Amanda Berntsen Girls soccer Senior Captain Defense Berntsen is a third-year starter on the girls soccer team. This season she is a team captain after she made First Team Defense-All Independence Division and Second Team All County in 2010. As a freshman she made the All-State team and since then has enjoyed continued success on the soccer field. "I like the intensity of it," Berntsen said. Berntsen also plays basketball, where she became the eighth female player to score over 1,000 points in a single season during her junior year. Over the summer she verbally committed to play basketball for…

LINDSAY HOLZINGER Girls Fencing Junior When Holzinger became involved with the high school’s first fencing team, she thought it would be an opportunity to branch out of her comfort zone. “I like to try new experiences,” she said. “When I started I didn’t know much about fencing. I wanted to try something different, and it was a great way to meet new friends.” Holzinger was also intrigued by the rare chance to compete on a team’s inaugural season. Before this year, junior Lindsay Holzinger knew nothing about fencing. By the season’s end, she was an accomplished competitor with several …

Julie Williamson Winter Track Sprints and Mid Distance Junior Julie Williamson prides herself on her versatility. Specializing in the 400 and 800 meters in the spring, the junior has spent her winter season experimenting with a variety of distances. The risks have proven successful. “I came in second in counties in the 600, which was a big accomplishment,” Williamson said. “I like the 600 because it is perfectly in the middle of my two best races. I have speed but also some endurance. This year, I did anything between the 200 and the 1200.” “She really helps bring the team together,” Head …

Tara Hanley Varsity Winter Track Distance Junior  Injury has not been able to slow Tara Hanley down. The junior, who began running at varsity level her sophomore year, hurt her hamstring early in the season. “We had to take time off,” Head Coach Julie Ullmeyer said. “It took a few weeks before she was feeling better and ready to train.” Ullmeyer was unsure if Hanley would be able to compete in State Sectionals, but the blustery weather cut them a break that would prove to be game-changing. “She wasn’t planning on running at sectionals,” Ullmeyer said, “but because of the weather we had an …

Erin O’Connor Varsity Winter Track Freshman  Frosh Erin O’Connor’s first season with the Cougars has been an impressive one. O’Connor, who specializes in hurdles and short distance, has cut close to twelve seconds from her 400 time. Shaving seconds from a short distance time is extremely difficult, and O’Connor’s efforts have been nothing short of astounding. “She went down from an 80 to a 68,” Head Coach Julie Ullmeyer said. “That was a huge improvement, and I’m hoping she’s going to drop another five seconds before the end of the season.” Coach also noted O’Connor’s growth in the hurdles, …

Katie Hurt Varsity Indoor Track Senior Katie Hurt is no stranger to the track. The senior captain is currently blazing through her fourth indoor season, and uses her experience to assist whenever she can. “She’s a very good leader,” Head Coach Julie Ullmeyer said. “She brings the team together and organizes them at meets, and she helps me out. It’s good having a senior like that at all the meets. We’ve had a lot of freshmen on the team, and she and [fellow captain Julie Williamson] have been a big help.” While training hard for her own gain, Hurt has also been tutoring some of the younger …

Amanda Berntsen Varsity Girls Basketball Junior Guard Over 1,000 points in the 2010-2011 season Junior Amanda Berntsen may be a star on the court, but she credits her exceptional season to her team’s unshakeable bond. “Our team chemistry is showing,” she said. “Besides our one loss, we’re playing really well together. Playing with each other is a lot of fun, and the most important thing is we’re all having a great time together.” “This group has been together for so long, and they play so well together as a team,” Head Coach Joe Gaba said. “They all look to each other as team leaders, and …

Greta Leberfinger Varsity Girls Swimming Senior Though Chatham High senior Greta Leberfinger played a number of sports in her younger years, she soon realized that swimming was her passion. “I really had the desire to swim,” she said. “I wanted to strive individually, and I wasn’t really into the big team sport thing." This season, Leberfinger’s independent endeavors have led her team to significant success. The Cougars are currently undefeated with nine victories. Leberfinger has been a significant contender throughout; of the 12 individual events she’s competed in, she’s won 11. Head coach …

KATIE GOEPEL Senior Tennis Katie Goepel does not follow the norm, even in her own family. One of triplets, her siblings Conor and Elise attended Chatham High School while Katie attended Kaplan College Preparatory, an accredited online school, her first three years of high school. While her siblings play several sports, especially soccer, Katie's sport is tennis and she has never played on a high school team. Last week, the University of Notre Dame announced that Goepel had signed a letter of intent to attend in the fall and join the tennis team. "I signed on Nov. 15," Goepel said. "I feel …

Tara Hanley Varsity Cross Country Junior Chatham High junior Tara Hanley capped her strong cross country season with an impressive finish in Saturday's Meet of Champions at Holmdel Park. Hanley had hoped to land in the top-ten, and placed eighth overall with a time of 18:30. Coach Amanda Hopkins said she was, "very proud of what Tara has accomplished this season." Hopkins added that Hanley began training long before the season's start in August. "I'm glad to see her get recognition for all of her hard work," she said. "She's an outstanding athlete and a hard-worker. It's exciting to see …

ANTHONY MALATESTA Junior Men's Varsity Cross Country Anthony Malatesta really likes to run. A junior in only his second year on men's cross country team, Malatesta plots out his own training courses through Google Maps that take him down Main Street to Madison, up to Shunpike Road and the Shop-Rite shopping center, and back to Chatham on Southern Boulevard. Malatesta said he runs 8 miles a day during the season and 12 over the summer. "It's very little skill, it's really just the hard work that you put in," Malatesta said. "The harder you train, the better you get." Malatesta's training paid …

AMANDA BERNTSEN Women's varsity soccer Junior Sweeper Amanda Berntsen, a junior at Chatham High School, has been on the varsity team since her freshman year. Head coach Tracey Blanchard said of Berntsen, "She's one of our most consistent players." Often stationed in the back, Berntsen is the team's sweeper and the go-to person for corner kicks. "She's a sweeper who scores goals," Blanchard said. "It's a coach's dream. "When someone comes down the field on a breakaway, I have no worries," Blanchard said. "She takes it [the ball] from them before they even know it's gone. And this isn't even …