With wrestling season right around the corner, our Raider wrestlers have a lot to live up to and even more to look forward to. Following their rough season last year, a lot is expected of them on and off the mats. Coach Sabino Coppola said, “Last year we had a rough season; we had a whole lot of new wrestlers coming out for the team and had very light numbers. However, this year I think we will see a whole lot of improvement.”
The Nutley High School Bowling team is back for another exciting year looking to prove their stellar record in 2021 wasn’t a fluke. That season, the Raiders competed in the Southeastern Conference (SEC) American division, one of the strongest divisions in high school sports.
Boys’ Ice Hockey is back and this winter should prove to be an electrifying year with passionate players hungry for a successful campaign.
This winter, The Nutley Raiders girls’ basketball team is looking for a redemption-type season, considering they opted to move down a division. Last year, the Raiders competed in the Southeastern Conference (SEC) American division, one of the strongest in high school sports.
Nutley High School’s Girl's Varsity Volleyball (NHSVB) team held their first home game of the season against Cedar Grove on October 3, 2022. The match started at 5:30 pm, following a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the newly renovated high school gym.
The Nutley Raiders senior football players, managers and cheerleaders held their Senior Night on Friday, October 6. The event kicked off at 6:00 p.m. with a rose ceremony honoring the student-athletes, where the families of the graduating Raiders were invited on the field and presented with the opportunity to hand their child a rose to signify their last hoorah as a Nutley Raider Varsity athlete.
The varsity football team kicked off their 2022 season with an opening game against Bloomfield High on September 1. The new season came with illuminating questions revolving around the new head football coach, Joe Piro. Piro, presently Nutley High’s athletic director, is excited to take on this new role temporarily during the absence of Head Coach JD Vick.
Manchester City Football Club (F.C.), a team founded in 1880, Gordon, United Kingdom and known as St. Mark’s (West Gorton) has come a very long way. Years later in 1887 it became known as the Ardwick Association of Football Club and finally Manchester City F.C. in 1894. After playing at Maine Road since 1923, the team’s home ground switched to Etihad Stadium in East Manchester, and has played there since 2003 until present day.
With the second round of the playoffs said and done and the Conference Finals currently underway, the outcomes of multiple matchups have been decided by injuries. From offense to defense, to special teams, certain teams have suffered drastically in certain departments due to the injuries they had to manage. Teams like the Nashville Predators went without Norris Trophy finalist Roman Josi in a series against a team favored to win the Stanley Cup which lead to what seemed to be a massacre and resulted in a sweep.
Nutley High School's very own Cynthia DePersio was one of three other girls to break the NHS four-person relay record. Sophomore Cynthia, Junior Marcella Blancato, Senior Alexandra Twomey and Freshmen Kaitlyn Gibney not only broke the school's previous record from 1996, but then went on to beat their own record again the same season.“I knew they were capable of breaking it and had all the faith in them.
On May 4, 2022, the Nutley High School Special Education students competed in the Special Olympics, in Brookdale Park. This was such a special day for the students because they “were a part of a team,” Santino, one of the students, mentioned. These students are full of courage and strength, and they had a terrific time. This event is organized by the Special Olympics and is open to anyone interested in taking part.
As the NHL concludes its annual 2021-2022 regular season, fans are left on the edge of their seats as playoff hockey is finally underway. Since the beginning of time, the Stanley Cup Playoffs are known to bring out the best in each player and showcase a lot of physicality. Arenas become jam-packed with fans who are ready to go to war for their team, as they watch a 60-minute battle barring overtime.
Every student athlete has the goal of leaving behind a legacy. Whether with accolades or championships, Senior Matt Pergola is leaving behind his in Nutley Lacrosse. Matt has been playing lacrosse for years and has been perfecting his craft. Matt has always been ahead in lacrosse. When entering as a freshman, Matt started on varsity, which is very impressive.
Anthony Rizzo, the 32 year-old Italian American from Fort Lauderdale, Florida climbed his way up the totem pole, going from being just another player to one of the biggest faces of the New York Yankees. Growing up in Florida, he attended Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, however opted not to follow through with college but instead start his professional baseball career with the Major League Baseball (MLB).
Tabled more than once, discussed at numerous Nutley Board of Education meetings, the Park Oval renovation finally got its time in the spotlight. On April 6th, the NHS boys lacrosse team played their first home game on the renovated Oval field under the new lights.
On April 1, 2022, Nutley’s boys' volleyball team had their first game in Nutley High School history. The team defeated Immaculate Conception High School (25-14, 25-22). The varsity team consists of 16 players and is coached by Amy Gewecke and Kevin Reilly. The boy's volleyball team is a new program. So, the team has to do a lot of hard work to get ready for the season, “a lot of our preparation has been focused around getting our fundamentals sound and beginning to gel as a team on the court.,” said Gewecke.
Football is a sport enjoyed by many people in the United States. People from all age ranges and genders enjoy it. Therefore, when Nutley introduced that they were making a girl's flag football team, some girls were ecstatic. "When I heard that flag football was becoming a sport for girls, I signed up,” NHS senior Mackenzie Albert said. Nutley was able to go through with adding a girl's flag football team due to the amount of interest they got.
As NHS prepares for its spring baseball season, this is the beginning of the end for a lot of the players. With 12 of the returning players being seniors, this will be the last ride for the kids who grew up playing baseball together. Corner-infielder Daniel Reyes, shortstop and pitcher Joseph DeLanzo and pitcher Brian Conte all spoke about their experience in this program and what it has meant to them as well as their excitement for what is to come from this season.
The spring crew season is officially in full swing, as teammates come together to compete in practices and races everyday throughout the next three months. Crew is a high-impact sport that involves a lot of preparation, practice, dedication, and team efforts from both the members of the team as well as the group as a whole. This sport is only offered in high school, which means freshmen are just beginning to learn the ropes of it all. After speaking with a few freshman girls on the novice crew team, it is clear that this has not been an easy adjustment.
Wrestlemania, the showcase of the immortals. The most stupendous two-night event in sports entertainment. Over 80 thousand packed AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas to see the 38th annual Wrestlemania and it was one to watch.
