Peter Chabot Named Athlete of the Month for May

By Mitch Silver

Lacrosse is an unusual sport in a lot of ways, and in one way in particular. After every goal, no matter which team scored, there’s a face-off at center field. Consider: in baseball, teams alternate at-bats. In football, the team that scores a touchdown kicks the pigskin away. In soccer, the scored-on team takes automatic possession of the ball.

Only in ice hockey and lacrosse is it possible, after ringing up a goal, to win the face-off and deny the opponents even the opportunity to get even. So, the stickman who’s quicker or stronger <mano a mano> at the X is, along with the goalie, potentially the team’s most valuable player. Peter Chabot is that player for the Garnets.

Not only does he hold every face-off record in the history of Rye High School, but Peter is among the best at his specialty in all of Section 1. So, if you want to know how the locals were able to clobber Eastchester by a score of 16-2 in Monday’s playoff game, look no farther than Peter’s 12-for-12 face-off wins.

Head Coach Steve Lennon certainly agrees. “Peter is, hands down, the best, most dominant face-off man I have ever coached. The special thing about him is that he is not a FOGO (face off/get off).”

Peter has been a stalwart running the football for Dino Garr’s football team every fall. What many of his teammates may not know is that young Mr. Chabot has also been an outstanding ski racer in the winter months, earning two silvers and a bronze for his Windham Ski Club at States. “I think the leg strength and balance you need on skis has helped me on the lacrosse field,” he says.

Of course, it doesn’t hurt matters that Peter has been a regular with PrimeTime Lacrosse up at John Jay High School and an avid participant at House of Sports’ Draw Day every Wednesday, when face-off specialists get individual instruction. “I also downloaded an app to my phone that blows a whistle, so I can practice face-offs against the clock,” he says matter-of-factly.

“Peter’s work ethic on his own, when no one is looking, is what sets him apart from other athletes,” Coach Lennon says. “There is not a day that goes by that he does not ask a coach to stay late after practice with him to get extra reps.”

Staying late doesn’t seem to have interfered with his studying. He’s maintained a 98.25 average all four years of high school while taking college-level AP courses in Chemistry, Calculus, and Economics. So, you won’t be surprised to learn he’s been accepted at Dartmouth, his dad’s alma mater, where he’ll join his sister Addie. He plans on taking pre-Med courses in hopes of becoming a surgeon one day.

In naming Peter Chabot May’s winner, the Rye High Athletic Department and the Rye Lions also took extracurricular activities and community service into consideration. Peter and his twin brother Billy (“five minutes older, so he has to be the boss”) and their family take in puppies for Guiding Eyes for the Blind, fostering and helping socialize the dogs before they’re put into service. He also volunteers at Don Bosco Center in Port Chester, where he teaches English to Spanish-speaking residents looking to enter the workplace.

This Athlete of the Month credits his family “for raising me the right way.” He also salutes coaches Garr and Lennon, as well as his former lacrosse coaches, the Dooley brothers, for their support.

Those feelings are reciprocated. Steve Lennon says, “Peter Chabot is a gifted student, a valuable member of the community, and an overall good guy. He’s a pure leader, one who’s not afraid to tell people what they need to hear. His good character and values make him a great teammate. He will be very hard to replace next year.”

Peter will be among the Athlete of the Month winners vying for Rye High’s Athlete of the Year title to be announced at the Lions’ year-end dinner at The Osborn next month.

Peter Chabot Named Athlete of the Month for May