Maroon and White Recognizes Senior Athletes

18 Raiders will be playing sports for their colleges (image credits for this article: Elliott Zhang)On May 31^st, Maroon and White’s Spring Picnic and Awards Ceremony took place, celebrating some of Scarsdale High School’s most decorated athletes for their achievements both in sport and academics. The Maroon and White awarded the Timberger Award, the Mooney Award, the Knopp Award, and the Pepper Awards. The Athletic Department awarded the SHS Scholar Student Athlete Honor Society Award and the Scarsdale Raider Award.

The celebration started with Director of Athletics Ray Pappalardi’s opening remarks, emphasizing how “it is very nice to be back together in this way to celebrate and to recognize the achievements of our outstanding senior student-athletes.” Stewardship of the event was then handed over to Maroon and White Co-Presidents David Alin and Joe Feldman.

Before the named awards were given out, two groups of students received special recognition. The Iron Man Award recognizes athletes who participated in sports for all high school seasons available (three seasons per year for all four years). Kenneth Aldridge, Simon Bandsma, Ryan Cahaly, Jordan Cascade, Elizabeth Fine, Elizabeth Hurshman, Maeve Jacobson, Patrick Kantor, Natalyn Kapner, Dylan Manin, Benjamin Sommer, Jeremy Suzman, Rafael Tassari, and Sophia Yazdi were the 14 athletes to take home the prestigious award. The Iron Man Award winners stand proudly

Iron Man Award Winner Lizzie Hurshman lived up to the award's name, having to miss the award ceremony for a qualifying meet for nationalsMany other high schools have “signing days” for their student athletes who are set to continue their athletic careers in college. As Scarsdale does not have one of these designated days, the awards ceremony is used as the time to acknowledge their tremendous accomplishments.

Scarsdale has 18 athletes continuing their sports at the highest-level next year:

1)    Bennett Abbe is set to play football at the University of Massachusetts.

2)    Graydon Diamond is off to Connecticut College to continue his lacrosse career.

3)    Olivia Franco will continue playing lacrosse at the Catholic University of America.

4)    Sedna Gandhi will be attending Notre Dame, where she will come up against the nation’s best fencers.

5)    Julian Glantz will be playing football at Big Easy powerhouse Villanova.

6)    Drew Hill is set to be a swimmer at Union College.

7)    Elizabeth Hurshman, also an Iron man Award recipient, will continue her track and field endeavors at Lafayette College.

8)    Adin Lamport is bringing his tennis skills to Colby College.

9)    Jackie Lu and

10) Jason Schuler are both heading to Williams College for golf and tennis respectively.

11) Haley Matusz caps off Scarsdale’s lacrosse commitment class, with Boston University as her next destination.

12) Aditya Menon is going to continue playing tennis at Virginia Polytechnical Institute and University.

13) Caitlin Needham is set to swim at Colby-Sawyer College.

14) Diya Shadaksharappa is going to continue her track and field career at Washington University in St. Louis.

15) Jeremy Sobel is set to be on the track and field team at Worcester Polytechnic Institute.

16) Rafaella Vogt is attending Lesley University, where she was recently recruited to further her track and field career.

17) Kenny Xu is bringing his tennis prowess to the United States Military Academy at West Point.

18) David Zoota is bound to continue his swimming career at Carnegie Mellon University.

Next, the Elizabeth Timberger Memorial Award is handed out to honor and outstanding member of the Scarsdale Athletic Community. This award is not reserved for athletes: rather, it is intended for someone in a supporting role (manager, statistician, etc.) who goes above and beyond in their contribution to the Scarsdale athletic community.

Alin described this year’s recipient as someone with “unbridled support and enthusiasm for the Raider.” He continued, “I always looked forward to hearing his voice as I watched an athletic contest online…This person always has gone above the call of duty. There was never any task that this year’s recipient would not undertake.” Ethan Wachs' mother accepted the Timberger Award on her son's behalf

As the manager of the Boys’ Varsity Football Team, as well as being the voice of Scarsdale High School athletic commentary, Ethan Wachs was deservedly presented with the reputable award.

The Nina Mooney Award followed, presented to a senior female athlete who “displays commitment, enthusiasm, spirit, concern for others, and a positive work ethic.” When describing the significance of the award, it was noted how Nina Mooney “made everyone around her better” in sports.

Jacobsen receives prestigious Mooney Award The recipient of the award was described by Feldman as “a leader in the classroom and on the field…as one coach commented, ‘her actions speak loudly to the incredible human being who she is.’”

A captain of both the basketball and field hockey team this past year, Maeve Jacobsen took home the esteemed honor.

The Nonie Knopp Award succeeded the Nina Mooney Award, this time designated for male athletes. Feldman explained, “This year’s award winner displays the positive attitude, direction, devotion, enthusiasm, and spirit of Nonie Knopp. One coach described this year’s winner as ‘a great athlete as well as a great teammate. He is always the first one to help in any way that he can and is always there for his teammates…He sets a great example of how to do things the Raider Way.’”

Ryan Cahaly accepted the award. 

Adrian Duval and Audrey Gendel, in recognition for their “all-heart, all-hustle, all-effort” mindset, earned the Scarsdale Raider Award. 

The Peppers Awards are given to students who “have distinguished themselves through their dedication and hard work,” in conjunction with high academic achievements. Winning all-league honors 9 times, 4-time league champion, 3-time county champion, and many other acclaims such as the top 2021-2022 Westchester County Field Athlete, combined with her academic strength, Diya Shadaksharappa earned the Female Peppers Award. Glantz and Shadaksharappa receives Peppers Awards

Spending three years as a varsity football player and two years as a varsity lacrosse and basketball player, Julian Glantz capped off an illustrious high school sports career with honors such as being all-state football star and being named first team Golden Dozen by the Westchester Chapter of the National Football Foundation Hall of Fame. With an excellent academic record as well, the Male Peppers award was given to him.

The ceremony was a fitting way to cap off the first full year of “normal” sports since the COVID-19 pandemic derailed the world, including the world of athletics. It appears as if the level of Scarsdale’s top athletic members, both on and off the court/field/track, continues to reach higher.

Duval and Gendel were presented with the Scarsdale Raider Award