Lake Forest Country Day School Celebrates School Athletes

Lake Forest Country Day School (LFCDS) athletes had plenty to celebrate at the School’s athletic awards ceremony for the 2016-17 school year with ninety-five percent of Upper School students participating in at least one school sport each year. The LFCDS philosophy maintains that team sports provide students with critical life skills and unique perspectives on leadership, cooperation, and self-advocacy.

“Research shows that children who participate in team sports fare better both academically and socially in school,” said Head of School Bob Whelan. “At LFCDS, our students learn to think critically, assess problems, and learn from mistakes – all essential factors in the building of character.”

The school welcomed alumna Libby Thompson ’13 as the keynote speaker, and she spoke eloquently on what it takes to achieve goals in both sports and academics. Thompson, a 2017 Lake Forest High School graduate who will matriculate at Duke University in the fall on a full scholarship for field hockey, credits much of her success to her roots at LFCDS. She said it was at the School that she learned the foundations of hard work and perseverance. “I learned it’s about rising above the people who don’t think you can do it, keeping your head down, working hard, and proving them wrong,” said Thompson.

Grade 8 students Abbe Shanley-Roberts and Harry Hodgkins spoke about their athletic lives at LFCDS, and the 2017 Coaches Awards were announced. The recipients were:

Football — Gardner Brown and Asher Sklarov

Soccer — Jake Putzel and Brooks Osborne

Cross Country — Calvin Osborne and Morgane Garrick

Girls’ Volleyball — Gabbie Jakubowski and Emily Hawkins

Field Hockey — All Grade 8 players

Grade 7 Boys' Basketball — Leo Anderson and Ben Kelliher

Grade 7 Girls' Basketball — Sofia Falls and Simone Sawyer

Grade 8 Boys' Basketball — Nickie Mesrobian and Jack Walsh

Grade 8 Girls' Basketball — Mimi Baeseman-Smith and Cameron Wacker

Squash — Reed Kovas and Akhil Kommala

Boys' Lacrosse — Aidan Murphy and Gino Farrell

Girls' Lacrosse — Lila Fitzgerald and Chloe Whelan

Girls' Soccer — Naomi Aluvila and Mimi Baeseman-Smith

Golf — Constantine Alexos and Jessica Pasma

Track — Cameron Wacker and Zach Kaplan

Lake Forest Country Day School serves students from more than 30 communities throughout the North Shore and beyond. A regional center of excellence for early childhood, elementary, and middle school education for children two years old through Grade 8, LFCDS is committed to inspired teaching, academic rigor, attention to individual needs, and responsible citizenship as well as the dedication to producing students of strong character with a passion for learning. Students are given the opportunity to participate in a no-cut, yet highly competitive and instructional athletics program beginning in Grade 4.

For more information on LFCDS, please visit www.lfcds.org or call (847) 234-2350.