by Garrett Fodor
With the 2018-2019 schoo-year in its final days, Essex District High School (EDHS) recognized the hard work and dedication of its school’s athletes.
The annual Athletic Banquet was held on Monday night, at the Essex Legion. The event brought together the athletes, their coaches, and families for a celebration of EDHS althetics.
The annual banquet celebrates the accomplishments of the high school athletes individually and participation on school teams. It also offers an opportunity to hear stories and highlight performances that may have gone untold over the school-year.
Joe Amicarelli is head of the Physical Ed Department and coaches various teams. EDHS gym teacher Andy Hahn also serves as a coach to several for the school’s teams. Both Amicarelli and Hahn took a moment to say how proud they were of the athletes and their accomplishments over the past school-year.
Amicarelli said the population of EDHS is 725, which is in the middle of the population average for this area. He added that having five different teams reach OFSAA is an accomplishment that demonstrates the level of hard work and dedication the students displayed as individuals and as part of teams. The school was represented at OFSAA by the Senior Boys’ and Senior Girls’ Volleyball teams, the Golf team, the Swim team, and the Track and Field team.
Major award winners on the evening included: Kimberly Orton, Milan Lobana, Brent Davison, and Montana Wilkins, each taking home multiple individual awards. The award for female and male Senior Athletes of The Year were presented to Kimberly Orton and Spencer Campeau.
While the night celebrates athletic accomplishments, it also recognized the work of student athletes, who are dedicated to their education as well as sports. Taking home Scholar Athlete Honours were: Brooke Salter and Milan Lobana.
Essex will have four of its current grade 12 students graduating with scholarships to continue their athletics at the post-secondary level.
Hahn and Amicarelli both echoed how strong the history of athletics are at EDHS. It is something that continues to grow and reaches new heights each year. This year was the best performance the Swim Team has ever had. Both Hahn and Amicarelli are excited about the bright future of the school’s athletics with many great, up-and-coming, athletes still currently enrolled at the school.