By Mitch Silver
The weatherman was playing games this past Monday. Sunshine and a warming breeze at 4 o’clock turned into another windy, chilly day by 5 at Rye Neck’s athletic fields. Who can sprint or hit tennis balls with any accuracy on a day like that? Apparently, the Panthers can.
Rye Neck volleyed past visiting Dobbs Ferry to give first-year tennis coach Brad Levine a nice 3-2 win in his home opener.
A hundred yards away, the track and field squad took on archrival Blind Brook in a very unseasonal season opener. Both boys’ and girls’ teams overcame their league foes. The girls swept the shot put and discus throw while their male counterparts also swept the discus and won the 4×100-meter relay in 49.3 seconds. Afterwards, Assistant Track Coach Marcella Scalise said, “It was a strong start to the season and we hope to continue this success.”
Back at the courts, Coach Levine noted that his singles players — Ryan Francavilla, José Latorre, and Harrison Du — all won, and his doubles teams both lost. “My second doubles team played a very close match and lost 8-7 in an 8-game pro-set. It came down to the last two points. So, we were close to a 4-1 match victory overall.”
The racqueteers host Pleasantville today at 4:15 while the track team does the same for non-league Children’s Village Wednesday at 4:30.
Rye Neck runners (light blue) take on Blind Brook in the 200.