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Sports

Roundup: The Week in Sports and a Look Ahead

How was your week? This is how the week went for the Bridgemen and the Lady Bridgemen; Athlete of the week: Nicolette Pappas of the girls volleyball team

Football

Fort Lee fell to 1-4 on Thursday night when they hosted Bergen County powerhouse River Dell High School. The Bridgemen lost 59-21. Mario Jacovino threw three touchdown passes--Tyler Sanders was the recipient of two of those passes--along with a catch by Masaru Yamaguchi. Head coach Bill Straub took his hat off to River Dell.

“We got beat by one of the best programs in the whole state,” said Straub. The Bridgemen will return to action on Friday, when they visit Ramsey for a 7 p.m. start. The game story for the River Dell game can be found here.

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Boys Soccer

The Bridgemen’s winning streak was snapped on Monday evening after a 3-2 loss at Mahwah High School. Fort Lee senior Nikola Gogic scored the two goals for Fort Lee and kept them in the game. Fumio Himeno and Ron Locker each had an assist each for the Bridgemen. The team had an important game on Wednesday, when they took on Cresskill High School in a county tournament play-in game. Fort Lee improved to 6-2-1 on the season after a 5-0 win that saw Himeno and Locker score two goals apiece with Nikola Gogic also scoring a goal. Bridgemen goalkeeper Matt Hernandez had four saves on the day. Head coach Bob Ciccone was pleased with the team’s play.

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“We played a very good game from the start, both offensively and defensively,” Ciccone said.

On Saturday, the Bridgemen lost to Old Tappan 3-0 in a county game. The team returns to the field on Tuesday, when they visit Englewood at 7 p.m.

Girls Soccer

The Lady Bridgemen lost a home game to Lakeland High School on Tuesday afternoon, 2-1. Lucy Dell’Aquila scored the only goal for the Lady Bridgemen. Fort Lee was defeated again at Mahwah High School in a 6-0 loss. Head coach Phil Zappel was not happy with the week but knows that his team can still hang with the best.

"We are tired and a little banged up after our county and Mahwah losses,"  Zappel said. "Our overtime loss to Lakeland was disappointing, but the positive is that we know we can compete with good teams when we play our game moving forward for the rest of the season.”

The girls will take the field again on Wednesday for a 4:15 p.m. game against Ridgefield Park.

Girls Volleyball

The Lady Bridgemen continued their winning streak and improved their record to 9-2 on the season after defeating Park Ridge, 2-0 (25-19; 25-15). Megan Gimson had five kills, Nicolette Pappas had 8 assists and Nicole Farber recorded eight digs. The streak ended Wednesday as the Lady Bridgemen fell at home to Mahwah High School, 2-0. Both set scores were 15-25. Nicole Farber had five digs, Megan Gimson had two kills, and Nicolette Pappas had three assists. Fort Lee bounced back Thursday when they defeated the Lady Cardinals of Westwood, 2-1 (13-25; 25-20; 25-22).  Nicole Skalamera had seven kills, Nicolette Pappas had 13 assists, Nicole Farber had 14 digs and Megan Gimson had four aces. The girls play again on Monday in a home match against Lodi at 10 a.m.

Girls Tennis

The Lady Bridgemen had a rough week, losing both of their games. The team lost to Mahwah 4-1 Wednesday with the first doubles team of Emilia Leskowicz and Deborah Lee the only team members to win their match. The team then lost to Rutherford on Thursday in a state match by a score of 2-3. The Lady Bridgemen tennis team has also been without a third singles player, which has hurt them on the court. Head coach Sheri Steckler is staying optimistic.

“We’re really hurt without a third singles spot," Steckler said. "I think we could’ve taken today’s match. We will come back strong next week.” 

The next match is slated for Tuesday, when the girls tennis team hosts Englewood at 4:15 p.m.

Cross Country

The boys team improved to 4-1 on Tuesday after a 24-31 win against Dumont. The Bridgemen are currently in second place. Senior Yuki Takahashi led the way for the boys in the 5,000 meter run with a time of 18:35.05 and finished in second place overall. Head coach Ed Garrison is as happy with this team as he has been in years.

“This is one of the most successful cross country campaigns in the quite a few years,” Garrison said.

The boys will head to Garrett Mountain on Tuesday, where they will look to upset Ridgefield Park in a Big North Divison 7 Championship meet. The girls achieved success on Tuesday as well, defeating Dumont by a score of 19-36. The Lady Bridgemen are also in second place in their division. Sophomore Melanie Plattner led the way and finished in first place overall with a time of 21:52.04. The girls will also be in action Tuesday for the Divison 7 Championship, and coach Garrison is confident in his bunch.

“The girls have been improving all season and stand a legitimate shot to defeat Big North Division 7 leader Westwood High School in the Division 7 Championship on Tuesday," the coach said. "Juniors Christina Ramirez, Renee Mattesich and Julie Lau, along with sophomore Melanie Plattner, have formed a 'pack' with only a 30-second time difference.”

Athlete of the Week: Nicolette Pappas, Volleyball Team

Pappas is a senior setter for the team and had a great week for the Lady Bridgemen. Fort Lee assistant coach Kelly Horton was very pleased with Pappas this week.

"This year she has proven to be one of our best leaders on the court," Horton said. "She has outhustled and outplayed many of our opponents, even catching top-seeded schools off guard with her tricky ball placement."

Pappas' trademark is to never give up on a ball no matter the circumstance. Pappas finished the week with 23 assists, three aces and two digs.

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