Today Inquiring Minds is pleased to share an update from Richland Academy’s Grade 3/4 Teacher and Athletic Director, Mr. Lionel Ownsworth, on the Small Schools Athletic Federation events that Richland teams have competed in.  Go Huskies!It has been a great first part of the year for Richland athletics, and our students have represented the school with Husky spirit at the Cross-Country Championship run,  the Under 10 and 12 Soccer Tournaments, and the Ultimate Frisbee Event to start off the year.
The Ultimate Frisbee Tournament was new for Richland this year, in large part due to Ms. Bei’s enthusiasm for the sport and her inclusion of it in her grade 5/6 P.E. schedule. We had a great time at Shepard’s Bush Park and competed well, but the experience of the other teams was apparent and we ultimately did not make the final rounds. We played games against TCMPS, VIS, and RMS, and we finished off with an exhibition match against a team from Burlington. Overall, we learned a great deal about how to play the game, and we will be ready for next year. Many thanks to the grade 5/6’s for playing hard and learning some new skills in this event, and Ms. Bei is already planning out strategy.The Cross-Country run was held at Sunnybrook Park, and we had perfect fall weather for the event, with the predicted rain holding off until the very end. All our runners finished their races, with Z.P. finishing 10th in the U-8 event, and A.H. and A.L. coming in the top 20 of their division, the U-10 girls.There were over 150 runners in each event! All the students were happy to have competed, and in some cases improve upon results from last year. It was a fun day overall, and many thanks to Mrs. DeSimone and Mr. Gandhi for acting as field marshals (and taking pictures), and Mr. Hilkowitz for helping the students off-side with Mrs. Brown while I took care of race starts and finishes with the runners.

We had an equally fun day at the U-10 Soccer Tournament, and while it took us several games to find our footing at ‘The Hanger’, we did eventually win our final game and thus capture the Division B Consolation Championship title. Everyone played hard and worked as a team throughout, and we lost, tied, and won our games with Husky dignity. Our three girls had to play every single minute of each game(regulations), and they were our rock at defense. Playing with heart and intensity up front, our players had many fine chances to score when the opportunity arose.  H.G. was a strong mid-field presence throughout, running up and down the field to attack and defend, and G.B. showed us how quick he can be with defenders having difficulty keeping up with him. D.C. and A.H. showed us their skill as attacking and defending mid-fielders, keeping and maintaining play whenever they were on the field. They were always a threat, and A.H. scored the winning goal in our final game. Z.P. played an outstanding game in net, virtually stopping our opponents cold at every turn. Many thanks to Mr. Hilkowitz and Mr. Carter for helping out as trainers/coaches for the event, keeping the children in form with drills and pep talks when we were not playing.We also had a great time at the U-12 Soccer Tournament, and placed 3rd in our division. We did not make the final rounds however(only by one point), but did have two very close games in the round robin vs. Wishing Well and RHMS, coming out with 2 ties that could have been victories with a good bounce here and there. In our third round robin game, we came up against TMS, and while we stayed with them for the first half, they were able to eventually overcome us in the end. M.C. played superbly in net and backstopped us with some spectacular saves, one in particular that looked like a professional MLS keeper in action. C.B. also took a round in net, and showed his skill as well. A.L., J.D., and N.M. all played very well on the forward line throughout, making the defense we faced think twice about moving too far up field. N.D. showed lots of strength and composure on defense facing players much bigger than she, and all the grade 4 girls showed their mettle playing up in this division. The Defense was led by T.S. and D.S. who were like rocks on the back line, anchoring the whole operation, and I.P., J.A., B.S., and C.B. shored up the mid-field, hustling all over the field wherever the action was. J.D. played mostly at the Striker, and had many fine chances on net, never giving the defense a chance to rest or think twice. Everyone showed hustle, endurance, and most importantly, sportsmanship throughout, even when it looked like we would not advance. The championship game was between UMS and TMS.  Neither team allowed a goal all day, and the same held true in the championship. TMS eventually won the game 2-1 in penalty shots.Thanks to all the player who came out for both Soccer events, played hard, and represented their school with pride. Many thanks to Coach Kristine Brown as well, who took some fantastic photos that lit up the ‘twittersphere’ throughout the tournament, keeping everyone here at school informed.

Overall, this has been a very positive start to the Husky athletic season, which will now continue in the new year with Basketball at the end of January. Ms. Pearson has already committed to coaching, and we will start with conditioning and game play during P.E. sessions, with official practices starting in Mid-November. We hope to have a U-10 and a U-12 team.