Sports 10-01-2015

WHS sports roundup

WHS boys soccer

team wins three games

The rejuvenated Winthrop High boys soccer team enjoyed one of the finest weeks in the program’s history with three victories in three outings. In addition, one of the triumphs came against a fellow Division 4 opponent, non-league rival Hull, which clinched a spot in the MIAA post-season state soccer tournament.

“We definitely had a great week,” said WHS head coach Kyle Gagin, who has reinvigorated the boys soccer program after it had been diminished to a junior varsity-level sport last year because of a lack of numbers.

The Vikings began the week with a 4-1 victory at Northeastern Conference rival Saugus last Wednesday. Jacopo Velesi, an international exchange student from Italy, reached the back of the Saugus net three times to record a hat trick. Senior captain Matt Sennott also scored for Winthrop and freshman Washington Miguel was credited with a pair of assists.

Winthrop duplicated that effort with another 4-1 victory Friday against Lynn Classical. Sennott and fellow senior captain Mike Norris scored in the first half to give the Vikings a 2-1 lead at the intermission. Although Classical came on strong in the second half, WHS keeper Kevin Barrera proved to be an impenetrable force in net over the final 40 minutes. The Winthrop offense meanwhile, continued to generate opportunities and eventually cashed in, with senior Mike Casey crashing the net to put home a rebound with 10 minutes to go to make it 3-1. Velesi then applied the coup de grace with a goal late in the contest for the 4-1 finale.

“Kevin Barrera had a great game in net for us,” said Gagin, “as did junior center back Carlos Mendoza and sophomore left back Steve Tracy. I had Steve man-mark Classical’s right striker in the second half after he had created a lot of problems for us in the first half, and Steve shut him down, which definitely helped us out.”

Miguel recorded two more assists in the winning effort.

The Vikings then made the long trek to the south side of Boston Harbor to Hull, to face the Pirates, whose windswept, uneven, rocky, and small home field on the edge of Boston Harbor provides for a picturesque setting, but makes Miller Field look like a putting green.

Although Winthrop dominated play from the outset, the Vikings could not find the finishing touch with the same degree of accuracy as they had displayed in their previous two contests.

“A lot of it was due to the bad field,” noted Gagin. “The ball would bounce in an unlucky way for us. Plus, the field was surrounded by the ocean and the wind would carry the ball a different way whenever we took a shot.”

Hull took a 1-0 lead in the opening half, but the Vikings responded five minutes later, with Velesi knotting matters, assisted by Miguel. Winthrop continued to control the possession after the intermission, but could not break the 1-1 deadlock.

However, with about 10 minutes on the clock, Gagin switched the Vikings’ formation from a 4-2-3-1 to a 3-5-2, which added senior captain and right back Jake LaFratta into a more attacking role. The move created more chances for the Vikings, as LaFratta overlapped Norris,  creating problems for Hull’s defense.

With about a minute left in the contest, Norris was taken down in the box, earning the Vikings a penalty kick. LaFratta converted it, giving Winthrop the win and a place in the state tourney in November.

“We’ve made a couple of changes to our lineup,” said Gagin after his team’s fine week of play. “Washington Miguel is now our attacking midfielder and junior Arthur Barasch and our Brazilian international exchange student, Leo Sacchi (a senior), now are defensive midfielders. All three really impressed in all three of our games.”

Velesi’s five goals for the week give him six on the season and Miguel’s four assists add to his total of five for the year.  Gagin also praised the play of Mendoza. “Carlos did really well, too,” added Gagin. “He made a bunch of key tackles, interceptions, and blocks and made a lot of great passes to build out of the back.”

Gagin and his crew have a busy stretch ahead. They were set to take on Danvers Tuesday and to host Peabody today (Thursday). They will travel to Revere Monday and will entertain Beverly Wednesday.

Volleyball team nets

two more victories

The Winthrop High volleyball team netted a pair of impressive victories over Saugus and Lynn this past week to improve to 5-1 on the season.

In a 3-1 triumph at Saugus last Wednesday (25-3, 25-7, 26-28, 25-15), WHS head coach Christy Scott was able to utilize all of her players in the contest in which the Lady Vikings handily won the first two sets by lopsided margins.

Haley Holden was named the Player of the Match, turning in an all-around performance in which Haley led Winthrop with five kills while also delivering six service aces.

Other leaders for Winthrop were Lacey Scott with 10 assists, four blocks, and four digs; Nina Bartlette, with four kills and five aces; Maddie Fainga’a with four blocks and four digs; Allie Love with four kills; and Bianca Powers with four aces.

Two days later the Lady Vikings shut out Lynn, 3-0 (25-12, 25-23, 25-20). Bartlette was a powerhouse at the net, smacking 11 kills and making three blocks. Holden also was a force up front with eight kills and four blocks. Meg Dolan accounted for five kills and Scott earned 28 assists. Nicole Perullo was named the Player of the Match.

The Lady Vikings took on Danvers this past Tuesday and travel to Peabody today (Thursday). They will host Revere Monday and trek to Beverly Wednesday.

Golfers defeat Salem, 42.5-29.5

 

The Winthrop High golf team earned its third win of the season with a 42.5-29.5 victory over Salem Tuesday afternoon on the local links at the Winthrop Golf Club.

Patrick Stafford was the top point-scorer for Winthrop, defeating his Salem counterpart 7-2 in the No. 6 slot. Nate Rich was a big winner at No. 7, 6.5-2.5. Harry Floyd at No. 3 and Sean MacDonald at No. 4 both topped their Salem rivals by scores of 6-3.

Winthrop’s top golfer, junior Jack Wallace, won his match at No. 1, 5-4. Colby Dassau halved his contest at No. 8 and Brandon Creador at No. 2 added four points to the Winthrop total.

Drew DiMento, playing at No. 5, chipped in 3.5 points for the Viking cause.

The Vikings were scheduled to play at Wakefield today (Thursday) and at Salem tomorrow. They travel to Gloucester Tuesday and to Swampscott Wednesday before returning to the WGC next Thursday.

Miranda, MacPhail top

runners for girls, boys

Freshman Camilla Miranda was the top finisher for the WHS girls cross-country team in the Lady Vikings’ tri-meet this past week with Danvers and Swampscott.

Camilla led the way for Winthrop with a top-10 finish in a time of 19:18. Fellow freshman Caroline Zuffante was the next Lady Viking across the line with a 13th place finish and a two-minute personal record (PR).

Eighth grader Fiona MacPhail was the third Winthrop girl in 16th place and had the team’s largest PR by four minutes.

WHS head coach Warren MacPhail credited his team’s leaders, Victoria Scorzella, Gabby Massa, and Nina Leone, for all of the Lady Viking squad members’ personal records.

“I let them run two of our practices last week and they motivated and challenged the girls to run harder,” said MacPhail. “Kimberly McDuffe had a two-minute PR, as did  Emma Turner and Victoria. Gabby improved upon her PR time by three minutes.”

The final results for the Winthrop girls were:

9th Camilla Miranda 19:18

13th Caraline Zuffante 19:58

16th Fiona MacPhail 21:17

19th Emma Turner 22:07

20 Zara Powell 22:08

27th Kimberly McDuffe 24:57

28th Gabby Massa 25:47

29th Victoria Scorzella 26:49

32nd Mary Texeria 28:11

33nd Kat Thano 28:29

Final score:

1. Swampscott 15
2. Danvers 23

3.Winthrop 32

On the boys’ side, the young Vikings continue to make major strides. Freshman Cormac MacPhail turned in another strong performance, placing sixth overall. The freshman had a time of 16:08. Devin Racow and Michael Angelo Marcoccio followed Cormac with top 30 finishes. Michael Angelo had a five minute improvement, which was tops for the boys.

The final results were:

6. Cormac MacPhail 16:08
7. Devin Ragon 18:42
8. Michael Angelo Marccocio 19:20
9. Jacob Hanes 20:59

32.Jake Wojick 22:26

Results:

1.Danvers 23

2. Swampscott 32
3. Winthrop 47

Both the boys and girls squads travel to Salem today (Thursday) and will host Gloucester next Thursday.

WHS sports  YEARS

10 years ago

September 29, 2005

The WHS football team came within one point of ending Gloucester’s 30-game winning streak on its home field at Newell Stadium, but fell short, 13-12, Friday night. “Everything was great except for the one-point difference on the scoreboard,” said WHS head coach Tony Fucillo. The contest was a defensive battle, with neither team achieving an offensive play greater than 16 yards. Viking junior Jason Griffin gave Winthrop a 12-7 lead late in the third quarter when he returned an interception 67 yards for a TD, but Gloucester responded with an 80 yard drive in 19 plays that culminated with the winning score with 2:00 to play in the game. Winthrop’s other TD came after Viking Dom LaMarra recovered a Fishermen fumble at the Gloucester 20 and Griffin scored on a 14 yard run.

The WHS girls soccer team improved to 5-1 with victories of 4-1 over Revere and 1-0 over Salem. Sophomore Julie Dowson scored two goals in the Revere win and  freshman Vanessa Caruccio notched her fifth goal of the season for the game-winner against Salem. Freshman Meredith Soper also scored in the Revere win. Freshman keeper Katerina Mallios earned the shutout against Salem for coach Kevin Connolly’s squad.

The WHS girls cross country team defeated Gloucester and Lynn English in a tri-meet this week at the Deer Island course. In the 29-30 win over Gloucester, sophomore Danielle Olson provided the victory when she sprinted the final 150 yards with a finishing kick to overtake a Gloucester runner, displacing the Lady Fisherman girl that provided Winthrop with the winning point. Andrea Bruno was the top Winthrop girl, coming across in third place overall in 18:23.

Alex DeFronzo finished in first place in 15:58 over the 2.67 mile Deer Island course to lead the WHS boys cross country team to wins over Lynn English and Gloucester in a tri-meet Monday.

20 years ago

October 5, 1995

Swampscott turned the WHS football team blue with a 20-7 win over the Vikings Saturday. Big Blue running back Peter Beatrice rushed for 115 yards and two TDs. The lone Winthrop score came on an 11 yard pass from Michael Palmer to Todd Doherty.

The WHS girls tennis team earned its first win of the season with a 3-2 victory over Lynn classical. Meaghan Walsh won her match at first singles and Kate Cunningham won at third singles. Kate Adamson & Jennifer Salamone won their doubles match to clinch the victory.

The WHS boys and girls cross country teams, both of which have a lack of numbers, have been struggling through winless seasons.

The 1-7-1 WHS boys soccer team battled first-place Salem to a 0-0 deadlock through the first half, but eventually fell by a 3-0 margin.

30 years ago

October 9, 1985

Steve Holghersen rushed for 84 yards on 15 carries to lead the WHS football team to a 20-14 win over Gloucester Saturday at Newell Stadium. Holgersen scored the winning TD on a 23 yard burst. Quarterback Matt Lanza scored from 26 yards out and fullback Chris Sirianni scored on a 14 yard run.

40 years ago

October 8, 1975

The WHS football team suffered a tough 13-12 loss to Lynn Classical Saturday before a sparse crowd at Miller Field. Al Millerick blocked a Classical punt in the end zone and pounced on the loose ball for a TD and quarterback Kevin McGee hit Tim Kelley for the second Viking score.

50 years ago

October 6, 1965

The WHS football team won its second game of the season with a 22-6 win over Amesbury. The Go-Go Twins, Bill Dooley and Charley McDermott, led the way for Winthrop with a number of electrifying runs from scrimmage. Lineman John Sharkey provided a big boost for Winthrop when he blocked an Amesbury punt late in the first half that led to a touchdown. A 40 yard pass from WHS quarterback Bobby McNeil to McDermott and an 85 yard gallop by Dooley accounted for the other Winthrop scores. The victory marked the 11th straight triumph in NEC play for the WHS football team dating back to the 1963 season.

60 years ago

October 6, 1955

Pat Staff scored the lone WHS touchdown in a 13-6 loss for the football team to Amesbury.

70 years ago

October 4, 1945

Ceremonies will be held at halftime at this week’s WHS football game at Miller Field to dedicate the new fieldhouse in honor of the men and women who served our country in the recent world war.