Deerfield Academy's quest for gold wound up either too short on the scoreboard or too long on the clock this fall. When it came to postseason play, none of its athletes were the first to finish, nor any of its teams the last to leave their arenas of competition.

Not even the Big Green's water polo team - which was seeking its third straight New England championship - was afforded the opportunity to turn out the lights. This season, the Deerfield mermen (12-9) wound up fourth in their Final Four festivities, falling to Exeter, 15-5, then Choate, 9-8.

Elsewhere, field hockey (8-6-1) and volleyball (9-7) earned postseason invitations but both were eliminated after quarterfinal round play. The Big Green being ousted by Greenwich in field hockey action, 5-0, while Hotchkiss bumped Deerfield from its volleyball fray, 3-0.

The Big Green placed fifth at the boys New England Cross Country Championships, as Sam Belcher ('11) and Ben Wood ('13) placed 12th and 13th respectively. The girls, meanwhile, placed sixth in their New England meet, despite the fact that their top two runners - Dashiell Schulte ('13) and Shelbi Kilcollins ('12) - were both injured during the championship race.

Deerfield's boys soccer team concluded with a 10-6-1 record, but failed to earn a postseason invite, while the girls soccer squad (6-5-5) remained home as well. Football, meanwhile finished with a 3-5 mark.

Water Polo

The Big Green's timing was off a bit this fall.

"We peaked in the middle of the season," said Coach Mark Scandling of an October stretch that saw his swimmers ring up a five-game winning streak and a 7-2 record by outscoring their opponents 116-78.

"Unfortunately, we weren't able to sustain that intensity through the end of the season," added the Deerfield skipper.

And so, the Big Green logged an 0-3 showing in November - its regular-season finale as well as both playoff games.

It wasn't exactly the kind of ending the Big Green had become accustomed to over the past two years. And that goes double for the five seniors who had played a part of both championship runs.

This Fab Five consisted of tri-captains Grant Villeneuve, Connor Dougherty and Randwulf Singleton, as well as Tom Burrow and Cameron Overy.

"They were certainly a big reason for our success over the past three years," said Scandling, as the seniors he spoke of closed out a three-year record at 44-16.

While Villeneuve was clearly the Big Green's leading scorer this season - and earned All-New England honors for his efforts for the second straight year and was recipient of the team's Coaches Award - individual statistics on a Scandling team are downplayed.

"In a sport such as this, you need a balanced scoring attack or the opposition can simply drop a couple players on your top scorer and negate him. While Grant was our leading scorer, I bet you'll find that we had a different leading scorer in every game we played."

And with that, Scandling quickly pointed out that both Burrow and Overy chipped in at both ends of the pool by consistently scoring and then shutting down their opponents from doing the same. Newcomer Borislav Kovacev ('10) also treaded water at both ends, while Singleton patrolled the middle of the pool to prevent opponents' breakaways.

Perhaps the biggest show of versatility, however, came from Campbell Johnson ('11). Johnson started the campaign as the Big Green's goaltender, but when Scandling felt he needed a little more size on offense, he moved Johnson up front, "and he fit right in," said Scandling.

Richard Beaumont ('11), who was Johnson's backup, took over between the pipes, "and played a key role in our midseason winning streak," said Scandling.

The Big Green graduated six of its top eight players last year, "so, it took a while to find the right chemistry as far as teamwork was concerned," said Scandling. "But around the midway mark of the season, we really began to mesh as a team.

"Our versatility...our resilience...our endurance began showing through," added Scandling. "Our offense was once again being keyed by a balanced scoring attack and we found our defensive intensity. Those were the keys to our last two championships. Unfortunately, we seemed to lose that edge coming down the home stretch this season."

Field Hockey

Nothing new to report on the Big Green's recent field hockey campaign. The Gals in Green maintained the status quo: they won way more games than they lost and they won enough games to qualify for their postseason tournament.

This is arguably the most consistent program in Deerfield's athletic arsenal. As the school celebrates its 20th anniversary of going co-ed, Big Green field hockey has received tourney invites following 18 of their seasons.

"This program has been blessed with some outstanding student-athletes along the way," explained coach Kim Wright, "and this was a really special group, too."

Of the nine seniors on this year's squad, three: Sam Anderson, Hally Sheldon and Alex Philie have played past "Choate Day" all four years they have been on the squad. Two others, meanwhile, Jean Witmer and Lillian Nolan have made three tourney appearances.

"This was a special group," said Wright of this crop of seniors who rang up an 8-4-0 league mark and an 8-6-1 overall showing and who have combined to post a 28-12-4 record over the past three years.

"This team beat Taft (2-1) for the first time in a long time this season," said Wright, who also was quick to point out that they had also defeated Greenwich twice in the past four years.

Greenwich, the proverbial powerhouse in the Western New England Prep School Field Hockey Association, had Deerfield's number this season, however. Greenwich pinned a 7-1 setback on the Green during the regular season and then ended their title hopes with a 5-0 defeat in the quarterfinal round of the playoffs.

Anderson proved to be the Big Green's leading scorer this season with 17 points on seven goals and 10 assists, while Jamie Haddad ('12) was next in line with a dozen points on a team-high 10 goals and a pair of assists.

For Anderson's efforts, she was named to the Western New England All-Star Team, as was Philie. Witmer, meanwhile, who was always assigned to cover the opponent's top scorer, was named to the New England All-Tournament Team and would also later collect the team's Deerfield Field Hockey Cup.

With Witmer keeping the opponent's prime threat at bay, goaltender Claudia Easton ('10) had a fighting chance in goal. Despite facing the Greenwiches of the schedule, Easton's goals against average was a trim 2.1. She finished with three shutouts, while allowing two or less goals in eight other games.

One of those stingy efforts was wasted against archrival Choate, however, as Deerfield outshot it, 17-3, but lost on penalty strokes, 1-0.

"Overall, I feel we had a great season for ourselves," said Wright, "The kids played hard and worked hard and we qualified for the playoffs ... which is what you're always trying to do. Unfortunately, we didn't go as far as we would have liked to have gone."

Next year's captains will be Nina Kempner ('11) and Kate Anderson ('12).

Volleyball

Deerfield Academy's volleyball team earned its way into postseason play for the second straight season.

The Big Green didn't storm into the festivities like it did last year with a 15-3 record and a number 3 seed. But this year's edition of the Gals in Green made it, "and that's what we're all shooting for from day one," said first-year coach Cathy Markowski.

This year's squad rang up a 9-6 record, which was good enough for an eighth seed.

Unfortunately for Deerfield, however, eighth seeds always play first seeds. And that meant opening up against Hotchkiss, which sent Deerfield home early following a 3-0 victory.

"We had a relatively young team this year," said Markowski, who tutored the Deerfield JV team last year. "We had just four seniors on this year's team, so hopefully, we'll have something to build on in the future.

The Big Green's Big Three were seniors Luigia Goodman, Morgan Marks and Shannon Horn, as all three earned berths on the New England All-Star Team.

Goodman led the team with 105 kills, while Marks, who won the team's Coaches Award, had 102 digs and made good on 95 percent of her serves. Horn, meanwhile, produced 26 aces and 89 assists on the season.

Charlotte McLaughry ('11) chipped in 27 aces, while Marly Morgus ('12) registered 207 assists.

Inconsistency marked the Big Green campaign, and that shortcoming was rather obvious right from the start. Deerfield split its first four games of the season - winning both by 3-0 margins and losing both by the same 3-0 scores.

Its best stretch came at midseason when the Big Green put together a four-game winning streak and rang up five wins in seven outings to qualify for tournament play. That stretch saw what Markowski called "two of our biggest wins of the season, as Deerfield knocked off Exeter and Taft by 3-2 scores.

Boys Cross Country

When the curtain came down on this fall's boys cross country campaign, Deerfield Academy coach Steve Anderson probably couldn't have helped wondering "What if…

As he headed home from Northfield Mount Hermon School, which hosted the New England Prep School Cross Country Championships this season, Anderson probably couldn't have helped but wondering what if his top two runners hadn't had to slush through a deluge of rain and compete on a course that had turned treacherously muddy and slippery.

And, what if his third- and fourth-runners hadn't come down with the flu the week before the title race and been able to either compete or compete at full strength.

Well, what if they did...what if they did and the Big Green took it all in stride.

"It would certainly suggest that we had a very strong showing," said Anderson of a truly team effort that ended up earning Deerfield a fifth-place finish in an 11-team field.

"I think something like this really speaks to the character of these kids," said the Big Green skipper. "They faced adversity and overcame it and I just can't express how proud I am of every one of them."

As expected, Sam Belcher ('11) led the Big Green runners to the finish line as he posted a 12th place finish to earn All-New England honors for the second year in a row.

"But it just wasn't going to be Sam's day," said Anderson of his No. 1 guy who placed seventh in this race a year ago. "Sam ran gamely through the first half of the race before he started to fade."

Teammate Ben Wood ('13) finished right on Belcher's heels in 13th place to wrap up his rookie campaign with All-New England laurels.

The difference-maker may well have been Hayden Moreau ('11), however. Normally, Deerfield's No. 5 runner, "he stepped up and ran the best race of his career by far," said Anderson, to finish 26th.

Fred Quesada ('12) wound up 34th while George Reich ('13) who was Deerfield's No. 4 runner, "made a heroic effort," said Anderson, "but ultimately didn't have his full strength after battling the flu," and wound up 38th. Number 3 runner, Aaron Cyr-Mutty, meanwhile, who was also suffering from the flu, never made it off the sidelines.

"If they had been able to finish between Wood and Moreau, it would have put our score in the high 70s or low 80s...right where Exeter (third) and Choate (fourth) finished," said Anderson.

Loomis ended up winning the team title, while Andover was second.

"We took our lumps and got some perspective during the early part of the season," said Anderson, whose club will host next year's championship races. I think we improved tremendously over the last two weeks of the season."

And Anderson is eager to look ahead to the future, "in fact, I can't wait for next season to get started."

And why not? The Big Green returns its top five finishers - including a pair of All-New England runners.

Belcher received the Peter C. Brush Award, while Ashik Desai won the Moreau C. Hunt Award.

Girls Cross Country

They have steadily risen from the back of the pack to the middle of the field.

The Deerfield Academy girls cross country team finished 10th at the New England Championships two years ago. Last year, the Gals in Green wound up eighth. This year, they were sixth in the 11-team competitive field. And just the mere thought of the Big Green finishing sixth that fateful day is a testament to this team's depth.

With its No. 1 runner, Ariel Beauregard-Breton ('11) missing most of the season with a knee injury and playing cheerleader for the day, the Big Green then lost its next two ranked runners during the New England championship race: Dashiell Schulte ('13) and Shelbi Kilcollins ('12). Schulte suffered a knee injury on the course, while Kilcollins injured her shin and were unable to finish.

"It was crazy," said Deerfield coach Dennis Cullinane of the title race, "between the boys and the girls races, there were a number of runners who were unable to finish.

"Fortunately," added Cullinane, "we had some runners who picked up the slack and helped us finish in the middle of the field."

Deerfield, despite the key injuries, ended up placing four runners among the top 36 finishers, and was paced by Jinane Gedeon Achi ('13), who placed 26th while Rose Fisher ('13) was next in line in 34th place. Tatum McInerney ('13) and Victoria Serra ('12) were 34th and 36th respectively.

But don't shed too many tears for this program, because Cullinane has a feeling the best is yet to come - if his runners can manage to stay healthy.

For starters, all his point producers return to the fold next spring, and that includes Beauregard-Breton. "And she's one of the premier runners in New England," said Cullinane. "In fact, she beat the girl that finished second at the New England championships...and beat her easily."

The showdown Cullinane speaks of came at the Canterbury Invitational, which Beauregard-Breton won easily.

"Ariel even took a wrong turn and still beat her," said Cullinane. "It happened with about 150 yards remaining in the race …there was a slight turn in the trail Ariel went left and the other girl went right. Ariel went about 20 yards before she realized her mistake...she turned around and raced to the finish line and still won handily.

"And," added Cullinane, "I'm sure if she ran in the championship race she would have won that too...she's that good."

Katherine Walker ('10) was the winner of this year's Moreau C. Hunt Award, while Leanne Conway and Serra were voted co-captains of next year's squad.

Boys Soccer

With a final record of 10-6-1, it was difficult for the Big Green boys soccer to be on the outside looking in at the postseason playoffs.

Unfortunately, only eight teams are chosen to attend the tournament and it's always a bitter pill to swallow for the program that ends up ninth. And this fall, that pill went to Deerfield.

"We had a great season," said coach Jan Flaska. "When it came to the tournament, however, they take the top eight teams from throughout New England...the top four from the East and the top four from the West."

And although Deerfield finished with a better standard than some of those teams qualifying from the East, it finished with a No. 5 ranking in the West.

"It ended up so close that I think if we'd scored one more goal, we might have made it," said Flaska. "We might have made it if we'd tied NMH during the last week of the season or we might have made it if we'd beaten, not tied, Wilbraham, the week before. It was that close."

And it really was that close, as the Big Green failed to leave itself any margin for error the entire season. Despite its one-sided record, it only outscored its opponents by the slimmest of margins: 2.1 to 1.2 goals per game. In fact, 11 of Deerfield's games (6-4-1) were decided by two goals or less.

Although its offense averaged just over two goals a game, it was a consistent effort, as it failed to score in just one game.

Hunter Huebsch ('11) was the team's top scorer, while Tucker Dayton ('10), who is the only player among the team's top five scorers who will not be returning, was next. Sam Redmond ('11), Jim Bitter ('11) and Jackson Dayton ('13) followed in order.

Tucker Dayton, who won the team's Holbrook-Ellis Cup, also earned a berth on the New England Prep School Soccer League All-Star Team, as did goaltender John Rose ('10). Rose finished his Big Green career with a stingy 1.2 goals against average as he registered six shutouts and allowed just one goal during six other games.

"I really felt good about this team," said Flaska. "The kids really worked hard and it paid off for them.

"Another thing I liked about this team was the way our seniors and young kids worked so well together."

And there were plenty of those younger kids around this year, as the bulk of this squad returns next fall.

"We have four of our five top scorers returning, as well as three of our six defensemen, and it's got me excited about next year already," said Flaska.

And the Big Green mentor will have plenty of leadership out there on the field, as his players elected four captains for next year. They are Huebsch, Bitter, Redmond and Alex Ward ('11).

Girls Soccer

So close, yet so far.

That, in five words, sums up the Deerfield Academy girls soccer season.

Despite closing down at 6-5-5, "if we had won either one of our last two games, we would have made the playoffs," said Big Green coach Heidi Valk.

And what makes matters worse, it coulda and shoulda won that last one against archrival Choate. But, it didn't, falling 1-0.

"It was a disappointing loss," said Valk, whose team had tied Wilbraham three days before, 2-2. "We had about 20 chances to score against Choate, but we just couldn't pop the ball in the net."

Overall, scoring never came easy for the Big Green this fall, as it scored just 28 goals in 16 games. That's an average of just under two goals a game. In fact, Deerfield tallied two goals or less in 10 of those 16 games.

Fortunately, the defense played well enough to make the most of most of those precious goals, as it allowed just 24 during the season.

With goalies Jackie Tavella ('11) and Ellie Carroll ('11) at the top of their games, Deerfield won three one-goal games and dropped three others - all by 1-0 margins.

But even Deerfield's goaltending had some question marks this season, and they began early.

"Jackie got hurt on the first day of practice," said Valk, "so Ellie stepped in and played very well. Then Ellie got hurt at the end of October and so Jackie came back and did the job over the last four games."

Offensively, Connie Rhodes ('12) was the Big Green's leading scorer and for her efforts, she, along with defenseman Allie Gray ('11) were named to the league All-Star team.

"We lost eight kids from last year's team and of those eight, four or five were pivotal players...they had specific skills that were difficult to replace," said Valk

"It took a while," added the Deerfield mentor, but we finally filled those voids.

Other forwards Valk pointed out were Elizabeth Tubridy ('10), Halley Dewey ('11), Samantha Byrne ('10) and defenseman Catherine Wadman ('13).

"When we started out, we really didn't know what we were going to be like," said Valk. "We had lost a lot of kids to graduation and we had to see what these new kids could do."

Well, they got the Big Green to within a goal of the playoffs - and 13 of these youngsters will be considered veterans come next fall.

This year's Marjorie Ellis Cup was shared by Maddy Keeshan ('10) and Kirstan Vaughan ('10), while next year's captains will be Gray and Dewey.

Football

There's no "I" in team, but there are plenty of them in injuries and inexperience and there were plenty of injuries and inexperience in Big Green football this fall. The result was a 3-5 record.

Another factor that helped lead to Deerfield's demise on the gridiron this season was the cycle that prep school sports constantly go through. While Deerfield was long on inexperience and coping with a rebuilding campaign, some of its opponents weren't.

"In my opinion, Exeter, Andover, Taft and Hotchkiss all had the best teams they've had in quite some time," said Big Green coach Mike Silipo, "but we're hoping that the young kids who took their lumps this season will form the nucleus of an experienced squad next year.

"I think if they can come through for us and we bring in a few post graduates between now and then we'll be a pretty good team next season."

The shining light for the Big Green this season was Conner Scott ('10), a 6-4, 185-pound split end and defensive back.

Scott, who earned All-New England honors, as well as being named recipient of the Tom Ashley Memorial Award, was all over the field for Deerfield. On offense he caught 35 passes for 427 yards and six touchdowns - in just seven games. Defensively, he was the team's second leading tackler with 43.

"Conner missed the Choate game, which we lost (19-3)" said Silipo, "but I truly believe if he'd been in there, we could have won that game He was the difference maker for us this season."

Elsewhere on offense, quarterback Cyrus Wittig ('10) passed for 850 yards and nine touchdowns on the season. And a chunk of that yardage came during a 24-21 overtime victory over Loomis, when he completed 13 of 18 passes for 145 yards. The win eventually came via a field goal by Zach Koufakis ('10) who booted five of them during the season.

Mac Jackson ('11) was the Big Green's leading rusher this fall, as he scampered for 530 yards and four touchdowns on 102 carries.

Next year's captains will be Yianni Grupen ('11), Andrew Sutphin ('11) and Jackson.