Sports 05-19-2016

WHS sports roundup

WHS girls tennis team

qualifies for state tourney

The Winthrop High girls tennis team has qualified to boldly go where no Lady Viking squad has gone for 18 years.

Monday’s 5-0 shutout of Saugus propelled first-year coach Ken Hodgkin’s squad into the MIAA post-season state tournament, a feat last accomplished by a Winthrop girls tennis team in the previous millennium.

“I’m incredibly proud of what this team has accomplished,” said Hodgkins. “They’ve worked hard to get to this point and to achieve something that hasn’t been done by a Winthrop girls tennis team in a long time.”

Senior captain Meg Dolan led the way for the Lady Vikings in the Saugus win with a 7-6 (7-3), 6-4 victory over her counterpart at first singles.

Junior Haley Holden, Winthrop’s number two singles player, also vanquished her  foe in straight sets, 6-4, 6-1.

“Haley is having one of the best seasons ever by a Winthrop girls player,” noted Hodgkins. “She’s defeated girls who have been NEC all-stars. Her mindset and determination to win are second to none.”

Junior Kailyn Ferrara completed a sweep of the singles matches with a 6-3, 6-4 triumph at third singles.

In the doubles matches, juniors Courtney McSwiney and Sarah Kfoury won in straight sets at first-doubles, 7-5, 6-1. The second doubles duo of senior captain Brooke Baciagalupo and junior Dana Marshall came from behind to win their match in a  three-set tiebreaker, 0-6, 6-2, 7-6 (10-4).

The triumph gave the Lady Vikings a .500 record against their fellow Division 3 opponents, thus qualifying them for the state tourney.

Winthrop stands at 6-7 overall and will be seeking to close out the season with an overall .500 mark in their final three matches this week.  They were set to play at Lynn English yesterday (Wednesday) and trek to Beverly today. They will make the short trip to Revere Monday for their season finale.

WHS boys tennis team

equals school record

The Winthrop High boys tennis team equaled the school record for wins in a season with victories over Salem and Gloucester last week. Coach Marie Finn’s squad now stands at a sterling 9-4 and will be seeking to set a new standard for winning by a WHS boys tennis team in their final three contests of the season this week.

Both victories were achieved in dramatic, hard-fought fashion.

Last Wednesday’s 3-2 victory over Salem came down to a tiebreaker in the third set in the second doubles match between Vikings Corey Cherico and Kyle Dalton and their Salem counterparts. After dropping the first set, Cherico and Dalton won the second set 6-2, but then went to the tiebreak in the third and deciding set.

By that time, all of the other matches for the day had concluded and thus all eyes were on the deciding second-doubles match.

Cherico and Dalton responded to the pressure and pulled out the win by a 7-4 score in the tiebreaker. “Corey and Kyle really came through for us,” said Finn. “The match was on the line and everybody was watching, but they didn’t let the pressure get to them.”

In the other matches, Jake LaFratta defeated his Salem counterpart at third singles and the first doubles team of Robbie Miles and Matt Sennott defeated their Salem foes. First and second singles players Noah Hodgkins and Mike Norris dropped their matches.

The following day Finn and her crew made the long trek to Gloucester for their fourth contest in as many days.

Both doubles teams once again defeated their opponents and Gloucester took the second and third singles matches.

The match thus came down to the first singles contest between Hodgkins and his Gloucester rival. After winning the first set handily, 6-1, Hodgkins was tied at 4-4 in the second set. Noah then stepped up his focus to take the next two games to clinch the match and give the Vikings their ninth win of the year.

Finn and her crew now will set their sights on setting a new all-time mark this week. They were set to host Lynn English yesterday (Wednesday), Beverly today, and Revere on Monday.

Wallace outduels Sullivan

in win over Swamscott

The Winthrop High baseball team turned in what WHS head coach Frank DeMarco termed  “clearly our best game of the season” with a 3-1 victory over league-leading Swampscott and the Big Blue’s number one pitcher, Gavin Sullivan, Monday afternoon.

Viking Jack Wallace outdueled Sullivan (who is the son of Viking legend Chuck Sullivan, who was a key member of the 1981 WHS state champion baseball squad), spinning a two-hitter with seven strikeouts.  In one stretch, Jack set down  12 enemy hitters in a row.

The Vikings scored one run in each of the second, third, and fourth innings.

Jake Adamson knocked in Chris Zufanti, who had doubled, in the second frame;  Luigi Spinazolla drove in Jack Wallace, who had singled and moved over to second, in the third; and Joe Fabiano’s infield hit in the fourth brought around  Jaidon Brown, who was able to score from second thanks to a bobbled throw.

Defensively the Vikings made all the plays while playing error-less ball.

“This truly was a total team effort,” lauded DeMarco’s of his troops’ fine performance.

The victory marked the Vikings’ second win in a row after Friday’s tight, 3-2 triumph over Lynn English, which was Winthrop’s sixth game in eight days.

Nick Disciscio went the distance for Winthrop, yielding the two runs on just five hits and fanning an equal number of English hitters.

Wallace was 1-for-3 with a double and an RBI; Luigi S. also was 1-for-3 with an RBI; and Brown had two hits and a run scored.

Jaidon now has had at least one hit in all but two games this season and has recorded seven multiple-hit games. He is hitting .450 with six stolen bases.  Matt Feeley is hitting .368 with 14 runs scored and seven RBI.

DeMarco and his crew will conclude their season in the coming week. They were set to host Salem yesterday (Wednesday) and will play at Marion Saturday. They will meet Everett at Bentley College Monday afternoon, trek to Gloucester next Wednesday, and entertain Saugus next Friday.

Lady Vikings seek to

reach tourney next Thursday

The Winthrop High softball team will seek to qualify for the post-season state tournament next Thursday when they host Triton under the lights at Cellucci Field at 6:30.

The Lady Vikings defeated Salem, 8-2, this past week. Gabbie Kenniston, Winthrop’s leading hitter with a .438 average, led the way for Winthrop, going 3-for-3 with two doubles and four RBI. Maddie Fainga’a was 1-for-2 with two walks and scored three runs.

Pitcher Taylor Thomas went the distance, allowing no earned runs and just five hits.

The Lady Vikings were set to meet Salem again yesterday and then will play a doubleheader at Boston University (thanks to Mike Eruzione) against Gloucester  Saturday. They play Saugus Monday and then have the big game with Triton next Thursday.

WHS girls lacrosse

falls to Revere

The Winthrop High girls lacrosse team dropped an 11-6 decision to Revere in its only contest of the past week.

Abby Carleton scored four goals for coach Bridget Dullea’s squad. Julia Duplin and Emma Carleton scored a goal apiece and Meg Mahoney earned an assist.

The Lady Vikings host Gloucester Friday, entertain Essex Tech Monday, and conclude their season Tuesday at Saugus.

Viking laxmen

defeat Malden

The Winthrop High boys lacrosse team defeated Malden, 11-8, Monday. Leading the way for coach Brian Donnelly’s Vikings were goalie Andrew DiMento, who made 18 saves, and freshman attack Brian Chalmers, who celebrated his birthday with a hat trick.

The Vikings play at Everett today (Thursday) and host Malden Tuesday in the season finale.

WHS girls track

does well at F/S Meet

The freshmen and sophomore members of the Winthrop High girls track team performed well at the recent Northeastern Conference Freshman/Sophomore Meet, placing sixth of the 12 teams in the competition.

Lady Vikings Fiona MacPhail and Gabby Hinchion turned in three-medal day performances. Hinchion, the captain-of-the-day, placed 3rd in the 400 hurdles,(80.09); 2nd in the discus ( 76”); and helped the 4 x 400 relay to a 6th place finish.

MacPhail finished 4th in the high jump ( 4’6”); 2nd in the 400 (69); and ran down Revere’s anchor in the 400 to secure the 6th spot for the Lady Viking team in the 4 x 400. Fiona was 25 yards behind the Revere girl, but ran a 65-second split to catch her.

Other point-scorers for Winthrop were: Mary Kate Pote with a 3rd in the shotput (26’6”);Camila Miranda-Llovera with a 6th in the two-mile (13:45); and captain-of-the-day Jillian Kfoury, who led her 4 x 100 team ( Kimberly McDuffe, Danielle Navarro, and Christine Ascolillo) to a 6th place finish (60.2).

The 4 x 400 quartet (Clare Nargi, Gabby Hinchion, Camilla Miranda Liovera, and Fiona MacPhail) placed 6th in a clocking of 5:01.

“It was a really great track day which gives us a lot of momentum going into next season,” said WHS head coach Warren MacPhail.

Lady Vikings fall

short in Gloucester meet

The Winthrop High girls trace team recorded a number of first-place efforts in their recent meet with Gloucester, but came up on the short end of a 70-50 decision.

Christa Vaccaro had two first-place finishes in the 100 hurdles (18.6) and the long jump (13’6”).

Other first-place finishers for Winthrop were: Gianna Massa in the shotput (28”,9”); Holly Benson in the 400 (64.0); Shereen Lahali in the javelin 80’,1”); and Gabby Hinchion in the discus (69’).

Shanel Turransky placed 2nd in the high jump with a leap of 4’,10”, which qualified Shanel for the state meet.

McKenzie Chiudina placed 3rd in the 400 hurdles in a time of 79.0, which was a personal record (PR); Nina Leone placed 3rd in the two-mile (14:15); and Clare Nargi placed 3rd in the long jump (12’,9”).

“Clare is coming along nicely,” said WHS head coach Warren MacPhail. “She’s the first one to practice and the last one to leave and it’s really showing.”

WHS sports years

10 years ago

May 18, 2006

Senior southpaw Jarrett Herdt tossed a complete game to lead the WHS baseball team to a 5-4 win over Saugus. Paul Eruzione, who had singled, stolen second, and moved to third on an errant throw, scored the winning run on a hit by  freshman Matt Moore.

The record-breaking rainfall of this past weekend resulted in the cancellation of most athletic activities this week.

20 years ago

May 16, 1996

The WHS baseball team needs one more win to qualify for the state tourney. The Vikings stand at 10-6 after a 10-3 triumph over Marblehead. Junior Matt Murphy recorded the win in his first varsity start.

30 years ago

May 21, 1986

Sophomore southpaw  Larry Thomas hurled a two-hitter and struck out 10 enemy batters to lead the WHS baseball team to a 3-2 win over Danvers. Thomas was supported by the fine defense of Darren Miles in centerfield and the hitting of Dave Massingham.

 

40 years ago

May 19, 1976

The undefeated  WHS track team, fresh off wins over Swampscott and Lynn English, will meet Beverly for the NEC title.

Anthony Sirianni tossed a four-hitter, but the WHS baseball team dropped a 3-1 decision to Danvers.

50 years ago

May 19, 1966

A testimonial dinner to honor Phil Ratner, the former WHS star tackle who captained the 1965 Cornell football team and earned All-East honors, will be held at Winthrop High this weekend. The event is being sponsored by the Cornell Club of Boston. Ratner has been drafted by there Miami Dolphins, the new entry in the American Football League.

Kenny Holgersen came through with the game-winning hit in the 23rd inning to give the WHS baseball team a 4-3 win over Newburyport in a contest that was played over two days. Winthrop now stands at 7-3 on the season.

60 years ago

May 17, 1956

The WHS baseball team has won two games in a row. Arnie Johannsen stopped Swampscott on a two-hitter and Winthrop drubbed Amesbury, 20-2. Al Biggio, Dave Rowe, Teddy Carver, and Bobby Kelly were the big hitters in the Amesbury onslaught.

Bill DiMarchi sank a five-foot putt to give coach Tim Sheehan’s WHS golf team a 5-4 win over Salem.

from the press box

The Bleacher Report

By: Jim Lederman

Winthrop Vikings fans celebrated a thrilling comeback victory (15-12) over the Revere Patriots on Thanksgiving Day, 2015. The victory was extra sweet for coach Sean Driscoll and Company. The Patriots were celebrating the first Thanksgiving game at the new (7.8 million) Harry Della Russo Stadium in Revere.

Viking fans sat in the new bleacher section. The Revere ad said, “The new bleachers hold 1,800-2,000 seating capacity.

I attended the Miller Field-Winthrop is Worth it committee meeting last week. I listened to the excellent presentation by Jimmy Fabiano. The project reports lists a “new bleacher section with a 600 seating capacity. There will be no visiting bleachers! Winthrop vs. Revere on Thanksgiving usually draws 2,500-4,000 fans! 3,000 watched Winthrop defeat Revere in 2015 in 1998 Revere dismantled the visiting bleachers at the ‘old’ Della Russo Stadium. Winthrop and Revere fans sat together, Winthrop was crushing Revere. A (riot-fight) broke out at the end of the game outside the stadium. The state police was called in; a Winthrop fan was arrested and locked up! Do you want the same condition in a new field? Let’s build a new stadium that can seat a large crowd!

We are building a magnificent $88 million new high school/middle school. We need visiting bleachers. I have visited recently built new stadiums at Gloucester, Peabody, Marblehead, Everett, North Reading, Auburn, Manchester to name just a few.

The new Miller Field could be used for conference track meets, MIAA playoff games for football, soccer and lacrosse. The first questions the MIAA asks – What is your seating capacity?

I want the Miller Field Committee to visit a few new stadiums and ask what is the seating capacity?

With a new high school/middle school, the enrollment will grow. We will have many more student-athletes participating in sports!

Vote Yes on June 21st

Let the Games Begin!

Friar Nation

The Providence College “Friars” have had many outstanding point guards. Billy Donovan led the Friars to the final four one season.

Billy Donovan had his finest hour in his first season as a head coach in the NBA. Donovan led the Oklahoma ‘Thunder’ to a decisive victory over San Antonio (111-99), to advance to the Western Conference finals.

The ‘Thunder’ won three straight victories over the favored ‘Spurs.’ Billy out coached the legendary Greg Popovich.

The challenge for Russell Westbrook (28 points) and Kevin Durant (37 points) are the defending NBA champions, Stephen Curry and the Golden State ‘Warriors.’

The ‘Friar Nation’ includes prominent ex-PC players like Marvin Barnes, Boston’s own Jimmy Walker, Kevin Stacom, Ernie DiGregorio and former Boston Mayor Ray Flynn.

I will not predict the winner but I will be cheering loud that Lebron James (I am the greatest player in the world”) does not win the NBA championship.

My favorite columnist Dan Shaugnessey (Boston Globe) picks the Cavaliers to win the NBA title.

Let the Games Begin!

Faces in the Crowd

Mark Jenkins, son of former superintendent of schools Dr. Steve Jenkins, is on the coaching staff of the NBA”s Charlotte Hornets. The asst. head coach Patrick Ewing, NBA Hall of Famer, played for Steve Jenkins at Rindge Tech.

Ewing is a candidate for the head-coaching job at Memphis. Will Mark follow Pat to Memphis?

The Marblehead Magicians baseball nine shut out the Vikings (13-0) pitching for Marblehead was Garrett Keough. Garrett was Lynn Item All-Star quarterback in football. Garrett will play at Wesleyan in Connecticut, the alma mater of coach Bill Belichick.

The two all-time assist leaders in Viking hoop history – Steve and Gavin Mahoney, father and son. Steve was the guard in 1971-1972 that passed to the all-time NEC scoring leader Chris Tsiotos.

Gavin passed to Dino Mallios – NEC scoring leader on the 2010 NEC hoop champs! Dino was captain at St. Anselms and led D-2 in assists in the country and scored 1475 points in WHS history!

Take it to the rim!

Let the Games Begin!

Around the NEC

The 2016 Viking Lacrosse team under the tutelage of first year coach, Brian Donnelly is improving!

“We have only three seniors on the squad, we work very hard and the effort is outstanding,” said coach Donnelly. The Vikings are (5-8) overall and (4-4) in the NEC South freshman Brian Chalmers scored a goal vs. NEC South leader Swampscott. Brian scored at big goal in the Vikings MIAA hockey playoff game vs. Cambridge!

Saugus and Danvers have won only one! NEC football title, the Falcons despite having Mark and David Bavaro play for Danvers have a new football stadium. The Vikings open the 2016 season at Danvers!

The five all-time single season scoring leaders in NEC football history – Anthony Palmer 196 – Doug Santos (Peabody) 190, Chuck Sullivan (Winthrop 1981-166) Dick Javron (Swampscott – 144) Steve Staffier (Winthrop – 1983-192)

A salute to senior catcher Gabby Kenniston, leading the Lady Vikings softball team to a victory (8-2) over Salem. Gabby had a 3-for-3 afternoon, with two doubles, a single and four RBI. Gabby was a NEC hockey all-star and she looks like a softball al-star. A tip of the hat to Gabby K.

Let the Games Begin!

Hall of Fame

The Winthrop high school Hall of Fame, Class of 2016 ceremony-induction, will be held on Saturday, October 22, 2016.

The induction will be in the new Winthrop high/middle school. Nomination forms are available at the office of attorney Chris Tsiotos, 193 Winthrop Street or by calling (617) 846-9192.

A student-athlete must have graduated 10 years prior to induction (2006) to be eligible. Nominations close July 4th 2016. The class of 2016 will be announced in July.

The Battle of Two Aces

Two of the ‘best pitchers’ in the Northeastern Conference, faced each other on the mound. Junior Jack ‘Ace’ Wallace out pitched Swampscott’s junior Gavin Sullivan Monday at Swampscott.

Wallace tossed a sparkling two hitter, striking out seven, leading the Vikings to a (3-1) upset victory over the Big Blue of Swampscott.

The game marked senior night at Swampscott and a large crowd was treated to an excellent baseball game. Junior Jake Adamson knocked in the first Viking run, Chris Zuffante crossed the plate. Joe Fabiano drove in soph Jaidon Brown and junior first baseman Luigi ‘The Spinna’ Spinazzola knocked in Jaidon Brown.

The victory was number five for the Vikings. The Vikings have five games remaining on their schedule. Everett invades ‘Vets’ field on Monday and Saugus and Winthrop play on Friday, May 27th at 4 p.m.

Let The Games Begin!