Lower Moreland Twp. School District
Athletics & Activities Newsletter
Lower Moreland Township School District
Athletic Trainer: Scott DeLange
Superintendent of Schools: Dr. Scott Davidheiser
Principal of Lower Moreland High School: Mr. Bill Miles
Principal of Murray Avenue Middle School: Ms. Jennifer Dilks
Principal of Pine Road Elementary School: Dr. Brian Swank
Email: mheiland@lmtsd.org
Website: www.lmtsdathletics.com
Location: 555 Red Lion Road, Huntingdon Valley, PA, USA
Phone: 215 938 0220
Twitter: @lmtsdathletics
Fall Wrap-Up & Winter Preview
It's hard to believe that the winter season is around the corner. Major dates and information are listed below.
A lot of our events could not be run without some of our behind the scenes support. I owe a special thank you to a number of people who helped make the fall season a success behind the scenes. Matt Crouch and Kristy Hutchinson, who serve as our faculty managers down at Murray. Their continued support and dedication in making our middle school sports experience a great one for our athletes does not go unnoticed.
Thanks to Mr. Moxey, Mr. Becker, Mr. Murphy, Ms. Pearson, Mrs. Reilly, Mrs. Mitchell & everyone who made our football games run smoothly. Special thanks to Kris Reed, Natalie Firko, and Andrea Schill for their support and communication in regards to the re-scheduling of games and attendance.
A thank you to Greg Zesinger,, who was able to help with team pictures and galleries for our Murray Avenue teams this fall. Finally, the entire Lower Moreland community, which continues to support our student athletes in a positive manner. Check out his photo albums below.
Become a Fan of Lower Moreland Athletics
Go to http://www.lmtsdathletics.com and select join in the upper right hand corner.
- You will enter your information to sign up for the website. Once you do that make sure you are signed into your account for the Big Teams website.
- There a list of tabs towards the top of the screen, you will see Email Alerts on the right hand side. Please click on that tab.
- That will take you to a new screen, click on the My Favorites/Alerts tab. Then you will see favorites. In that window you can add a school, which you will add Lower Moreland.
- Then you can add select teams you wish to follow and get alerts for. This is important in regards to receiving information when events change.
- Click on Alerts and check the boxes of how you want to receive alerts.
- Click on Alert Settings. You can add another email if you want, or add a cell number and receive text messages as well.
This is just another avenue of communication between the Athletic Department and the Lower Moreland Community.
Check Out the New ICal Feature
In conjunction with Big Teams, I am pleased to announce a new feature on our website that will allow you to download team schedules into your personal calendar. Visit our athletic page to subscribe to the schedule of your choice www.lmtsdathletics.com
If you need help getting started, CLICK HERE for instructions and find the type of calendar options you would like.
Online Store
Lower Moreland Field Hockey Clinic
District I Doubles Tennis Champions
Girls Soccer
District I XC Champion
Fall Sports Wrap Up
Golf
Field Hockey
Girls Soccer
The girls were led this year by Seniors Allison Asmann, Gianna Pennecale & Jess Murawsky. Juniors Nicole Castor, Ceili Courduff, & Alexandre Krutzinger and Sophomores Maggie McGarry, Paige Malpezzi, Amy Zesinger & Phoebe Lynch. The girls competed hard on a daily basis and finished the year with a 8-9-1 record and falling 1 spot short of the District I Playoffs. The team loses only four seniors and looks to bounce back with a strong campaign next year.
Jr. Goalkeeper Ceili Courduff
2018 Girls Soccer Team
So. Phoebe Lynch
Boys Soccer
The boys finished the year 11-6-1 and were led by a number of seniors. Captains Andrew Buss, Andrew Finnegan & Andrew Gonzales led the team on and off the field. Other seniors were Jake Himmelstein, David Skiendzielewski, Cullen Malone, John Monteiro, Noah Dias, & Mike Ernst. The boys earned the 4th seed in the 3A playoffs and faced off vs. a physical Phoenixville team. The boys lost a heartbreaking double overtime game, but played hard. The underclassmen are looking to build on the seniors legacy and make another strong run next season.
Cheer
Look for our squad to be back in the winter at our basketball games and competing in league and district cheer competitions.
Football
The hard work of the coaches and team paid off on October 13th as the boys beat Valley Forge Military Academy on Senior Day 30-0. Finally healthy, the team was able to put together a total team effort on offense, defense & special teams. It was Coach Beck's first home win of his career, and the boys doused him with a Gatorade bath.
The team will lose 19 seniors to graduation, but with an off season lifting program and a strong group of underclassmen who want to get better, LM Football looks to continue and progress back to the top of the BAL in 2019.
Girls Cross Country
The girls finished in a tie for 4th place in the BAL standings. Nicole Roche earned all league honors for her running. At districts the girls raced and put in some of their best times of the season. Coach Esposito was very proud of the way that they ran at Lehigh University.
Sandy Hua & Nicole Roche Prepare for Race
2018 Girls XC @ Districts
Race to the Finish
Boys Cross Country
The boys finished in second place in the BAL Independence Division behind Holy Ghost Prep and had four all league runners. Shane Cohen and Ben Zonshayn earned first team, while Thomas Hellenbrand and Justin Sandler earned second team. Zonshayn, Hellenbrand, & Sandler will all return next season.
The boys needed things to go well at Lehigh for them to win the District team championship. Things got off to a great start as Shane Cohen defended his district title by winning with a time of 16:30, beating a runner from Pope John Paul by under a second. However, PJP had 5 of the next 10 finishers and held off the Lions. Cohen represented Lower Moreland at the state meet in Hershey on 11/3. He finished in 48th place at the meet on Saturday. Shane finished his career as a 2x District Champion and 2x State Qualifier in Cross Country. Congrats on a great career.
Coach Rap Always Coaching
2018 Boys XC Prepares for Race
Shane Cohen Wins District Gold
Girls Tennis
The girls won their first two state matches before falling to eventual state champion Seweickly Academy in Pittsburgh 3-2 in the state semi-finals. The team only loses 1 senior from this year's team, so they are looking to get back to Hershey next year.
On an individual level at states, the doubles team of Berzin/Cheiken won on Friday in Hershey winning both matches 6-0 6-2. On Saturday morning the girls won an epic match vs. the girls from Lancaster Catholic 6-3 4-6 7-6 advancing them to the state finals. The girls fell short to a very good team from Villa Maria 2-6 0-6, but Coach Hausman, Coach Titus, and the rest of the LM community is extremly proud of Elzabeth and Ally's efforts.
In the singles tournament Lisovyy was a strong favorite in her matches on Friday and she won easily 6-0 6-0 and 6-3 6-2. This set up a re-match for Nikole as she faced off against Olivia Dorner who up until this point gave Nikole her only loss of the year. Despite being ranked slightly lower in the UTR ranking system Coach Hausman said Nikole played her best match of the year and she won in straight sets 6-3 7-6, putting her in the championship match. Lisovyy could not be stopped once she got through the semis and rolled to a 6-1 6-4 straight set win in the state championship match. Congratulations to Nikole Lisovyy on earning herself the honor of being a state champion!
2018 Captains
Jr. Maeve McErlean
Sr. Elizabeth Berzin
2018 Girls Tennis onto Hershey
Doubles Teams after another Victory
Fall Sports
Girls Soccer: The Murray Avenue girls's soccer team finished the 2018 season undefeated in their division, and with a 5-1 record overall. Hard work and a team effort led the Lady Lions to an extraordinary season.
With every game and every win, the girls played hard and remained composed, offensively and defensively. The girls were able to finish their shots, create clean passes and build a beautiful bond on the field.
The Lady Lions never had trouble finding the net, especially Demmi Fox and Payton Lennon, who led the team in goals. Christiana Mckenna, Olivia Linus, Valentina Sellecchia, Leah Weinberg also contributed to the score board. These goals wouldn't have been possible without the support of Sofia O’Brien, Siri Hellenbrand, and Morgan Pennisi. Olivia Linus was a crucial player for the Lions, controlling the midfield and leading the team in possession. The team had one of the best defenses in the league, only allowing 2 goals the entire season. Destiny Boedeker, Madison Sahl, Finola Winters, and Amelia Brown helped Arlene Singh defend her net. Arlene played each game with steady hands, motivating the team to get the job done.
The team played some really great soccer against quality opponents and had fun while doing it. It was a great group of girls who were outstanding on the field and off! The Girls also were the BAL Middle School Division Champions.
Boys Soccer: The MSBS team battled on a daily basis against some tough competition this year. The 7th and 8th grade combination team battled against some really tough teams in Abington, Colonial & Sandy Run. The boys had a good balance of members from each grade this year and Coach Derek was very pleased with the progress made throughout the 6 weeks.
8th Grade Field Hockey
7th Grade Field Hockey
More Murray Ave Photos
Message from LM Football Parents Association
We started our season off before school officially started at Springfield. This was a loss but always a lesson to learn from. The following week the team and cheerleaders traveled to Lincoln Field to watch Temple Owls Football take on Buffalo Bulls. This was an exciting time where everyone enjoyed the cookout Mr. Whittle did and the music played by Temple's DJ for the tailgating party. As our season continues we had another week off due to game cancelled. Finally we played Morrisville and unfortunately lost in the last minute of the game. It was difficult but we still learn from each game. Our Homecoming Game was recently against ANC. We thank everyone that came out to support our team and to see the court. It was amazing to watch the game at night under the lights! On Senior Day our boys broughout home a 30-0 victory over Valley Forge Military Academy. It was the last time our Seniors walked onto the home field in their High School Career. The support for our 19 seniors was fantastic.
It was nice to see such a great turnout at our home games to support the football team, the cheerleaders, and the band. We would like to give a special thanks to the cheerleaders and the band for pumping up the fans and keeping the LM spirit going. LMPFA could not do what it does without the support and the volunteers of our football parents. We our such a small school, we can only accomplish the things that we do when we all work together. Looking forward to the next season and good luck to the winter sports teams. GO LIONS !!
Thank you,
LMFPA
Lower Moreland Football Parents Association
Clubs & Extra Curricular Activities
Debate Club - The season is off and running as our debate members are competing against other schools.
Chess Club - The chess team starts their season on 11/13 @ Abington.
There are a number of other clubs and activities that are getting underway as we reach the quarter point of the school year. Stay tuned for updates in the next newsletter on updates of our clubs and extra-curricular activities.
High School Winter Sports Preview
Please reach out to individual coaches via email for more details on times of practices as it gets closer.
Head Coach: Seth Baron, Asst. Coaches: Jarett Teel, Jeff Pitco, Nate Murawsky, Mike Mangan
Key Returning Players: 10 seniors including 1st team members Forrest Keys and Shane Cohen, and 2nd team member Bryce Horn. Jordan Zoubroiulis, Jake Himmelstein, Andrew Finnegan, and Joey Cerruti are expected to make big contributions.
Team Expectations: The Lions hope to compete for the league and district titles.
Key Games: The team bolstered their non-league schedule this year, as they will face SOL powerhouse Pennsbury on the road. They will also face BAL foe in a non-league contest Faith Chrisitan. Two important league games are versus Christopher Dock and Holy Ghost.
Girls Basketball: Tryouts 11/19 11/20 11/21
Head Coach: Rich Becker Assistant Coaches: Bud Joshua and Olivia Mangan
Key Returning Players: Ceili Courduff, Nicole Castor, Phoebe Lynch, Riley Malone and Alexandre Krutsinger
Outlook: The girls return 8 of their top 9 scorers from last season and are looking forward to improving on last years 20 - 7 record where they were runners up for both the league and district titles. The girls expect to be in a position to compete for the league and district championships again this year as well as to possibly make a deep run in the state playoffs.
Key Games to Watch: The key league games for the girls are New Hope and Jenkintown, both of which will be played within the first few weeks of the season. The girls are also excited to test themselves against a strong non-league schedule which includes Harriton, Methacton and St. Basil's.
Competitive Spirit:
Preview: The cheer squad looks to build on a strong football season this year. The team had 20 athletes on the roster, and they are looking to compete in competitions for the first time in 4 years. The squad will be at our boys and girls basketball games this winter, as well as looking to compete in the BAL Championships at Morrisville in January.
Wrestling: Practice Begins 11/19
Head Coach: John Spoerl
Preview: The wrestling team is under first year Head Coach John Spoerl this season. He is looking to get the program back to the top, where it was year after year not to long ago. Leading the charge on the mat this year is Cullen Malone who was a gold medal winner at leagues and districts last season. Other league champion returners are Pat Whittle at 220 and Nick Bratspis at 138. Caleb Lee, Loey Leska, Eric Srulevich & Nick Derderian also qualified for districts last year. The team looks to fill in empty weight classes this year in order to compete more on the team level.
Boys Swimming & Diving: Practice Begins 11/19
Head Coach: Karney McNear Assistant Coach: Matt Preedy
Key Returning Swimmers: Tommy Lutter; Alex Yoon; Colin Shipp, Noah Ferker; Dan Amusin, Greg Landis, Jaden Feldman; Mark Klinchin
Newcomers to watch out for: Ryan Park; Sam Shtrambrand; Michael Goldenberg
Outlook: Coming off of the schools first PIAA Team Championship, the boys look to continue and build on a strong tradition. The team returns a number of district and state scorers and looks to repeat as district and state champions.
Girls Swimming & Diving: Practice Begins 11/19
Head Coach: Karney McNear Assistant Coach: Matt Preedy
Returning Swimmers: Sam Becker; Yuval Levi
Others Swimmers to Watch: Grace Dudek; Abby Hwan; Emma Volokhonsky; Emily Vaidyan; Melanie Hwan, Ashley Kim, Audrey Kim
Season Outlook: The team looks to continue its building process by increasing its numbers and improve upon last years district finish. Coach McNear says: “The Lions look to continue the building process.
Indoor Track: Practice Begins 11/19
Head Coach: Gregory Green (2nd Season)
Key Returning Student Athletes: Nickey Dilbarov (Sprinter-Hurdle), Tomas Celaj (Sprinter), Josiah Wiggins (Sprinter-Jumper), Daniel Maloney (Sprinter-Hurdler)
Tim Baciu (Sprinter), Anthony Mangan (Distance), Ben Zonshayn (Distance), Shejin Shaju (Sprinter)
Expectations: The boy’s expectations are pretty high coming off an outdoor track season where they qualified a relay for the Outdoor National Championships. Three boys who went to nationals are back this indoor season. The team’s expectations are to qualify for the Indoor State Championships in a relay or two, and some individual events, and possible the Indoor National Championships.
Big Meets: The ultimate goal is to qualify for the indoor state championships at Penn State University at the end of February. The boys will travel to Penn State University, in early January for the Kevin Dare Invitational.
Girls Indoor Track Preview
Head Coach: Gregory Green (2nd Season)
Key Returning Student Athletes: Sandy Hua (Sprinter), Amajei Dunkley (Sprinter), Alexis Lohin (Jumper-Hurdler)
Expectations: The girls team was small last indoor season, so the expectations are to increase participation numbers so that we can field a complete team at indoor meets, try to find leaders who can influence others in a positive way, instill a culture that girls want to be part of, and to develop a program that can compete on a consistent basis with the best teams in Pa.
Big Meets: The ultimate goal is to qualify for the Indoor State Championships at Penn State University at the end of February.
Murray Avenue Winter Sports
Wrestling: Official start date is December 3rd, with the first match after the Holiday break on 1/3. Please check in with the Murray Avenue Newsletter for specific dates regarding MS Wrestling. MS Wrestling Schedule
Boys Basketball: Official start date is January 2nd after we return from break. Please check in with the Murray Avenue Newsletter for specific dates regarding Boys MS Basketball. Boys Basketball Schedule
Alumni Update
Fall Athletes
Fall Athletes:
Lindsay Boerner - The 2015 LM graduate has played in 3 games this year for Drexel, her senior season. The Dragons are 8-8 on the year as they approach the CAA league playoffs and the NCAA tournament.
Matt Gallagher - The 2016 LM graduate has played in 5 games so far this season. Primarily a special teams player, Matt has 11 tackles and another 9 yards rushing on the season. The Bears started off 0-3 before rallying for 4 straight wins.
Greg Gallagher & Tim McCreesh - Both LM graduates are running at PSU Abington for their Mens XC team. At the PSU Abington Invitational McCreesh finished 11th and Gallagher 12th. Both men are preparing for the NEAC Championships which are on 10/27.
Mike Gould - The 2016 LM graduate has started in 4 games this year, giving up 5 goals. His last two starts have been shutouts though. Cabrini is 9-6-1 on the year and are preparing for the Atlantic East Tournament in the coming weeks.
Joe Kvint - The 2018 LM graduate is currently playing doubles for DII Purdue Northwest. The team kicks off the schedule in the fall, before resuming in the spring with a full slate of competition.
Yasmine Machloff - The freshman at Holy Family has started 14 games so far this year. Yas has netted 1 goal and has 1 assist on the season. She is helping lead the Tigers to an 11-3-1 record in her freshman year. Look for Yas playing Lacrosse in the spring as well.
Corey Mayer - The 2015 LM Graduate is enjoying her final season of collegiate field hockey. She scored her first goal of the season and ninth of her career against American, registered her third multi-goal performance against Richmond (9/28) with two goals. Corey tallied the most points in a game in her career (5) against Richmond as well. In that game vs. Richmond she also scored her second game winning goal. Corey was also selected to be a part of the 2018 National FH Coaches Association Senior Game in Kentucky! Way to represent LM Corey!
Jamie Mayer - The Ursinus Freshman has started in 10 out of 13 games for the Bears this season. She has totaled 5 goals and 1 assist in her freshman campaign. The team is 11-5 and looking for a strong postseason run this year.
Tyler Millan - Millan has helped lead the Monarchs to a 2-1 fall record, before he resumes play on the tennis court in the spring. Tyler won't be resting in the winter though. Catch Tyler on the hardwood where through two seasons he has averaged 9.0 PPG and has made 73 career 3 Pointers shooting at 43%. Locally the Monarchs will be at Del Val University on 1/19.
Kayla O'Malley - One of the most decorated girls soccer players to go through Lower Moreland, O'Malley has started in all 16 of the teams games this year. The girls soccer team is 7-7-2 on the season.
Winter Athletes
Danny Duffey - One of the strongest boys basketball players in school history, Duffey is entering his junior season at Gettysburg. The Bullets have struggled in his first two seasons, but under new leadership they look to thrive this year. Duffey has 185 career assist. Locally, Gettysburg will be at Ursinus on 1/16.
Chris Kelly- The 2018, state champion graduate is at West Chester this winter swimming breaststroke and the individual medley.
Connor Killion - Another 2018, state champion graduate is at ACC power Virginia. Connor is swimming the sprint freestyle and backstroke this year.
Lauren Killion - The 2016 graduate is looking to improve on a sophomore season where she appeared in 17 games and averaged close to 11 minutes a game. Lauren finished the season with 22 points, 24 rebounds, 12 assists, five blocks, and five steals. Albright will be at Arcadia on 1/30.
Rachel Millan - The 2017 graduate looks to bounce back from injury this season. In 12 games last year she had 32 points and 19 rebounds. Being at Chestnut Hill College there are a number of contests that she will be in locally.