Fall sports bring hope of trophies and medals: What will the MFS athletes bring to the table this year and who should you watch?
Field Hockey:
Ava Carlson ’22: Carlson has been the starting goalie for four years and committed to continue playing field hockey at Dartmouth College. She is one to look out for in the 2021-22 season as the Foxes aim for another Friends School League trophy. Carlson had 85 saves last season despite the season being cut short due to Covid-19.
Kendall Borbi ’22: Borbi is a strong offensive player who doesn’t hesitate to put the ball in the goal. She is aggressive near the cage and has a career total of 6 goals and 5 assists. She will have a big presence on the field her senior year.
Brooke Mitchell ’25: Mitchell is a freshman, but her play is beyond her years. She is active on the forward line and at midfield. Mitchell can be seen both taking the ball upfield and making sure the defense doesn’t need to touch the ball. Overall, Mitchell is a consistent and strong addition to the team if they want to make a Friends School League run.
Girls Soccer:
Foluke Balogun ’24: Balogun is starting her sophomore year at MFS with high hopes for the girls soccer team. She recorded six goals and one assist last season as a forward on the soccer field. Girls soccer is set to have a strong season, aiming to win and as Balagun said, “What I hope for in the upcoming soccer season is mainly for our team to succeed. Not just through winning games, but succeeding at growing relationships, holding each other accountable, and working as a team.” Balagun already has three goals to start off the season.
Maryrose “Rosie” Paznokas ’25: Paznokas is a freshman who from the first game has proved her place on the team. She is a hard worker at midfield, always eager to set one of her teammates up for a goal. Paznokas has a standard to live up to considering her older brother, Mikey Paznokas, also played MFS Varsity soccer for four years. Although he played boys soccer and was a strong goalie, the sport runs in the family and teammate Emma Nei ’22 shared that she’s “excited to see what [Rosie] we’ll do on the field this season.”
Girl’s Tennis
Bella Pescatore ’22: Pescatore started her season strong winning her matches against Seneca and Bishop Eustace. She has been a strong player since her freshman year, winning states, sectionals, and the Friends league. During her sophomore year the tennis team made it to states, finals at Tournaments of Champions, and the Friends League finals, which they won. Although her junior season was cut short, Pescatore continued to train in preparation for her senior year.
Other players to look out for on the tennis team are seniors Skye Mada ’22 and Katherine Sebastian ’22.
Cross Country
Emmet Kimberly ’22: Kimberly is a fast runner who can always be counted on to take care of his teammates. He has been running for the MFS cross country team since his freshman year. He is one to watch out for in the meets this season.
Andrew Mercantini ’23: Mercantini is a junior who has been running cross country for three years (including this season). He can be seen in the front of the line always striving to beat his previous record. Mercantini shared that “so far the team has been great. We have three really promising freshmen along with a bunch of returning faces. Personally I ran my best race ever: 17:55 last Friday.” Cross country has a Friends League match on September 28 against Westtown and Shipley to watch out for.
Boys Soccer:
Evan Kolaris ’22: After recording a MFS career total of six goals and two assists, striker Kolaris is ready for his senior season. A strong presence on the field, always watching out for underclassmen, Kolaris is a solid starter who the team can rely on. “We are a tag team, I put it in the goal and Danya [Weinstock ‘22] assists,” said Kolaris.
Daniel “Danya” Weinstock ’22: Despite losing their first game 2-0 against Bishop Eustace, center mid Weinstock proved why he’s been on varsity for four years. He is known for assists, giving Kolaris two assists against Collingswood, and having several set ups for other teammates. Weinstock is someone to look out for during the season as he is always ready to “set” a player up for a goal.
Preston Galanis ’25: Following in his brother’s footsteps is freshman Preston Galanis. He is an all around player and he can be seen working hard on and off the field. Galanis plays for a club team outside of school and so far this season has one assist in the books against Collingswood.
