It’s been an eventful season for several of Newton South High School’s popular winter sports teams.
Wrestling
One of South’s strongest seasons this winter came from the Wrestling team, helmed by Sectionals Coach of the Year, Alan Rotatori. The team was led by a talented core of upperclassmen, including seniors Dylan Kadish and Suvi Talvitie, both of whom qualified for and competed at the New England Wrestling Championship in Providence this past weekend.
Coach Rotatori, who is retiring after 26 years of coaching Lions wrestling, has high praise for Kadish and Talvitie. “Suvi and Dylan have been wrestling incredibly and rising up to the challenges and adversity that they have been facing while showing true sportsmanship and maturity,” said Rotatori in a March 1st newsletter. This is the 14th year that the team has sent at least one wrestler to New Englands and the fourth year out of the last five.
Junior Alex Rhein, who was elected next year’s captain, attributes the team’s success to the chemistry and manner of the players. “This was a team that was dedicated to improving at the sport and pushing each other to the best of their abilities,” says Rhein. “We had a lot of people in the room who kept the team going and competing at a high level, including Coach Rotatori, who we’re going to miss a lot next year.”
Indoor Track
In other Newton South news, the indoor track teams continue to dominate.
The boys team placed second in the Dual County League (DCL) Championship on February 11th, led by Alex Friedman ‘25 who placed second in the mile, and Nate Hamilton ‘24 and Liam Healy ‘24 who placed 6th and 12th respectively in the 1000 meter.
At the Meet of Champions – “States” – two weeks later, both Friedman and Hamilton set school records in their respective events.
Hamilton said that although he’s proud of his record, he’s even more proud of the way that the team handled the teacher strike, during which they weren’t allowed to compete and were forced to forfeit multiple meets. “Everyone went into that period with so many uncontrollable variables and came out even better than we went in.”
Hamilton hopes that his performance will show his teammates that with hard work, anything is within reach. “With many of [Newton South’s] current records being 10+ years old, I’m hoping that [my record] will show others that these sorts of achievements really are tangible,” he said.
The Newton South girls 4×800 squad led the pack at the DCL Championship. The group – Molly Johnson ‘25, Emily Frawley ‘26, Izzy Monaghan ‘27, and Jasmine Mozaffarian ‘27 went on to set a 21-second personal best just weeks later at States, qualifying them for Nationals.
At States, Frawley also placed fourth in the 600 meter, while senior Avi Kuperman finished 15th overall in the shot put event.
Nordic Ski
Out on the snow, the Lions Nordic ski team put together their best season yet. Both the boys and girls teams made Newton South history, with the boys team winning Newton South’s first Nordic ski state championship. On March 4, the City Council presented a Commendation to the team for this achievement. The girls team placed fourth in States, their best finish in history as well.
Senior captain Liam Sakakeeny led the way for the boys team, finishing first overall, while Ian Brenner ‘24, Dashiell Martin ‘26, and Levin Brenner ‘25 all placed in the top ten.
For the girls, Polina Kontorovich ‘25 finished in fourth, with Charlotte Ottmer ‘26 and Hannah Leese also among the top 15.
First-year assistant coach Shayna Fidler explained that the team’s success came from cohesion and support across all members. “Newton South easily had the loudest and most supportive fan base at all the races,” said Fidler. “Athletes would line the entirety of the course so they could constantly cheer their team on. This team that always jokes around together and plays ultimate frisbee on skis together won the title because they were so committed to the sport and to each other.”
“Making the sport fun is so integral to who we are as a program,” shared captain Ian Brenner. “On [States] race day, both varsity teams glittered up before the start, repping ‘blorange’ for the whole state to see.”
Alpine Ski
Meanwhile on the slopes, the Alpine ski team wrapped up a very successful season as well. The girls placed third in the MassBay West Ski League Alpha Division and the boys placed fifth. Five skiers — Summer Flannery ‘26, Alexandra Bouchard ‘25, Emily Hoctor ‘27, Daniel Hariskov ‘25, and Gavin Abbiati ‘26 — qualified for the state championship.
The girls continued to excel at States, finishing fourth overall, sparked by an impressive third-place finish in the giant slalom event by Flannery.
Swimming
Newton South’s girls swimming team placed third in the MIAA Division I Championship. Sophomore Emma Miner won the state title in the 100 yard breaststroke, finishing with an impressive time of 1:05.58.
Congratulations to all winter athletes on their achievements as they wrap up their season!
Miles Pearlman is a senior at Newton South High School, co-editor-in-chief of the NSHS Denebola, and a member of the Massachusetts Scholastic Press Association (MASPA) All-State High School Journalism Staff.
