Perhaps the most dominant team at Proctor over the past four years, the girls’ varsity basketball is within reach of winning a Lakes Region championship for the first time in recent memory as they continue to meet or exceed expectations throughout New England. As they approach the final weeks of their season, we spoke with the captains and coaches to hear first hand how they have navigated the ups and downs of the season and are preparing for the playoffs.
Individually, collectively, they are going to happen. We are going to lose our perspective, forget to do something, err in our decision making, and there will be consequences. Sometimes it is our fault, sometimes not. In short, mistakes are inevitable.
Proctor Academy is excited to announce the planned construction of a new Outdoor Center on the west end of campus after an anonymous gift of $3,000,000 catalyzed the project. Long committed to outdoor sports, the construction of the Proctor Outdoor Center reaffirms our institutional belief in the benefits of year-round outdoor activities.
Certain events throughout the year remind us of those stewards of community responsible for sustaining the Proctor of today in a way that is consistent with the Proctor of yesterday. On one of the busiest weekends of the winter, our Board of Trustees met to discuss the 2019-2020 budget, tuition rates, and the greater landscape of independent school market place, celebrated the opening of Phase 3 of the Farrell Field House renovation, hosted six home games, and capped the night with the 12th Annual Proctor Ski Area Celebration.
While the winter weather has been anything but consistent over the past few weeks, the one thing we can all count on is Proctor’s girls’ varsity hockey team being a scrappy, fun team to watch. Comprised of a group of girls filled with determination to compete against New England’s best despite a relatively small roster, the girls show grit and passion every time they step foot on the ice. When combined with great chemistry on and off the ice, Proctor’s girls’ varsity hockey team has found success this winter even though the results in terms of wins and losses may not be quite what they desire.
Dozens of Proctor alumni go on to compete at the collegiate level each year, in fact over the past four years, roughly 20% of each graduating class has continued their athletic career at the NCAA Division 1, 2, 3 or club level. Occasionally, Proctor teammates have the opportunity to be collegiate teammates, but rarely do we see a confluence of Proctor athletic talent at the same institution like we have at College of the Holy Cross this year with seven former Hornets playing Division 1 varsity sports for the Crusaders this year.
Proctor Academy varsity basketball team competes in the NEPSAC AA division, one of the most competitive high school basketball leagues in the country. After last season when the team was on the verge of breaking through in the league, this year’s squad has a much different look and will rely on its determination, teamwork, and work ethic to make an impact on the league. Smaller in size than every team they will face, what the team lacks in size, they make up with technique and a fast paced, uptempo offense.
The end of an era? A recent piece in Proctor’s student-run publication Hornet’s Nest, posed the question. Rumors on campus swirled, snippets of gossip coalesced into definitive opinions about what decision the school would make around a program that has seen regional numbers decline, our own numbers half from a high-water of 50 student athletes in 2013 to the lean squad of 25 this past season, and growing concerns around health issues. I heard rumors the school was going to axe the program. Definitely. Irrevocably. Talk that the deck was stacked. That Administration, Admissions, and I were turning our back on the program. That it was done. Finished. Football was over. Well…not yet. Not at Proctor.
