Back in mid-December, Moravian Academy closed its doors for a relaxing winter break for both the faculty and the students. The next few months will be quite eventful on the Merle-Smith Campus as students receive acceptance letters, participate in winter sports, compete in academic competitions, perform in concerts, and sing in musicals.

The Moravian Academy girls and boys basketball teams played in the John Donmoyer Basketball Classic, which is held in memory of John Donmoyer, a beloved Moravian boys basketball coach who has been deemed District 11’s all-time winningest boys coach. Although the scores were tight, the boys team unfortunately lost both its matchups in the tournament. The girls basketball team did not suffer the same fate, but in fact won both its games. Junior captain Sofia Ettle is very optimistic about this season and said, “if we work hard as a team we could have a shot at the League championship. I think a lot of people were not expecting much from our team this year, but we have a lot of hidden talent that not many people have seen. It is going to be a tough ride, especially without any seniors on the team, but I think we can make it.”

Look for Sofia and the rest of the girls basketball team out on the court in some of their colonial league matchups this coming month.

Moravian Academy students have won numerous academic competitions in the past few months. The Quizbowl Team under the direction of Kevin Ferdinand competed in the PBS 39 Scholastic Scrimmage and easily earned the victory. The starting team consisted of only seniors including Samit Mohapatra, Sebastian Holbrook, Theo Urban, Lilly Evazzadeh, Eric Jackson, Yiyi Chen and captain Divik Verma.

Similarly, the History Bowl Team secured a qualification for the national History Bowl Competition held in Arlington, Va. The Robotics team, under the councel of Dr. Jefferey Lawlis and Lara Cesco-Cancian, achieved a silver medal at a pre-season event. The team looks forward to an upcoming spring competition and hopes to place even higher in the new year.

Moravian Academy’s annual CoffeeHouse was held in November. The show included some of Moravian’s music groups, such as the orchestra, chorale and jazz band, but it also included many other performances. Some of the most memorable acts included Will Bakos on aerial silks and Sophia Mangino dancing to mxmtoon’s “Prom Dresss,” sung by Mona Ziabari, Alison Riker, Samantha Abraham and Sebastian Holbrook.

In addition to CoffeeHouse, Moravian has begun preparing for the spring musical season. The Moravian Academy theater department is excited to announce the 2022 musical: “HMS Pinafore.” Under the direction of Jarrod Yuskausus, the students will be portraying British characters on a boat, the HMS Pinafore, in this comic opera. Junior Sofia Eckman is excited about her upcoming role as Ralph Rackstraw, a sailor who is in love with the captain’s daughter, Josephine, who will be played by sophomore Alicia Gordon.

Sofia is elated that things are “starting to open back up” and she stated, “due to the pandemic, we were unable to do an in-person musical last year. I am thankful that we were able to produce streams and videos, but nothing can replace the special energy the audience, cast, and crew feel during a live performance. I think this show will be so unique and special because we are all so thankful to return to normal rehearsals and hopefully a live performance!” Mark your calendars for the “HMS Pinafore” performances in the early spring.

Lastly, many members of the Moravian Academy orchestra will be performing in the annual Red and Gold recital. Performances can be expected by Yan Yu, Emma Derby, Ellie Capobianco, Okezue Bell and Chessie Bartolacci, who have all been accepted into the 2022 Pennsylvania District 10 orchestra.

Although the first semester is coming to an end, Moravian students have already achieved so much and are excited to return in January to participate in all the special events the school has to offer in the new year.