MANCHESTER, NH – From the basketball court to the hockey rink to the heights of New Hampshire’s ski slopes, the weather forecast may be growing cooler by the day, but practices are heating up for Manchester Memorial High School student athletes as the winter season approaches.
Girls Basketball
Head Coach:
- Greg Cotreau (8th season)
- Three more wins to reach 100 at Memorial, including holiday tournament games.
Last Season:
- 9-9 in the regular season (and 10-10 overall).
- 11th-seed in Division I playoffs, upset 6th-ranked Exeter in the first round before losing to Bedford in the quarterfinals.
Returning Starters:
- Payton Moran (Senior captain)
- Torle Adumene (Senior captain)
- NyAsia McKelvey (Junior captain)
Other returning varsity players include Marlaina Schmitt (senior), Jocelyn Eosue (senior), and Ashlyn Bartnicki (junior).
Promising Newcomers:
- Elizabeth Champagne (Junior)
- Kelly LeGallo (Junior)
- Avery Jenkins (Freshman)
- Jenavyzia Collazo (Freshman)
- Jaelyn Hartford (Freshman)
Expectations this season:
“As always for us, the expectation is to continue to get better and grow each day. We’ve lost a lot of production from last year’s team so we’ll have lots of new faces in roles that will be new to many of our girls, so there will be an adjustment period but as long as we show progress from the day before and keep our goals small, but achievable, we will be where we need to be by the end of the season. In terms of challenges, it will be how quickly we can acclimate our veterans with our newcomers to the varsity speed of the game. We have three freshman on varsity this year that we are incredibly excited about but there is a major jump from playing middle school to being big contributors on varsity team. Getting our newcomers acclimated to the speed of the varsity game early will be very important to our success.” – Head Coach Greg Cotreau
Boys Basketball
Head Coach:
- Danny Bryson (7th season)
Last Season:
- 5-13
Top Returning Athletes:
- Bory Bory (Junior captain)
- Devin Lavallee (Junior captain)
- Jack Brooks (Junior)
- Kellen Kay (Senior)
Promising Newcomers:
- Christian Bilolo (Junior)
- Joel Gomez (Freshman)
Expectations this season:
“(Our)expectation is playoffs. (Our) challenge is having a young team with very little variety experience outside of the starters … (I’m) just really looking forward to the season with this group. Although we are young group, there is a different feeling in the gym from previous year in a positive way and the energy and effort has been very noticeable and contagious.” – Head Coach Danny Bryson
Boys Indoor Track & Field
Head Coach
- Thomas Lynch (26th season)
Last season:
- Two state champions (Alexis Rivera in the long jump and AJ Sebastien in the 55-meter dash)
Top returning athletes:
- AJ Sebastien (Sprinter)
- Diego Martinez (Sprinter)
- Owen Davis (Distance runner)
- Stephen Denio (Distance runner)
- Furdy Fricker (Hurdler)
Up-and-coming athletes:
- Chase Burris (Junior)
- Blake Bickfod (Sophomore)
Expectations this season:
“This year, as a team, my expectation is for the boys to get better week-to-week and to be very competitive at the division meet on February 11.” – Head Coach Thomas Lynch
Girls Indoor Track & Field:
Head Coach:
- Leanne Guimond (2nd season)
Last season:
- 2 athletes competed at indoor state meet
“We made great strides by the outdoor season. We are looking forward to moving up in the ranking this season.” – Head Coach Leanne Guimond
Returning Athletes:
Captains:
- Ayomide Vivian-Sanni (55, 300, high jump and 4×400/4×200 relays)
- Abby Bah (55 dash, 55m hurdles and shotput)
Standouts:
- Hannah Rodriguez (55-meter dash, long jump, 4×200)
- Jordan Courter (55-meter dash 4×200, long jump)
- Fatumo Nur (300, 600, 4×400)
Promising Newcomers:
- Monsserraht Tovar Perez (Sprints – 55-300m)
Expectations this season:
“Work hard in the classroom and on the track. Proudly represent Manchester Memorial High School. Believe in one another and help each other achieve our goals both on the track and in life … This team has immensely grown in the last year and I feel incredibly blessed to be working with them. They are becoming leaders in the building and are spreading positive energy to those around them. If we can keep working hard the opportunities are endless.” – Head Coach Leanne Guimond
Unified Basketball
Head Coach:
- Kendra Shidlovsky (5th season)
“I have been coaching unified since 2019! 2020 was obviously a bust, so I suppose this will be my 4th season with the team. I previously coached the varsity cheerleading team at Memorial for 5 years, but I find coaching unified to be much more fulfilling and significantly less stressful. I also find that it has more of a positive impact on the school culture.” – Head Coach Kendra Shidlovsky
Last Season:
“We do not have a win-loss record. We did not participate in the playoffs. Since returning from Covid, returning to a traditional practice and game schedule outside of school hours was a challenge. Our student athletes, especially those with special transportation requirements, were not signing up due to the inability for the parents to transport them. Additionally, bussing was a huge challenge to find. In order to make sure we still had a team, we started holding practice during school hours and playing games versus Central or West via an assembly in the schools. This change to the traditional schedule is what has made unified basketball possible at Memorial these past few years. While we hope to return to a regular practice and game schedule soon, where we travel to other schools and compete, I will say that hosting games as assemblies has had a tremendously positive impact on our school culture. Students and staff alike look forward to the games, and they are truly supportive of our athletes.” – Head Coach Kendra Shidlovsky
Expectations this Season:
“I expect we will have a lot of fun this season! Our helpers are enthusiastic, compassionate, and responsible, and our athletes are full of energy and competitive spirit. We are looking forward to getting the school more involved in the assembly-style games, making posters for the athletes, playing knock-out during half time, and more. We can’t wait for the season to start and, even though we will only be playing West and Central, we are hoping to come out on top!” – Head Coach Kendra Shidlovsky
Girls Ice Hockey (Co-Op with Central/West):
See Manchester Central winter sports preview.
Note: We have reached out to all varsity head coaches. The teams of those who have responded are featured here. Please check back as additional teams may be added in the days to come.