Family Weekend Sports

Girls Cross Country

The Blue Storm girls cross country team finished first overall at the Family Weekend Invitational. The team’s first home meet of the season included several personal records and strong performances.

Coaches Christopher Bright and Mariana Manzo Puente were pleased with the team’s performance. Bright was glad to see several runners finish their first ever 5K, while others recorded course and season personal records.

Teresa Nyarko ’28 noted the performance of Ally Snyder ’28, who improved her time on the course by seven minutes. “She’s so enthusiastic,” Nyarko said. “She’s always brightening up the team mood, and I think she’s a really strong addition to our team.”

Bright particularly highlighted the team’s support for one another. “The runners who had finished returned back into the course to cheer the folks who were still out there and running,” he said. “That was the highlight, I think, for all of us today.”

Boys Cross Country 

The Blue Storm boys cross country team finished first overall at the Family Weekend Invitational, with Dominic Grady ’28 and Joseph Cechini ’28 finishing first and second respectively.

Head coach David Grady was pleased with the result. “It was a good performance for us,” Grady said. “It was really nice to see Dominic and Joey go one, two.” Grady also highlighted Matthew Orders ’28, and James Coors ’27 for recording times that placed them in the top 10. The victory included a win over MAPL rival the Hill School.

Both Gradys highlighted Siebert, who transitioned from sprinting to cross country this season. “It’s a big transition to run cross country, and he’s showing some signs of being able to make that transition in a good way,” Coach Grady said.

Wil Kipe ’27 recorded a PR, while Coors finished under 20 minutes. 

Dominic Grady was also satisfied with the team’s performance. “It was a bit windy, and everyone finished in a great time and a lot of people PR’d,” he said. “Overall, it was a great race and everyone did really well.”

Girls Varsity Field Hockey

The Blue storm girls varsity field hockey team showed resilience throughout its match, recovering from a difficult start and improving as the game progressed.

Coach Jomara Coghlan, reflecting on the team’s performance, acknowledged that the team did not begin the game as strongly as it hoped, but emphasized the team’s improvement throughout the match. “I think we had a rough start to the game, but we showed progress as the game went on,” she said. After the opponent scored in the first half of the match, the team continued to battle and created opportunities for themselves. 

Coghlan also highlighted the team’s continued effort as an important part of their performance. Rather than allowing the difficult opening to determine the rest of the game, the team adjusted and continued to compete through the match.

Girls Varsity Soccer 

The Blue Storm girls varsity soccer team opened league play against the Hun School of Princeton with a solid performance. Despite several players battling sickness and injuries, Mercersburg competed with full energy throughout the game and showed improvements in both its defensive organization and movement across the field.

Coach Kristen Pixler was very proud of the team’s overall performance. “We anticipated plays better, connected passes more consistently, looked for the switch, and closed down open channels during transitions,” she said. Although the team still has areas to improve, she described the match as “a strong start to our league season.”

Pixler highlighted Tierney O’Donohue ’30 as a gamechanger at center back, repeatedly shutting down Hun’s fast breaks and supporting the team in transition. Emily Wallace ’29 also provided vital defensive support, while Michelle Ayeni ’29 brought physicality and composure to the back line. 

In midfield, Michelle Zhang ’28 played every minute in the game and helped create opportunities while consistently dropping back to support and cover for her teammates. Charley McCracken ’27 contributed on both ends of the field with incredible strength and speed despite battling illness. In goal, Callie Wheat ’29 recorded 17 saves, helping Mercersburg remain competitive throughout the close 0-1 match.

Boys Varsity Soccer 

The Blue Storm boys varsity soccer team defeated the Hun School of Princeton 2–1. With the crowd behind them, Mercersburg created several opportunities throughout the game and held off the Raiders to secure the well-deserved victory.

Head coach Timothy O’Donohue said, “I was really happy with how the guys played. We played some good possession. We had a lot of good performances.” O’Donohue added, “We had to kind of hold on at the end, but I’m happy with the overall performance.”

Tadhg O’Donohue ’29 and Ewan McDowell ’27 scored for Mercersburg. Forward Christian Garcia-Rivas ’27 praised both goals. “I want to highlight Ewan’s goal, and also Ty’s goal was very fantastic,” Garcia-Rivas said. “It was a banger.”

Luke Prugh ’28 also pointed to O’Donohue’s goal as a highlight. “Ty, his free kick from outside the box, that was a crisp hit.” Prugh also praised Garcia-Rivas and the other forwards for their performances.

Coach O’Donohue highlighted freshmen Prince Perry ’30 and Ishamail Willie ’30 along with the two goalscorers, but he applauded the entire team. “A lot of young guys played well. The veterans played well, so it was a good day,” O’Donohue said.

Girls Varsity Tennis

The Blue Storm girls varsity tennis battled through difficult conditions during its match on Family Weekend. Despite strong winds and light rain, the team continued to compete hard throughout the afternoon against the Raiders of the Hun School. 

Coach Michael Gerard was pleased with the team’s overall effort. “We played great. Hard fought matches all the way across the courts,” Gerard said. “Our players adjusted to those conditions really well.”

Rachael Zhang ’28 also emphasized how the windy conditions affected the match, while praising the team’s effort and personal achievement throughout the match. “It was the first time this season that we won a set of our games; we definitely improved in communication and getting to the ball with more speed and accuracy.” 

Gerard also emphasized several individual standout performances. Rachael Zhang ’28 and Rachel Zou ’30 delivered one of the day's highlights by reaching a third-set tiebreaker in their doubles match, while Lucy Huber ’29 won her match in two close sets after battling from behind. Eliana Heiss ’29 also fought through a competitive match and came back strongly in her second set.

Girls Varsity Volleyball 

The Blue Storm girls varsity volleyball team competed against the Hun School of Princeton during Family Weekend. Although Mercersburg lost 3–1, the team was competitive and there were multiple highlights throughout the matchup.

Head coach Will Hill was pleased with the team’s effort. “They played really well. They learned how to fight, and that was our problem before,” Hill said. “We give up a lot of points and we get down, but today they fought. So I’m very happy about that.”

Middle blocker Clare Mohr ’29 noticed improvement in communication and coverage. “I think something we did well was communicating most of the time, better than we did our last game at the Potomac School,” Mohr said. Mohr also highlighted Maisie Smith ’30 for finding open spots on the court.

Sofia Monroy Santiago ’28 felt similarly about the team’s defense. “I think we improved a lot on communication and covering our hitters and defense,” she said. Monroy Santiago highlighted McKenna Koch ’28 and Lena Wilke ’27 for their versatility, resilience, and leadership throughout the season.

Koch credited players Ella Daniels ’30, and Peyton Pixler ’28 for their drive and grit. “They’re really working really hard,” Koch said. “They have talent, so them just being supportive everywhere and hyping the team up during hardships is important.”

Boys Varsity Squash @ The St. James 

Three Mercersburg boys squash players competed in a professional satellite tournament at The Saint James, a club in Springfield, Virginia.

About the boys’ performance Coach Dominic Benaquista said, “They performed really well. It was good to just see the guys compete and be able to coach them through a tournament.” Ramiro Albelo ’27 and Martin Falconi ’27 both reached the quarterfinals, which Benaquista deemed “a great achievement.”

Albelo saw the tournament as an opportunity to showcase his skills despite wanting a stronger result. “I’m not 100% happy with the results, but it was a good tournament,” he said.

Falconi and Rohan Roy ’27 expressed appreciation for the coaching support. Falconi highlighted Benaquista for “always looking to improve the students,”while Roy paid thanks to both Benaquista and assistant coach Mike Sweeney.

For Benaquista, competing at this level reflects the program’s growth throughout the years. “It just shows the quality of kids that we’re getting in and the level of squash that they’re playing,” he said.