Bishop Ireton High School | Articles | Sports Feature

Cardinals saw (left to right) Kelly Mathews, Natalie Irwin, Charlotte Sofield, Kaitlin Luzik, and Ben Gorski sign NLI agreements.

On November 12, 2014, four senior Bishop Ireton HS girls lacrosse players signed their National Letter of Intent to play Division 1 college lacrosse next year.  Last year, these four captains, led Bishop Ireton to championships in both the Washington Catholic Athletic Conference (WCAC) and the Virginia Independent Schools Athletic Association (VISAA) as well as a #1 ranking in the DC region by the Washington Post and a #5/6 national ranking by Laxpower and U.S. Lacrosse.

Natalie Irwin, a force on defense who led a Bishop Ireton squad which held all but two opponents to their lowest scoring total of the year, will play at the United States Naval Academy.  In 2014, she was named U.S. Lacrosse Academic All-American, First Team All-State, and First Team All-WCAC.

Kaitlin Luzik, a two-time First Team U.S. Lacrosse All-American, has signed to play at the University of Virginia.  As a junior, Kaitlin led the team in defensive statistics with 42 groundballs and 33 takeaways while also adding 27 goals and 22 assists on offense.  In 2014, she was named First Team U.S. Lacrosse All-American, U.S. Lacrosse Academic All-American, First Team All-State, Second Team All-Met, and Second Team All-WCAC.

Kelly Mathews, Bishop Ireton’s leading goal-scorer last spring with 82 goals, has signed to play at Boston University.  Mathews has amassed 191 goals in her first three years and is poised to shatter the Bishop Ireton record for goals in a career.  In 2014, she was named First Team U.S. Lacrosse All-American, U.S. Lacrosse Academic All-American, First Team All-State, First Team All-WCAC, and Second Team All-Met.

Charlotte Sofield, ranked as one of the Top 10 recruits in the country by Inside Lacrosse magazine during each of the past two seasons, has signed to play at the University of North Carolina.  The returning WCAC Player of the Year, Charlotte led Bishop Ireton in points last spring with 48 goals and 67 assists garnering numerous accolades, including UnderArmour Underclass All-American, First Team All-Met, First Team All-State, and First Team All-WCAC.  She was a finalist for the Heather Leigh Albert Award which is presented to the nation’s most outstanding underclass lacrosse player.

Senior Ben Gorski, a four-year varsity swimmer, signed to swim for Notre Dame. The lanky Gorski holds the Bishop Ireton school record for the 100 yard breaststroke in a time of :56.17.  The Falls Church resident is also one of the School’s top free style swimmer and an key member of a number of the Cardinals’ strongest relay teams.

“We are all very proud of these five exceptional athletes, who are also exceptional students and great young people. They have worked very hard to get to this point, but they have also distinguished themselves because they have made their teammates better as well.” commented athletic director, Bill Simmons. “That they are going to such great schools is a tribute how hard they work in the classroom as well as on the field and pool.”

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Senior Nick Ducceschi (7) was one of 7 Cardinals recognized by the WCAC coaches in voting for post season awards.

For the second time in three years, Coach Jon Norem was selected the WCAC’s coach of the year and three of his players joined him on the first team, all conference squad.

Senior Nick Ducceschi, and juniors Preston Haugh and Joey Faddoul were selected by the Conference’s head coaches to the WCAC’s first team list. Junior Patrick Reilly was named to the league’s second team, all conference squad and  Paul Poling, Kyle Delaney, and Gabby Sampaio were recognized as honorable mention winners for Bishop Ireton.

For the Cardinals, the 12-4-3 season and 5-2-2 WCAC mark are high water points in the Norem era and the best finish in nearly 20 years. The team entered the extremely balanced WCAC final week of the regular season in second place and saw a one goal loss plunge the Cambridge Road school from a second into a fourth place situation.

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Mr. Kwinten Brown, class of 2005, assumes head coaching responsibilities for one of Ireton's most tradition rich programs.

Bishop Ireton has hired Kwinten Brown as their new varsity wrestling head coach. He succeeds Don Dight, who moved to Thomas Edison High School.  The 2005 graduate of Bishop Ireton remains number 3 on the Cardinals’ list of all time winners in his four years as a grappler.

“I am excited and honored to be selected for this position.” said Coach Brown. “This is one of the School’s most accomplished programs and I plan to work hard to keep it a very successful one. Coach Dight was a great mentor and I think I am prepared for this because of him.”

Brown left Ireton and wrestled collegiately in Bristol, Tennessee, for King University.  The Alexandria native captained the 2009-10 King squad before graduating and returning home to become the assistant athletic director for facilities and transportation.  He also assisted Dight on the Ireton wrestling team.

“”I am excited to have another alumnus become a varsity head coach. But more than that, I am thrilled that we have a coach with the knowledge, experience, and passion for wrestling and Bishop Ireton that Coach Brown brings to the position. There was not a better qualified person for the job.” said the Cardinals’ athletic director, Bill Simmons.

Wrestling begins November 8th for the Cardinals.

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Workers install the new logo on Fannon Field. The final stages begin this week.

With only days remaining in the final phase of installation, the new Fannon Field already sparkles with the new carpet, sporting bright white football lines and the greenest grass in Alexandria, according to Bishop Ireton’s athletic director, Bill Simmons.  “I am really excited for our athletes and school community to get on this new field. You get an idea how worn our old field was the moment you step into the field area and survey the new turf.”

After months of work by the School’s Board of Govenors, Head of School, Dr. Tom Curry, and the Diocese of Arlington, construction kicked off on May 28th with the demolition of the 11-year old AstroPlay 2000 artificial turf and underlying padding.  The drainage remained intact, workers added stone and laser-graded the sub base to the specifications required for the new FieldTurf Revolution, a 2.25 inch synthetic fiber, anchored with sand and crumb rubber infill.

Removal of the old turf moved quickly despite a spring rain and the base work was completed within a week. Soon rolls of new field arrived and crews begin working as many as 14 hours a day to complete the installation. The center of the field was laid, followed by 5-yard swaths of green bordered by a 4-inch white yard line. Once the field expanded to the football goal lines, new cardinal red end zones were installed, followed by the long rolls of sideline on the north and south sides of the field. Finally the areas behind the football goal posts were laid. Then the detailed work began.

Using shears, much like a barber, technicians began to shear away the green fibers where golden soccer lines, scarlet red girls’ lacrosse lines, navy blue boys’ lax lines, and field hockey markings were to be inlaid. Stencils outlined the football yard lines and each hashmark on the football field was painstaking sheared out and white hashes glued into the carpet.

The biggest installation challenges, however, were the new center logo featuring the School’s athletic logo, and the golden lettering in each end zone were carefully laid out and cut into the field, meticulously measured, sheared, and glued into place.  As the crew, swelling to as many as 20 workers on some days, battled heat and humidity some days, showers on others, labored to complete the inlays, the delivery of sand and crumb rubber signaled the impending start of the final phase, the in fill process.

When all the inlays are completed, crews will use large sweepers to brush the 2.25 inch fibers upright and begin infilling the carpet with a sand base to anchor the turf in place. Once the base is established, a crumb rubber and sand mix will provide the firm, fast surface that will cushion the athletes while giving them a world class surface to play on.

“This is going to fun for everyone, I think our community will be proud of Fannon Field. The installers are excited about how great it looks, and we know it’s going to be a hit with our athletes and physical education students.” offered the Cardinals’ athletic director.  Weather will impact the final completion date, but School officials hope to see the girls lacrosse camp and football clinic to be on the new grass before the end of the week of June 23rd, less than a month from when workers broke ground.

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New varsity boys' lacrosse coach, Brandon Rose, listens during a meeting with returning players after being introduced to the squad.

Bishop Ireton’s athletic director, Bill Simmons announced the hiring of Brandon Rose as the School’s next varsity boys’ lacrosse head coach.  The Rochester, New York native accepted the position June 9th.

Rose comes to the Cardinals from nearby Episcopal High School where we was the lead varsity assistant coach for the Maroon.  He also teaches physical education at nearby Minnie Howard School in the Alexandria Public Schools.

“Brandon Rose knows the game; he is a teacher, a patient, yet demanding coach, and full of enthusiasm for the game.” said the Cardinals’ athletic director.  The Ithaca College alum was a standout long stick midfield for the Bombers in his college career, holding a career record for ground balls.

Rose told players to expect to work hard but to have fun. He noted he is anxious to begin and encouraged the team to work on stick skills and play lacrosse this summer.

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After cutting the field, machines rolled and stacked the old turf, then the orange-colored padding. Everything will be removed and recycled in Pennsylvania.

Bishop Ireton is getting a make over of Fannon Field after 11 years of AstroPlay 2000 artificial turf serving the school’s physical education and athletic departments needs. The Diocese of Arlington signed the contract with FieldTurf on Friday, May 23rd, completing two years of planning and evaluations.

With a great deal of work behind the scenes, head of school, Dr. Tom Curry and the Ireton Board of Governors secured the funding an eventual approval for the $425,000 project.  Work began almost immediately as workers removed the AstroTurf and supporting padding within 24 hours of arriving on site.

In the weeks ahead, workers will laser grade the stone base to ensure the smooth flow of water into the drainage system and completely level surface for the numerous activities hosted on the facility.  The Cardinals soon will play on FieldTurf’s premier turf product, Revolution.  The 2.25 inch fiber will be supported by 8.2 pounds per square inch of crumb rubber and sand infill, making it a firm, fast field, yet safe for athletics and physical education.

The Cardinals’ new pitch will feature inlaid lines for field hockey, soccer, boys’ and girls’ lacrosse as well as football. It will feature the School’s athletic logo in the center of the field, with cardinal red football end zones adorned with athletic gold lettering, BISHOP IRETON  in the west end zone and CARDINALS  in the east end zone.  A safety screening system will be added behind each end zone to provide additional protection to the runners on the track in the spring while simultaneously conducting lacrosse practices on the field.

Industry standards for artificial turf suggest a 7-10 year lifespan.  Bishop Ireton nursed 11 years of near constant activity out of their AstroTurf product before UV rays of the sun and the heavy usage finally produced widespread fiber failure on the turf.

With the demolition completed, crews will prepare the subsurface for the installation of the “carpet”.  Tentatively scheduled for Monday, June 9th is the arrival of the field itself as well as the crew to begin installation.  Completion of the project is set for June 21st, with the Cardinals welcoming the first week of campers on Monday, June 23rd.  Coach of the Year, Rick Sofield will host the Cardinals’ girls lacrosse camp  that week.

See the time lapsed video of how the field removed on a rainy Thursday in Alexandria.  http://youtu.be/iJ7xKZ_lMhM

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27 of the Port City’s top student-athletes were recognized at this year’s annual high school awards banquet and of the 27 student-athletes recognized were 5 of our very own Bishop Ireton Athletes. Our  athletes excelled and dominated this year on and off the field. We are proud and honored to recognize them as this year’s players of the year. This year’s Alexandria Sportsman’s Club award winners from Bishop Ireton High School include:

Stephanie Carbrera (Volleyball)

Stephanie Cabrera was awarded as our 2013-2014 Volleyball Player of the Year. She is a three-year varsity player and a second, All-WCAC honoree for the 2013 campaign. For the last two years Stephanie has exhibited her leadership off the court by organizing our ****** cancer awareness service project and being a strong student in the classroom earning a 3.7 GPA. She showed her leadership on the court this year and led the Cardinals with 47 service aces in the fall season as well as recorded 267 kills.

Adrienne Maday (Soccer)

Adrienne Maday was awarded as our 2013-2014 Girls’ Soccer Player of the Year. As a senior, Adrienne was captain of our 2013 Cardinals, who were ranked in the top 10 of the Washington Post this past year. Adrienne is an attacking center midfielder who was recognized as player of the year in 2013 and selected first team All Met in the Washington Post. Adrienne tallied nine assist and came in clutch scoring three game-winners for the Cardinals in her senior campaign. Maday has a 4.1 GPA and will play soccer for the Tribe at William & Mary next fall. This past year she has given back to the community by volunteered at a local retirement home and worked with the United Community Ministries in their food pantry.

Audrey Sisel (Crew)

Audrey Sisel was awarded as our 2013-2014 Girls’ Crew Rower of the Year. Audrey is a four-year rower who rows both sides and sculls. She has been in positions of leadership on the Cardinals team for two years. Audrey has seat raced herself to be the fastest Starboard on our team and is the ultimate competitor. She has earned a scholarship to Creighton University and will be continuing her athletic pursuits there rowing against NCAA Division 1 competition as a Blue Jay.

Charlotte Sofield (Lacrosse)

Charlotte Sofield was awarded as our 2013-2014 Lacrosse Player of the Year. Charlotte is a three-time all WCAC performer for the Cardinals. She is third on the team in scoring with 39 goals and leads the squad with 46 assists. Sofield was described in the September edition of Inside Lacrosse as the number 1 junior lacrosse player in the United States. She has committed to play for the Tar Heels of North Carolina in the year of 2016. The WCAC has selected her as its player of the year as a junior and to their first-team, All Conference squad. She was selected to the All-State teams her first two years and undoubtedly will be selected again this year. Charlotte does not only excel on the field, but also in the classroom as strong student with a 3.6 GPA

Hayley Snell (Swimming)

Hayley Snell was award as our 2013-2014 Girls’ Swimmer of the Year. Hayley has had an impressive junior season. She is a key member of our Washington Metropolitan Private School Swim and Dive League (WMPSSDL) and Virginia Independent School Athletic Association (VISAA) relay champions. On an individual level she scored 82 points through seven 1^st place finishes and five 2^nd place finishes in dual meet competition. She is the reigning 2014 Alexandria Tri City Meet Champion in the 100 Meter Backstroke in addition to representing the Cardinals as a finalist in the 50 Yard Free and 100 Yard Back at Conference. As a Cardinal she swept the sprint free style events (50/100) against rival foes PVI and DJO head to head. Never the less her true spirit and example gave rise to her squad extending their undefeated team title streak at the City Champs over SSSA/TCWHS; in addition to defending and repeating as Northern Catholic Regional Team Champions. Her non swimming resume’ is equally impressive. She has been on the honor roll each of her semesters at Bishop Ireton and is currently a member of the National Honor Society. She continues to show her leadership abilities by volunteering with the Potomac Marlins Special Swim team.

We are extremely honored to have these 5 women represent Bishop Ireton High School at the annual Alexandria Sportsman’s Club 2014 awards banquet. They are remarkable student-athletes and great leaders at Bishop Ireton. They are truly amazing ladies who lead by example on and off the field. They fully engulf what we at Bishop Ireton strive to be every day. We are so proud to say they belong to our Bishop Ireton family and are one of our very own Cardinals. They show us that it’s great to be a Cardinal!

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WCAC & VISAA Coach of the Year, Rick Sofield, enjoys a moment with assistant coaches Heather Olson, left, and Bridget Corridon, right, during action on Fannon Field.

The Bishop Ireton Girls Varsity Lacrosse had an amazing year! Their coach, Rick Sofield, led the girls to two championships and a 20-4 season. His team won the WCAC championships 17-7 against Good Counsel and the VISAA championships 9-7 against Saint Stephens & Saint Agnes.

Sofield also led the team last year but lost in the WCAC championships and fell in the semifinals in VISAA to Collegiate School. They had a strong team last year but it was nothing like this season.   Sofield added:  “The girls were ready to win this year. It was their year and I am so proud of each and every one of my girls.”

The girls learned from Sofield that they are not only a team but a family. They watched over each other and helped each other out.  The girls also learned that you will get what you want if you work hard. This year showed that this year all of that hard work definitely paid off.  The girls learned life lessons, such as discipline, from Sofield. The girls know that as a result of being coached by him that they have grown in multiple ways.

Sofield says he loves coming to practices and seeing the girls get stronger.   He was named Coach of the Year in the WCAC as well as the VISAA and is looking forward to next season.

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2013 Ireton alum Will Chastain lauded with Nalls Award in May 2014

In May 2014, Will Chastain, a 2013 Bishop Ireton alumnus, was awarded the Freshman of the Year Award for Men’s Lacrosse at Belmont Abbey College. Chastain, is an attackman for the Division II Crusaders in Belmont, North Carolina. He also received the Michael A. Nalls Sr. Memorial Award, an institutional award honoring one female and one male outstanding freshman student-athlete among all freshmen athletes. He was nominated by his teammates to be the freshman representative on the Crusader’s Lacrosse Team Leadership Council.  He is currently majoring in Business Management.

Chastain, the son of Colonel (Retired) and Mrs. Jerry Chastain, USA, was a 3-year Varsity letterman for the Cardinals lacrosse team (2-year Varsity Captain) and a 4-year Varsity letterman for the ice hockey team (1-year Varsity Captain).  As a Cardinal attackman his junior and senior years, he earned  All-Washington Catholic Athletic Conference honorable mention selections and was the highest point leader (goals and assists) on the Varsity lacrosse team both years.  In addition, he was awarded Team MVP for Varsity lacrosse and received the Cardinal Award for Varsity ice hockey his senior year.

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The National Capital chapter of NFF awarded from left to right, Hudson Sullivan, Coach Tony Verducci, and Taylor Dean. Also pictured (second from the right) is School chaplain, Fr. Ed Bresnahan

The National Capital Chapter of the National Football Foundation recognized Bishop Ireton seniors Hudson Sullivan and Taylor Dean among a group of about thirty scholar-athletes in a dinner held at Army-Navy Country Club on Sunday, April 6, 2014. This was the eighth annual dinner hosted by the Chapter, which includes more than 100 public and private schools in the Washington, D.C. area. Bishop Ireton is one of the few schools with football scholar-athletes recognized at each of these dinners. The list of Ireton football alumni honored by the Foundation include Andrew Rodriguez (Bishop Ireton ’08), who was selected as a National Scholar-Athlete before distinguishing himself at West Point.

The award criteria values academic achievement (40%), football accomplishments (40%) and community service (20%). Hudson Sullivan, a three-time all-state linebacker, was selected as one of three Fidelity Investment Scholar-Athletes this year; an honor that reflects his academic record and the time he volunteers serving senior citizens. Hudson was a two-year member of the Bishop Ireton football leadership council and will attend the United States Naval Academy Prep School next fall as he prepares to continue his scholar-athlete success as a midshipman.

Taylor Dean, who completed his third year of organized football, was nominated for his success on and off the field as well. Taylor was an all-state offensive lineman who played a key role in mentoring freshmen and assisting in the loading and unloading of food at a local food bank. Taylor has been a consistently outstanding student during his time as a Cardinal, leading Emory & Henry College and James Madison University to vie for him as a student-athlete “at the next level.” This marks the second year in a row that the Foundation honored two Bishop Ireton student-athletes going on to continue their studies and football in college; the 2013 honorees were Gino Miller (New Hampshire) and P.J. Zingler (Buffalo).

The National Capital Chapter saluted Bishop Ireton head football coach Tony Verducci and Georgetown Prep head football coach Dan Paro for their leadership and contributions to amateur football. Father Ed Bresnahan joined the Sullivan’s, Dean’s and Verducci’s in representing and celebrating Bishop Ireton at this awards dinner.

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