An Even-Steven Week for WHS Boys Hockey; Masco Here Saturday in Battle for First Place
The Winthrop High boys hockey turned in an even-steven week with a win, a tie, and a loss against a trio of opponents.
The victory came with a runaway 7-2 romp over Swampscott, which plays in the South Division of the Northeastern Conference (NEC), Saturday afternoon at Larsen Rink.
Two goals by Mike Holgersen (with assists from assistant capt. Billy Hayes and from captain Petey Silverman and Hunter Fife) and a solo tally by Silverman (assisted by capt. Jack Hayes and Billy Hayes) gave the Vikings a 3-1 lead after one period.
Winthrop rattled the Big Blue cage with two more markers in the middle period, with Silverman (assisted by Jack Hayes and Phil Boncore) and senior assistant capt. Nate Evangelista (assisted by Silverman and Billy Hayes) lighting the lamp.
The Vikings closed out the win in the final period with goals by Jack Hayes (from Silverman and Holgersen) and Billy Hayes (from the duo of Silverman and Mike Holgersen.)
Swampscott scored a late goal with under a minute to play for the 7-2 finale.
The final box score showed Silvrerman having a hand in six of the Wimthrop tallies with two goals and four assists. Holgersen (two goals, two assists) and Billy Hayes (one goal, three assists) recorded four-point nights.
The tie occurred last Wednesday at NEC North Division foe Gloucester. As always, the contest with the Vikings’ perennial-rival Fishermen was a typically fast and physical affair on the latter’s home ice at Dorothy Talbot Rink.
Winthrop jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the opening period on a power play goal by capt Jack Hayes, who was assisted by Silverman and Boncore.
Silverman then struck for a goal just 22 seconds into the second period to make it 2-0, with an assist from Jack Hayes.
However, the Fishermen refused to flounder and responded with a pair of lamplighters of their own to leave matters deadlocked at 2-2 after two.
The final 15 minute period and the subsequent five minute overtime session (in which the teams play 4-on-4) proved to be the high school hockey version of ‘Fast and Furious,’ with both teams skating up-and-down the ice with plenty of opportunities to score.
Winthrop had a power play in OT, but could not capitalize on the 4-on-3 opportunity.
Viking netminder Nick Babine was outstanding, thwarting countless Gloucester scoring chances in the final 20 minutes of regulation and overtime.
This past Monday afternoon the Vikings hosted a Division 1, non-conference opponent, Lexington, and came up short in another overtime battle, 3-2.
Winthrop controlled the play through the first 15 minutes, but couldn’t capitalize on its chances against a fast-skating and physical Lexington opponent, leaving matters at nil-nil after the first period.
The Vikings seized the initiative in the second period behind a goal from Jack Hayes, assisted by Silverman, but Lexington responded to bring the contest back to level.
Silverman answered with a lamplighter, assisted by Jack Hayes, to make it a 2-1 affair entering the final period. Winthrop had numerous opportunities to extend their advantage before the period ended, but could not find the handle.
The Vikings were unable to make it a two-score game through most of the third frame, allowing the Minutemen to stay within striking range. With three minutes left in regulation, Lexington notched the equalizer to send the game into overtime.
However, the Vikings were called for a tripping penalty with 50 seconds still showing on the clock in regulation, which meant that the balance of the penalty — 40 seconds — carried over into the OT.
With the OT rules calling for a 4-on-4 matchup, Lexington now had a 4-on-3 advantage to start the overtime and the Minutemen took full advantage to skate away with the 3-2 win.
Coach Dale Dunbar and his crew now stand at 6-2-1 overall and are 3-0-1 in the NEC, a record that has the Vikings ranked third in Division 4 in the MIAA power ratings.
This Saturday Winthrop will engage in a huge matchup with Masconomet in a battle for first-place in the NEC North. Masco presently sits atop the North standings with a 4-1-0 record.
The opening face-off is set for 2:30 at Larsen and a huge crowd is expected to be on hand. Fans should note that the WHS girls are playing at 12:30 on Saturday.
Winthrop will travel to LoConte Rink in Medford next Wednesday evening for a 7:00 encounter with the non-league Mustangs, who hail from the Greater Boston League.
WHS Girls Hoop Tops Swampscott, Ranked 12th in D-4
The Winthrop High girls basketball team posted a 40-28 victory at Northeastern Conference (NEC) South Division rival Swampscott this past Tuesday evening.
The Lady Vikings took a 27-12 lead at the end of the first half thanks to their pressure defense that created turnovers, leading to buckets at the other end, and never were threatened.
Kaylee Farrell turned in a superb all-around performance, hitting for a game-high 17 points, pulling down six rebounds, and making five steals.
Maddie Stiglets also had a great stat line with eight points, eight rebounds, and five steals. Reese Brodin was a terror on defense with nine steals.
“It’s always nice going to Swampscott and getting a good team win,” said WHS head coach Anthony Hatzisavas.
Last Friday, the Lady Vikings took on a powerful and undefeated Peabody team and came up on the short end of a 96-53 decision.
“Peabody is a very good team,” noted Hatzisavas of the Lady Tanners, who are ranked 20th in the polls and who have outscored their opponents by a 2-1 margin, 67-34. “It was one of the best offensive games of the season for us, but on the defensive end we didn’t have our best night. Peabody shot lights out, connecting on 16 three-pointers, so hats off to them.”
Maddie Stiglets was among a quartet of Lady Vikings who struck for double figures with 16 points. Grace Fleuriel and Farrell hit for 12 points apiece and Brodin chipped in 11.
“It’s always good when you can have a different leading scorer any night of the week — that’s what makes a good team,” said the coach.
“We still haven’t had a complete game yet this season, but we are definitely trending in the right direction,” Hatzisavas added.
The Lady Vikings will host Revere tomorrow (Friday) evening in a non-league contest. The opening tip is set for 6:00.
Hatzisavas and his crew then will travel to Marblehead next Tuesday.
Boys Basketball Rallies for Exciting Win Over Swampscott
The Winthrop High boys basketball team overcame a 36-24 deficit early in the third period to post an exciting 60-57 triumph over Northeastern Conference (NEC) rival Swampscott Tuesday evening at the WHS gymnasium.
The contest began well for the Vikings, who grabbed a 15-10 lead after the first quarter, but the visitors reversed matters in the second period to take a 31-24 advantage at the half. The Big Blue expanded their lead to 36-24 shortly after the intermission before the Vikings, led by senior captain Zack Bogusz, who sank a pair of buckets, brought the deficit under double digits at 36-28.
Still, the Swampscott lead held firm at nine points, 47-38, entering the final period.
Winthrop wasted little time in closing the gap with a 9-0 run in the opening two minutes. Jeremy Matias sank two hoops, Bogusz drained a three, and Matias put back an offensive rebound to bring the contest back to level at 47 with 5:46 remaining.
A Swamspscott timeout halted the Winthrop momentum and the Big Blue regained the lead on their first possession, 49-47. However the lefty-shooting Bogusz swished another trey for a 50-49 Viking lead at 4:27. Swampcott answered with a three-pointer of their own, but George Galuris made the defensive play of the game when he picked the pocket of the Swampscott ball handler in the backcourt and drove in for an uncontested layup to level the score once again, 52-52, with under 4:00 remaining.
George then knocked down a trey on the next Winthrop possession to boost the Vikings into a 55-52 lead and swished a jumper from just inside the arc to boost Winthrop into a 57-52 advantage with 1:48 to go.
To their credit, the Big Blue refused to fold, hitting a trey to make it a one-possession game at 57-55 with 1:30 remaining, but Bogusz swished a floater from the right baseline to increase the lead to 59-55. Swampscott responded with a hoop to make it a 59-57 contest with less than 30 seconds to go, but a Bogusz a free throw with 6.4 seconds on the clock sealed the deal, leaving Swampscott with only a desperation attempt at a three that went in-and-out at the buzzer.
Bogusz led the Vikings with 24 points. Matias reached double figures with 12 points (10 in the second half) and Galuris hit for 10, all coming in the second half.
Sophomore Matt Reardon chipped in four points, followed by Alex Daigneault with three, Ryan Harris with two, Raesean Bebri with two, freshman Jack Hurley (who was making his first varsity start) with two, and Andrew Faretra with one.
“Zack Bogusz is a great captain and a great leader,” noted WHS head coach Mike Triant, who also cited the early contributions of Harris and Daigneault for their roles in breaking down Swampscott’s zone defense.
Triant and his crew, who stand at 5-8 on the season and are ranked 31st in the MIAA’s Division 4 power rankings, will host NEC opponent Marblehead next Tuesday evening on the Holland Gymnasium’s Chris Tsiotos Floor. The opening tip is set for 7:00.
WHS Gymnasts Come Up Short vs. Danvers
The Winthrop High gymnastics teams took on a strong Danvers squad this past Friday evening at the Winthrop Gymnastics Academy (WGA) and came up on the short end of a 145.2-131.45 decision.
The Vikings started out the meet on the uneven bars with sophomore Brooklyn Banfield up for the first time this season. Brooklyn hit her routine, scoring a 6.8.
Sara Jurovich was up next and scored a 7.1. Captain Ellie O’Donnell followed with a great routine, scoring 7.6. Freshman Zoe Rey performed a clean routine, getting a 7.9 from the judge.
Captain Alayna Ronan and Isabella Rice both tied with a score of 8.6. Although Winthrop’s top four scores came out to 32.75, which was two points better than in their season-opening meet last week, Danvers scored 35 points with three of the Falcons scoring 9.1 or better.
The balance beam didn’t work out quite as planned for the Vikings, with all six girls scoring in the 7s for the first time in several years, accumulating a four-person total of 30.9 to 36.2 for Danvers.
The vault turned out to be a better event for Winthrop, led off by Banfield, who scored a 7.4. The next three Vikings — Jurovich, Rice, and Julia Hurley — came through with scores of 8.2 each. Ronan performed her signature twisting handspring to receive an 8.8.
The final event, the floor exercise, was led off by freshman Jillian Buonopane, who scored a 7.5. Hurley, one of the bright spots for the Vikings, followed with an 8.3. Rey and O’Donnell followed with 8.5s. Rice finished her meet with a good performance on the floor, scoring an 8.6. Ronan then hit her routine to score Winthrop’s only 9.0 in the competition.
Coaches Pete Gobiel and Christa Vaccaro and their crew head to Iron Rail Gymnastics this evening (Thursday) to take on Hamilton-Wenham. They will return home to host Beverly at the WGA Sunday morning at 10:45.