Sports Preview: Rye 2010 Winter Sports

It's the winter sports season in Rye and Rye Brook, and teams are gearing up for competition. From basketball, hockey, track, wrestling and swimming, here's a rundown of each team's wins and losses from the previous year, upcoming matches and a sneak peek of what to expect this season:

Team: Rye High School Boys Basketball

Coach: Chris DiCintio

The 2010-2011 Rye Garnets boys basketball team are equipped with talented players who've been raised with a knowledge of the game, including varsity newcomers Mike D'Antoni, son of New York Knicks Head Coach Mike D'Antoni; Max Twyman grandson of NBA hall of famer Jack Twyman; and Teddy Ice, whose father played under former Iona College coach Jimmy Valvano. Not much has changed except for the graduation of seniors Tim Lonergan and Brendan Nagle, but the team also has a new floor general, Kamaal Logue, who is anticipated to lead a fast-paced offense.

The team's aggressive defense will complement this against opponents such as cross-town rival Harrison in the Martin Luther King Tournament on MLK weekend, along with Horace Greeley and Fox Lane, for a difficult schedule all around. Rye may be on its way to a successful season with senior co-captain and all-conference selection Brian Pickup and all-league selection and co-captain Connor Smith, who started on the varsity team for three years, leading the way as team veterans.

Team: Rye High School Girls Basketball

Coach: Brian Lavelle

Brian Lavelle takes over the helm of the Rye High School girls basketball program after the retirement of former 24-year head coach Mary Henwood. Lavelle will be relying on the likes of Grace Leishman, Jillian Chittenden, and Lillian McCabe to play aggressive on defense in order to create offense and points en route to a possible appearance in the championship game at the County Center. The three should pave the way for a successful season against tough contenders including Tappan Zee, Briarcliff, White Plains and Preston High School.

Team: Rye High School Boys Ice Hockey

Coach: Jason Friesen

Rye High School ice hockey looks to defend its 2009-2010 section one Division II championship—their third in four years—and bounce back from a 5-3 loss in the regional final to Queensbury. The 2010-2011 season will feature four new conferences and four fewer games than last year's 24-game season. With 100-career point scorer Paul Mundinger and Taka Katsuta graduated, Head Coach Jason Friesen will look for other players to step up and take charge, like sophomore Ryan Rogers, for the team to remain a conference and state powerhouse.

The Garnets conference opponents include Byram Hills, Fox Lane, Horace Greeley, Ossining, Mount Pleasant and Rye Town/Harrison.

Team: Rye High School Wrestling

Coach: Matt Beatty

Matt Beatty takes over for former Head Coach Matt Beckley, who recently welcomed a new addition to his family. There is a lot of promise on this year's team, which comes off an 8-10 record last season. The team's season begins with a tournament at Brewster on Dec. 4 followed by a dual section one meet Dec. 6 at Yonkers High School.

Team: Rye High School Boys Swimming

Coach: Chris Dewey

Diving Coach Johan Lopez

Rye boys swimming starts the 2010-2011 with two meets in four days beginning with Westlake on Dec. 10 before swimming against Horace Greeley four days later. Garnet swimmers continue the 2010-2011 season in a match at home at the Hommocks Middle School pool against Ossining on Dec. 21, followed by Fox Lane on Jan. 7, Harrison on Jan. 21 and Keio Academy on Feb. 4. Top performers will then move on to sectional competition until early March.

Head Coach Chris Dewey, who replaces Carle Fierro, is looking for a great season from seniors and promising 7th graders on a team that is still growing competitively. Senior captains Kevin Hughes, Kevin Miller, and Chris Lyons hope to have their best seasons as they head to college, while year-round swimmers Carlos Gallagher, Sawyer Turcotte, Josh Hymowitz will be expected to place in the top of their events. Also look out for 7th grader Liam Egan.

The Garnets will have to surpass Horace Greeley but their first meet against Westlake on Dec. 10 is the main focus, as the team faces a tight six-meet schedule before sectional competition.

Team: Rye High School Girls Winter Track

Coach: John McGee

Rye High School girls winter track enters a new season in a new league. The team hopes to improve upon its last season second-place finish. Ellie Friedman, Lizzy Bennett, Jordan Deland (who is entering the season after an injury), and Ali MacKay will make up the two-mile relay team, while Morgan Kirby is expected to do well in the long jump and triple jump. Junior Tori Virtue, the team's high jumper, and Annie Davies, a triple jumper and hurdler, will help the team when it competes against Byram Hills, Pleasantville, Westlake and Sleepy Hollow.

Team: Blind Brook Boys Basketball

Coach: Mike Welsh

It's a whole new season for the 2010 Class C boys basketball champion Blind Brook Trojans, who moved up to a more challenging Class B conference because of an increase in enrollment within the Blind Brook school district. The core group of Antoine Saliba, Brent Lavitt, Sam Adler, Robert Winston, Michael Epstein and Bryan Silverman are back to lead the way in a tough schedule early on against Harrison on Dec. 2, Pleasantville on Dec. 6, and Ossining on Dec. 8 before league play begins after the Christmas break. Jack Jamilkowski is also expected to make significant contributions.

Competing in a new conference, with a new set of players and with a tougher opening schedule than last year could make it more difficult for the team to repeat its successful season 2009-2010 season. However—as the team's journey to last year's Class C championship shows—anything can happen.

Team: Blind Brook Girls Basketball

Coach: Manny Martinez

Blind Brook girls basketball has nine returning players this season. Head Coach Manny Martinez will be relying on the skills of all-league players Lea Saliba and Ali Silfen and Jackie Lavitt to carry the load against early opponents Ardsley, Rye and Harrison in a new Class B league. It will be interesting to see how the season progresses, as the Trojans look to make another championship run after losing to North Salem in last year's semi-finals.

Team: Blind Brook Ice Hockey (Rye Town/Harrison)

Co-Head Coaches: Steve Forzaglia, Rob Striar

Rye Town Harrison ice hockey is back for another season. Steve Forzaglia and Rob Striar's players look to bounce back from last season's unfortunate 5-15-1 record. A full team effort will be needed to fill the void left by senior Connor Strozza's graduation. The team opened its season against New Rochelle today before facing non-region opponent Rye Country Day Wednesday.

Team: Rye Country Day School Wrestling

Head Coach: Rich Knazik

The graduation of Obinna Nwakeze will make it tough for the Wildcats to match last year's stellar 5-1 start. Other wrestlers will need to step up and perform well on the mat to fill this void, especially in the 285-weight class. Good finishes in the Canterbury tournament Dec. 4 and Dec. 8 will help set the tone into the post-season tournaments and qualifiers.

Team: Rye Country Day Boys Ice Hockey

Coach: Gary Bingham

Rye Country Day boys ice hockey look to improve upon last season's 10-11 record. A conference victory over King and Brunswick will be critical to the Wildcats' post-season success.

To begin the season, the Wildcats face non-league opponents Rye Town/Harrison and Wyoming Seminary before hosting Fairchester Athletic Association foe Hamden Hall Dec. 8.

Team: Rye Country Day Girls Ice Hockey

Coach: Gil Castagna

Rye Country Day girls ice hockey's two out of three-game finish in the Women's Ice Hockey League of the Mid-Atlantic last year should serve as momentum for the team this season. Canterbury is up first Wednesday before participation in the Princeton Day School tournament Dec. 11 and Dec. 12, which makes a strong start all the more important.

Team: Rye Country Day Boys Basketball

Coach: Vin Minotti

Rye Country Day boys basketball enters the season fresh off their first ever New York State Association of Independent Schools championship. With Jason Rogers graduated, Darren Douglas, Alex Gendelman, and Lowes Moore will need to step up and lead the way. A second consecutive win over Fairchester Athletic Association rival Hamden Hall could help the team advance toward another FAA title. The Wildcats open the season in the Fieldston Tournament before their home opener against conference rival King Dec. 2.

Team: Rye Country Day Girls Basketball

Coach: Bob TeCarr

Rye Country Day girls basketball also comes into the season with a state championship. The loss of Alexandra Osborn-Jones, who graduated and now plays at Yale, will be hard to fill. The Wildcats hope to redeem themselves after a 42-34 loss to Hamden Hall in the first round of last year's Fairchester Athletic Association playoffs.