This year, Stuyvesant’s spring sports teams were extremely successful. Of the 12 teams, 11 made the playoffs, and four of them went undefeated in the regular season. Two teams made it to the city championship, and one of them came out on top. This spring was definitely a memorable one in Stuyvesant sports.

Boys’ Tennis
Stuyvesant’s boys’ varsity tennis team finished the season 8-3, the best record they have had in the past four years. The team was led by seniors Norman Yu and Jason Su, who competed as a doubles team in the Individual Tennis finals at the National Tennis Center on Tuesday, May 26. The new additions to the team, freshmen Alec Shaw, Arthur Rentzler, and Christopher Jou, also contributed to the team’s run to the semifinals, where they were defeated by Beacon, 5-0. However, in their first two playoff games, the team shut out Madison and Brooklyn Tech 5-0 respectively. In ten regular season matches, Yu was 7-3, and he went 2-1 in the playoffs. Rentzler and Shaw each had 5-1 records in doubles matches. Beacon, who went on to win the city championship, was a tough team for Stuyvesant to beat, as they had shut Stuyvesant out in their two previous encounters in the regular season. Despite their loss in the semifinals, the team benefits from the return of more experienced sophomores and seniors who have the potential to maintain this season’s success in 2010.

Girls’ Tennis
This year, the Lobsters, Stuyvesant’s girls’ varsity tennis team, found themselves with a new coach, and a more difficult 12 game schedule, as opposed to last year’s ten. However their new coach, Jeffrey Menaker, helped the team cruise to an 11-1 finish and a number two seed in the playoffs. This two seed brought them all the way to the city championship match against Cardozo. Stuyvesant easily won the second and third rounds against Columbus and Bronx Science. However, they faced a tough challenge in the semi-finals against a well equipped number three seed, Hunter. The Lobsters came out on top, though, winning a 3-2 thriller. Junior Bessie Rentzler was the only Stuyvesant singles player to win her match, but both doubles pairs, seniors Christine Yeoun and Tiffany Wan, and sophomore Emily Quint Hoover and freshman Sofia Pidzyrailo won their matches, securing the overall win. The Lobsters went on to lose to Cardozo, 5-0, in the city championship match. Wan and her other doubles partner, senior Veranika Li also competed in the Individual tennis finals.

Girl’s Fencing
It is fitting that Stuyvesant’s girls’ varsity tennis team is called the Untouchables. In its last three seasons, coach Joel Winston’s team has gone undefeated in the regular season, this year finishing with a 10-0 record. Having a national champion fencer junior Nzingha Preschod on the team has obviously played a large role in the team’s third city championship title in a row. However, senior Qi Fan Zhang also contributed to the team’s success with an 11-2 record in her 13 matches. Sophomore Kimberly Bain played a part in the team’s perfect season, as she fenced in 16 matches, and won every one. Besides the loss of the integral seniors Zhang and Ke Jiang next year, the rest of the Untouchables will remain. Prescod will continue to carry her team on to a fourth city championship in four years, an unprecedented feat in PSAL girls’ fencing history.

Boys’ Golf
The Stuyvesant Eagles, the boys’ varsity golf team, has completed its third undefeated season in a row. Coach and English teacher Emilio Nieves has continued his unblemished record in his three years coaching the team, with a 12-0 record this season. The Eagles are 38-0 in the regular season with Nieves as their coach. Led by sophomore Darren Chiu, senior Alex Robinson, and junior Alexander Shin, the Eagles have made the playoffs once again as the fourth seed. Chiu and Robinson, the team’s most experienced golfers, participated in the individual golf championship at Bethpage Park (home of the US open) on Wednesday May 20, 2009. They also became two of the five golfers who qualified for the New York State Federation Golf Championships at Mark Twain Park on Sunday June 7, 2009. The success of these two golfers helped the team shut out Riverdale/Kings high school in the first round of the playoffs on Tuesday, May 26 2009. Last year, the Eagles were surprisingly upset by the number nine seed Susan Wagner in the second round of the playoffs. This year, however, with the help of Chiu, Robinson, and Shin, the Eagles should go deep into the playoffs.

Outdoor Track
Coach Mark Mendes’ outdoor track team has done it again, dominating once more at the outdoor borough championships. Mendes’ team has completed another sweep, winning the Manhattan borough champs in cross country, indoor and outdoor track. At the Borough championships on Saturday, May 24, 2009 Stuyvesant was in complete control. Juniors Elvis Mitropoulos and Pace Lee came in first and second respectively in the 800 meter run. Junior Daniel Hyman-Cohen took first in both the 3200 meter run and the 1600 meter run. The 4×800 meter relay team came in first, and sophomore William Barnes placed second in the 3000 meter steeplechase. Mitropoulos, Lee, and Hyman-Cohen all qualified for cities, along with the 4×800 team. Mendes’ deep team hopes to prolong its success in the city championships on Sunday June 7, 2009.

Boys’ Volleyball
The Beasts, Stuyvesant’s boys’ volleyball team finished the regular season with a perfect 12-0 record and a Manhattan VIII Division title. The Beasts won all 12 games 2-0, never losing a match. The last time the team recorded such a feat was in 2006 when they were coached by physical education teacher Phil Fisher. This season, the Beasts were coached by physical education teacher Vasken Choubaralian with Fisher as their co-coach. Similar to 2006 when Stuyvesant lost in the first round in the playoffs to Tottenville High School 2-0, the Beasts also exited the playoffs early this season after a hard-fought first-round 2-1 loss to Grover Cleveland High School. “It was definitely a good regular season; we reclaimed the division title,” senior and captain Shaker Islam said. “But, we need to get farther in the playoffs next year.”

Girls’ Soccer
After a 9-3-0 regular season, Stuyvesant’s girls’ soccer team, the Mimbas, finished second in the Manhattan A-II Division behind the 12-0-0 Beacon High School Blue Deamons. The Mimbas lost twice in the regular season to Beacon while the third loss came against Hunter College High School 2-0 on Wednesday, May 13. In the first round of the playoffs, the Mimbas defeated Prospect Heights Campus High School 6-1, led by the brilliant play of seniors Gabrielle Beer and captain Morgan Browing who each had a hat trick. Stuyvesant’s second round game against Susan Wagner High School was postponed on Thursday, May 28 and was rescheduled for Tuesday, June 2.

Boys’ Handball
The Dragons, Stuyvesant’s boys’ handball team completed their fourth consecutive perfect season under coach Robert Sandler. The team captured the Manhattan II Division title with their 10-0 record. This season, the Dragons, survived the first three rounds of the playoffs by easily beating Newcomers High School and Susan Wagner High School in the first two rounds and then squeezing by Franklin D. Roosevelt High School 3-2 on Thursday, May 21. However, after beating the High School of Telecommunication Arts and Technology in the third round last year 5-0, the Dragons’ playoff run was halted this season by the same school in the fourth round after a 4-1 loss.

Girls’ Handball
Stuyvesant’s girls’ handball team, the Furies, began the season with the loss of their coach Michelle Nicholls, who helped the team to two consecutive undefeated seasons. Her replacement, Krystin Pluchino continued the Furies’ regular season excellence by leading the team to another undefeated season with a record of 12-0 and another Manhattan Division title. However, under Pluchino, the Furies accomplished one thing they were unable to under Nicholls: they made it past the first round of the playoffs with a 5-0 dominating victory over Hillcrest High School on Tuesday, May 19. The Furies’ season ended the next day as they lost to Forest Hills High School 4-1.