Rose Rather
Rose is a three sport standout athlete, having competed in Field Hockey and Lacrosse at King and Ice Hockey for Rye Country Day. Rose was Captain of her field hockey team and also received both All League and All New England awards, leading her team with 10 goals and 10 assists her senior year. Rose’s real love is Ice Hockey, starting out in the Squirt travel program at the age of six.
Although attending classes at King, Rose played two years for the Rye Country Day ice hockey team as King does not have a team. As a junior she earned All-League honors and lead the league in both goals (62) and assists (27). In her senior year, Rose set the Rye all-time leading scorer record with a total of 163 points. She completed her senior year with 48 goals and 26 assists. The pinnacle of her ice hockey career to date has been playing in the U.S. Nationals four times, competing against the top women ice hockey players in the country. The next stop for Rose is the College of Holy Cross where she will be a member of the Ice Hockey Team.
In her application essay, Rose stated a saying that has motivated her throughout her athletic career, “if you don’t know how to fail, then you won’t know how to pick yourself up”. Athletics has also shaped Rose’s life. For every sport she played, she always knew there was a higher level to attain. Above all, she believes athletics can teach you life skills far beyond the field. Rose’s coaches all talked about her ability to use those life skills.
According to Elizabeth Oxler, Rose’s field hockey coach at King, beyond her athletic abilities, Rose always took the time in practice to work with younger players individually and was always the first one to run and jug a player when they scored a goal or made a great move. Elizabeth also said so eloquently about Rose, “Rose was our most valuable player because she made the team her most valuable possession”. Lastly she said, “when thinking about adjectives such as gracious and generous spirit used to describe Allyson Rioux, I am aware that those are also words used to describe Rose Rather”.
These exact words were expressed by Rye Country Day girls ice hockey coach Gil Castagna as he described Rose along with Cooperative, sportsmanlike and organized.
Megan D’Alessandro
In her application essay Megan said participating in athletics has many benefits, both tangible and intangible. While the tangible ones of exercise and awards are nice, the intangible ones of mental strength and integrity are what have influenced her the most. Megan truly practices what she believes. Her three coaches, Ali Walsh, Mike King and Tom Pia all commented on her amazing work ethic, her leadership strength both in the classroom and on their teams and her ability to garner the respect of her teammates. Mike King summed Megan perfectly when he said “Both Megan and Allyson share similar qualities; athletic success across three sports, academic prowess, being a winner, being a fighter, having a willingness to work hard and a passion for sports.”
Megan ended her essay stating how grateful she is to the women that paved the way for her by fighting tirelessly in passing Title IX and allowing equality for women in athletics. She called Allyson a trail-blazer who made playing three sports with a drive to succeed possible. Megan has also successfully accomplished the same.
The Allyson Rioux Memorial Foundation and the Award Committee is thrilled to have Rose & Megan join our list of amazing student athletes.
We will honor these two student-athletes on Thursday, May 9th at 7:00pm at the Italian Center during our Celebration Dinner. Tickets are available for purchase through SUNDAY, MAY 5, 2013 through our PayPal link on the left.
The Allyson Rioux Memorial Foundation