As spring progresses, the spring teams have begun competing . The tennis, softball, flag football, badminton, fencing, handball, baseball, boys volleyball, and outdoor track teams are all bracing themselves for the hard work and responsibilities that come with playing during a successful season.
Last year’s spring season had its share of successes. The Girls Flag Football team won the PSAL Championship 12-6 against Queens High School of Teaching. Meanwhile, the Boys Tennis team reached the semifinals, the Girls Badminton team reached the quarterfinals and the Boys Volleyball team reached the quarterfinals.
“The feeling from the adrenaline rush of hitting a winner is unlike any other,” said Joseph Au, captain of the Boys Tennis team. After “training hard with [his] friends and applying that training to matches,” he said there is no better feeling than securing a win for his team. Joseph said tennis “is a very difficult and technical sport that requires a lot of time commitment during the season and off-season…” but despite these challenges, Joseph guarantees his team will reach semifinals “again, or better.”
“I can’t wait to see how our team evolves and rises through. In the end, I am excited about this season, and hopefully this year we can win the championships,” said Aastha Patel, captain of the Girls Badminton team. The team is coached by Townsend Harris teachers Gabriela Pedreros and JohnTsai. To ensure a fruitful season up ahead for her team, Aastha said that “it’s important to set high standards for myself and to encourage my teammates to strive for becoming better players as well.”
The Co-ed Handball teams are led by newly appointed Coach Joshua Raghunath, who is also a physics teacher at THHS. Coach Raghunath said that “Winning will always be one of the primary goals that this team works towards. However, additional team goals for this season would be to build a team with depth where our more experienced members are actively assisting our newest members in developing their on-court skills. This includes improving game sense, footwork, hitting techniques, and ball placement.” Though handball is not a common sport, Coach Raghunath said he wants to encourage students to try it out as handball is “fast to learn and takes a while to master. It allows new players to jump in and start playing immediately while leaving plenty of room for players to develop their skills and playstyle.”
Boys Varsity Volleyball team player Johann Juarez said that his “team’s goal this season is to make it to playoffs and finals.” Last year, Christian Castillo, who is also a Spanish teacher at Townsend Harris, took on the role of Boys Volleyball coach and led them to the quarter finals. For Johann, being on the volleyball team means that he “get(s) to play [his] favorite sport while representing the school [he’s] from. There’s a sense of pride that you earn from playing on a varsity team and that is something I will carry with me for life.” For those interested in joining the volleyball team, Johann recommends that they “have a good balance between fun and skill. Sports is a commitment and although having fun is most important, in order to represent any team you’ll need to put in the time and effort for it.”
Agnieszka Nalepa, the new captain of the girls fencing team, coached by physical education teacher Diane Ramirez, is focused on ensuring that new members integrate well into the team. For Agnieszka, an essential part of being a team captain is “[Making] sure our new fencers feel welcome and can develop their skills and confidence.”
Captain Ana Montan of the girls’ Flag Football team said she considers her team as a “second home.” After the rewarding season from last year, Ana said that flag football “allows for girls to connect, build new friends, get a workout in, and know how to catch and throw a football.”
Similarly, sophomore Kaya Leabo, a softball team member, said that the softball team and Coach Daniel Largana has created a “comfortable and safe environment,” She said she also looks forward to sharing more moments alongside her team.
The season is already off to a strong start with the softball, handball, tennis, and volleyball teams winning their most recent matches. Two days ago, the softball team won against Thomas Edison with a final score of 27-3. On the same day, the Boys Handball secured a 5-0 victory against Flushing Campus. Both Boys Tennis and Boys Volleyball are off to strong starts with 4-0 season records so far.
