Towanda Sports Center: 2014 Season Review

Screen Shot 2014-11-17 at 1.55.56 PM2014 SEASON REVIEW

Yet another very successful season has come and gone at Camp Towanda, leaving us all asking the same question: where did the summer go? This was a year of transition as we look to take Towanda sports to the next level. Towanda Sports Center is a new concept, with a fresh outlook. Its popularity has grown among campers and staff and its momentum seems to have begun a new surge of energy at Camp Towanda.

… OUR CODE

In the season that was, our philosophy was, is and will always be clear: a safe time, lots of fun, teamwork, skill building, good playing style, excellent sportsmanship, strong bonds with opponents and of course playing to win. Winning a game is a simple concept. However, victories come in various forms and can be achieved in many ways, even in losing a game. Its not whether you win or lose, it’s HOW you win or lose and how you transform this into an experience that will take you forward. This is what we expect from our coaches and campers and we are proud to have achieved it.

promo_070

… SOCCER STARS

On the fields of play, there was a good amount of teams who succeeded in winning championships. Soccer led the way with Wayne County Champions, among which was our Senior (9th grade) boys who recorded their 6th Championship in a row, despite being taken to a penalty kick shootout in their semi final at Trails End.

promo_010…TENNIS INSPIRATION

Some amazing individual tennis performances resulted in two singles championships (Junior 6th grade girls and Club/10th grade boys) as well as a mixed doubles success (Senior/10th grade), with their strong return of serve a notable characteristic.

DSC_0204…SUPER HOOPS

Basketball enjoyed a good season with all-round strength in many age groups, notably the Tweens (5th grade girls) who were tenacious and emphatic in their game, dominating rebounds offensive and defensive on their way to winning their Wayne County Championship.

…TWEEN CHAMPS

The Tween girls, as a matter of fact, were our most successful group this year, winning the soccer version of Wayne County (in addition to the basketball) beating Indian Head by an emphatic score of 9-2 in the final.

promo_026…AMERICA’S FAVORITE PASTIME

Our baseball teams played hard and fielded strongly. We will work on our pitching and build on our foundation. In all sports, as in life, we learn from experience.

… LACROSSE PROMISE

Lacrosse reached two finals this summer – Inter (7th grade) boys and senior (9th grade) boys. A VERY enthusiastic staff accumulated lots of interest among the campers and revamped the whole program. A Hard-to-believe 20-1 victory at Chen-A-Wanda for our Club and L.I.T. (10th /11th grade) boys underlined what potential there is against traditionally strong opponents.

… HOCKEY REBUILDING

Most of our teams came very close but lost narrowly to very good teams. Stronger for the experience, this department has much to offer our campers in the future.

promo_029…SERVES AND FIRST DOWNS

Volleyball and Flag Football were also very popular, the latter providing a memorable Towanda Tournament victory for our Senior boys on August 4th, including a comeback against Tyler Hill (from 6-20 to 21-20).

…STRENGTH IN DEPTH

As mentioned earlier with basketball, almost every age group was able to shine in at least one sport, reaching at least one final or succeeding in an invitational tournament. From our Jet and Cadet boys to our Dorm/L.I.T girls, memorable moments were achieved in every sport. This is something we want to develop in the future, as well as the enthusiasm generated in swim, gymnastics and dance.

…ALL-IN-ALL

In victory and in defeat, it was clear that this was a very successful summer on the sports fields. Towanda Sports Center will add a lot more in the future. With all this in mind, Towanda Sports Center wishes everyone a good winter, many happy thoughts and promises of a 2015 season that will raise the bar even further.

To all our campers, families and staff, good luck out there in the “off-season” and see you in June!

Coach Lee Athletic Director

We Rocked Week 3!

c37e36c6-f12c-4d68-a817-a602f31b1fdeWeek 3 started off with a bang- when stormy weather caused us go indoors for Upper Camp’s roaring production of Queen’s We Will Rock You! The show went on and we all really enjoyed! We didn’t stop the music because Monday night followed with the Battle of the DJs! A dance party of epic proportions!!!

0a299a07-f736-490d-ac6b-a2582d5ec079We dodged some other showers on Tuesday evening to gather as a camp and watch the ALL STAR GAME live on the lawn on our extra-large outdoor projection screen in surround sound.  This is one of our favorite crazy nights, complete with Bob and Matt Miller grilling dogs, the Club boys hawking the dogs, Jared giving out Yankees popcorn bags from our vendor cart, Dorm girls serving beverages from the canteen window and Senior Staff acting as ushers at the game! 

rj 2The kids are busy enjoying culinary classes with Alumni Chef Ben- delicious, fun, educational. Recipes to follow at the end of the summer so you can make them at home and think of camp! The talented artists in Stephanie’s Fine Art’s class are becoming masters (of pride and art). General swims have kids swinging, sliding, sailing, windsurfing and swimming!

Another great evening activity this week was Electionality; our convention where each group comes as a “STATE” to cast their votes for the next Presidents of camp. State of “New Jerseys”, State of Selfies, State of Neon, State of Paper Plates and so on……  some very creative States…plus the state of the camp address and speeches by the candidates.

rj 12All good fun which ended with the election of our first ever international presidents, Maria & Juan from Madrid! Their successful campaign endorsed by the Giddiap Poll used the tag line: “We’re Number Juan”! They have promised Tapas Tuesdays and changing the name of rest hour to Siesta Hour.

Trip Day was wet and wild! Jets, Cadets, Debs & Dillies to Montage Mountain (lazy river and age appropriate water fun rides). Middies, Tweens & Juniors to Camelbeach! And Upper Camp to HERSHEY PARK!

1dc9d903-0386-4ff0-9d87-75f0f35c7740And here we are now, completing the 3rd week of camp and I can only say this place is magical. The experience of watching the young campers with the older campers, the mixed personalities, the varied interests and abilities, combined with the different backgrounds and upbringings funnel into creating this special “family” we all feel part of.

This is the sense Stephanie and I have…everyone waves hello to each other, smiles are exchanged and we are overall the way the world should be.  To think that camp will get better as the weeks go on is almost unimaginable. But we can’t wait!

There is so much MORE in week 4! Stay tuned…we know you will!