AT H L E T I C SEIL ALL-STARSGirls BasketballOlivia Pimm’10Maia Johnstone ’10 (honorable mention)Boys BasketballAndrew McCue ’10 (honorable mention)Girls SquashHailey Herring-Newbound ’12Becca Imrich ’10 (honorable mention)VolleyballAshley Brock ’12Kendall Tucker ’10Steff Spies ’12 (honorable mention)Eileen Yung ’10 (honorable mention)Boys WrestlingDylan Awalt-Conley ’10 (EIL champion)Sam Miller ’12 (EIL champion)David Do ’10Henry Kim ’11Jeremy Owades ’10Max Samels ’12CMSL HONORSBoys Alpine SkiingStephen Sarno ’11 (first place)Peter Benson ’11 (second place)Girls Alpine SkiingAlexandra Urban ’10 (second place)NEPSAC HONORSGirls Alpine SkiingHadley Allen ’12 (second place <strong>Class</strong> Bgiant slalom)Girls BasketballOlivia Pimm ’10NEISA HONORSBoys SquashAndrew Kelliher ’12C O N C O R D A C A D E M Y M A G A Z I N E S P R I N G 2 0 1 034
Suzanne ParryCoach John McGarryRacing to the Bottom, Landing on TopPhotos by Dan Sanfordnbridled euphoria” is how John McGarry“Udescribes the start of the ski season. “The firstday of dry-land training each year still feels like thelast day of school when I was a little kid.”McGarry, head coach of Concord Academy’sboys and girls alpine ski teams, has led CA to nineCentral Massachusetts Ski League (CMSL) titlesand three New England Preparatory School AthleticCouncil (NEPSAC) championship titles in the past sixyears. His enthusiasm is key to the teams’ success.“John always brings an impressive amount ofenergy to practice, whether it’s a fifteen-degree dayof dry land training or an afternoon of skiing in therain,” said girls team captain Alexandra Urban ’10.“More than that, he keeps pushing us all to do ourbest throughout the whole season, no matter ourskill level.”In 2010, the boys, girls, and combined teamswere undefeated in the five-school CMSL, poweredby a combination of relaxed confidence and fiercedetermination. “They put on an easygoing Bodeface to outsiders, but in the starting gate, they wereall Lindsey,” McGarry said, referring to Olympicchampions Bode Miller and Lindsey Vonn.McGarry became head coach in fall 1998,shortly after joining CA’s Admissions Office, wherehe is director of financial aid. Prior to CA, McGarrytaught economics and math, and coached baseball,volleyball, basketball, and soccer at a school in California.“When I arrived on campus, there was no CAfaculty member coaching the team,” said McGarry,who lives on campus with his wife Suzanne, sixyear-oldTyler, and five-year-old Annie. On most winterweekends, the McGarrys are schussing downslopes at Killington in Vermont; both kids skied aBlack Diamond slope before their fifth birthdays.Growing up in Lincoln, Massachusetts, McGarrylearned to ski when he was three. “My dad andfour older siblings were all avid skiers and capableinstructors,” he recalled. McGarry raced competitivelyinto his early teens, but a family move toHouston during high school essentially ended hisracing career. He attended the University of Vermontand managed its ski team, which then regularlywon Division I NCAA championships. “I workedwith the coaches, learned from some of the bestskiers in the world, and stayed connected to skiracing,” said McGarry. Following college, McGarryspent two years as a ski instructor at Crested Butteand Breckenridge in Colorado.“Skiing is a lifelong sport, and the approach Ibring to practice and competition is a dedication toenjoy each day and a willingness to take advantageof and maximize each student’s physical gifts —tohelp all of them become fitter, stronger, more proficientskiers.” he said. “To be able to share my lovefor skiing with great kids is a pleasure.”McGarry describes his coaching personality as“upbeat and high-energy.” But that wouldn’t translateto championships without a keen ability toinstruct and strategize. “Skiing is about disciplinedand controlled aggression. Good ski racers arethoughtful, plan ahead, and take carefully considered,calculated risks,” he said. “Most importantly,they thrive on the adrenaline-fueled thrill of skiingreally fast, competing—and winning!”—Tara Bradley35C O N C O R D A C A D E M Y. O R G S P R I N G 2 0 1 0
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