School News

VARSITY SOCCER

Friday, October 4, Fenn School 3, St. Sebastian’s 3

Fenn Varsity soccer traveled to Southborough, Mass. on Friday, October 4 to take on Fay School. Fenn had its work cut out, as the hosts entered the game with a record of five wins and one loss, having outscored opponents 30 to 12.

Fenn was pelted with steady pressure from Fay’s talented midfielders and forwards and fell behind 3-0 at the half. 

Fenn regrouped during the break and entered the second with a renewed effort. Eighth grade midfielders Luca Raffa and Hans Scheibe energized Fenn and created several good scoring opportunities. Fenn’s only goal of the game came after Scheibe was taken down in the box, which resulted in a Fenn penalty shot. Harry Nerrow skillfully converted to bring Fenn within 3-1.

In the end, Fenn’s defense could not hold back Fay’s buzzing offense, surrendering four more goals en route to a 7-1 loss.

Fenn coach Bob Starensier commended his team’s sportsmanship and outstanding effort. The play of defenseman Sam Dean and goalies John Donovan and Hayden Shen, in particular, received accolades from Coach Starensier.

Coming Up:

Thursday, October 10, Fenn School hosts Boston College High School

JUNIOR VARSITY SOCCER

Wednesday, October 2, Fenn School 3, Shore Country Day School 0

Seventh grader Tom Mulvany punched in a pair of sharply targeted strikes in the opening fifteen minutes of Fenn’s JV Soccer match at Shore Country Day on Wednesday, October 2, launching the Blue-and-Gold into a comfortable trajectory in Beverly. Mulvany’s first goal came straight from Monday’s practice session on the training grounds in Concord, as he alertly read the defensive pressure and converted on a corner kick in the fifth minute. He collected a well-planned first pass from the corner flag, dribbled swiftly along the endline, and blasted a remarkably precise shot high inside the near post. Shore’s keeper made a game attempt to parry, but Mulvany’s quick release from an unexpected angle was too much.

Another Fenn corner kick was more closely covered by Shore ten minutes later, but the defender inadvertently tripped an attacker, putting Mulvany at the penalty spot. He drilled another shot just under the crossbar, and the resulting two-goal lead felt reasonably comfortable. Though steady rain fell on the compact natural grass pitch, leading to some unexpected skips and bounces, Fenn gradually settled into a pattern of controlled touches with minimal dribbling. While further tactical improvement is warranted as the season progresses, it is fair to say that Fenn got the best of the run of play on this soggy afternoon on the North Shore.

Jamie Book tacked on a third tally at the beginning of the second half, lofting a left-footed chip from twenty yards that dropped neatly inside the far post. Shore players deserve credit for their sixty minutes of hard running, which earned them a handful of shooting opportunities from distance. Thanks to the work of defenders Garrett MacKenzie, Kevin Yuan, and Will Hickey, however, very few threats emerged inside Fenn’s penalty area. Defensive midfielders Nathaniel Pynchon and Cairon Harrison stymied many of Shore’s attempts to develop attacks along the touchlines, and the goalkeeping tandem of Niko Weaver and Jack Schneider were well-positioned to collect the long shots that Shore put on target. The final reading was 3-0.

Thanks are extended to the many Fenn parents who trekked to Beverly to support the team. Home and dry by dinnertime!

Friday, October 4, Fenn School 5, Belmont Hill High School 0

Brisk end-to-end wind buffeted Belmont Hill’s spacious, well-trimmed grass pitch on Marsh Street for Fenn’s JV match on a sunny fall Friday on the fourth of October. Upon winning the coin toss, Fenn chose to play with the gusty wind in the first half, hoping to sail to an early lead and have the affair done and dusted by the break. Instead, the Blue-and-Gold managed just a singleton in the opening thirty minutes, and surprisingly enough, their work against the wind in the second half hour proved more productive.

Jamie Book knocked home the first goal for Fenn, digging up a second chance after his initial strike was blocked in Belmont Hill’s crowded penalty area in the 25^th minute. Charlie Driscoll set up the opportunity with fundamentally sound ball control beneath midfield. He received the ball from his right, settled and turned with a single calm touch, and delivered a flat through ball to Book, who was overtaking his marker on the opposite side. Driscoll’s ball-handling appeared effortless, yet it reflected terrific vision and instincts.

Former Fenn student Hayden Okurowski played well for Belmont Hill, displaying savvy foot skills and quick acceleration as he fashioned several threatening first-half chances from his spot on the right flank. He submitted an athletic and genuinely sporting, cheerful appearance against several of his classmates from his prior days on Monument Street.

Book doubled Fenn’s margin with his second goal of the match early in the second half, and Tom Mulvany banged in two more – his second consecutive brace in match play – a minute apart, to dispel any doubts about the eventual outcome.  Mulvany’s first strike followed a handsome sequence of a half-dozen two-touch passes from the right, defensive third, through midfield, across the eighteen yard line, and into the deep left corner of the penalty area. Such swift movement of the ball on the ground (and, not coincidentally, under the wind) has been an objective of this team since the first day of training. Mulvany also nodded in a gentle header from close range in the 45^th minute to bump the lead to 4-0.

Spencer Harnden provided the fifth goal for Fenn with a curling one-touch lob from about fifteen yards, shortly before the final whistle. 

Coming Up:

Thursday, October 10, Fenn School hosts Jewish Country Day School

Friday, October 11, Fenn School at Fessenden School

THIRDS SOCCER

After a 5-1 loss at Rashi School in Dedham on Thursday, October 3, Fenn’s Thirds soccer team had the week to regroup before traveling to Fessenden on Friday, October 11.

Coming Up:

Friday, October 11, Fenn School at Fessenden School

CROSS COUNTRY

Friday, October 4, Fenn School at Roxbury Latin

Fenn School trekked to Roxbury Latin School on Friday, October 4 for a meet that also included St. Sebastian’s School and Rivers School. Top performers for Fenn were Bobby Skrivanek, Will Simon, Chris Lando, Colin Soukup, Owen O’Malley, and Colby Bloch. While Fenn lost to host Roxbury Latin, the Blue-and-Gold beat Rivers and St. Sebastian’s.

Coming Up:

Thursday, October 10, Fenn School hosts Carroll School (cancelled)

Friday, October 11, Fenn hosts Pike School and Fay School

FOOTBALL

Fenn’s football team gets back in action on Friday, October 11 for the first time in regulation game action since Friday, September 20, when the team registered a 26-14 victory over Fay School.

Coming Up:

Friday, October 11, Fenn School at Dexter Southfield School