From senior Samantha Hill setting new cross country records to freshman Feagin Kaminsky and junior Sarah Napier breaking swimming and diving milestones, football players Dylan Furshman, Jayden Vega, and Landon Rapkowitz committing to big-time Division-I schools to the cheerleading squad qualifying for the state championship after a strong showing at regionals, Benjamin’s athletics had much to celebrate at this year’s Fall Sports Awards.
Athletic Director Mr. Ryan Smith opened the assembly on Tues. Jan 28 by highlighting not only the achievements but also the commitment and teamwork that defined the season. Coach Smith emphasized the importance of support from parents, teachers, and administrators in helping the athletes succeed and gave a special thanks to Mr. Wik, Mr. Alvarez, and Mr. Franzen who attended and helped out at countless games. The event also honored five seniors who earned eight or more varsity letters: Ella Bailey, Malia Fink, Victoria Powell, Bella Marx, and Baron Ryba.
“We recognized all of our fall sports teams: boys’ and girls’ cross country, boys’ and girls’ golf, girls’ volleyball, boys’ and girls’ swimming and diving, and football. Some had more successful years than others, but every team had something to celebrate. For instance, girls’ cross country was runner-up in districts, fourth at regionals, and tenth at states. Boys’ golf had an incredible season as district champions, regional runners-up, and state runners-up. Boys’ and girls’ swimming and diving had arguably one of their best years ever being runner-up at districts, runner-up at regionals, and fourth at states,” Coach Smith shared.
Coach Smith also emphasized the broader purpose of these assemblies, focusing on their role in celebrating the accomplishments of the entire community. “I think it’s important to recognize all students as much as we can in their extracurricular activities. A lot of times our teachers might not know about how their students excel outside of the classroom so the Sports Awards Assembly gives an opportunity for them to see what their students have achieved. We also hope it serves as a motivation tool too; the winter athletes see what the fall athletes achieve, the spring athletes see what the winter athletes achieve and so on,” Coach Smith said.
The assembly also introduced a new hybrid format, combining Coach Smith’s remarks with a dynamic video created by Assistant Athletic Director Mrs. Clarke to showcase team achievements and individual award winners. Inspired by Ms. Grillo’s Scholastic Art Awards video last year, the goal was to create a ceremony that would engage students and deliver the information efficiently.
“The assemblies ended up getting really long, I talked for the entire time, and our students were bored. “In today’s age and the society we are living in with phones, people want information now and they want it visually so we were just trying to better cater to our audience,” Coach Smith explained.
Awards recognizing leadership, improvement, athletic achievement and many others were presented to individuals who went above and beyond on their respective teams. “The student-athletes are selected by their coaches. A vast majority of the coaches select their awardees with their assistant coaches. Some awards will be voted on by their teammates in some cases. We give our coaches the autonomy to give the awards they feel best fit their roster. For example, a football roster is much bigger than a tennis tennis roster so the awards are going to be different,” Coach Smith noted.
Senior Pavel Tsar, the boys’ golf MVP, reflected on what the award meant to him. “It feels great. It’s a testament to my hard work. Being named MVP means a lot because I have been a leader on the team for several years now and captain not only leading with what I score but leading the team to grow and bond. One of my favorite memories was when we beat Jupiter High School in a head-to-head match that came down to the last hole,” Tsar expressed.
Junior Kenna Kujawa, who earned the Most-Improved Swimmer Award, appreciated the recognition she received through the assembly. “I worked hard every day at practice, and I tried my best to improve my times meet after meet. I had such a fun time getting to know all of the people on the team and so happy I tried the sport. Of course, participating in the meets was so much fun but some of my favorite parts of the season were the moments we were just having a good time and waiting for our events,” Kujawa said.
Junior Sofia Balistreri agreed with Kujawa and was grateful to be awarded for her hard work and leadership in girls’ cross country. “I am very proud of our team this past season, and I am glad that I was recognized for my leadership because I worked hard to make everyone feel welcome and I motivated the team as best I could. I received the Leadership Award for Cross Country, and I think I was nominated for that because I was a team captain and I tried my best to make everyone included and to run to the best of their abilities,” Balistreri explained.
The Fall Sports Awards Assembly served as a way to celebrate not just award winners, but all members of each team, and the integral faculty and support that helped contribute to such a successful fall season.
