WHS boys lacrosse wins three more, improves to 8-0
The Winthrop High boys lacrosse team continued to steamroller its way over its Northeastern Conference opponents, handily defeating a trio of NEC foes this past week.
The Vikings endured a rain-drenched field last Monday, but made the ordeal a worthwhile one with a 14-5 victory over Saugus.
After a slow start which saw the teams stand deadlocked at 3-3 after the first quarter, the Vikings began to take control, outscoring Saugus 11-2 the rest of the way to cruise to the win.
“We eventually turned the corner and were able to win the ground ball game and control the tempo,” said WHS head coach Brian Donnelly. “Saugus always gives us a tough game, as they are well-coached and always very physical. After a slight slowdown, our defense really stepped it up in the second half of the game and our offense started to get going.”
The Vikings traveled to Malden last Thursday and wasted little time in asserting their dominance en route to a convincing win.
“We were able to take care of business quickly and get a lot of the younger guys involved,” said Donnelly. “The Malden game was an excellent team effort. Chris Ferrara had an outstanding game on face-offs, winning the majority of them, which allowed our offense to control the ball for the majority of the game.”
This past Monday Winthrop hosted Salem on the turf at Miller Field. The Vikings once again went to work from the opening face-off, sprinting to a 9-0 in the first period.
“We were able to put some quick points on the board and control the tempo of the game,” noted Donnelly. “This also allowed us to get some of our younger talent, like junior goalie James Stimpson, sophomore attack Stevie Purello, and freshman midfielder Ari Hain, some valuable time.”
The Vikings’ success through the first half of the season truly has been a team effort, according to Donnelly.
“Overall, we have have gotten some excellent goals from our attack trio of Aiden Cifini, Matt Hurley, and Pat Sennott, who are really beginning to jive as a unit,” said the coach. “Our first-line middies, Luke Evanglista, Joe Mahoney, and Austin Daigneault, also are working well together. Luke is an excellent team leader on the field, creating opportunities for others and being in the right place at the right time. Joe Mahoney is a coach’s dream as an excellent utility guy who steps up in big situations. Austin Daigneault is coming into his own as our best dodger and shooter who is getting very comfortable going to goal.
“Our offense is complimented by an excellent defense, led by our senior goalie, Drew DiMento, who continues to be the best goalie in our league,” added Donnelly. “Our long-stick middies rotate time between Jack Silva and Chris Rodriguez, both of whom are ground ball machines. Finally, our short-stick midfielder, Asa Baurle, has given us some excellent time that gives our offensive fielders some rest while adding a bit of intensity to our man-to-man defense.”
Donnelly and his crew were set to travel to Dracut yesterday (Wednesday) for a tough, non-league contest. They will play at Everett today (Thursday), at Lynn Classical Monday, and at Medford next Wednesday.
WHS boys tennis wins three, now 7-1
The Winthrop High boys tennis team continued to roll along, extending its winning streak to seven matches with a trio of victories this past week, all by scores of 4-1.
In a contest with the Triton Vikings last Thursday, the Winthrop Vikings’ number one singles player, captain Corey Cherico, handily defeated his Triton Viking counterpart in straight sets, 6-1, 6-3. Senior co-captain Chris Finn, playing at second singles and who is undefeated this season, spun a shutout, 6-0, 6-0.
The WHS first doubles tandem of senior co-capt. Sam Yarrow and junior Kevin Dorr won their match handily, 6-1, 6-2, as did the second doubles duo of senior Alessio Narco and sophomore Augie Cherico, 6-2, 6-2.
Senior Rilind Bytyqi played well in the third singles slot, but came up on the short end of a 6-4, 6-2 decision.
The Vikings next took the measure of Gloucester this past Monday. Cherico cruised in straight sets, 6-1, 6-0, as did Finn, at second singles, 6-1, 6-2. Yarrow and Dorr won their match, 6-0, 7-5, and the duo of Bytyqi and Narco triumphed, 6-0, 6-1.
Senior Andy Angulo, slotted at third singles, fought hard in his encounter, but came up short in three sets, 6-3, 0-6, 6-3.
This past Tuesday the Vikings dispatched St. Mary’s of Lynn on the local court. Junior Michael Lupo, playing at second singles, whitewashed his Spartan rival, 6-0, 6-0, as did Finn at third singles, 6-0, 6-0.
The Winthrop doubles teams of Yarrow and Dorr and Augie Cherico & Narco likewise shut out their St. Mary’s rivals by scores of 6-0, 6-0.
Corey Cherico took on a St. Mary’s player, Brady Ryan, who is ranked third in the state. Corey played well in a losing battle, 6-3, 6-1.
There was a reunion of sorts between Brady’s mother, the former Laurie Gillis, and WHS head coach Marie Finn, after the match. Laurie played tennis for the Winthrop High girls team in the early 1980s when Finn was the coach of the Lady Viking tennis program.
“Reconnecting with Laurie after all these years makes you realize how quickly the time goes by,” said Finn.
Returning to the present, Finn said of her current boys’ squad, “This may be the most talented team, certainly in terms of our depth, in Winthrop boys tennis history. We have a great group of boys who work hard at every practice and who give it their all in every match.”
Finn has a group of 20 team members which include a large contingent of freshmen: J.D. Parker, Ryan Kfoury, James Sicarella, Declan Donovan, Bobby Diaz, and Liam Turner. Junior team members include twins Michael and Jared Vecchio and Sal Campo. Two other seniors, new to the team this year, are Russell Nichols and Elias Hallestrand.
Finn and her crew have a busy week ahead. They were set to take on Danvers/Peabody yesterday (Wednesday) and will face Salem tomorrow (Friday). They will meet Somerville on Monday and Marblehead next Wednesday in what may be the biggest match of the season. The Vikings’ lone blemish on their record came in the season-opener against Marblehead by a close score of 3-2. “That was a hard-fought battle and we’re looking forward to the rematch,” said Finn.
WHS girls track edges Saugus, 63-61
The Winthrop High girls outdoor track & field team earned a victory by the razor-thin score of 63-61 over Danvers last week in a meet held in Swampscott.
A quintet of Lady Vikings paced Winthrop to the victory with wins in two events each: Mary Kate Pote won the shot put with a throw of 29′-6″ and captured the discus with a twirl of 65′-8″; Tessa Ferrandi took the high jump with a leap of 4′-6″ and the triple jump with a final landing of 30′-5″; Fiona MacPhail sprinted to victory in the 100 dash in 14.2 seconds and long-jumped 13′-8″ to take first place in that event; Nora McCarey won two sprint events, the 200 (29.9) and 400 (68.7); and Camilla Miranda-Llovera doubled in the 800 in 2:58.8 and the two-mile in 13:33.
Those 10 triumphs accounted for 50 points for the Lady Vikings, who added an 11th first-place with a victory in the 4 x 100 relay, comprised of Julia Marcoccio, Ella McCarey, Tessa Ferrandi, and Clare Nargi. The WHS quartet won the race with a time of 61.6 compared to Danvers’ clocking of 65.8.
Nargi scored points in two events, finishing second in the long jump with a leap of 13′-2″ and third in the 100 dash in 14.3.
Marcoccio added three points to the Winthrop cause with a second place in the 800 in 3:06. Analise Bruno contributed a crucial point — in a meet where every point was important — with her third-place performance in the 110 high hurdles in a clocking of 21.8.
“The girls gutted out a nice win,” said WHS head coach Warren MacPhail. “Mary Kate and Fiona continue to lead the team forward while Ella, Julia, and Tessa are adding much-needed depth.”
MacPhail and his crew are scheduled to meet Gloucester today (Thursday).
WHS sailing team ready for busy week
Although the Winthrop High sailing team dropped its first race of the season, 5-0 to Concord last week, WHS head coach Catherine Domina is enthusiastic about her young team this season.
“We lost to Concord, but each race was very close,” said Domina. The 2019 Viking sailors are led by a pair of captains, sophomore Antea Schlichting and junior Elizabeth Collins. Other returning veterans are Shane Fitzpatrick (’22) and John Cataldo (’21).
“In addition, this year we have a lot of team members, Michael Soares (’22), Jessica Soares (’22), Gio Monteiro (’22), and Ayat Walid (’21), who are totally new to sailing,” said Domina.
“We also have a few members who are new to the team, but have a bit of experience under their belts: Ty Calinda (’22), Bruno Rabago (’22), as well as two eighth graders on the team with solid experience, Freddie Poor (’23) and Ben Prew (’23),” the coach added.
In addition to the Concord race, the Vikings met B.C. High in a pre-season regatta. “The B.C. High scrimmage was a great opportunity for the kids who don’t normally skipper, so our best sailors took the crew, while the less experienced sailors got a chance to grow their skippering skills,” Domina noted.
Domina and her crews will have a busy stretch of their schedule in the coming week. They were scheduled to trek to Gloucester yesterday (Wednesday) and will host Swampscott today (Thursday) at their home port of the Cottage Park Yacht Club.
They will take on Beverly next Wednesday and the Landmark School next Thursday.
WHS girls tennis wins two straight
After an 0-3 start to the season, the Winthrop High girls tennis team has won its last two matches, defeating Peabody and Gloucester.
In a 5-0 shutout of Gloucester this past Monday, the Lady Viking victors were Sofie LaFratta at first singles, Kirsten Griffiths at second singles, and Natalia Kirilova at third singles.
The tandem of Olivia Driscoll & Sara Fucillo defeated their Gloucester counterparts at first doubles and the duo of Sage D’Amelio & Hannah Capone triumphed at second doubles.
In the 3-2 victory over Peabody last Friday, Griffiths and Krilova won their matches at second and third singles respectively. The first doubles pairing of Driscoll & Fucillo also prevailed to give Winthrop the victory.
Coach Mike Nickerson and his squad, who have their eyes set on reaching the .500 mark, were scheduled to take on Danvers yesterday (Wednesday) and Salem tomorrow (Friday). Next week, they will meet Somerville on Monday and Marblehead on Wednesday.
Cappuccio wins for boys track
Chris Cappuccio scored eight points in two events for the Winthrop High boys outdoor track & field team in its meet with Danvers last week.
Chris leaped to a first-place finish in the long jump, outdistancing the field with his landing of 16′-8″. He also took second place in the 200 dash with a clocking of 25.6 seconds.
Two other Vikings earned three points for the Winthrop side of the scoresheet with second-place finishes in their events: Patrick Haskell in the 100 dash in 12.1 and Michaelangelo Marcoccio in the 400 dash in 59.8.
A host of Vikings added single points with third-place performances: Michael Chaves in the long jump (15′-7″); Haskell in the triple jump (33′-0″); Pat Teixiera in the shot put (33′-1″); Andre O’Campo in the javelin (97′-11″); Mark Amatucci in the 400 low hurdles (68.7); Juan Guaque in the 800 (2:26.9); and Tony Nargi in the mile (5:06.8).
The Vikings are set to take on Gloucester today (Thursday).
WHS softball looking to get back on track
After a season-opening victory of 12-6 over Mt. Alvernia, the Winthrop High softball team has run into a rough patch, dropping its past five contests.
In a 6-0 loss to Saugus this past Tuesday, Rachel Farley had two hits. Rachel is leading the Lady Vikings in hitting with a .416 average and has been playing well in the outfield.
Teammates Bella Perrotti at shortstop, Stephanie Strangie in left field, and Cali Peterson at first base also have shone for Winthrop on defense.
“We have played the iron of the league,” said WHS head coach Dave Duffey. “We have struggled to hit the ball, but we’re hoping this will change over the next couple of weeks.” Duffey and his squad were scheduled to host Danvers yesterday (Wednesday) and will trek to Salem tomorrow (Friday). They will face Gloucester Sunday afternoon at Bentley College at 1:00 and will entertain Somerville on Monday. Marblehead comes here next Wednesday and they will journey to Beverly next Thursday