Sixteen student-athletes earned All-IAC honors, the varsity football team was named IAC Co-Champion, and Nathan Furgeson ’24 was selected as the IAC Player of the Year for football. Here is a wrap-up of the fall 2023 varsity season.
Cross Country
Under the leadership of Head Coach Tom DiChiara and captains Nicolas Alway Roza ’24, Dylan Furbay ’24, Brannon Hamilton ’24, and Ian Lever ’24, the Bears opened the season with a strong third-place finish at the Landon Mark Ferris Invitational, followed by a decisive tri-meet victory. Led by tight pack running from Roza, Larry Franklin '25, Jack Fucci '25, Furbay, Hamilton, and Lever, the Bears finished fifth at the IAC Championships, fifth at the Montgomery County Private School Championships, and sixth at the Maryland Private School State Championships.
Football
The Bears came together to prove that the sum is sometimes even greater than its parts, winning a share of the IAC championship with an overall record of 7-3 and an IAC record of 4-1 under captains Zach Cameron ’24, Nathan Furgeson ’24, Anthony Panetti ’24, and Ahmed Zaid ’24. The first three games of the season were all shutout victories: John Carroll 17-0, St. Paul’s School 24-0, and Potomac School 35-0. The victory over Episcopal High School was Episcopal’s first IAC loss since 2021. The season came to a close with decisive wins over St. Stephen’s & St. Agnes and St. Albans. Twelve players earned All-IAC honors: Cameron, Furgeson, Barrett Hoffman ’24, Lucas Knight ’24, Quinn MacIntyre ’25, Panetti, Chase Robertson ’24, Tiller Smith ’25, Caden Southworth ’25, Troy Ulisney ’24, Zaid, and Ubie Zaid ’26. Furgeson was named IAC Player of the Year and won the Military Bowl DC Touchdown Club’s Player of the Week for his performance against St. Albans, while Robertson was recognized as Montgomery County Athlete of the Week as well as Military Bowl DC Touchdown Club’s Private School Player of the Week for his performance against Episcopal. Head Coach Paul Padalino noted Senior Speeches – in which each senior on the football team is given time to speak to the team and coaching staff about his experience playing football at Landon – as a true highlight of the season.
Soccer
Head Coach Bill Reed’s Bears finished the season with an overall 9-7-1 overall record, a 5-4-1 IAC record, and an appearance in their third straight IAC tournament championship game. Captains Nick Della Rocca ’24, Vincent Ingram ’24, and Hugh Neill ’24 led the team to an early season win over a Bishop McNamara High School team that was ranked #2 in “The Washington Post” at the time. They also won a shutout away at Georgetown Prep and had a come-from-behind victory away at Bullis. The most dramatic game though was the IAC tournament semi-final, in which the team beat St. Stephen’s & St. Agnes, away, in an overtime penalty kick shoot-out; the goal scorers in that shoot-out were Kendall Buford ’26, Graham Haberl ’24, Ingram, and Jackson Tewksbury ’24, and goalie Luke Tegeris ’26 made two saves, including the game-winner. Della Rocca, Masai Gordon ’24, Ingram, and Tewksbury were awarded All-IAC honors.
Volleyball
This was the fifth year that Volleyball has been a club sport at Landon. Head Coach Emily Howe led a team comprised of freshman newcomers all the way up to four-year veteran players from the Class of 2024. Captains Jackson Evans ’24 (a two-year captain) and Haris Fazlic ‘24 led the team to the program’s first official win, finishing 1-3. They look forward to continuing to improve their skills and competing more next year!
Water Polo
The Bears went 2-8 this season under the leadership of Head Coach Dan Moorin and captains Benji Groeschel ’24 and James Shelton ’24. The team beat Malvern Preparatory School in a thrilling overtime penalty shootout at the Gilman Challenge, where Luke Finnell ’25 shot the game-winner. Then, the Bears came out victorious in a back-and-forth match against McDonogh School at the Beast of the East tournament, the largest tournament on the East Coast, held at area high schools in the Philadelphia area.