Mamaroneck High School Athletes to Remember

Mamaroneck Girl’s Lacrosse Runs on the Trust of its Captain

There isn’t a lot of standing around in soccer or lacrosse. Given that, Lauren Rush of Mamaroneck Girl’s Lacrosse will take the fast paced nature of the small ball to soccer any day.

“There’s more scoring and I really enjoy scoring," said the team’s captain, who finished her career with just over 200 goals.

Still, the high scoring doesn’t mean play unfolds without any intricacy, that’s something to behold.

“Great plays look beautiful on the lacrosse field,” she said.

In the middle of the fray, she lets her experience act as a conduit that binds Mamaroneck’s offense.

“My teammates trust me and I trust them,” Lauren asserted.

At the same time, the physical nature of the game cannot be escaped. But the bumps and bruises aren’t so bad when there’s a family history of collision with a set of hairy legs.

“Growing up having an older brother,” she revealed, “that’s kind of a help.”

However it was her dad who introduced her to lacrosse, and she’s repaid the favor by being All-Section for the last three years. Additionally, Mamaroneck had its first winning season (8-6-2) in her tenure, but exited the sectionals after a second round loss.

Otherwise, beating Scarsdale in the regular season was the highlight of the year.

“They are our big rivals, which brought the team much closer together,” she beamed.

In the fall, she’ll be attending Syracuse and taking what she learned on field into life.

“It teaches you to get along with everybody and be a team player,” she concludes.

Mamaroneck Tennis Captain Doesn't Stress Over Doubles Game

It took a full two days for the Mamaroneck Tennis Team to defeat Scarsdale this season. Considering the last time that happened their captain was five years old, a little bad weather in between made it worth the wait.

But Stephanie Banks definitely welcomes the tennis postseason with a sigh of relief. This holds despite the exciting defeat of their arch rivals.

"Singles gets kind of intense," she said. "It's all on you so it's really my fun break at the end of the season to play doubles with my friend."

The hiatus also suits her style and crosses over nicely with her double's partner, Sarah Yukelis.

"I'm serve and volley, and she's a good base liner," Stephanie said.

But like any good athlete, the senior's advantage emerged by compensating for what's lacking rather than making excuses. A lot of the players have more consistent ground strokes, she said, so I've worked on my serve in order to gain an earlier advantage.

The preparation definitely paid off this postseason.

"We reached the section semifinals and qualified for the states," Stephanie beamed.

No matter where that leaves her, Stephanie plans to study biology or history in college, and hopes a division three school gives her the chance to walk on. If not, she'll play club tennis. But either way, the game will always double in regards to the mind/body synergy needed to succeed.

"I like how it incorporates both a mental and physical challenge," she concluded.

Mamaroneck Field Hockey and its Captain Looking to End 2011 in State Championship

In 2009 and 2010, Mamaroneck Field Hockey came home empty handed after trips to the state finals. Of course, getting there in itself certainly gave the team a pretty good fill. Still, when the new season's goal rests solely on what’s been left undone, the pressure has to be unnerving. “Definitely,” said senior Jessica Gardiner. However, the release that only a championship will satisfy is not ultimately a function of psychology but chemistry.

“It all comes down to how well we play together,” she said.

Losing six players to graduation, three-peating back to the finals speaks directly to that and had Mamaroneck competing in Florida this August. “We definitely did a lot of team building,” Jessica said.

As captain, she leads by example with fellow seniors to provide a winning picture for players who haven’t been there yet.

“We have to be their inspiration to get back to where we were last year,” she asserted.

And if that heavy stick comes down on an ankle, shin or ulna, good field hockey players don't deny the rub.

“It’s all part of the game,” she boasted.

On the other hand, Jessica admits to crying after getting clubbed during the sectionals, but that was more about the pain in her heart. I thought I was going to be out of the playoffs with a broken hand, she revealed.

Intact leadership like this hopefully carries Mamaroneck to that elusive win on the last day of her career.

Jessica will be playing field hockey next year for Middlebury College.

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