SSFS 2023 Spring Sports Highlights

It was a banner spring season for SSFS! The 'Beests ran away with all the PVAC championship banners in both the Upper School and Middle School. The Upper School Softball team won the regular season championship banner and were runners-up for the PVAC tournament, and the Baseball team won the tournament championship. Click here for updates from all our spring teams. Thanks to all the fans who came out to support our athletes!

Track & Field

UPPER SCHOOL TRACK & FIELD

Upper School Track & Field Boys and Girls Teams are both celebrating the winning of the Girls and Boys PVAC Championships!! This marks the second consecutive year that both Sandy Spring Boys and Girls Teams have swept the Championships.

• The PVAC Boys Championship Athlete of the Meet was awarded to senior Cyrus Chisolm, who scored a total of 34 points.
• Ten athletes participating on the Upper School Girls Track and Field team made first team and 1 on second team.
• 3 athletes participating on the Upper School Boys team made first team and 5 made second team honors.
• Other accomplishments included returning to the Penn Relays for the first time in 8 years, running and earning the time needed to qualify for next year.

Congratulations also to the MS Track and Field team who also swept their Girls and Boys Championships!!!

MIDDLE SCHOOL TRACK & FIELD
The middle school Track and Field team had tremendous success this season. There was continuous, consistent growth made by all runners, jumpers, throwers, and hurdlers. We had many first time athletes scoring points at every meet. The team demonstrated speed and strength but more importantly, team spirit and determination. The team competed at three meets outside of our league and three PVAC meets plus the PVAC League Championships. At the Championship meet, the girls placed first in the hurdles, shot put, discus, long jump, 100m, 200 m, 4 x 100 relay team, 1600m, and earned numerous second and third place titles. The boys also dominated their competition, earning first place in every single event except the 100m hurdles and discus throw! For the first time in SSFS history, the boys AND girls teams took home the league banners for winning Championships. This team broke 22 SSFS MS T&F records, and our boys ended up as the fastest middle school 4x100 relay in the state of Maryland. The best part about this team was their work ethic, coachability, courage in the face of injuries and setbacks, and a wonderful display of sportsmanship. 

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Softball

UPPER SCHOOL WOMEN'S VARSITY SOFTBALL
The Varsity Softball Team ended the regular season as PVAC Champions, with a 8-1 overall record and a 6-1 conference record; outscoring its opponents 114-59!  This season has been a long time coming, as it’s been over a decade since SSFS has brought home a PVAC Softball banner!  The team was lead by PVAC First Team selection seniors Emma Doty and Leila Janney,  and Second Team selection senior Njandee Murangi.  

MIDDLE SCHOOL SOFTBALL
A TEAM in every sense of the word lead by a strong group of experienced players, the MS Girls Softball Team showed how hard work and dedication can turn a season around in a matter of a few weeks. After an 0-2 start in league play, the Beests finished the regular season on a 5-game winning streak and a spot in the PVAC championship. Experienced fielding, aggressive baserunning, and the strongest hitting in the league were keys to success for the team. While the Beests came up short in the championship game, they battled until the end, making us all proud of the incredible season they had!

 

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BASEBALL

UPPER SCHOOL VARSITY BASEBALL 
The Varsity Baseball Team ended the 2023 season on a high note capturing the PVAC Tournament Championship, beating the Field School, 10-6, at SSFS.   The team outscored its opponents 39-9 in their 3 playoff games, and featured a team batting average of .408% (31 hits in 76 at bats).  The team was led by the offensive and defensive play of Tournament MVP Jacob Edelman, and First Team PVAC selections senior captain Miles Jones, Noah Gross, and second Team PVAC Malcolm Stachiviak.  The Beestballers finished their season with a 12-3 overall record, 11-1 in conference play.  

MIDDLE SCHOOL BASEBALL
MS boys baseball had quite the run this year after starting our season out with a win on a no-hitter!  After a few tough losses to very competitive teams, the boys finished the strong season with a 4-3 regular season record.  After a hard fought game in the first round of the playoffs losing to the eventual champions of the league, the boys kept their heads held high and already set their sights on next year’s season.  After each game and practice, you could sense the skill level, teamwork, and baseball IQ developing at a fast pace.  They made us all very proud of the kind of team they turned out to be and will continue to be in the seasons to come! 

 

LACROSSE

UPPER SCHOOL MEN'S VARSITY LACROSSE
One might call this season a rebuild, but it ended as a rebirth. With many first time players and off season injuries as well as a new coaching staff, there was a good amount of a learning curve. The team progressed from game to game, practice to practice, and ended the year on a high note with two wins in a row. Many of the players came into their own and showed that they had been “putting the work in” with individual multiple goals and assists games. The future is promising and as always it’s a great day to be a BEEST.

MIDDLE SCHOOL GIRLS' LACROSSE
One might call this season a rebuild, but it ended as a rebirth. With many first time players and off season injuries as well as a new coaching staff, there was a good amount of a learning curve. The team progressed from game to game, practice to practice, and ended the year on a high note with two wins in a row. Many of the players came into their own and showed that they had been “putting the work in” with individual multiple goals and assists games. The future is promising and as always it’s a great day to be a BEEST.

Note: This year, there weren't enough students to have a MS Boys' Lacrosse team. There were also not enough students to field a full Upper School Women's Lacrosse team; however, the US students who were interested in learning and/or continuing to build lacrosse skills did meet throughout the season to practice. Kudos to the women's lacrosse players who took the initiative to regularly meet and practice their skills, even though they were not able to schedule formal games with other school teams! 

 

GOLF

UPPER SCHOOL VARSITY Golf
The SSFS Varsity Golf team ended their spectacular season on a high note-becoming the PVAC Runner-Up Champions! With a combined team score of 211, SSFS came in second place out of six competing schools at the Championship match. We had a wonderful turnout this season, welcoming returning golfers and introducing the sport to players new to the game. All players improved in their accuracy, aim, and length of shots. The team was led by PVAC First Team All Conference selection Layla Cushenberry (Junior) and PVAC Second Team All Conference selection Dallas Chisolm (Sophomore). Congratulations, Beests!

 

SSFS INTRAMURAL SPORTS

Ultimate Frisbee
Ultimate Frisbee was a popular choice this spring, with 40 students signed up. The players increased their throwing and catching skills, and learned how to function effectively as a team. With a lot of novice players, we instituted a “beginner’s rule” (allowing a dropped catch to count.) This allowed our beginners to more fully participate in the game focusing on short throws and at least getting a hand on the disc. Shouts of “It’s a catch!” echoed across the field, mirrored by smiles among our beginners. The more advanced players connected with long throws, aggressive defense, and athletic catches. Everyone had fun and got some good exercise. Although this is an intramural sport, we lined up one game with a nearby school, but they backed out at the last minute, so we remain undefeated for the season ;)

Farming for Fitness
At the beginning of the season, some students expressed their goal for the class as “Being able to see an actual difference from their work.” Both groups of the class were able to meet that goal through the creation of three new raised beds made of salvaged local lumber, marking out rows to be planted, installing a spiral herb garden, and defining a space for our blackberry crop by installing logs around the border and weeding the bed. And while almost no one enjoyed it, classes were able to care for our current crops by weeding around them regularly. There was also some pretty epic vine swinging that would have gotten a stoic nod from Tarzan if he’d been there. 

Athletic Enhancement Program
The AEP started as a pilot program at the beginning of November and during its short tenure on campus, it has become an instant success. As the word spread about our new program to help support students of all athletic abilities maintain and create a healthy lifestyle, we have now reached around 60% of the Upper School student body population and will continue to grow heading into the summer. Students from all different realms of athletics have joined us and learned about how fun weightlifting and conditioning training can be.