WHS Sports Roundup

WHS Boys Soccer Wins Tourney Opener

The Winthrop high boys soccer team advanced to the round of 16 in the Division 4 state soccer tournament with an 8-3 victory over Bishop Connolly this past Saturday in an opening round contest at Miller Field.

The Vikings sprinted to a 3-0 lead at the outset thanks to Gustav Hemmingsen, who lit up the Bishop Connolly net for all three goals within a six-minute stretch thanks to some great through-balls from his teammates that sent Gustav in alone on the Bishop keeper, whom he beat cleanly every time.

On one of the goals Hemmingsen deked a defender literally off his feet after taking the pass and cutting from right to left about 10 feet out, from where he then proceeded to deliver the ball past the keeper.

After the Hemmingsen onslaught, Bishop Connolly called a time-out to regroup and fought back with two goals. However, Aymane Cherki, assisted by Esteban Alvarez, responded for Winthrop to leave matters at 4-2 at the intermission.

The Vikings maintained their momentum to start the second half, with Jeronimo Jimenez making it 5-2 with an assist from Hemmingsen.

A few minutes later, Hemmingsen scored his fourth goal of the game off a pass from Juan Guauque. Bishop Connolly was able to score one more before Viking Carlos Dura restored  the Vikings’ four-goal margin with a penalty kick.

Senior Ryan Kfoury applied the coup de grace with a marker with about 10 minutes to go for the 8-3 final.

“We played a great game and it was a total team effort,” said WHS head coach Kyle Gagin. “It was the first time that the Winthrop boys’ soccer program had ever hosted a game, and for the boys to do it in front of a crowd made it all the better.”

Winthrop, which finished with a record of 10-6-2, entered the tourney as the 14th-seeded team in D-4. Bishop Connolly (8-3-1) was the 19th seed among the 39 teams that qualified for the D-4 tourney.

Gagin and his crew were scheduled to play Rockland, the #3 seed, yesterday (Wednesday) at Holbrook High. The Bulldogs defeated Advanced Math by a score of 4-0 in their tourney-opener.

If the Vikings were successful yesterday, they will advance to the quarterfinals on Saturday to face the winner of the West Bridgwater v. Lynn Tech matchup.

WHS Girls Soccer Wraps up Season

The Winthrop High girls soccer team concluded its season with a split of its two contests in the final week of play.

The Lady Vikings’ victory came in a 3-0 shutout of Salem. Winthrop grabbed a 1-0 lead in the first half on a goal by Emma Holmes from Mia Martucci. The Lady Vikings put the game away in the second half with a pair of goals, one by Reese Brodin from Brianna Marley and the other by Maddie Stiglets from Stefania Spinazzola.

“It was a great team effort and a nice win for us,” said WHS head coach Tracey Martucci.

Winthrop concluded its season with a 4-0 loss to Swampscott.

The teams stood at nil-nil through most of the first half before Swampscott broke the deadlock.

“They are a very strong team and it ended up 4-0,” said Martucci.

Reflecting on the 2021 season, Martucci said, “Unfortunately, due to the new format and moving us up to D-3 this year, we did not make the tourney. With the 14 seniors and remaining varsity players, I think we could have done some damage in the D-4 tourney. We have some talented players with a lot of heart, so to see this season end so abruptly after having made the tourney over a period of many years, it was a hard ending to a tough season.

“But these girls never gave up in any games and our record did not reflect the fight they put into each game,” Martucci added. “I‚Äôm very proud of these girls. Graduating 14 seniors, my daughter being one of them, next season will be a huge turnaround year. I‚Äôm looking forward to what the next few years with these younger players have in store for us.”

Martucci mentioned the efforts of a few of her players from the 2021 campaign.

“Our goalie, Manuela Mejia, played an amazing season with tough competition,” said Martucci. “Senior captain Summer Tallent stepped into a position that she wasn’t used to when our star sweeper, senior captain Julia Marcoccio, got a season-ending injury.

“There also was senior captain Mia Martucci, who became the second assist point leader in WHS girls soccer, and the stellar play by Abby Holmes, with her defensive attacking throughout the season, and Nora McCarey, who was our most aggressive player in the air,” Martucci added.

Two Lady Vikings, Summer Tallent and Mia Martucci, were named to the Northeastern Conference All-Star team.