Blake Cellar, Darien Football
Blake has been accepted to the National Honor Society and has a cumulative GPA of 4.27.
He has been awarded the Cornell Book Award and placed first at a statewide DECA (business) competition.
Blake has won two Class LL state championships as a me mber of the varsity football team. The senior co-captain was awarded the team’s Most Improved Player last year as a junior. He is also a member of the lacrosse team and has won two FCIAC titles and one state championship.
He volunteers regularly at the George Washington Carver Center in Norwalk and is an active member of Mu Alpha Theta, Kids Helping Kids, DECA, and Safe Rides Darien.
Jessica Mazo, St. Joseph Girls Soccer
Mazo has excelled in the classroom and on the soccer field.
She has a 96.82 GPA and is a member of the National Honor Society, National English Honor Society, and National Spanish Honor Society.
Jessica has been a team captain as a junior and senior for the defending FCIAC champion Cadets, she is a two-time All-American and has helped the Cadets win three Class L state championships.
She will attend UConn and play soccer there.
Ben Rifkin, Greenwich Boys Soccer
This four-year soccer player started for a Greenwich team which won back-to-back FCIAC championships in 2016 and ’17. He made the All-FCIAC West Team last year and is a team captain this year.
Ben has made High Honor Roll every year, he has a 4.8 GPA, is a National Merit Commended Student and an AP Scholar with Distinction.
He is on the Steering Committee for Anti-Defamation League’s Names Team at Greenwich High School and has also volunteered at Playsmart Academy.
Jessica Takami, Fairfield Ludlowe Girls Volleyball
Jessica has been accepted into the National Honor Society, as well as the Math, Latin and Science Honor Societies.
She has achieved a 4.3 GPA and has been on the Honor Roll since her freshman year while taking mostly AP and Honors classes.
Jessica is a senior co-captain for the girls volleyball team. She has been a varsity player since her sophomore year and last year she earned All-FCIAC Honorable Mention.
Jessica received a Book Award from Wellesley College, which recognizes young women for their intelligence, determination, motivation and achievement. She is a member of Build-On and Junior State of America and volunteers at St. Vincent’s Hospital.
Taryn Duncan, Westhill Girls Swimming and Diving
Taryn has made Honor Roll while taking AP and Honors classes, she has a weighted GPA of 4.65, an unweighted GPA of 3.83 and and is a member of both the National Honor Society and the Italian National Honor Society.
The four-year member of the girls swimming and diving team is a senior co-captain who has done very well in FCIAC and state championship meets, including when she was a member of the 400-yard freestyle relay team which broke the school record at last year’s State Open.
Taryn competes on the Stamford Sharks year-round, where she was named a Connecticut Swimming Scholar Athlete, and she has done two mission trips with her church.
Luke Kirby, St. Joseph Football
This senior two-sport athlete maintains a 4.0 GPA while taking both Honors and AP classes each semester and he has achieved President’s Honor Roll every year.
Luke is a member of the National Honor Society, National Chinese Honor Society and the Tri-M Music Honor Society.
He has been a member of the football and baseball teams since his sophomore year. He currently holds sox school records in football for kicking and last year as a junior he was an All-State Honorable Mention and selected to the All-FCIAC East First Team.
Luke is a recipient of the Fairfield University Book Award.
He is a Student Ambassador and also an active volunteer for the American Cancer Society and Habitat for Humanity.
Gianluca Trofa, Norwalk Boys Soccer
This senior four-year member and sole captain of the boys soccer team has a weighted GPA of 4.52 and is currently ranked first out of 388 in his class.
Gianluca is a member of his school’s National Honor Society and Italian Honor Society.
He volunteers for several community organizations. Gianluca volunteers for his St. Thomas the Apostle Church, being a Youth Group leader, being a St. Baldrick’s shaving participant, being an Italian Club member, a Link Crew Leader (freshman mentor), refereeing for soccer, and volunteering as a middle school intramural coach.
Allison Brea, Greenwich Girls Swimming and Diving
Allison, who will be inducted into the National Honor Society this fall, has a cumulative GPA of 4.9.
She has been recognized as a National Hispanic Merit Scholar and has been president of the Spanish National Honor Society for the past two school years. Allison is also a member of the National Math Honor Society (Mu Alpha Theta) and Science National Honor Society.
As an athlete, Allison has swum all four years with the state championship girls swimming and diving team and this year she is one of the team’s captains. She has qualified to swim in championship meets every year, including the State Open last year as a junior.
Allison plays the violin in her high school orchestra and is a Senior Ambassador Girl Scout who has earned the prestigious Gold Award.
Grace Shay, Trumbull Field Hockey
Grace has a 3.75 GPA as she has made High Honor Roll during her freshman, sophomore and junior years.
She has been a starter for the field hockey team since her sophomore year and is a senior captain. Last year she made All-FCIAC Honorable Mention.
Grace is a Senior Link Crew Leader, an Appalachian Service Project participant, and a recipient of the Golden Eagle Community Service Award as she has volunteered in excess of 200 hours of community service.
Faith Somody, Stamford Girls Swimming and Diving
This senior National Honor Society member is an Honor Roll student while taking all Honors classes and she has an unweighted GPA of 3.5.
Faith is co-captain of the cooperative Westhill/Stamford girls swimming and diving team and during the spring she is a member of Stamford High School’s boys golf team.
Last year Faith made the All-FCIAC Second Team and was the Westhill/Stamford girls swimming and diving team MVP.
Faith has volunteered with Backyard Humanitarian and St. Leo’s Parish.
She has verbally committed to swim for Assumption College.
Andrew Conte, Ridgefield Boys Soccer
Drew has achieved an unweighted GPA of 3.9 and is a consistent High Honor Roll student while taking all Honors and AP courses.
He is a senior captain and a three-year varsity player for the boys soccer team.
Drew is also a Role Model Mentor, Unified Soccer assistant coach, and volunteer for the Soccer Club of Ridgefield.
Samantha Page, Westhill Girls Soccer
This three-sport senior has been accepted to the National Honor Society as she has achieved a 3.91 unweighted GPA and a 4.88 weighted GPA while taking all Honors and AP classes.
Samantha was also a recipient of the University of Virginia Book Award.
She will end up being an athlete for all 12 seasons of her high school career as a member of the girls soccer, gymnastics and outdoor track and field teams. Last year she captained the gymnastics team as a junior and this year she is captain of both girls soccer and gymnastics, two sports in which she earned All-FCIAC Honorable Mention accolades as a junior. Samantha also qualified for FCIAC and state championship meets in the 100-meter hurdles and pole vault this past spring.
Emilia Cuevas, Norwalk Girls Swimming and Diving
Emilia is a senior captain and four-year member of the cooperative Norwalk/McMahon girls swimming and diving team.
She has a cumulative GPA of 4.47 while taking mostly AP and Honors courses.
Emilia is president of the Kevin Eidt chapter of the National Honor Society, president of her school’s Best Buddies,and president of the French Honor Society at Norwalk High.
She is also a member of her school’s Link Crew and enjoys volunteering for community organizations such as the Bridgeport Rescue Mission.
Lauren Castle, Ridgefield Girls Soccer
Lauren is a High Honor Roll student with a 4.6 GPA while taking 11 AP classes and a recipient of the National Merit Scholarship Commended Student Award and the AP Scholar with Distinction Award.
She is a goalkeeper and co-captain for Ridgefield’s girls soccer team and also a goal keeper for Yankee United FC.
Lauren has earned her Girl Scout Award. As a girl scout she has also earned several other awards such as her Ten-Year Pin Award, Silver Award, Bronze Award and Journey Award.
Adam Tolk, Trumbull Football
Adam is a three-year player and two-time captain (junior and senior years) for the football team who has a 4.0 GPA while taking all Honors and AP courses.
Last year he was the team MVP and selected to the All-FCIAC West Division Team one year after he made All-FCIAC Honorable Mention as a sophomore.
Adam was the only student-athlete selected to be part of the committee responsible for performing interviews and selecting the new head coach of Trumbull High School and resulted in the eventual selection of new head coach Marce Petroccio.
He volunteered to help coaches conduct practices for Trumbull Pop Warner during
August of 2016 and 2017 and worked with the players.
Adam is also a Link Crew member who guides students in the freshman class toward acclimating to high school.
Emma Rothkopf, Wilton Field Hockey
Emma is a true student-athlete with an unweighted GPA of 3.95, taking AP and Honors classes, along with an independent study in Neurobiology.
She is a member of the National Honor Society, Spanish National Honor Society, and was selected to be one of three students school-wide to represent the student body on Wilton’s District Math Curriculum Review Committee.
Emma is a three-year starter for the varsity field hockey team who earned All-FCIAC Honorable Mention last year and is a captain this year.
Emma also volunteers for several organizations. Along with being an offficer in Wilton High School’s American Cancer Society Club and a member of Class Act, Emma sponsors a teen (from the Philippines) through the “Unbound” program, is a volunteer youth field hockey coach, a volunteer mentor of an eighth grade student-athlete in Wilton Field Hockey Association’s Buddy Program, and a Red Cross certified babysitter.
Emma is committed to Brown University, where she plans to play field hockey and study biomedical engineering.
Katelyn Sparks, New Canaan Girls Soccer
This three-sport athlete is also a three-sport captain as she is currently team captain of New Canaan’s girls soccer team and will also serve as captain of the girls ice hockey and girls lacrosse teams.
Katelyn has achieved two All-FCIAC awards in hockey, and has played in the state semifinals and last year’s FCIAC championship game. She was a key player for New Canaan’s Class L state championship girls lacrosse team this past spring and will continue playing lacrosse in college at Claremont McKenna College.
This National Honor Society member has a 94.8 GPA and has achieved High Honor Roll throughout high school while taking AP classes.
Katelyn is a teen mentor for young girls around Fairfield County through a program called LiveGirl and an active teen leader in her local youth group at St. Aloysius. Katelyn also sings in the high school chorus and is a member of student government.
Malcolm Going, Danbury Boys Cross Country
Malcolm has a 3.6 GPA and is a member of both the National Honor Society and Peer Leadership.
He is a captain of the boys cross country, boys indoor track and field, and boys outdoor track and field teams that have been a dynasty in which Malcolm has been on teams that have won a combined six FCIAC championships, six New England championships, five state titles as well as one National Championship title in tracks. He has one state record in track, four school records in track, was captain of the freshman boys soccer team and he holds three swimming school records.
Malcolm has volunteered at the local public library, community events, as a PAL summer swim coach, and was a builder of the Danbury Town Hall edition of the Little Free Library.
Taina Vargas, Bridgeport Central Girls Volleyball
Taina has achieved a 3.43 GPA while taking challenging Honors classes such as Chemistry, English, Algebra, U.S. History, Spanish, Biology and Geometry.
She became a girls volleyball team captain as a junior and this year she became a two-time captain.
Taina has volunteered for several community organizations and is adept at working with kids. She utilizes her bilingual skills to help many youngsters.
Jasmine Stone, Danbury Cheerleading
Jasmine has been a varsity cheerleader since her freshman year and she has been a two-time FCIAC Grand Champion and 2017 Class LL state champion. Jasmine is now in her third year on the team and has been chosen as team captain.
She has a 4.0 GPA and has received High Honors every quarter since her freshman year.
Jasmine has participated in many safe walks for Domestic Violence and Alzheimer’s. She also has volunteered many hours with working through her church at summer camps and soup kitchens.
Ashton Williams, Stamford Cross Country
This High Honor Roll student has a 4.0 GPA while taking AP and Honors classes. He is also a recipient of the UVA Jefferson Book Award.
Ashton is so well respected by his peers that he has been a cross country and outdoor track and field team captain since his junior year, and an indoor track and field team captain since his sophomore year. He has been a multiple cross country team MVP since his sophomore year and as a sophomore he was the Most Outstanding Track Athlete at the outdoor city championships.
Ashton is a National Honors Society vice president, a student representative on the Stamford High School Athletic Council, and during his junior year he was an SPEF mentor.
Jack Richardson, New Canaan Boys Soccer
This National Honor Society member has taken High Honors courses his entire high school career and achieved a 4.0 GPA.
Jack is a captain for both the boys soccer and boys basketball teams during this senior year.
He is a board member of Service League of Boys and serves as the meetings coordinator for the club.
Jake Northrop, Fairfield Ludlowe Football
Jake is a senior captain and a four-year starter for the football team who made the All-FCIAC West Team last year as a junior.
He has made Headmaster’s List in 10 marking periods and achieved a 4.1 / 4.0 GPA.
Jake, also a varsity boys basketball player, has volunteered more than 100 hours at both the local boys and girls clubs and the community through Wakeman Keystone. He is currently a Scholars and Athletes Serving Others (SASO) member.
Kristen Murphy, Fairfield Warde Field Hockey
Kristen, who has a 4.61 GPA while taken mostly AP and Honors classes, is secretary of the National Honor Society and part of national Spanish, Social Studies, Science and Math honors societies.
She has been a part of field hockey and outdoor track teams for all four years.
Kristen received the Columbia Book Award, is a National Hispanic Scholar, a National Merit Semifinalist, and president of La Vida Latina, Model United Nations, and Students Demand Action.
Emmet Towey, Brien McMahon Boys Soccer
Emmet has received the Student of the Marking Period award twice and achieved a GPA of 4.5 (5.0 scale).
He has been a member of the boys varsity soccer team and boys outdoor track and field team for three years.
Emmet has been in the Student Senate, Art Club, and he’s a two-year member of the Rowayton Civic Association and Rowayton Arts Center along with several other volunteer and community organizations.
He is also a young leader relating to social awareness issues as he was awarded with the Student of the Quarter Award for the third quarter in the 2017-18 school year due to his leadership in organizing a school-wide walkout in remembrance of gun violence victims and to raise awareness of gun violence, specifically those of school shootings. Emmet collaborated with both the school and with representatives of the Women’s March movement to orchestrate the event on March 14, 2018.
Charlotte Hussey, Brien McMahon Girls Soccer
This member of the National Honor Society has a cumulative GPA of 4.4282, she is the treasurer of her senior class and is a recipient of the Dartmouth Book Award.
Charlotte has been a member of the girls soccer and girls lacrosse programs for four years. She was McMahon’s recipient of the News 12 Scholar Athlete Award.
She is president of the Junior Rowayton Civics Association and has volunteered with Norwalk Junior Lacrosse and the Norwalk Education Foundation.
Ryan Muhlenberg, Fairfield Warde Cross Country
Ryan has been with the cross country, indoor and outdoor track programs throughout high school and has steadily improved throughout his career that he received the Most Improved Award for indoor track during his junior year and he has become a senior co-captain for the boys cross country team this fall.
Last year he was accepted into the National Honor Society and he maintains a 4.18 GPA.
Drew Herlyn, Wilton Football
This four-year member of the football program has been elected captain of the freshman, junior varsity and varsity teams and he’s been a two-year starter at running back and strong safety. Last year he made the All-FCIAC East Division Team.
Drew has made High Honor Roll for four semesters and Honor Roll for every semester and he made the National Honor Society in the first round based on criteria of GPA, leadership, character and service. He also made the German Honor Society based on his academic performance and enthusiasm for German language and culture.
Drew is also a four-year member of the boys lacrosse program who was elected captain of the freshman and junior varsity teams and he is a two-year varsity starter.
He tutors his fellow Wilton High School students and volunteers for many school and community organizations.
Nick Ambrose, Staples Boys Soccer
This National Honor Society member has been First Honors throughout his high school career and achieved a 4.3 weighted GPA taking AP and Honors classes across all subject areas.
Nick, who also has the criteria for an AP Scholar with Distinction, is a three-year varsity soccer player who is currently a senior co-captain.
He has volunteered for Special Olympics and for other youth sports in town.
Bruce Ferguson, Darien Football
Bruce is a captain of the Darien football and lacrosse teams while maintaining a 3.5 GPA in school. He is a member of the Student Governing board at Darien HS, president of Student League of Darien and participates in the Challenger Baseball Program each Saturday for students with disabilities. He also participates in Darien Safe Rides and Kids helping Kids programs.
Bruce’s teams have won two state and one FCIAC football championships and two state and three FCIAC lacrosse championships.
Bruce will attend Cornell next year and will play lacrosse.