Mercersburg’s Department of Athletics held the Spring 2022 renewal of the MESPYs May 19 in the Burgin Center for the Arts’ Simon Theatre. The event included team-specific awards from each of Mercersburg’s spring varsity squads, as well as the announcement of this season’s MESPY award winners in a number of categories.

A total of 20 members of the Class of 2022 were saluted for earning a varsity letter in a sport in all four of their years at Mercersburg. Additionally, Cate Vickery ’22 joined the rare club to have earned 12 varsity letters during her time at the school.

Along with a number of MESPY awards, the school revealed the nominees for this  year’s Darrell Ecker Award for Outstanding Senior Female Athlete (Bridget Ahlgren ’22, Monique Garcia ’22, Cate Vickery ’22) and the Leonard Plantz Award for Outstanding Senior Male Athlete (Foday Bangura ’22, Collin Metcalf ’22). The winners of the Eckert and Plantz awards will be announced at Commencement on Saturday, May 28.

The spring 2022 athletic season is still in progress for five of the Blue Storm’s varsity teams; the baseball, girls’ lacrosse, and softball teams qualified for the Pennsylvania Independent Schools Athletic Association state tournament and play first-round games Friday, May 20, while the boys’ and girls’ outdoor track & field squads head Saturday, May 21, to the PAISAA State Championships in Malvern, PA.

MESPYs
Female Storm Strong Award
Sammy Titus ’23, Middletown, RI

Male Storm Strong Award
Tommy Tereschuk ’22, Honolulu, HI

Female Breakthrough Athlete
Winner: Rachel Hull ’23, Mercersburg, PA (lacrosse)
Other nominees: Anne Sehon ’25, Oakton, VA (track & field), Ava Guzic ’25, Greencastle, PA (softball)

Male Breakthrough Athlete
Winner: Collin Metcalf ’22, Fort Irwin, CA (track & field)
Other nominees: Chris LaBolle ’23, Hanover, PA (lacrosse), Oscar Su ’25, Hagerstown, MD (tennis)

Female Athlete of the Spring
Winner: Bridget Ahlgren ’22, Mercersburg, PA (lacrosse)
Other nominees: Catherine Shaffer ’22, Davidsonville, MD (softball), Susan Concordia ’22, Mercersburg, PA (track & field)

Male Athlete of the Spring
Winner: Josh Pethel ’22, Hudson, OH (golf)
Other nominees: Chris Watson ’22, Yokosuka, Japan (track & field), Goshi Kamiya ’22, Tokyo, Japan (tennis)

Athletic Leadership Award
Catherine Shaffer ’22, Davidsonville, MD (softball)

Excellence in Coaching Award
Nikki Walker P ’19, ’23 (boys’/girls’ outdoor track & field)

Best Contest
Winner: baseball defeats Peddie, 11-10
Other nominees: boys’ golf vs. Lawrenceville, softball vs. Hill

Team of the Spring
Winner: girls’ track & field
Other nominees: boys’ golf, girls’ lacrosse

Four-year varsity letterwinners
Bridget Ahlgren ’22, Mercersburg, PA (field hockey, lacrosse)
Foday Bangura ’22, Greencastle, PA (soccer, outdoor track & field)
Duncan Besch ’22, Frederick, MD (basketball)
Susan Concordia ’22, Mercersburg, PA (soccer)
Monique Garcia ’22, Passaic, NJ (softball)
Peyton Gesell ’22, Mercersburg, PA (soccer)
Evan Howley ’22, Mercersburg, PA (baseball)
Izzy Jones ’22, West Chester, PA (softball)
Kayleigh Linn ’22, Chambersburg, PA (softball)
Aiden Lorson ’22, Mercersburg, PA (baseball)
Jade Matthias ’22, Reading, PA (swimming)
Folake Okunsanya ’22, Lagos, Nigeria (indoor track & field)
Khoi Pham ’22, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam (golf)
Tommy Quick ’22, Denton, MD (football)
Charlton Schaner ’22, Marietta, GA (swimming) 
Maddie Schermerhorn ’22, Reston, VA (cross country, lacrosse)
Camille Smith ’22, Chambersburg, PA (squash)
Isabella Van Ess ’22, Ashburn, VA (swimming)
Cate Vickery ’22, Alexandria, VA (soccer, basketball, softball)
Kenneth Yonke ’22, Pittsburgh, PA (soccer)

Individual team awards
BASEBALL
Most Outstanding Contributions: Evan Howley ’22, Mercersburg, PA
G. Brent Gift Most Improved Athlete Award: Tomiwa Salako ’22, Dhahran, Saudi Arabia
Henry B. Swoope Jr. (1923) Award (sportsmanship/good fellowship): Tommy Tereschuk ’22, Honolulu, HI

BOYS’ GOLF
Most Outstanding Contributions: Josh Pethel ’22, Hudson, OH
Most Improved Athlete: Daniel Zhong ’23, Greencastle, PA

GIRLS’ GOLF
Most Outstanding Contributions: Sihyeon Bae ’24, Seoul, South Korea
Most Improved Athlete: Plern Pibuldham ’23, Bangkok, Thailand

BOYS’ LACROSSE
Most Outstanding Contributions: Chris LaBolle ’23, Hanover, PA
Most Improved Athlete: Owain Herbert ’23, Germantown, NY/Davis Noone ’23, Myerstown, PA
Nelson T. Shields IV ’70 Award (spirit/sportsmanship): Ben Rihn ’22, Stahlstown, PA

GIRLS’ LACROSSE
Most Outstanding Contributions: Bridget Ahlgren ’22, Mercersburg, PA
Most Improved Athlete: Page Starkey ’24, Galena, MD

SOFTBALL
Most Outstanding Contributions: Catherine Shaffer ’22, Davidsonville, MD
Most Improved Athlete: Mary Grady ’25, Mercersburg, PA

BOYS’ TENNIS
Most Outstanding Contributions: Logan Butts ’23, Lithonia, GA
Most Improved Athlete: Zane Arky ’23, Los Angeles, CA

BOYS’ OUTDOOR TRACK & FIELD
Most Outstanding Contributions: Collin Metcalf ’22, Fort Irwin, CA
Edward J. Powers ’37 Award (most improved athlete): Pablo Garza Gutierrez ’22, Cancun, Mexico

GIRLS’ OUTDOOR TRACK & FIELD
Most Outstanding Contributions: Anne Sehon ’25, Oakton, VA
Edward J. Powers ’37 Award (most improved athlete): Madison Goodhart ’24, Greencastle, PA