LILY SHAPIRO
Lily Shapiro ’29 dominates the soccer field as one of the smallest and youngest players on Girls Varsity Soccer. Don’t let her size fool you—she’s been playing soccer since she was 7 years old after picking it up from her father and older sister, Jessica Shapiro ’26. Her father is one of her most significant role models in life: “[He] has always taught me to keep my head up high.” Another inspirational figure in Lily’s life is Lionel Messi. Lily learned much about game strategy through “countless hours of [watching him play].”
Lily plays right wing for the Groton team and center-attacking midfield for her club team. She loves the GVS team.
“It’s just a better team environment,” Lily said. “With club soccer, it’s way more cutthroat and competitive. In school, we’re just a good group of kids who really want to play soccer.”
In one of the more recent games, Lily scored the only goal for Groton against St. George’s. While this was a major milestone in her athletic career, Lily set her next few goals for the season with an impressive amount of ambition.
“I want us to win the ISL and beat the odds,” she said. “I hope we beat BB&N this year because they’re really good, and we love a good underdog story.”
When asked about strategies that could be implemented to help the team achieve these goals, Lily responded determinedly that speed of play was an important element of the strategy.
“We’re not the biggest team size wise, so [we could] move the ball around the team rather than through the team.”
Lily’s first soccer season at Groton has been a thrilling one, and her talent and ambition both on and off the field may be just what the team needs to secure their much-deserved victory this year.
CERES MORAITIS
Ceres Moraitis ’28, started running two years ago by herself because she “felt like it and wanted to spend more time outside.” Last year, she joined her middle school’s cross country team to start running competitively. Now, she is the top runner on Groton’s Girls Varsity Cross Country team, placing second overall in one of the more recent cross country meets and securing both personal and school record times for the 5K.
This talented young runner is a new Third Former at Groton and is very passionate about her new team.“It’s a lot more relaxed than public school, and everyone is very friendly,” she says. “It’s not very stressful or intense, and I like meeting up with my teammates every day to run.”
Ceres is passionate about running not only for its competitive aspect but also for its nature and the ability to find joy in every step. She said, “I just do it because I like running, not because I like racing.”
When asked about where her thoughts go while running, Ceres shrugged and said, “I usually follow along with whatever conversation happens.While racing, I try to do some sort of math to distract myself.” When pressed further, she admitted that it was just “first grade math.” This distinctive strategy helps Ceres achieve her stellar record times in races.
For the team as a whole, Ceres hopes that they will “minimize the time differences between runners and have a strong season together.” Though a third former, Ceres is already a strong leader and inspirational role model to others on her team. With her outstanding natural talent, an innate love for running, and collected demeanor, Ceres continues to crush it out on the trails one step at a time.
REX HUDSON
Under the blinding white lights, Rex Hudson ’28 sprinted up and down the soccer field at the Maqubela Track and Field Complex. Hundreds of students, all in black, cheered on the track. As a part of the defense, Rex made sure that any ball on the right side was pressured and then taken out.
A striker from Proctor Academy ran towards him, sliding between defenders, shuffling the ball between his feet. Rex started forward and then slid, taking the ball with him. He then cleared the ball down the field. As Rex later recalled, it was favorite part of the game.
Rex started playing soccer when he was 4 years old. He enjoys meeting new people, being in the supportive community, and seeing his hard work pay off. In particular, Rex loves to slide tackle. “I remember I slide-tackled one of the players against St. Paul’s,” he recalled. “He got up and pushed me over—it was funny.”
His favorite player is Lionel Messi, someone who was often seen as less because of his size. However, over his career so far, Messi proved everyone who doubted him, winning eight Ballon d’Ors, an international award presented to the player with the best performance over the previous season.
So far, Rex loves his Groton team, but he also acknowledges that they haven’t gotten into the rhythm yet. “I think we have a great team, everybody bonds well. I think we just need to figure out what works for our team, and we haven’t figured that out yet.”
Over the next months, Rex looks forward to standing out amongst his competitors and being part of a supportive team, where he knows they can be successful in every game.
