By Mitch Silver
In a local winter sports season highlighted by big wins — the Rye Country Day Boys’ FAA repeat on the ice — and stunning losses—top-seeded Rye High’s ouster from the Boys’ Basketball playoffs by No. 8 Ardsley — a lot of strong performances might have gone under the radar. Here are a few worth mentioning.
Both Rye Neck basketball teams made their respective Class B playoffs. Admittedly, the losses they suffered stung: the girls were walloped 57-12 by Putnam Valley and the boys lost 63-42 to Irvington. Still, both squads have talented sophomores and juniors who earned valuable playing time in 2017-18.
The same could be said of the Rye Country Day Boys’ Squash team. Coach Alex Langerhorst found himself fielding three underclassmen in slots 1-4. They lost big to national powers Brunswick and Hopkins while administering whippings to Masters, King, Charterhouse, and, Hackley by a score of 4-3. Again, that time spent playing some of the country’s best should pay off down the road.
The future was now for Michael Ackert. Rye-Rye Neck-Blind Brook Head Coach Steph Schilling and Assistant Coach Brinn McGuire watched their charges take third at Sectionals and go on to register a top-15 performance at States.
Rich Knazik’s Rye Country Day wrestlers finished 13-3 in the FAA, a strong second to Brunswick, and with a noteworthy win against a strong Greens Farms Academy team. The Wildcats finished third at the NYSAIS Championships, with Richard Antoine at 220 and Charlie Moysak, heavyweight, having their hands raised in the finals. Rye Country Day was also voted “Most Improved Team” by the other coaches. Nice.
Rye’s Chase Bekkerus offers Wildcat sophomore Brooks Sleeper his hand.
