As Concord Academy starts off another exciting school year, along comes the fall sports season. CA offers four different fall athletic disciplines: cross-country, field hockey, soccer, and volleyball. Students have the option to try out for the following teams: girls and boys varsity cross-country; girls varsity field hockey; boys varsity, junior varsity, and thirds soccer; girls varsity and junior varsity soccer; and girls varsity and junior varsity volleyball.
One of the most popular sports, in participation as well as its fan base, is boys' and girls' soccer. The boys' varsity soccer head coach, Adam Simon P’15 ’18, has worked at CA since 1999 and is currently working as an admissions interviewer. In the 2024 season, the team’s Eastern Independent League (EIL) standing was exceptional. They earned the second seed in the conference with a 10-1-1 record, only losing to the Portsmouth Abbey School, which beat CA in the conference title game. For the 2025 season, CA hopes to take back that win against the Portsmouth Abbey School.
The girls' varsity soccer head coach, Ben Stumpf ’88, is a big part of the CA community on and off the field, also teaching courses in computer science, graphic design, and film. The team put up a 7-4-1 record last season, putting them fifth in the EIL conference. With the new incoming freshman class, the team is projected to have some killer new players and skills.
On another note, who does not like running long distances? Our boys and girls cross-country teams are fearlessly led by head coach Jon Waldron, who (from numerous chapel thank yous) is famously known as JWal. Waldron has led cross-country at CA since 2007 and helped develop the very popular spring track and field teams. Last year, at the 2024 EIL championship meet, the boys and girls teams placed second and seventh. A dozen students set personal bests, and three even received all-star awards. If you want to join a welcoming and positive environment, the girls' and boys' cross-country teams would love to have new and up-and-coming runners.
Another head coach that CA is lucky to have is Georgia Cassidy, who helps bring the girls' field hockey team success. Cassidy was not only the captain of the field hockey team at Colby College, but was also a three-time All-NESCAC selection and All-American selection during her senior year. Additionally, she played for the field hockey team at the University of North Carolina for one season, where she helped the team to the National Championship game. This fall, make sure to come out to Moriarty and support their journey to victory!
And last but not least is the girls' volleyball team. Their coach, who has been coaching at CA for 26 years, is Darren Emery. The team’s standings from 2024 were excellent. Ending fourth in the EILs, they brought home eight wins! Once again, we are all excited to see what they have in store for next season.
While the main focus of this article is the varsity teams, there are numerous junior varsity and intramural athletic opportunities. Many of the skills evolved in these programs are known to help students thrive and succeed at the varsity level.
For all the sports programs, start getting prepared, hydrated, and most importantly, hyped for the long-awaited tryouts starting September 1st.