By David Fierro
Greenwich Country Day School’s volleyball team accomplished a first for its program and the school.
A 3-0 victory over The Rivers School in the championship game of the NEPSAC Class B Volleyball Tournament gave Greenwich Country Day School its first NEPSAC volleyball title and marked the first New England championship for GCDS since it became a high school in 2019.
Top-seeded Greenwich Country Day’s win over second-seeded Rivers School in the NEPSAC Class A Tournament final at Taft School on Nov. 17 capped a memorable and historic 2024 season the Tigers, who rolled to a record of 21-3 under the guidance of head coach Morgan Withrow. Led by senior Willa Ball and junior Cara Lehmitz, Greenwich Country Day was also presented with the Clyfe Beckwith Sportsmanship Award, voted by all the NEPSAC coaches.
“Not only did the team win a championship, but they did so with sportsmanship, kindness, character and grace,” GCDS Director of Athletics Tim Helstein said. “We are the only school with both the Clyfe Beckwith Sportsmanship Award and the NEPSAC Championship.”
In GCDS’ championship win against The Rivers School, Lehmitz, an outside hitter, recorded a team-high 12 kills to pace the offense. Junior libero Caroline Cabrera paced the Tigers’ standout defensive effort, posting 17 digs against Rivers School.
Volleyball at Greenwich Country Day School is a relatively new sport. Coach Withrow founded a middle school team at the school. A varsity team wasn’t even created at GCDS until 2022, so this marked only the third season the Tigers had a varsity squad.
In just three seasons, Withrow and her staff brought the team from infancy to the NEPSAC championship.
“The culmination of our win on Sunday was the product of six years of grinding, speaking up to earn respect as a brand new sport, and teaching players and families how to become part of this community on and off the court,” Withrow said. “The accountability and expectations for my athletes is high and while the path wasn’t always easy they can now rest easy knowing that they are champions.”
Volleyball is now the largest girls’ athletic program at GCDS, with four middle School teams, three upper school teams with 115 girls participating between 6th-12th grades, including only one senior.
Greenwich Country Day School’s championship volleyball team included in alphabetical order: senior middle blocker Willa Ball, junior libero Caroline Cabrera, junior outside hitter Charlotte Darwent, junior outside hitter Grace Gapen, junior middle blocker Cameron Hendrickson, sophomore middle blocker/opposite Anna Hill, junior outside hitter Cara Lehmitz, freshman setter Ryan Millim, junior opposite Chloe Sneddon, junior setter Maya Steinhardt and junior opposite Lara Young.
Greenwich Country Day’s 2024 season began with 3-0 victories against Kingswood Oxford, Christian Heritage and Frederick Gunn. The Tigers were edged by King School, 3-1 on Sept., 18, then defeated Kent and Hamden Hall Country Day School. Following a 3-2 loss to Rye Country Day School, GCDS won 13 matches in a row to improve to 18-2. After losing to King in the FAA Tournament final, the Tigers received an opening round bye, then went 3-0 in the NEPSAC Class B Tournament to finish its season with a highly impressive 21-3 record.
