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The Roll Dons Report is a monthly e-newsletter for the whole of our Loyola Blakefield community. Read on for the latest updates from our Athletics Department, including upcoming events, recent scores, team news and shoutouts.
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Dear Loyola Blakefield Community,
Merry Christmas to you and your family! After an exciting fall season for the Dons our winter sports teams are off to a great start for our upper school and middle school teams. I hope you can take some time this winter to watch our wrestling, indoor track, swim and dive, ice hockey, basketball, and squash teams compete. Our guys are in exciting competitions on campus and in the Baltimore area. They also will be competing in some out-of-town tournaments and showcases such as Blue Jay Jesuit Christmas Classic in New Orleans (Basketball), the Bullseye Running Icebox Challenge (Indoor Track), US Nationals (Squash), Beast of the East and War on the Shore Tournaments (Wrestling), and National Catholics (Swim and Dive).
Please mark your calendars for our Playing Sports in College virtual presentation on January 23. If you have a son that wants to play a sport in college, this is a good event to attend. See below for details.
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Upcoming Events & IMPORTANT INFORMATION |
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Congratulations Dan Klink '25
We're proud to announce that Dan Klink '25 has been named the United Soccer Coaches' 2024 High School Boys National Player of the Year, and the best in the nation in soccer at the High School level this year. Congratulations, Dan!
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Playing Sports in College Night
JANUARY 23 | 7:00 - 8:30 PM
Our College Counseling and Athletics departments will host a virtual event for the Loyola community that will feature a NCAA eligibility officer, a college coach, two alumni that are college athletes, and a presentation by Scott Grant on NIL.
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Basketball game tickets
Starting with the January 3rd game against Calvert Hall, there will be a $5 admissions charge for all home varsity basketball games for the remainder of the season. Current students and faculty/staff will be free with their ID.
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MedStar Weight Room Workouts
MONDAY - FRIDAY | 6:30 - 7:30 AM, 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM
Strength and conditioning workouts provided by trainers from MedStar continue in our weight room. Workouts are open for any student Mondays through Fridays (school days) from 6:30-7:30am and from 11:00am-1:00pm (lunch times). Team workouts will take place from 3:00-6:00pm each day.
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Spring Sports Begin
Upper School Spring Sports begin on February 18 and Middle School Spring Sports begin on March 3. Details to come after Christmas vacation.
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Team Stores
Visit our online team stores to get your Loyola Sports gear! A portion of each sale goes back to our team!
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We have a tremendous coaching staff at Loyola Blakefield, comprised of talented men and women from a variety of backgrounds. Each month we'll highlight one of our coaches and share how they Form leaders to serve with and for others; Develop the mind, body and spirit of student-athletes; and Build programs that foster a culture of champions.
 INTRODUCING Christian Anderson
Head Middle School Wrestling Coach Christian Anderson is currently in his 28th year in education. 2024 begins his 11th year at Loyola Blakefield. Mr. Anderson teaches English and for the last eight years has taught the 8th grade. He began coaching wrestling in 2014 and is currently in his tenth year coaching Middle School Tennis.
The growth of the Wrestling Program and the addition of an Academic Support Program for Wrestlers are some accomplishments he is most proud of. “Creating relationships with our young men and building trust with them is a coaches’ dream," Anderson says. "Not only do I get to support their dreams, but they also support mine. I am proud to be on their journey of being a whole person.”
A WORD FROM COACH ANDERSON
Wrestling is tough. Our young men find out quickly how much dedication it takes to be proficient on the mat and in the classroom at Loyola Blakefield. Failure happens frequently. We teach our young men to take those failures, learn from them, and apply that knowledge for the next opportunity. Our hope is that they carry those lessons in their toolbelt and become compassionate and caring people that everyone can be proud of. Our coaching staff is undoubtedly the best around. We have so much trust in each other to care for all our athletes, and we communicate their needs to each other daily. The boys feel that support while competing, but they also know that we are there for them in all facets of their life at Loyola.
Wrestling is a myriad of metaphors for life. When visiting the Wrestling Room, one may hear several mantras echoing from the mats. “Get stronger.” “Fight off bottom.” “Good stance.” “Check your level.” These sayings could be used for several life situations that our young men face each day. Wrestling teaches individual motivation and success, as well as team bonding and group effort. Coach Truitt and Coach Jones do an incredible job balancing all aspects of wrestling.
Years ago, I witnessed Coach Truitt writing letters to our athletes. I wanted to emulate that level of care. Not only do we write personal letters to recruits, but we write to our own athletes to let them know how much we care. Those personal touches create relationships. Those relationships create a trust that helps our coaching staff win the tough matches. At the middle school level, we want the boys to know how much we care about them and how fun competing is at Loyola. As they grow in the program, their athletic development gets more difficult. When they hear the positive messaging from the coaches, their effort ramps up considerably. The coaches in the Wrestling Program model the mission of Loyola Blakefield.
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SPORTS Updates
Please note that the updates below from our coaches refLect status of teams as of publication deadline. Track all results on our website. |
VARSITY
The Varsity Basketball Team is off to a 5-3 start including a big win over MSJ at home earlier this month. Mason Ellison is averaging 27ppg followed by Jesse Legree with 13ppg. The Dons are excited for our Holiday Tournament trip to New Orleans over the break. The Dons will be competing in the Blue Jay Jesuit Classic starting on December 27.
JUNIOR VARSITY
The JV Basketball Dons have started the season with a 4-3 record. They are led by head coach Phil Walter and assistant coach Greg Hines. The team had a great win against John Carroll on December 6 by a score of 61-49 and had a one point loss vs. Spalding on December 11. The team will be competing over Christmas vacation in the DTLR Basketball Showcase at Spalding on December 27.
Frosh
The Frosh Hoops Team is off to an 0-2 start after two BCL/MIAA Games. Defensive play has been good. The Frosh are short on finding ways to score. Good shots are being taken, they are not going in as of now. Practice will continue to stress fundamentals with a mix of more shooting drills.
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VARSITY
The Loyola Dons are off to a dominant 4-0 start, leading the MIAA with 36 goals scored and only 7 against. They've secured convincing wins over St. Paul’s (7-4), Curley (11-1), Gilman (13-1), and Boys Latin (5-1). Ten Loyola players rank in the top 15 in MIAA points, including Ryder McClure, Jimmy Albanesi, Jesse D’Alonzo, Paul Gately, Brody McClure, Ashton King, Josh Goloboski, Theo Hembling, Grant Keller, and Brady Maul. With 15 of 17 skaters contributing points, the team’s depth and teamwork are evident. Senior goaltender Tommy Bunte has been stellar, stopping 145 of 152 shots for a 0.954 save percentage, driving their early-season success.
The Dons look to continue their success next week with games against Curley and Sts. Peter & Paul. They will also host their annual alumni game on 12/23/24 at Reisterstown at 4:00 PM. For more details, please email varsityicehockey@loyolablakefield.org.
SCHEDULES & MORE:
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VARSITY
There are exciting things to come for the varsity indoor track and field season this year. The goal of track and field is to be at your best at the championship meet and the coaching staff is confident that this year’s team will accomplish that goal.
Senior leadership is important on any team and this year’s seniors epitomize hard work and will set the tone for the season.
This year’s schedule features a good mix of local meets with some trips to larger meets in New York City and Philadelphia. The goal is to qualify athletes for Nike Indoor Nationals in March in New York.
Congratulations to junior Khary Adams for running a 6.45 second 55-meter dash breaking a 15-year-old record held by alum John Davenport!
We hope to provide many newsworthy updates as the season progresses.
Junior Varsity
The coaches are very enthusiastic about the upcoming season. There are lots of new faces out for indoor track and field and the coaching staff is excited to see how they progress as the year goes on.
Many of the freshmen and sophomores are trying new events for the first time and the coaches are confident they will master the learning curve on these events.
We hope to have more positive news as the season progresses.
SCHEDULES & MORE:
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Varsity
We’ve started the season with a lot of good matches so far this season. Our record is 4-5. I have the most enthusiastic players that love the game and really want to get better. Already I’ve seen a huge improvement since the start of the season!!!
We started the season with taking the team off the squash courts and putting them on the pickleball courts playing the Loyola Club Pickleball team. There were a lot of good points, lots of laughter, and everybody having a good time. We also had a team dinner at Coach Lacy’s house followed by a Squash Documentary of the Trinity Squash Team.
Our highlight of the season will be playing in the High School Nationals in February. We will be working hard with our goal to win our division.
Our JV Team record is 5-1!!! The boys are pushing themselves both at practice and in their matches.
Their toughest matches are the weekly challenge matches that we try to do. This makes them work harder in giving them a fair chance to move up the ladder.
The JV team is our future and right now the future looks very promising.
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VARSITY
Swimming is off to a great start. The first meet of the season hosted St. John's College High School out of Washington D.C and NDP. This tri-meet was a fun opportunity for the guys to swim with their sister school. The Dons cruised to victory. Led by senior Harry Belbot and Drew Turk, Junior Liam McQuaid and Sal Anello, and Sophomore Spencer Belbot. Senior Oliver Black and Alex Will went 1-2 in the 1-meter diving event.
The swimming Dons hosted their first in conference meet against Mt. St. Joseph. The team beat MSJ 94-74. The team was led by Senior Drew Turk, Junior Sal Anello, and Sophomore Spencer Belbot. All three won their individual events.
The Dons will host Spalding on 12/17. This is also senior night! Come out and support your Aquatic Dons!
Junior Varsity
The JV Dons completed their season with a valiant effort in the “Chicken Bowl,” but fell short in the end. The defense kept Calvert Hall in check for most of the game but alas was on the field for too long. The record for this season did in no way display the hard work and dedication of the team. This year’s team had many accomplishments and had a lot of fun competing. I am proud of the development of this team this season and I am excited to see how this team will produce in the offseason and come ready to compete for next season.
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Varsity
The Varsity Wrestling team is off to another strong start. The team is currently ranked #3 in the state and boasts a 6-1 record. We have a solid nucleus of experienced wrestlers along with up-and-coming underclassmen. The team is led by several talented wrestlers including:
- Senior Luke Randazzo: #1 HWT, MIAA and State Runner Up, National Prep All American
- Junior Jayden Jackson: #2 120lbs, 2x MIAA Champ and 2x National Prep All American
- Junior Joshua Hale: #4 138lbs, MAWA National Champion
- Freshman Tyler Verceles: #2 106lbs, US Open Greco-Roman Champion, 16U Fargo Freestyle Finalist, 16U Fargo Greco-Roman 3rd Place, 2x NE Regional Champion (Freestyle & Greco-Roman)
Most recently, the team defeated #6 St. Francis Academy 35-25 in a hard-fought victory. We head to the Ray Oliver Tournament at McDonogh this weekend, followed by a match at #15 Archbishop Curley. To finish 2024 in style, we head to the prestigious Beast of the East Tournament at the University of Delaware, which I widely considered to be the toughest High School wrestling tournament in the country. As we start to get some of our injured wrestlers back over Christmas break, the team is ready to make a run for a MIAA Championship.
Junior varsity
I’m excited to share some fantastic news about our JV wrestling team. The team is off to a great start after our first tournament at Milford Mill Academy this past weekend. Six of our wrestlers placed in the tournament, with two making it to the finals and one emerging with a first-place finish:
- Landon Sansone - 1st
- Makana Takasaki - 2nd
- Ollie Korch - 3rd
- Elias Gibbs - 3rd
- Michael Cuomo - 4th
- Sam Abbruzzese - 4th
There were a lot of hard-fought matches, and the coaching staff couldn’t be prouder of the Dons’ performance and efforts. The JV Dons’ hard work and dedication are paying off, and the team is gearing up for the Ray Oliver Tournament at McDonogh this weekend. We will also compete against Archbishop Curley next week and are determined to build on our momentum.
With a strong start to the season and continued hard work, the team strives to keep their winning tradition alive and maintain our JV state title.
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Basketball
8TH GRADE
The 8th grade Dons are 0-2. They started their season off with a close game with Severn. That was followed up with another close game at St. Paul's. Looking forward to working hard at practicing the fundamentals.
7TH GRADE
The 7th grade Dons are 2-0. They started their season off on Tuesday December 10th at home against Severn. With the first game jitters the Don’s fell behind 6-0. Once the team got comfortable, they took an 11-9 lead after the end of the 1st quarter. With great defense the Dons never looked back to take home a 46-24 win. They only gave up 6 points in the second half. On Thursday December 12th the 7th grade team travel to St. Paul’s. The game went back and forth through three quarters. In the 4th quarter the Dons stepped up their Defense and gave up 0 points in the fourth quarter to take home a 47-27 victory. Next game will be Monday December 16th 3:30 at home against McDonogh before heading into Christmas break.
Swimming
The first meet of the season is on December 16 against Gilman in Knott Pool!
Wrestling
The Middle School wrestling team has worked hard in the mat room on several techniques. Learning practice routines and wrestling protocols have been the focus of each day. Athletes competed against Gilman this past week, and they put some of those moves into their own prospective matches. We are proud of our wrestlers in Middle School!
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GET IN TOUCH
Blake Henry
Director of Athletics
Loyola Blakefield
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Loyola Blakefield
500 Chestnut Ave. Towson, MD 21204
Ph: 410-823-0601
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