Graphic: Northwood Athletics

Two Northwood student competed in the Lake Placid Super Tour for Nordic skiing. Bella Wissler ’23 and Sophia Kelting ’23 skied against some of the top competition in the country recently. The first day of skiing incorporated sprints using the classic technique. Each skier would have to race in a heat and they only would advance if they were one of the top two skiers in that race. Kelting ’22 moved through her first heat and qualified for the quarterfinal. Unfortunately, that was as far as she made it, but considering her competition it was an outstanding result.

The second day of racing incorporated a different technique called skate skiing. This form of Nordic skiing is similar to ice skating but still with the use of poles and longer skis. The race was a 10 kilometer mass start, which means every racer starts at the same time. This form of racing can be more confusing and is more likely to result in exciting finishes. The Northwood girls represented the school well as Kelting finished 37^th and Bella Wissler finished 97^th overall. This rounded out an intense and challenging weekend for skiers of all ages.

Sophia K. ’23

Bella W. ’23

The champion U19 squad at the end of the Far Post Tournament in Vermont. (Photo: provided)

The Northwood Soccer team recently competed in the Far Post Winter Tournament in Vermont. It was a fantastic tournament which allowed the new players to familiarize themselves with their teammates playing styles.  

The U17 team’s first game was challenging. They played Far Post 2 who were a much bigger side. The Huskies started slow but picked up the pace towards the end of the game and played some excellent soccer. Jeremy Tsang ‘23 scored a beautiful free kick. The final score was 5-1 for Far Post 2.  

The second game for the U17 was much better. They played a side who beat the previous team they lost to. Coach Martinez made some fantastic tactical changes which helped the team start and finish strong. The team won 5-1 with Gonzalo Munoz ’24, Mitchell Baker’25, Lohkoah Paye’24, Sachiel Ming ‘24, and Tsang each netting goals for the Huskies.  

The overall morale of the team was high as they came into a huge game the following day. The U17 Huskies started the game strong against Burlington Futbol Club with Baker scoring a goal to put the team in the lead. The team fought hard for the whole game; however, Burlington Futbol Club scored with just a minute left. A minor tussle broke out, which led to a controversial decision from the referee to end the game early. It was a disappointing draw which put the squad in second place in their group.  

Just minutes after the controversial draw, the team was told they had 10 minutes to rest before playing another game. The team was exhausted but they pushed hard. Far Post 1 opened the scoring, but the team replied with Tsang putting them back in the game. Later in the game Baker scored a goal to put the team in the lead. Far post 1 quickly replied with two quick goals. The Huskies didn’t lie down. Jace Donowa’25 scored a full pitch goal which had the bench and team going crazy. Far post responded with another goal which ended the game 4-3 for Far Post 1.  

Northwood’s U19 team played a fantastic tournament, going undefeated in all games. They won their first game 3-0 against Far Post 1. Their second game of the day against Seacoast 1 was a very entertaining game with Northwood coming out on top 5-2. They finished the group in first place with 9 points after beating Bridgeton Academy 5-2. They advanced to the final against Seacoast 2, a team the U17 Huskies soundly beat 5-1. The U19 Huskies were clearly the dominant side. The final score was 2-0 to Northwood. The goal scorers for the U19 team for the tournament were Calem Luke’22, Thebe Mosehathebe ’22, Junior Happi’23, Liam Doyle’22 and Connor DeAngelis ’22.  

Coach Jon Moodey was very pleased with both teams. “The Far Post winter invitational tournament was a remarkable success for the Black Rock team here at Northwood,” Moodey said. Moodey noted that the U19s went on to win the championship and the U17s were just one goal away from playing against the U19s in the final. “The U17 team played a fantastic tournament battling hard until the end,” Moodey added. The coach as particularly proud of the older squad. “The U19 team was classy and won in great style. Overall, it was a fantastic weekend for both teams and for Northwood School,” boated Moodey. 

Northwood soccer opened competition on its new field with the first Northwood Boys soccer showcase. The showcase started November 11th with the boys U19 team defeating Immaculate Heart 1-0 in the 50 minute match. This was the first clean sheet of many for the older Husky boys who wouldn’t concede a single goal the whole showcase. 

The following morning the U19 boys kept their momentum against St. Andrews College, a prep school from Toronto, securing a impressive 6-0 win. The younger Huskies joined the action first playing Burlington FC to a 1-1 draw with the lone goal from Sachiel Ming ’24.  

Saturday concluded with a rival matchup between the U19s and High Mowing School, another Black Rock FC Academy.  The match was decided when senior Berhanu Stevens headed in the winning  goal that came from a sequence of quick passing. The Huskies kept their composure for the rest of the game, possessing the ball and not giving High Mowing many chances to tie the match. 

The last day of competitions started with a quick turnaround for the U19s as they played NY Elite at 9:00 am and managed a 2-0 win.  Northwoods U18 team continued their weekend coming against Burlington FC that morning. The score ended 1-1 with the singular goal coming from sophomore Ming.  The older Huskies finished out their weekend playing RMPUS from near Montreal. The final match was scrappy and ended with the U19s winning 2-0. This ended a very solid weekend for the U19s as they kept 5 clean sheets and tallied a total of 12 goals against their opponents. 

(Photo: Mr. Michael Aldridge)

Boys soccer teams traveled to Ohio in October (October 22-24) to compete against other top prep schools in the Northeast. 

On Thursday, October 21st both the U18 and U19 teams loaded onto a charter bus and set out for Ohio. The team made one stop on the way to their games taking a scenic route to Niagra Falls.  For many of the players, this was a first visit to the falls, and were astonished to hear stories of daredevils who went off the falls. 

Junior Happi ’23 in action against Phillips Exeter Academy in the fall of 2021 (Photo: Mr. Michael Aldridge)

Upon arrival in Ohio on Friday, the Huskies watched an exciting matchup between two D1 programs Akron and Bowling Green. The match ended in a 5-1 win for Akron and gave many of the players a better understanding of soccer at the next level. Calem Tommy ’22 saw this as a great opportunity saying, “It’s important to see the next level in our football careers. It gave us motivation to make that next step.” 

The prep showcase was hosted by Western Reserve Academy in Hudson, Ohio. Games started with the U19 boys playing Kiski School on Saturday morning and winning 3-1. Goals came from Kyumin Shin ’22, Junior Happi ’23 and Liam Doyle ’22. Sebastian Green’22 said the match was “a great response from the team after a prior winless weekend.”  The younger U18 team faced Lake Forest Academy Saturday evening, and that game ended in hard fought 2-4 defeat with goals from Saquiel Ming ’24 and Gonzales Munoz ’25. 

The weekend continued with the U19s playing Western Reserve Academy on their home turf. The match ended with a 3-1 win for the Huskies. Two vital goals came from Happi and  one from Shin.  This marked a solid weekend for Junior Happi with 3 goals in two games.