Wrestling
Despite the loss of not one but two sectional champions, Ithaca Varsity Wrestling is approaching the season with hope. “We need to recruit people. We’re missing a lot of weight classes,” Alex Rateb ’17 told me in the middle of trying to do exactly that. The team can only be expected to up its recruiting intensity as we draw closer to the start of the season, so it’s heavily recommended to avoid all wrestlers unless you want to learn about how “there is nothing better to do this winter than wrestle.”
Prediction: Richie Burke will come back as a super-senior and win another five sectional titles.
Boys’ Lacrosse
Although Varsity Lacrosse did lose eight seniors, players are confident that the rising classes will be able to fill the empty spots. “We didn’t lose too many starters, so it’s not a big problem,” Matt “The Tank” Pagliaro ’17 said. A new senior class with a roster deeper than Kendrick Lamar’s new album will undoubtedly propel the team to the powerhouse status it once had. Expect to see every home game to be nothing less than a shutout.
Prediction: 2+ goals per game by up-and-comer Jack Cesari ’16.
Boys’ Basketball
Boys’ Varsity Basketball may have lost seven seniors and almost every starter, but it is unlikely that they will lose a single game this year. Up-and-comer Jordany Marte ’18 is predicted to triple-double in at least four different games and will likely dunk at least twice in every home game. The real star of the team, however, is the crowd. With fans having nothing better to do when the weather is horrible, attendance will likely be at an all-time high.
Prediction: Halfway through the season, Turner Depalma ’17 will declare NCAA eligibility and leave Ithaca to play for Duke.
Track and Field
After the loss of more than a dozen seniors on the boys’ side (four of which were Dan Dracup ’15), up-and-coming runners will need to fill in the gaps. “The girls’ team will be just as strong, but the boys will have to step it up,” Ainslie Denman ’17 said. By far the most devastating losses, however are Matt Lin ’15 and Conor Coutts ’15. The new senior class will need to fill the massive leadership shoes left behind by Coutts and Lin, the two major forces of motivation.
Prediction: Members of the team will continue to do nothing but play frisbee at meets.
Boys’ Swimming
Like its female counterpart, IHS Boys’ Swimming has consistently dominated its section. Some questioned whether Ithaca could remain on top after the loss of the Michael Phelps–like Ryan Nicholson ’14, but Nicholson and his seemingly dozens of state records live on through the several state places the Boys’ Swim Team managed to secure last year. “If we keep at it, sectionals won’t be far away,” Francis Schickel ’16 said as he listed the dozens of invitationals the boys won last year.
Prediction: Kevin Miller ’16 will finally manage to replace his Twitter banner picture.