Game Highlights for Week of October 20th, 2014

10/21/14

On Monday the BFS Girls Varsity Volleyball Team defeated Dwight 3-0 in the ISAL Semifinals at the upper gym.  With the victory the team improved its overall record to 14-1 and advanced to the ISAL Finals on Wednesday at Baruch College at 5:30pm. Today was a great experience for our team. After starting slowly, the team improved their intensity, communication, and consistency, to dominate the 3rd set and win 3-0. This match proved that our team has a better understanding of what we need to do in order to pressure the opposition. The team served well, kept the ball in play, and made good choices when putting the ball over the net. Overall, a good match in preparation for the rest of the playoffs.

The BFS MS Boys Soccer Team defeated Berkeley Carroll 2-1 at Brooklyn Bridge Park. The team put in an impressive display to overcome their opponent. BFS enjoyed the better of the early exchanges and were unlucky not to take the lead on several occasions. However, Berkeley Carroll were quick on the counter attack and looked dangerous breaking forward. Midway through the first half BFS found themselves a goal down after they struggled to clear their lines from a corner. It wasn’t long, though, before parity was restored. Coby W. picked up the ball midway in his own half, stormed forward and curled the ball beyond the goalie neatly inside the far post. The second half saw both teams create opportunities as they went in search of the win. BFS got the decisive goal with around 15 minutes to go. Lewis W. raced onto a Miles B. throw-in and beat the goalie with a fine finish. Some excellent goalkeeping from Patrick D. and outstanding defending from Finn S., Ty S., Owen B., and Aja M.. helped secure the win. BFS has now come back to win three times from losing positions, showing the strong team spirit and strength of character that resonates throughout the team.  With the win the team improved its overall record to 9-1-1.

10/22/14

On Tuesday the BFS Girls Varsity Soccer Team defeated LREI 4-1 in the ISAL Semifinals at Harlem River Park. Sophomore Halima M. scored all four goals and Devon O. provided all four assists, as the deadly duo combined to help BFS advance to the ISAL Championship Game three years in a row. BFS started quick off the blocks and scored three goals in the first five minutes of the game. Halima’s first goal of the game was her 100th high school career goal in just her third season. Cue wild celebrations from her teammates and coaching staff. Goals number 101 and 102 followed shortly after. Leading 3-0 at half time, Halima added her 4th goal of the game and 32nd of the season. All four goals were assisted by 8th grader Devon O., totaling 19 assists on the season. Devon has been a revelation this season, setting a new school record for the number of assists made in a season, and has scored 20 goals herself. LREI managed to score a consolation goal late on to make the final score 4-1.  On to the Championship Game this Thursday at Randall’s Island.

The BFS Boys Varsity Soccer Team defeated York Prep 3-1 at Randall’s Island.  The team found itself down 1-0 at the half but played a tremendous second half to pick up the victory and advance to the ISAL Championship Game on Thursday at Randall’s Island. The Panthers got off to a sluggish start in the first half. The team found themselves down 1-0 after conceding an own goal in the fifth minute. The second half was a totally different game. The Panthers scored six minutes in after Henry K. converted the penalty kick he had earned. The pressure continued with more chances being created by the Panthers. In the sixty-seventh minute, Henry K. completed his brace after connecting, with his head, to a Charlie S. corner kick. Charlie S. put the game to rest eleven minutes later with a strike from outside the 18 yard box that was set up by Justin W.. Honorable Mentions: Lucas M., Thomas C., Isaac H., Sam H., Colin P. and Quran D.

The BFS MS Girls Volleyball Team defeated Berkeley Carroll 2-1 in a very exciting match in the upper gym. The team picked up its 7th win of the season. The 3rd set was one of the most exciting, and anxiety driven matches we have played all season. We could not break Berkeley’s serve, score was 10 to 5 Berkeley and then it was Maxine S. turn to serve. She served 8 amazing serves which BC could not break, not even with the time out they called. The girls worked hard to defend Maxine’s serve. After that we kept the score tied up and needed to win by two. Grace F.’s powerful serves finished the game with a 19-17 win.  What a win for the team.  Blue Pride Runs Deep, Friends Forever!!

The BFS MS/US Cross Country Team participated in an ISAL Meet at Van Cortlandt Park. 
Coach Jane and Asst. Coach Andre are excited and beyond proud to report that both our Boys and Girls Varsity cross country team both placed 2nd overall at the ISAL Championships! On the Boys side, we were very close in the running for first place. Scoring was based off of place not time, otherwise our boys would have won based on average time. Regardless, our teams are more than excited and many of our runners came home with individual medals! The Boys showed no fear or nerves before the race, as the team knew the course well. Jacob I. led our team in a crowded 58 runner field coming in strong at 6th place. Miles N., Emmitt S., and Nat E. worked close together most of the race and closed in at 10th,12th, and 13th place. Ernest M.worked hard in the back hills of the race chasing down many runners after he heard shouts from Coach Jane that our team was in the running for first place, and closed strongly in 21st place. Maalik D. and Juan C. conquered the course in placed 30th and 32nd respectively. Our Boys team seemed more nervous and anxious waiting for the final team tallies than they have ever been for any race. There was pure joy and team camaderie out there on the course by our entire team.
Our Girls Varsity squad competed in a field of 24 runners. Maya K. and Giovanna M. led our squad closing in 7th and 8th place. Both of our lead girls fought hard on the back end of the race to hold off other runners. Aishat A. had an amazing race, passing 4 runners coming out of the woods and making it a foot race with the last 400m coming into 14th place. It is one of Aishat A.’s best performances where she gave it her all! Maya B. pushed hard in the back hills as well passing a few girls coming out of the woods and even chased after 2 girls in the final stretch coming in 17th! It was truly a surprise when our Girls team was announced that they had won 2nd place overall as a team! It was well deserved.

Ours Girls Middle School had some incredible performances individually. Helen L. won first place and ran so fast that she even asked if she was left behind by some of the lead runners, when in fact she was leading the entire race. Ella N.placed second in her debut race in a field of 15 runners. Ella N. has been running since she joined the Friendly Flyers last year. She used her experience and talent well as well as her recollection of the course to help her distribute her energy well throughout the race. Sidney E. conquered the course chasing down many opponents in the final half of the race. It was one of his best races this year. Hats off to our teammate Zay R. who also came up with the team to run the course for practice and to cheer on the our squad.

The team had a great time and showed a lot of team spirit today. The smiles on their faces and seeing the friendships build over the season are just some of the things that we love about our team. If you could see our team when awards were given out, it would have looked like we won the championship to any outsider because we were jumping up and down and cheering so much! From the beginning, we knew this team was special this year when our seasoned runners immediately gave high fives at our first practice and had open arms for our new runners. On the subway rides there were countless times where there was chatter amongst each other, that other teams thought we were just one varsity team. BFS runs as one! It was a great day at the races and it started with a rainbow when we arrived at the meet. It truly is a colorful start to the 2014-15 running year! More to come as some of our runners will be running an extra invitational race and some will even join our Friendly Flyers for some races held by NYRR!  

10/23/14

On Wednesday the BFS Girls Varsity Volleyball Team defeated LREI 3-2 (25-15, 18-25, 25-20, 13-25, 15-9) at Baruch College to win the ISAL Championship. Today was a testament of all the hard work and growth that the team has experienced throughout the season. The girls defeated a highly competitive LREI team 3-2, in a well deserved championship match. After exchanging sets, we finally established our serving game, combined with a consistent transition, to take control of the 5th and deciding set. Everyone dug deep, stayed focused, maintained the intensity, while playing together, and were determined to produce the successful outcome. The team enjoyed the feeling of playing at its highest level yet, controlling all the aspects of the game. Blue Pride Runs Deep, Friends Forever!!

The BFS Girls JV Volleyball Team lost to Churchill 2-0 (23-25, 19-25) at Baruch College in the ISAL Finals.  Congrats to the team for making it all the way to the finals.  The team had a tremendous ISAL Season. Regular Season Champs and Playoff Runner Up.  Blue Pride!!

The BFS MS Girls Volleyball Team defeated Lehman Prep 2-0 (25-9, 25-20) on the road. The girls came to play today.  Galen J., Maxine S., and Grace F. had powerful serves helping us win the first set easily. The team did a great job defending the serves and continued to work on their communication. The 8th graders took a leadership role to help the 7th graders work as a team, communicate and give back positive reinforcement. Way to go team!!

10/24/14

The BFS Boys Varsity Soccer Team lost to Birch Wathen Lenox 2-1 at Randall’s Island in the ISAL Finals.  Congrats to the team for making it all the way to the finals.  The team had a tremendous ISAL Season. Regular Season Runner Up and Playoff Runner Up. Blue Pride!!

10/25/14

On Friday the BFS Boys Varsity Soccer Team defeated Lehman Prep 2-0 at Calvert Vaux Field in the ACIS B Finals.  Congrats to the team for making it all the way to the finals.  The team had a tremendous ACIS Season. Regular Season Champions and Playoff Champions. We are the champions!! Blue Pride Runs Deep Friends Forever….

The BFS Girls Varsity Soccer Team defeated FASNY 6-0 at Randall’s Island in the ISAL Finals.  Congrats to the team for making it all the way to the finals. The team had a tremendous ACIS Season. Regular Season Runner Up and Playoff Champions. We are the champions!! Blue Pride Runs Deep Friends Forever….

The team won their 3rd straight ISAL Playoff Championship on Friday. Halima M. hit a hat trick taking her season tally to 35 goals (106 HS Career), and 8th grader Devon O. bagging a brace with senior Maret S-M scored her first goal of the season in the final. It took 20 minutes to break the deadlock, with Halima bundling in from close range to take the lead. Incredibly, BFS would go on to hit the crossbar three times before Devon extended the lead with an excellent strike from an acute angle which smashed off the inside of the post. Minutes before Devon had also planted a long-distance free kick against the crossbar. FASNY had defeated BFS 1-0 earlier in the season, so with BFS up 2-0 from the first half the Panthers expected a reaction. Halima put an end to that thought and extended the lead to 4-0 with two goals in quick succession, both assisted from Devon (22 assists on the season). Maret S-M scored her first goal of the season to take BFS into a 5-0 lead with a finish from close range, and Devon finished the scoring with her 2nd goal of the game and 22nd of the season with a good strike from inside the 18 yard box to take a commanding 6-0 lead. Devon led the team with 15 shots in the game with 11 testing the FASNY goalkeeper.  Way to go team.

10/26/14

On Saturday the BFS Girls JV Volleyball Team defeated Dwight 2-0 (25-10, 25-22) in the ACIS Semifinals at BFS in our upper gym.  The team advances to Monday’s ACIS Championship Match at St. Francis College at 4:00pm. Blue Pride!! 

The Panthers dominated the first set from the first serve onwards, playing with heart, confidence, strong teamwork, and many beautifully crafted 3-touch plays.  They had a slow start in the second set, losing their rhythm after a handful of consecutive passing errors.  Behind Nia L.’s string of seven strong serves the team was able to regroup and regain their ‘game.’  All in all it was an exciting win and a testament to the benefits of hard work throughout the season! Blue Pride!

On Saturday the BFS Girls Varsity Volleyball Team defeated Berkeley Carroll 3-0 (25-21, 25-15, 25-20) in the ACIS Semifinals at BFS in our upper gym.  The team advances to Monday’s ACIS Championship Match at St. Francis College at 6:00pm.  Blue Pride!! Blue Pride Runs Deep, FRIENDS FOREVER!!

Today’s match in the ACIS semifinals showed how our team continues developing and understanding how competitive we can be. We played a great match against a great team, and won 3-0, to advance to the ACIS Championship on Monday. Both teams played very consistently, but we controlled the play at the net, putting pressure with our blocking and attack. It was rewarding to see our team focused, determined, and confident throughout the match. On Monday, we will have the opportunity to play against St. Ann’s, the only team to defeat us during the season. We are really looking forward to the opportunity to compete against them one more time….Blue Pride!