Seniors Brooke Fernandez and Kevin Fraser were recognized at the 4th Annual Courage Award Reception of Catholic Athletes for Christ (CAC), held earlier this month at Top of the Town in Arlington.

Fernandez is a four-year varsity swimmer and field hockey player. She volunteers her time as a high school ambassador at Children’s National Medical Center and as a tutor at the neighborhood elementary school. She is a member of the Spanish Honor Society, Keyettes and the Medical Missionaries Club. Over the summer, she traveled with the Medical Missionaries Club to Haiti to provide assistance to the staff at St. Joseph’s Clinic in Thomassique.

Fraser is a four-year varsity soccer and lacrosse player at Bishop O’Connell. He is an active member of St. Ann’s parish in Arlington, where he has participated in the work camp program. He has also dedicated his time to volunteering in the local community, through organization such as the Greenbrier Learning Center, Arlington County Parks and Recreation, Arlington Food Assistance Center and Lose the Training Wheels, a recreational therapy program. Fraser plans to play lacrosse at Ursinus College next fall.

O’Connell chaplain, Father Gregory Thompson, was on hand at the awards ceremony as these students were honored along with student-athletes from other diocesan high schools. CAC presented former Major League Baseball player, Darrell Miller, with the 2014 Courage Award for his leadership in athletics and his Catholic Faith.

Catholic Athletes for Christ serves Catholic athletes in the practice of their faith and shares the Gospel in and through sports. The organization work with athletes at all levels of sport in an effort to promote a Catholic sports culture. CAC was formed in response to Pope John Paul II's call to evangelize the world of sports and his establishment of the Vatican's Office of Sports.

Read more about the awards dinner in the Arlington Catholic Herald.

Pictured (l to r): Athletic Director Joe Wootten, Kevin Fraser, Brooke Fernandez and Father Thompson.

Congratulations to the Bishop O'Connell girls cross country team who captured the Washington Catholic Athletic Conference (WCAC) title for the eighth straight year. The championship race was held Saturday, Oct. 25 at Lake Fairfax in Reston, Va.

The Lady Knights were led by sophomore runner, Isabell Baltimore, who finished the race in second place. Not far behind her were senior Sarah Davis (5th place), junior Briana Broccoli (7th place), junior Gabriella Baltimore (9th place), freshman Grace Pulliam (13th place), senior Theresa Matula (14th place) and senior Mackenzie Nihill (18th place).

O'Connell took third place in the boys race, finishing closely behind Good Counsel and Gonzaga. With three DJO runners in the top 15, this was the best team finish in more than ten years. The O'Connell boys were led by Junior Kevin Dannaher (6th place), senior Josh Speier (7th place) and senior Marty Knauf (14th place).

Read more...

"O'Connell Girls Win Eighth Cross Country Title" (Oct. 27, 2014)
Arlington Catholic Herald

Complete Race Results by M&D Timing

O’Connell’s head softball coach, Tommy Orndorff, was inducted into the Amateur Softball Association (ASA) National Softball Hall of Fame, where he was recognized for his accomplishments over the past 40 years as a manager and head coach of girl’s fast pitch softball in the Washington, D.C. area.

Orndorff was joined by former players, family and friends at the Hall of Fame ceremony, which was held in conjunction with the ASA Annual Council Meeting in Reno, Nev.  on Nov. 8, 2014.

“I am both humbled and honored to be selected,” said Orndorff. “Recognition such as this is very gratifying, but it’s more than just an individual award. It says a lot about everyone who has been involved—and by that I mean the coaches, assistant coaches, scorekeepers, parents and, most especially, the players themselves.”

At Bishop O’Connell, Coach Orndorff has led the Lady Knights to a 678-78 record in his 29 years at the helm, which include an impressive 21 Catholic league tournament championships and 19 Virginia Independent School state tournament titles.

From 1972 until 2010, Orndorff also coached the local Shamrock’s Under-18 team. During that time period, the team qualified for the national championship 25 times, finishing eight times in the top five.

The ASA National Softball Hall of Fame is located in Oklahoma City, where it welcomes over 200,000 guests each year. Since its inception in 1957, 378 athletes and non-players have been inducted.

View Coach Orndorff's acceptance speech HERE.

Pictured: Tommy and Doug Lindaman, Chair of Hall of Fame Selection Committee.

Congratulations to the following students who have been named Bishop O'Connell Student-Athletes of the Week.

Michael Hurley ‘15
Boys Soccer – Goalkeeper
Hometown – Arlington, Va.

• 1st Team All-WCAC. Recorded 13 shutouts (from 19 played games) during 2014 season. Team Captain. Varsity starter since sophomore year. Received WCAC and All-State honors as sophomore, junior and senior
• 4.36 GPA
• Student leader for the Wreaths Across America - Wounded Warrior Project
• National Honor Society, German Honor Society, German Club, Best Buddies Club
  

Anthony Howard ‘15
Football – Running Back and Defensive Back
Hometown - Temple Hills, Md.

• 2nd Team All-WCAC. Holds full scholarship offers from West Virginia Wesleyan, WV State, and Shepherd University
• 3.45 GPA
  
• Plays in the concert band and plays organ for church on Sundays. Volunteers at local homeless shelters  
  

Elizabeth Farrell ‘16
Tennis – Doubles Team
Hometown – McLean, Va.

• Finished 7-1 in conference play; WCAC champions
• 4.3 GPA
  
• SCA, Spanish Honor Society, Spirit and Leadership Team. Serves as a volunteer at SOME (So Others Might Eat)
  

Lula Hailesilassie ‘16
Tennis - Doubles Team
Hometown – Alexandria, Va.

• Finished 7-1 in conference play; WCAC champions
• 3.61 GPA
  
• French Honor Society, Math Honor Society. Volunteers at an assisted living facility

For the third year in a row, the Bishop O'Connell field hockey team has hosted a special "Play 4 the Cure" game to raise the visibility of cancer research needs. This cause is particularly close to many of the players whose families have been affected by cancer, and they are inspired by head coach Mary Quinn who underwent cancer treatment not long after she began coaching the team in 2011.

The National Foundation for Cancer Research (NFCR) featured the Lady Knights and their "Play 4 the Cure" game in a recent video.

If you are unable to view the video below, visit the NFCR YouTube page.

Bishop O’Connell is proud to partner with the University of Notre Dame’s Play Like a Champion Today Character Education Through Sports program. This partnership is part of Play Like a Champion’s national initiative to support schools and sports organizations in making sports more safe, fun, and developmentally enriching. Athletic Director Joe Wootten of Bishop O’Connell welcomed the opportunity to work with Play Like a Champion, saying: “Play Like a Championemphasizes presenting sport as a form of youth ministry and challenges us to view sports as a means of developing the whole person: physically, mentally and spiritually.”

The Play Like a Champion program is designed to provide children and adolescents with the highest quality sports experience possible. Drawing on the expertise of members of the Notre Dame coaching staff and the research of developmental, moral, and sport psychologists, Play Like a Champion aims to renew youth and high school sports by educating coaches and parents to nurture children’s personal and spiritual development as whole persons along with athletic excellence.

By partnering with Play Like a Champion, Bishop O’Connell brings both coach and parent clinics to their community. University of Notre Dame Play Like a Champion Program Director Kristin Sheehan will join Athletic Director Wootten and O’Connell leadership on December 7^th and 8^th to conduct the clinics. O’Connell is the first area school to partner with Play Like a Champion in elevating their sports culture.

Play Like a Champion Today workshops are nationally accredited by the National Council for Accreditation of Coaching Education (NCACE.) Play Like a Champion has partners in over forty cities across the United States and Canada, and has educated over 30,000 coaches and 20,000 parents who in turn have impacted the lives of over a million athletes.

Pope Francis recently spoke in his Vatican Radio address about “the importance of sport in moral education, since the sporting spirit is one that teaches the need for discipline, effort and sacrifice to succeed and achieve excellence – becoming a constant reminder of the sacrifices necessary to grow in the virtues that build the character of a person.”  Play Like a Champion works to instill these virtues in young athletes, their parents, and coaches across the country. “If Catholic-sponsored sports programs are going to achieve their full-potential as envisioned by Pope Francis, Catholic schools and dioceses must invest in preparing coaches and sport parents to understand sports as a vehicle to teach gospel values. When sport programs partner with Play Like a Champion, they run a program in sync with our Christian community and effectively develop young people to become disciples of our Church.” says Kristin Sheehan, Play Like a Champion Program Director. 

Find out more about our school's program at www.bishopoconnell.org/playlikeachampion.

Congratulations to the following students who have been named Bishop O'Connell Student-Athletes of the Week.

Lauren Harkes ‘15
Soccer – Midfielder
Hometown – Fairfax  (Previous school - St. Leo)

• 1st Team All-Met and All-WCAC both junior and senior years.Named to the high school All-American game
• 4.22 GPA, taking three AP classes
• Member of the National Honor Society. Participates in score for the poor
• Will play soccer at Clemson University

Elena Williams ‘15
Soccer – Defender
Hometown – Arlington (Previous school – St. Agnes)

• Recognized as honorable mention All-WCAC both junior and senior year
• 3.88 GPA with one AP course this year
• Member of the National Honor Society, President of Best Buddies chapter at O'Connell
• Works at Jill's House in Vienna

Sarah Cahill ‘15
Volleyball and Swimming
Hometown -  Alexandria (Previous school – St. Louis)

• 2 year varsity volleyball, named 2nd team All-WCAC senior year and Honorable Mention junior year. Leads the team and conference in blocks and leads the team with high hitting percentage.
• In swimming, she broke a 15-year-old O’Connell record in the 100 breaststroke during her junior year.
• 4.53 GPA, currently enrolled in four AP and one honors course
• Member of the National Honor Society, Rho Kappa National History Honor Society, Mu Alpha Theta National Math Honor Society, and German Honor Society. President of the Keyette Club
• Volunteers at an early Head Start program in Alexandria
• Will swim at Drexel University

Find out more about previous awardees.

November and December are always busy months for charitable organizations around the area. Bishop O'Connell students support a large variety programs year round, and this time of year is no exception.Clubs and sports teams work on service project together, too. Below are just some examples of recent team efforts around the community:

Boys Basketball Pre-Season Service

On Nov. 18, the boys basketball team spent the day supporting the efforts of the Missionaries of Charity in Washington, D.C. The team did yard work, prepared food, served food, and cleaned the dining room and kitchen.  The players were joined by coaches and school chaplain, Father Gregory Thompson, who rounded out the day by celebrating Mass with the group.

In addition, the players and coaches ran drills and demonstrations at two clinics to support local youth basketball programs. On Nov. 16, they headed to Maryland to participate in the Howard County Youth Program’s 25^th anniversary basketball clinic. On Dec. 5 they supported the Vienna Youth Basketball Players Clinic held at Kilmer Middle School.

JV Volleyball - Blankets for Refugees

At the end of their season, the JV volleyball team participated in a blanket drive for Syrian refugees. The girls made ten fleece blankets which were donated to a local organization that ships blankets to Turkey to support families fleeing from their war-torn homeland.

Ice Hockey Supports Sled Hockey

The Knights ice hockey program spent a Saturday afternoon in November at Kettler Capitals Iceplex in Arlington to support the USAHockey Sled Hockey Tournament. Team members pitched in where needed, carrying the sled players’ equipment before and after their games and helping to give these players the NHL treatment throughout the tournament.

Groups Lay Wreaths Arlington National Cemetery

Several groups of students from Bishop O’Connell participated in the laying of wreaths at Arlington National Cemetery on Dec. 13. Members of the boys lacrosse team joined forces with the Young Women’s Executive Club to lay wreaths with care in one section of the cemetery.

For the fourth year in a row, the boys soccer team participated in the Wreaths Across America program which bring these wreaths to Washington, D.C. Members of the team were also present on Saturday to unload and distribute the wreaths throughout the cemetery.

In total, 25,000 volunteers fanned out across Arlington National Cemetery to unload and place more than 200,000 wreaths for the holiday season. According to local news sources, this is the largest number of wreaths to date.

Many in the group plan to finish the project by returning in January to help pick up the wreaths.

The St. Mary’s Ryken at Bishop O’Connell girls’ varsity basketball game is in the running for Toyota Game of the Week on WUSA 9! Help us spread the word so they can be featured on TV (Channel 9) this Friday night.

To vote via text, fans can:
-Text girlswcac to "25543" to vote for St. Mary’s Ryken at Bishop O’Connell

The Bishop O'Connell community kicked off Homecoming weekend with an Alumni Awards Dinner at Marymount University in Arlington. For the first time, the event combined both the Alumni Achievement Awards with the Athletic Hall of Fame, and more than 140 alumni, family members and friends attended the celebration.

The first award of the evening was presented by English department chair, Diane Cerniglia. Kristin Hughes '00 was awarded the Young Alumni Award. Kristin is currently a senior manager for Global Community Health Programs at Special Olympics. She has previously held government positions focusing on public health policy. Cerniglia shared stories of Kristin's high school days, where she already showed a desire to work hard to make a difference.

The Knights Service Award was presented to Ray Zdancewicz '74 by his son, Kevin Zdancewicz '04. Ray has been involved in youth sports all his adult life, serving as the Northern Virginia CYO treasurer for over 30 years. He is a parishioner at Our Lady of Good Counsel, where he has also served on their pastoral council for many years. In 2011, Ray received the St. Thomas More Award for Youth Ministry from the Diocese of Arlington.

Head of School, Dr. Joseph Vorbach '83 presented the annual Distinguished Alumni Award to Kevin Callaghan '79. Kevin is a managing director at Berkshire Partners and continues to be active in a number of community and philanthropic efforts. "Kevin epitomizes the award," said Vorbach. "In whatever point or place in his life, he has been an active, engaged and creative force for good."

Athletic Director, Joe Wootten, introduced the next set of awards, where former O'Connell athletes were inducted into the school's Athletic Hall of Fame.

David Evans '69 was introduced by former teammate Bill Leib '69. David was the starting quarterback for the Knights football team, and Bill was his center. David went on to play college football at Missouri Southern State University, where he led the 1972 team to an undefeated season and the NAIA Division II national title.

Syd Albrittain '83 introduced the next Hall of Fame inductee, Mike Rickard '83. Syd shared the story of Mike's spirit and determination to return to football and wresting after breaking his back during the summer before his senior year. Mike was a two-time Washington Metropolitan Athletic Conference wrestling champion, as well as a state champion his senior year.

Sara Goode '94 was introduced by her former softball coach, Tommy Orndorff. She was a four-year varsity starter who still holds multiple records, including for single season base hits (108), runs scored (107) and many others. Tommy attributes Sara's love of the game and her competitive spirit for her success that led her to succeed on and off the field.

Soccer coach, Alberto Starace, introduced Katie Brodnik '95, who recognized by the awards committee for her achievements on the soccer field and on the basketball court. He called her both a scholar-athlete and a leader; in her senior year she was serving as team captain and class president. Katie went on to play basketball at Duke University.

Coach Starace also introduced this year's Hall of Fame team--the 1990-1991 girls soccer team. The team won three consecutive CGAA championships, finished this season with a 19-0 record, and had five players named to the All-Catholic first team. This team was coached by Starace and Kelly Cole Iacobucci. Several members of the team have already been inducted as individuals to the O'Connell Athletic Hall of Fame.

The Hall of Fame committee also recognized two other athletes who were not able to attend this year's ceremony; Andrew Cunningham '72 (soccer) and Stephanie Vance '94 (softball).

Read more...

Alumni Achievement Awards

Athletic Hall of Fame

Congratulations to the following students who have been named Bishop O'Connell Student-Athletes of the Week.

Congratulations to the 12 Bishop O’Connell student-athletes who participated in our Winter 2015 senior signing ceremony, in the presence of their families, coaches, school administrators, teammates and friends.

Patrick Hughes (Tennis) - University of Mary Washington
Kyra Alexander (Soccer) - Old Dominion University
Lizzie Brooks (Soccer) - University of Mary Washington
Lauren Harkes (Soccer) - Clemson University
Stephanie Page  (Soccer) - Stony Brook University
Sara Wilson  (Soccer) - University of Florida
Julia Bailey (Crew) - U.S. Naval Academy
Emma Morris (Crew) - Stanford University
Sarah Cahill (Swim) - Drexel University
Anthony Howard (Football) - Gannon University
George Hawkins (Football) - Merrimack College
Tylar Thompson (Football) - Merrimack College

These seniors join 13 other classmates who signed during the Fall 2014 ceremony. For an updated list of signings from the class of 2015, visit www.bishopoconnell.org/commit.

Pictured below (l to r): Sarah Cahill, Lauren Harkes, Anthony Howard,Emma Morris, Sara Wilson, George Hawkins, Kyra Alexander, Stephanie Page, Patrick Hughes, Lizzie Brooks, Julia Bailey, and Tylar Thompson.

Congratulations to senior Luke Collins and juniors Daniel Avdioukhin, Robert Burnham and Zach Hale who were chosen to play in the 2015 Northern Virginia Scholastic Hockey League (NVSHL) All-Star game. O’Connell is one of only three teams sending four players to the All-Star game, which will be held Feb. 18 at 6 p.m. at Ashburn Ice House.

Luke Collins, who plays at the center position, has 13 goals and 11 assists this season for the Knights. His teammate at right wing, Daniel Avdioukhin, has 18 goals and 7 assists. Defenseman, Robert Burnham, has five goals and 11 assists. Zach Hale is O’Connell’s goalie with a 10-5-4 record.

“These players have worked hard this season and deserve this recognition from the league,” said head coach Flip Collins. “Having four players selected, including three juniors, is quite an honor for the O’Connell program.”

The Knight are heading into the NVSHL playoffs as the #3 seed with their sights set on the championship game at the end of the month.

Pictured (l to r): Daniel Avdioukhin, Luke Collins and Robert Burnham (not pictured, Zach Hale).

Congratulations to the following students who have been named Bishop O'Connell Student-Athletes of the Week:

Jasmine Taylor ‘16
Basketball
Hometown: Springfield, Va.

• 3.4 GPA
• Team captain, averaging 14.1 points per game.
• Verbally committed to play for Boston College.
  
  

Chris St. George ‘18
Sport: Wrestling
Hometown: Ashburn (Previous School – St. Theresa)

• Carries above a 4.0 GPA in his freshman year with mostly honors courses.
• Won the St. Stephens/St. Agnes tournament and placed 2^nd at the State Catholic Tournament.
• He is a member of the Pro-Life Club and attended the 2015 March for Life.

View previous student-athletes of the week...

Bishop O’Connell High School has named Colin Disch as the new head football coach. Coach Disch has spent the last three years as an assistant coach for the Knights football program, first coaching the offensive and defensive lines and most recently as the defensive coordinator.

Before coming to Bishop O’Connell, Disch served as an assistant football coach at Stonehill College in Massachusetts and St. John Fisher College in New York. He was an inside linebacker for the University of Albany football program, where he was a three-time captain, receiving All-Conference and All-American honors.

"I look forward to this great opportunity,” said Disch. “I am thankful to be a part of this school community and feel fortunate to be able to work with these young men and build them up through the game of football."

“Coach Disch has been an integral part of building our football program over the last three years,” said Athletic Director Joe Wootten. “We are confident he can lead the team to the next level.”

Head of School Joseph Vorbach added, "Colin Disch has demonstrated that he is both a superb mentor for young men and an excellent football coach with the ability to develop each individual player. He has used his talents to support our Catholic mission and we look forward to him continuing to do so as our head football coach."

Coach Disch is replacing Del Smith who is returning to Bridgewater College as defensive coordinator for the Eagles football program.

The Bishop O'Connell boys tennis team won the WCAC championship today as the Knights won four out of nine championship matches.

The WCAC tennis championship is actually nine separate tournaments played over the three days. Each team has six singles seeds and three doubles seeds, and each seed plays the corresponding seeds from the other teams.

Going into the doubles championship matches, the Knights were trailing 26-25 to Gonzaga, but the #1 doubles teams of Patrick Hughes/Erick Rivas, #2 doubles team of Kevin Shepard/Luke Brinkmann and the #3 doubles team of Gianni Snidle/Shaun Freeman swept the doubles championship matches giving the Knights a convincing WCAC win.

Luke Brinkmann also added a #4 singles title, while Patrick Hughes (#1 seed), Eric Rivas (#2 seed) and Christian Kotto (#5 seed) all made it to the singles finals.

"We have been saying all year that this is our year," said Head Coach Mark Borgiasz. "We played as a team, we suffered and we rejoiced together, and at the end the we came out on top because our desire to win outweighed our fear of failure."

Read more about the Knights' win from The Washington Post.

On April 30, members of the O'Connell community gathered before the final regular season home baseball game of the season to dedicate the baseball stadium in honor of former coach, teacher and principal, Alward V. Burch. In attendance were Burch's family members, former players and students and many friends.

Mrs. Donna Burch cut the ribbon on home plate and her grandchildren unveiled the permanent plaque nearby. O'Connell's school chaplain, Rev. Gregory Thompson blessed the field and led the group in prayer.

More on the Burch Stadium Dedication...

Head of School blog (May 1, 2015)

Arlington Catholic Herald (May 4, 2015)

View photos below:

Congratulations to head softball coach, Tommy Orndorff, who reached 700 wins in his coaching career at Bishop O’Connell yesterday. The Lady Knights recorded this win in the last regular season game of the year, defeating Paul VI, 10-0 in six innings.

In his 30 years at the helm of the O’Connell softball program, Coach Orndorff has led the Knights to a 700-80 record (.897 win percentage), which include an impressive 21 Catholic league tournament championships and 19 Virginia Independent School state tournament titles.

“Pretty amazing,” remarked Coach Orndorff. “I came to O'Connell thinking that I would be here a year or two, and move on.  Thirty years and 700 wins later, I'm still here.”

“It has been a great run, one that I have thoroughly enjoyed,” he continued.  “But, truth be told, it has never been about me. It has always been about my players.  Players win games!  Players win championships!  I am fortunate that the program has attracted some great players through the years… and continues to do so.  I like to think that we have played the game the right way and for the right reasons—namely, our love of the game.  It is who we are, and hopefully we are not done yet.  There are still games to be won—and we are going to give it our best shot doing so.  I like to think that it is our time of year."

Read more about Coach Orndorff, who was inducted into the National Softball Hall of Fame last November.

Follow the Lady Knights as they head into tournament play this week. Find their schedule at www.bishopoconnell.org/softball.

Pictured above - The O'Connell softball team celebrates Orndorff's 700th win after the May 4 game vs. Paul VI.

Good luck to the Bishop O'Connell rowing team this week as they travel to Philadelphia to compete in the Stotesbury Invitational Regatta.

Read a Q&A with Coach Smith and Coach Saracina in this week's sports blog - The Week That Was.

Congratulations to the Bishop O'Connell softball team who clinched the Virginia Independent Schools Athletic Association (VISAA) Division 1 championship for the 20th time in 22 years.

The Lady Knights entered the state tournament as the No. 1 seed and shut out Liberty Christian, 5-0, in the semifinal game on Thursday, May 14, before defeating Paul VI in the title game, 5-2, the next day.

Olivia Giaquinto, Shannon Murphy and Erin Sweeney were named to the First Team All-State Team.

Patty Maye Ohanian was named the 2015 VISAA Player of the Year.

Head Coach Tommy Orndorff was named the 2015 VISAA Coach of the Year.

Read more about the championship game in the Arlington Catholic Herald.

Pictured: Seniors Olivia Barksdale, Erin Sweeney, Maddie Kelly, and Shannon Murphy.