitting the water, baseball and lacrosse players taking the field, tracksters and tennis players lacing up their shoes, and golfers walking the fairways — Brunswick teams felt strong senses of relief and anticipation as they stepped into their respective arenas of play.
They would compete without interruption — no longer wearing prohibitive masks or following strict virus-related protocols — free once again to focus solely on swinging bats, ripping groundstrokes, jumping hurdles, or rowing as eight-man units (among other standard movements of the season). And, ultimately, they would accomplish it all at the highest of levels — earning regional and national success and recognition — on their way to another superb and sportsmanlike spring of Brunswick athletics.
For more photos of Bruin Sports, visit bwick.org/ tob_fall2022
CREW Simple Recipe: ‘Hard Work, Leadership, Togetherness’
IT WAS a season of firsts for Brunswick rowing.
Longtime assistant coach John Martin took over the helm from the legendary Joe Falco — and the Bruins were off to the races under their new, yet experienced leader.
When all was said and done, ’Wick had won the school’s firstever New England Interscholastic Rowing Association Championship Regatta — held on Lake Quinsigamond, in Worchester, Mass. — and the second and third eights brought home silver medals.
The varsity eight also swept its slate of cup races — highlighted by victories at St. Andrew’s School, Phillips Andover, and the Kent Invitational to cap an undefeated spring on the water.
For Martin, the recipe for success was quite simple.
“We relied on hard work, senior leadership, and togetherness,” said Martin, who rowed collegiately at Columbia University. “And we shared a belief that we could accomplish something no other Brunswick team had done before.”
The deep and talented senior class — which included Max Konzerowsky, Peter Kapp, John Dunn, Ben Packer, Teddy Elmlinger, Jamie Gibbons, Robert Jacobson, and Theo Evans — has certainly set a stellar example for all in the program to follow.
And, as 19 Bruins who earned medals at the New England Championships will be returning next season, expectations will be at an all-time high for the program.
Rising seniors Ruffin Bryant, Tomas Jasson, and Campbell Officer will serve as team captains.
Max Konzerowsky ’22 Varsity Eight (l to r): Sam Subramaniam ’23, Ben Packer ’22, John Dunn ’22, Campbell Officer ’23, Ruffin Bryant ’23, Jimmy Cabot ’23, Henry Andren ’24, Peter Kapp ’22, and Max Konzerowsky ’22.
Second Varsity Eight (l to r): Tomas Jasson ’23, Scott Raissis ’23, Jake Murphy ’24, Kiran Marsh ’24, Theo Evans ’22, Colin Devine ’24, Will Baxter ’22, Jamie Gibbons ’22, and Teddy Elmlinger ’22.
BASEBALL ‘Pro Scouts at Every Game’
HEAD COACH Johnny Montañez pointed to three key moments as he reflected on last year’s Brunswick baseball season.
The first was an earlyApril doubleheader against Winchendon School that saw the highly touted Bruins — who had a strong showing at the National High School Showdown in Hoover, Ala., in March — lose two games on their home field and be dealt a stern dose of reality. ’Wick would have to do more than simply trot onto the diamond to win baseball games — the Brown & White would have to play a resilient, mature, and hard-working brand of America’s pastime to have success. And they’d have to do it together — as a group of nine players all pulling in the same direction.
Proof came in the way of junior Boston Flannery’s walk-off grand slam (key moment No. 2 for Montañez) versus Citius Baseball Academy — which erased a two-run deficit in the decisive seventh inning and propelled the Bruins to a dugout-emptying victory of the epic variety.
They didn’t stop there, continuing to reel off wins in the FAA and throughout New England before setting up a clash with perennial powerhouse Salisbury School on the road in early May (key moment No. 3 for Montañez).
The visitors broke open a pitchers’ duel with three straight hits in the top of the ninth inning and held off the ultimate Western New England champions by a score of 3-1 — once again showing the team’s mettle, competitive edge, and will to win when the game was on the line. In the end, the Bruins finished with a record of 20–4, falling to Hamden Hall in the FAA semifinals on the eve of graduation.
“The boys continued to build on the school’s baseball excellence this season,” Montañez said. “It’s a true testament to how far the program has come when you see pro scouts in the stands at every game and the team competing against — and beating — many of the region’s best programs.”
Five starters will return to the field for the Bruins next spring — with rising seniors Riley
Redahan, Michael Yeager, and
Boston Flannery leading the way as captains.
Cole Mascolo ’22
Boston Flannery ’23 Coach Montañez and Michael Yeager ’23
Adonys Guzman ’22
GOLF Flipped Script Focuses on Gratitude
Owen Hayes ’22 Sam O’Hara ’23
LONGTIME HEAD coach Anthony Fischetti had prepared a predictable end-of-season speech to give at his team’s celebratory dinner in June — one detailing the Bruins’ near-perfect record; the cold, wet, and muddy course conditions; and the honorable nature of the great game of golf.
But he flipped the script: Instead, he focused on gratitude.
Notwithstanding eight weather cancelations, the Bruins were back together again after playing a truncated schedule with masks on in 2021. They walked the fairways in foursomes, played from dawn until dusk on their spring trip to Florida, and teed it up on some of the finest courses in the Metropolitan area as members of the ’Wick golf club.
“We’re grateful for the perspective we’ve gained over the last two years,” said Fischetti, who has led the Brunswick golf team for nearly two decades. “We’ve realized never to take the memories, matches, and tournaments for granted — and to cherish the time we are privileged to share together while playing a game we all love.”
Along the way, too, the Bruins earned their fair share of shotmaking success.
Senior Owen Hayes, along with juniors Henry Devaney and Sam O’Hara, served as the team captains — and led the formidable 12-man squad to a 26-2 campaign, including a second-place finish at the Western New England Prep Invitational at Bull’s Bridge Golf Club (where sophomore superstar Will Harned fired a one-under 71 to pace the 90-player field as the tournament medalist).
As a team, the Bruins posted an impressive five-score aggregate of 375 on the Tom Fazio layout in South Kent, Conn., falling to Avon Old Farms by four strokes.
With seven seniors returning to the links next season, the Bruins will look to make their mark as one of the best teams in program history. Devaney, O’Hara, and fellow classmate Harry Bonomo will lead the charge as captains.
Henry Devaney ’23
THE TALENT, depth, and athleticism could not be denied. The Bruins effortlessly zipped the ball around the lacrosse field. They selflessly relied on a next-man-up, sharethe-rock mentality. And they relentlessly ran their opponents into the ground.
Ultimately, they racked up a record of 15-1 — with imposing victories over perennial powers Deerfield, Georgetown Prep, Darien High School, and Taft (to name a few) — and finished the season ranked first in New England and second in the nation.
At the inaugural Prep Nationals, ’Wick avenged its only loss of the spring by defeating Salisbury in the semi-finals before going on to win the title against Lawrenceville in front of a capacity crowd at Robert L. Cosby Field.
Head coach David Bruce, however, looked beyond the numbers — beyond the All-Americans, beyond the Division I commitments — when reflecting on (perhaps) the best season in the history of such a distinguished program.
“This team was successful because of their competitiveness and care for one another,” he said. “When their character was tested, they passed with flying colors — and they made their school and alumni proud.”
Great senior leadership, too, proved to be a difference maker for the Bruins — as co-captains Henry Caponiti, Will Donovan, and Luke Schlank and their fellow classmates set the tone for their team from the very first day of practice in late February.
With such a strong rising- senior class returning — led by captain-elects Luke Michalik, Tomas Delgado, and Hunter Spiess — the bar will be raised just as high (can it get any higher?) when the action resumes next spring.
Luke Schlank ’22 The Bruins captured the inaugural Prep Nationals by defeating Salisbury and Lawrenceville on Robert L. Cosby Field. Will Donovan ’22
Henry Caponiti ’22
Edward Nagler ’22
TENNIS Racket Sportsmen Peak at Perfect Moment
TEAM CHEMISTRY was the name of the game for Brunswick tennis. A young squad chock-full of highly talented players but lacking significant experience at the prep-school level, the
Bruins developed a strong bond beginning on the March training trip to Florida and evolving with each practice, bus ride, and big match.
They also set secondary goals of representing their school with superior sportsmanship on the court and winning a New
England championship.
Led by co-captains Edward
Nagler, Nick Errico, and Evan
Lee, ’Wick emphatically checked each of those boxes on its way to a record of 16-1-1 — highlighted by an undefeated mark in the FAA, the title at the George C. Shaffer Doubles Invitational at Episcopal Academy, and the New England Class A championship-victory against Groton.
Lee, the team’s number-one player who will continue his career at Notre Dame, sealed the program’s third consecutive title (no tournaments were held in 2020 or 2021) by saving four match points and winning a super tiebreaker by a score of 17–15.
“The boys truly came together and peaked at the right time to achieve the last of our team goals,” Abraham said. “It was certainly a special and memorable accomplishment after all the interruptions and cancelations we faced in the previous two seasons.”
As the Bruins begin looking ahead to next spring (and the possibility of a four-peat), they will be led back onto the court by rising senior captains Will Monahan, Santos Gunningham, and Johnny Riehl.
Evan Lee ’22 Lorenzo Gunningham ’22
Jalen Johnson ’22
Mac Brooks ’23
TRACK & FIELD Championship Contributors Score from All Angles
Kha’lil Eason ’22 THE BRUINS ran 35-deep — and were talented on the track and on the field. Led by senior captains
Caleb Boateng, Tristan Joseph,
Lucas Pombo, and Kaden Saad, ’Wick’s track and field team had one of its finest seasons in school history, with a record of 22 wins and five losses.
The squad capped its impressive campaign at the FAA
Championships in mid-May, outlasting rival Hopkins by a score of 161–144 to claim the title in convincing fashion.
Head coach Robert Taylor pointed to contributions from both sides of the sport as key to the Bruins’ success.
“Historically, most of the scoring has come from runners,”
Taylor said. “However, while the team had strong runners, this year’s scoring was complemented by field-event athletes, especially in the throwing events.”
Taylor cited hurdler and middle-distance runner Mac Brooks as the team’s most valuable and highest scoring athlete, while also noting the performances of freshman sprinter Jalen Noisette, senior sprinter Kha’lil Eason, junior sprinter Niki Sulkowski, senior middle-distance runner Caleb Boateng, eighth-grade distance runner Nathan Lee, junior shotputter Will Janis, junior discus thrower Riley Gilsenan, and senior javelin throwers Benet Polikoff and John Burdett.
Burdett, in fact, set a school record in the javelin (166' 10") on his way to the individual title at the New England Championship at St. Paul’s School.
Next spring, too, looks bright for the program, as the Bruins will return a number of experienced athletes to their top-notch facility on King Street.
Brooks and Sulkowski will be joined by fellow classmates and rising seniors Ryan Kulsakdinun and Nick Tchkotoua as team captains.
John Burdett ’22
Robert Ulmer ’24 and Christian Ohlemeyer ’23
SAILING Racers Begin Ambitious, Three-Year Climb
HEAD COACH Andrew Scrivan ’95 calls it Project 31.
The Brunswick sailing team — entering a new era and achieving a higher skill base than ever before — has established a timeline of three years (3) to capture first place (1) at the fleet or team racing national championships.
Ahead of year one — the 2022 season — Scrivan laid out this lofty (yet realistic) goal for his squad as it prepared for the spring on the water.
“Our crews are gaining experience and motivation,” he told his fleet of racers. “They complement our skippers in multiple ways.
“Project 31 is about hard work, gelling as a team, and focusing our talent and drive toward the nationals. Everyone should be keenly aware of our team dynamic and potential.”
Skippers Robert Ulmer ’24, Thomas Whidden ’24, Freddie Parkin ’25, and Ben Sheppard ’23 led the Bruins in the chase for the Mallory Doublehanded National Championship, where the team finished sixth at the regatta held at Mission Bay Yacht Club in San Diego, Calif. ’Wick fell just short of qualifying for the Baker Team Race National Championship, taking third after a controversial ruling at the New England team racing competition.
Scrivan, however, wouldn’t trade the outlook or potential of his team for any other in the country.
“The boys had a great year and were tested on and off the water,” he said. “Our team’s ability to bounce back and refocus on the big picture was crucial after some significant setbacks.
“It was likely the best season in the history of the program — and we are very much looking forward to the future of the team as we enter year two of Project 31.”
Thomas Whidden ’24 and Alex Ohls ’24 Ben Sheppard ’23
