Between the encouragement of the coaches and the pride of your parents there are plenty of reasons to prove yourself on the athletic field. This sort of pressure brings out the best in a player, a reason to rise to the occasions, but what if there was an added factor? Senior Chelsea Hammerschmidt and Sophomore Claudia Hammerschmidt have earned the opportunity of playing Varsity Lacrosse together during this spring season. The combination of siblings and athletics has created an X-factor on the field resulting in an intensity that is hard to match. After speaking with the two of them on the subject, it is apparent that competition plays a large role in their relationship but they try and use their different strengths to defeat opponents rather than each other. They described to me, “Chelsea is the muscle of the dynamic duo, where as Claudia is more the wheels.” When you combine those qualities they are a force to be reckon with; their regular season record of 16-2 is quite evident of that. Although they try not to compete it is almost inevitable during practices when they are drilling together. They both specifically mentioned the one-on-one drill, where they are set up head-to-head as being their time to out do one another. This exercise calls for strength, speed and wit to defeat your opponent. Claudia described her sisterly intuition during these drills, she says, “When we play one-on-ones I can sense which way she is planning to go or what move she is going to try on me.” It is not a foolproof system, but she has been successful a few times. Chelsea, on the other hand, feels that these types of drills push her to put her best effort forth in order to surpass Claudia’s knowledge of her game. Whether Chelsea comes out victorious or visa-versa, the team truly enjoys watching these two athletes compete. However,the first time at Byram Hills have seen the Hammerschmidt sisters on the same field, they have been playing together their whole lives. Mother Lesli Hammerschmidt says, “They used to play together during their softball years, Claudia was the catcher and Chelsea was the pitcher. It’s funny how they always seem to play opposite positions.” Even during the lacrosse season Chelsea upheld the defense while Claudia spearheaded the offense. The only concern with sibling athletics is the game would not be left on the field. Most coaches and parents will tell you that leaving a loss or a mistake behind is one of the hardest parts of competing, but it has got to be even harder when a fellow player comes home with you soon after the game's over. But when asked about their relationship on the team and how it affects their home life, the girls feel it has brought them together rather than torn them apart. Aside from the occasional quarrel, it really has made things better in the Hammerschmidt household, especially for their mother because she has been able to fulfill her spectator duty in one round. Even though Chelsea is heading off to college in the fall, the chemistry demonstrated by these two athletes has definitely inspired others to build relationships on and off the field. Claudia will be able to carry the things she has learned from playing with her sister into her next two seasons here at Byram Hills.
The varsity Girls' Lacrosse team had an outstanding season of 16 - 2. They were upset Saturday by Edgemont in the quarter finals of Section C. We met up with some of the parents in the stands during the game, while the Bobcats were still in the lead.
When we sat with Melissa Byrne, she couldn't say enough about the team effort and coach Jeff Fritz, "He was fantastic at developing them as a team." Last year, Fritz was the boys' lacrosse coach and switched to develop the girls' program. "Speed, agility and team work, it's amazing how they developed." Byrne says, "The team is just going to get better, it's like a big equation and operating as a team is what made the season so successful. They have improved so much." James, her husband, adds, "Two years ago they were 3 - 13."
The first half of the game, Bobcats dominated even after senior Sam Beresford came out early in the game with an injury of multiply breaks of her collar bone. Later on, sophomore Katie Byrne scored her fourth goal of the game at 11:00 minutes left in the second half with the score of 9 - 8. With 8:41 on the clock, Edgemont tied the game 9 -9 and then took the lead for the first time. Edgemont had the edge in forcing the play and significant advantage in possession for the second half. Thus, an unexpected end to the Bobcat's season occurred with a final score of 9 -11.
Senior Sharon Strain has played goalie since elementary school with Coach Fritz in the youth LAX program. She has played through all four years in high school, the first two years on junior varsity and the last two on varsity. Next year she'll be playing at the University of New Haven. Richard and Linda Strain said they attended every game this season. Linda says, "I've seen the team's tremendous growth since the beginning of the season, each game becoming a stronger team. They seem to want to go to practice, to play the best they can and look forward to it. The Disney trip was a fabulous experience, it gave them the opportunity to play against teams they had never played against before."
The end of a season is never easy, especially with a loss. No one either on the field of the Bobcats or their fans and parents in the stands wanted it to end without the success of a championship. But, even if it did not happen this year, it seems like it is just the beginning of a bright future for the girls' Bobcats Lacrosse team to build upon the marvelous 2010 Spring season of 16-2. A remarkable achievement for the girls, the coach, and their supporters even as they peek at the enticing prospects to come.
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BOYS Track and Field
May 22, 2010 Section 1 Class B Championships At Byram Hills High School
Team key and scoring — 1. Somers (S) 91, 2. Pearl River (PR) 74, 3. Rye (R) 65, 4. Edgemont (Ed) 54, 5th Place BYRAM HILLS (BH) 50, 6. Kennedy (JFK) 38, 7. Nanuet (N) 30, 8t. Nyack (Nk), Irvington (Irv) 28, 10. Hen Hud (HH) 27, 11. Harrison (H) 26, 12. Briarcliff (Bc) 23, 13. Our Lady of Lourdes (OLL) 22, 14t. Dover (D), Hastings (Hs) 12, 16. Peekskill (Pk) 10, 17. Yonkers (Y) 6, 18. Pelham (P) 2, 19. Westlake (Ws) 1.
3,000 steeplechase — 1st Place: Chris Cioffoletti (Byram Hills) 10:01.9 3,200 relay — 1st Place: Byram Hills relay team in 8:16.8 Triple jump — 3rd Place: Chris Ramsey (Byram Hills) Discus — 2nd Place: Peter Reynolds (Byram Hills)
GIRLS Track and Field
Section 1 Class B Championships at Byram Hills
Team key and scoring — 1. Pearl River (PR) 147, 2. Harrison (H) 56, 3. Nyack (Nk) 54, 4. Nanuet (N) 50, 5t. Irvington (Irv), Rye (R) 41, 7. Edgemont (Ed) 37, 8. Somers (S) 34, 9. Dover (D) 25, 10. Kennedy (JFK) 24, 11. Sleepy Hollow (SH) 18, 12. Putnam Valley (PV) 14, 13. Pelham (P) 13, 14th Place BYRAM HILLS (BH) 12, 15t. Our Lady of Lourdes (OLL), Pleasantville (Pv) 10, 17. Hastings (Hs) 6, 18t. Croton-Harmon (CH), Briarcliff (Bc), Eastchester (Ec), Hen Hud (HH) 2, 22. Yonkers (Y) 1.
Boys track team include hurdles during a dual meet 4/19/10.
Girls track team competes during a dual meet 4/19/10.
4/19/10 At the Harrison Dual Meet Sophomore Pete DiCristofaro throws the discus a distance of 89' 06. 75"
Coach Saunders visits the mound during the Bobcat Baseball game verse Harrison on 4/19/10.
Senior pitcher Dean Simkins warms up while the Bobcats maintain the lead.
Harrison takes the lead and wins the game 3 - 2.
April 15th's Boys Lacrosse game.
April 15th baseball match-up was Bobcats against Horace Greeley.
Girls varsity softball team pitch into a season start of two wins and two losses.
April 7, 2010 Bobcats used four pitchers in the second baseball game of the season. Opening day they won 5-3 over Westlake.
Zachery Shechtman gets on base with an error of the first baseman and takes off for second as the next batter hits into a double play.
Freshman Jerret Feldman plays second base defense for an out.
Boys Lax team work some plays in preparation of their first match.
Girls Lax work some hand/eye coordination drills.
Byram Hills senior Shawn McDonald threw the Javelin 165' 01" to break the school record by nearly 10 feet at Somers, placing second in the event. Shawn also held the old school record of 155’ 09" set at the Class B championship meet in 2008.
Concussion, The Invisible Injury By Herb Doerr, brought to us by Healthy Kids Now
Bobcats Spring Season 2010
Byram Hills State Champions
June 15, 2010
To set the record straight, Byram Hills High School has seen four teams win state championships, as well as three individuals. We congratulate the 2010 boys doubles tennis team and state champions Kyle Rosen and Jordon Kaufman. They join a distinguished list of a few other accomplished athletes over the years that have achieved the highest athletic high school status. Those athletes are:
Michelle Suozzi, diver in 1993 and possibly another year (not confirmed),
Dana Lindemann, gymnast in 1997. Lindeman writes, "Yes, I had won the NY state championships for Beam in 1997. I was competing as a one-man gymnastics team at BHHS, organized for that year only. I also was awarded the Gannet Suburban Newspaper performer of the year award and the Patent Trader Athlete of the Month award in April of that year. At the time, I was also highly involved with club gymnastics and competing around the country."
Greg Simonds hurdler of 400 m hurdles in 2002 spring track,
4 x 400 relay team of Greg Simonds, Rob deLaski, Ben Jaffe and Jeff Waksman in 2002 winter track,
4 x 800 relay team of Phil Cawkwell, Mike Sass, Nick Fasano and John Granata in 2007 winter track,
boys varsity soccer team in 2008 and,
boys doubles tennis team in 2010.
Byram Hills Sports Update
June 7, 2010
For the first time a Byram Hills tennis team aced the state doubles championship. Second-seeded, doubles players Jordan Kaufman and Kyle Rosen came from behind to win the semi-final match by determination and perseverance 7-6(5), 7-5 over Farmingdale. In the finals, Kaufman and Rosen came out on top as title champions against Scarsdale, 6-4, 2-6 and 6-2.
Boys Tennis coach Tim Shea, says, "I am happy for Kyle and Jordan. It shows that all the time and effort they put in year round does pay off!!"
Cornel University, NY June 8, 2010
Stu Kaufman had a successful end to his golf season by achieving All-State, along with only two other Sectional I golfers this week. Stu accomplished this lofty reward by finishing in the Top 20 despite a shaky start of 7-over in the first round's initial seven holes. Without that challenging start, it might been very different, but nevertheless All-State is a level that a rare few ever get in their high school sports career. Congratulations to Stu on a wonderful year and tremendous placement affirming excellence in his chosen sport. He shot 157 over two rounds at a Robert Trent Jones designed course in Ithaca, NY. Along with Hayley Kaplan's recent first-place finish in the Girls Sectionals Golf championship, BHHS had a superb golf duo leaders in Stu and Hayley, kudos to both!
In the Girls Golf Sectionals, Hayley Kaplan of BHHS finished first with rounds of 85-86. Her 171 tally at the Hollow Brook Golf Club (par 71) easily beat a Rye second-place finisher by a wide 8 strokes. Alex Grimaldis of BHHS, with rounds of 89-93, finished tied for 3rd. There were 24 competitors, so the Bobcat golfers did superbly against a tough field.
The Spring regular seasons and Sectionals have largely finished for most teams. The Boys Lacrosse team advanced into the 2nd round of Sectionals, but could not get further than the quarterfinals, losing by a single goal 11-10 to the #2 seed.
See the details below as Varsity Track had a superb amount of 12 top three finishers in the recent County Championships, across both field and track events, girls as well as boys.
What makes a good coach? Coach Govan says, "The objective is how far you bring each individual relative to where they started, and how close they reach in terms of their god given limits.” Click below to read more.
05/24, Mon.; Sectional's seedings for Singles and Doubles will be announced and BHHS is expected to be well represented. 05/27, Wed.; BHHS Kyle Rosen & Jordan Kaufman defeated Scarsdale team, 6-1, 7-5; winning Sectionals Championship!
