[ot-caption title=”Led by their 11 Seniors, the Pine Crest soccer team is off to an impressive 5-1-1 start to the season. (via Jack Marchetto, Senior)” url=”https://pcpawprint.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/winter.jpg”]

After an incredibly successful season of fall sports that saw four programs reach the state tournament (Girls’ Volleyball, state runner-up, Boys’ and Girls’ Cross Country, state runners-up, Girls’ Swimming and Diving, state runners-up, and Boys’ Golf, 6th place) and several individual state champions (7th grader Tsion Yared, Girls’ Cross Country, Sophomore Marta Ciesla, Girls’ Swimming, Senior Carolyn Chaney, Girls’ Diving, Lindsey Swartz, Girls’ Swimming, and Austin Fields, Boys’ Diving), the upcoming season of winter sports looks to carry that momentum and have an equally successful season. The lineup of winter sports include Boys’ and Girls’ Basketball, Boys’ and Girls’ Soccer, and Girls’ Weightlifting. Several Type One contributors had the chance to give a more in depth look on each of the winter sports.

Boys’ Basketball: Emily Ferrando, staff writer:

The Boys’ Varsity Basketball Team looks like primed for another successful season behind Coach David Beckerman. Dominating the court with his imposing size is senior center, Antonio Vrankovic. At 6’11, he is the tallest man on the team, and continues to prove why he was selected for the All Country Fab Five Team, scoring a career high thirty points to go along with fifteen rebounds against district rival, Calvary Christian Academy, last Thursday. The Panthers are certainly not lacking senior leadership as AJ Sacks, Jonah Scrudders, and Nick Nolting all look to have a big impact on this season, to complement Vrankovic. 5’7 sophomore point guard, Chris Marzouca has been training hard in the off-season and is looking to follow up his succesful freshman campaign. That hard work appears to have paid off, as Marzouca contributed 9 points to Pine Crest’s 63-43 win over South Broward in the season opener. 6’0 freshman , Chris “Nino” Alexander, a quick and confident guard, played great defense with Marzouca, as they both handled South Broward’s pressure very well. As the season progresses, look for Alexander to play a big role off the bench as a skilled ballhandler and a confident three point shooter.

Girls’ Basketball: Samantha Gould, staff writer:

As the season begins, the Girls Varsity Basketball team is off to an outstanding start behind head coach David O’Connell. Led by seniors Remi Shea, Claudia Malone, Meredith Kava, Andrea Cuereton, Sydney Landers, and Sydney Vreeland, the girls are excited to play hard and have fun on the court. The team has been working together to thrive and better prepare themselves for the tough season ahead. With excellent playing from some key assets including sophomore Tori Engler, freshman Asha Taylor, and senior Sydney Landers, along with four new freshman on the team, the team hopes to make it all the way to the district finals, playing as a true team. The aforementioned Shea will be called upon often to be the primary ball handler and go-to scorer for the Lady Panthers, while freshman Asha Taylor looks to make an impact with her aggressive play and nose for the ball, as she eclipsed the girls’ single game rebounding record in just the second game of the season, pulling down twenty-two boards.

Boys’ Soccer: Jacob Wolpert, section editor:

The Pine Crest Football Club (PCFC) looks poised for another successful season behind 2nd year varsity head coach, Olaf Henke. This season, Coach Henke added two new members to his coaching staff: Coach Reggie Givens, who doubles as the varsity football wide receivers coach, and Coach Steve Kraft, otherwise known as the on-duty policeman every Friday. The team has jumped out to an impressive 5-1-1 start, with senior captains, Jack Marchetto, Max Krieg, and Ryan Driscoll leading the way. Each of the three captains has been a member of the varsity team since his freshman year, and are certainly seeing the four years of hard work pay off. Besides the three captains, juniors Yani Fabre and Billy Roy, along with newcomers Ben Fiedler and Max Marchetto, look to play a key role on the team this year. Max Marchetto and Ben Fiedler will be relied on heavily in net, with Fiedler starting in goal and Marchetto spelling him as the backup. With an up and down season last year due to several injuries, the Panthers are expected to have an incredibly different finish this season. The Panthers have several crucial district games ahead, including a December 4th away game against Somerset Academy, a December 9th game at home against Calvary Christian Academy, and January 7th at home against North Broward Prep, so come out and support PCFC!

Girls’ Soccer: Nicole Kone, staff writer:

The Lady Panthers’ Soccer Team has a reputation of being exciting to watch and extremely talented, and this upcoming season will not be an exception. The team has been practicing hard and playing confidently under head coach Pepi Vallejo, and it has earned them a 7-2-1 record to start the season. That record is even more impressive considering the Lady Panthers lost a strong player in Jordyn Elliot during the pre-season, to a torn ACL. Captains Allie Gershman and Isabelle Turner will look to provide leadership on the field with the absence of Elliot, a fellow captain. When asked how about the team, Athletic Director Johnson said, “Girls Varsity soccer has a strong team full of talent. Autumn Clark and her teammates have great chemistry that may make the difference when it comes to playoff time.” The Varsity team is certainly talented and the girls are all passionate about the sport, so be on the lookout for the girls’ soccer team as they strive for greatness and look to make some noise later on in the playoffs.

Girls’ Weightlifting: Daniela Gomez, staff writer:

Having already had their first competition at Boca Raton Community High School, the girls’ weightlifting team got off to a great start, taking second place to the host team. With Sofia Caro taking first in the 139 weight class, and the rest of the team scoring within the top four in their respective weight classes, this team promises to have an impressive season.

With the winter sports season already underway, only time will tell if this season can match the success of the fall. However, this will certainly be an exciting season to watch as several sports have busted out of the gates early and definitely look to have success in the postseason. Athletic Director Johnson expressed his confidence regarding this season of Panther sports. “After a successful fall sports season, we look for the winter sports teams to carry on the momentum.” So far it looks like the teams have done just that. Don’t forget to come out and support your Panthers at home, as we get set for another great season of Pine Crest sports!