Vikings fall to Danvers; ranked #3 in Division 4
The Winthrop High boys hockey team fell behind 3-0 in the opening period and never got back on track en route to a 5-1 loss to Northeastern Conference North Division rival Danvers last Wednesday at Ray Bourque Arena at Endicott College in Beverly.
A second-period goal by Dom Spinale, assisted by Joe Pumphret and Braedon Lounsbury, narrowed the gap to 3-1, but that would prove to be as close as the Vikings would get. Winthrop had numerous other opportunities in the second period but could not capitalize, and the Falcons added two more insurance goals in the final period for the 5-1 finale.
The loss marked Winthrop’s first loss in the NEC. The Vikings now stand at 5-4-0 overall and 3-1-0 in the NEC North.
Coach Dale Dunbar’s crew, the defending Division 4 State Champions, were ranked third in D-4 the MIAA’s power ratings as of this past Friday, with Hockey Night in Boston ranking Winthrop number one in D-4 as of last Wednesday.
Dunbar and his crew, who were scheduled to meet Masconomet, another big NEC North rival, last night (Wednesday), will host NEC North foe Gloucester this Saturday at 3:00 at Larsen Rink. They will return to Bourque Arena next Wednesday to take on NEC South rival Beverly.
Girls hoop defeats two NEC foes
The Winthrop High girls basketball team put it all together this past week to roll to a pair of runaway victories over Northeastern Conference rivals Saugus (52-27) last Tuesday and Salem (60-12) last Thursday on the Chris Tsiotos Floor of Holland Gymnasium.
“It was a great week for Winthrop High girls’ basketball,” said WHS head coach Anthony Hatzisavas. “Before the game with Saugus, we talked about being disciplined on both offense and defense, really focusing on the game plan to limit their best player, Peyton DiBiasio. She is Saugus’ all-time leading scorer, and one heck of a basketball player. She has given us trouble the last three years, so we knew we had to really try to limit her as much as possible as a team effort, not just relying on one person.
“On the offensive end, we knew we needed different people to step up not just with scoring, but with breaking their defensive pressure,” Hatzisavas added.
Winthrop started fast, taking an 11-7 lead after the first period, thanks to an outstanding team defensive effort and the scoring punch of captain Bailey Feguson.
The Lady Vikings continued to control the play over the next eight minutes to expand their margin to 22-12 at the half, with Ferguson leading the way in the scoring column with 13 of her 18 points on the night in which Bailey shot better than 50% from the field.
“Bailey had a tremendous first half,” noted Hatzisavas. “We talked at the half about being the team that strikes first out of the locker room and that’s what we did.”
The Lady Vikings came out on fire after the intermission, led by senior captain Polixeni Tsiotos, who poured in 20 of her season-high 24 points in the second half, including 16 points in the fourth quarter. Poli went 9-for-10 from the free throw line in the final period to fend off any chance of a Saugus comeback.
Hatzisavas also noted the valuable contributions of other members of the team.
“Jenna Whitehead did a tremendous job helping us break the press and being valuable on the defensive end,” lauded Hatzisavas. “Amina Barry controlled the middle of the paint with six points, 11 rebounds, and multiple blocked shots. Josie Barry also had a huge nine rebounds and had multiple steals to get us going in transition.
“Josie and Jenna both controlled the corners and wings to make it hard for Saugus to get open looks,” Hatzisavas continued. “The five seniors played basically 32 minutes and showed grit and discipline throughout the whole contest. Our main goal was to limit Peyton and we held her to a season-low of eight points on just 2-for-18 from the field. It was a good win for us, especially after not having the start to the season that we had hoped for.”
The Lady Vikings hosted Salem two nights later which was highlighted by a Youth Night celebration in which the youth travel teams and the campers from the WHS girls fall basketball camp were in attendance.
“We were able to win, 60-12, which gave us the opportunity to get some rest for the girls who had pushed to 32 minutes Tuesday,” said Hatzisavas. “We also wanted to get the younger girls some varsity action.”
Tsiotos topped the scoring column with 13 points. Ferguson hit for nine points, Josie Barry and Whitehead added eight points apiece, and Amina Barry had six.
Grace McCurdy came in and chipped in with eight points and Alex Ross made a nice all-around contribution with two points, three assists, and six rebounds. Jackie Antonelle had two points and six rebounds, freshmen Emma Previte and Molly Titemore both hit baskets, and Ella Ferrara and Guiliana Grimaldi both played aggressive defense on that end of the floor.
“It’s time to build off these two wins where it puts us at 3-5 on the season, but 3-2 in the Northeastern Conference,” said Hatzisavas.
The Lady Vikings were scheduled to travel to NEC foe Peabody this past Tuesday and to make the long trek to NEC rival Gloucester tomorrow (Friday). They will embark on their second half of the season with a home contest vs. non-league opponent Ipswich next Tuesday for which the opening tip-off is set for 6:00. They will return to the road next Wednesday to non-league foe Triton.
Hatzisavas and his crew were ranked 24th in the MIAA’s Division 4 power rankings as of last Friday. The top 32 teams automatically qualify for the post-season state tourney. Teams ranked below the top 32, but which have winning records, also qualify for March Madness.
WHS girls hockey ranked #18 in D-1
The Winthrop High girls hockey team earned a 2-2 tie with Peabody, but came up on the short end of a 3-2 decision to Medford this past week.
The deadlock with Peabody at Larsen Rink last Wednesday evening was another classic battle between the Northeastern Hockey League (NHL) rivals, who perennially are jousting for the top spot in the NHL.
“We took leads of 1-0 and 2-1, only to see them taken away by undisciplined penalties. Peabody scored both their goals on the power play,” said WHS head coach Anthony Martucci.
Amelia Serino and Abby Githinji scored the Winthrop goals. Goalie Riley Towse made some great saves to preserve the deadlock.
In Saturday’s 3-2 loss to Medford, a team whom the Lady Vikings had defeated, 4-1, in their season-opener four weeks earlier, the Lady Vikings fell behind 3-0 and never were able to overcome that deficit.
A goal by Avalina Coffey made it 3-1 late in the second period and a lamplighter in the third from Angela Coscia brought the Lady Vikings within a goal, but the Winthrop offense was thwarted by the stellar play of the Lady Mustang goalie.
“Credit Medford for playing a great game and pretty much wanting it more than we did,” said Martucci. “The Medford goalie played great and they did a nice job of sticking to their game plan.”
The Winthrop girls, who now stand at 4-2-2 on the season (3-1-1 in the NHL), were scheduled to host NHL rival Beverly yesterday (Wednesday) and will make the long journey to NHL foe Gloucester on Saturday. They will play at non-league opponent Weymouth on Monday.
WHS boys hoop, ranked #23 in D-4, to host Gloucester
The Winthrop High boys basketball team will entertain Northeastern Conference (NEC) South Division rival Gloucester tomorrow (Friday) evening. The opening tip-off for coach Quinton Dale and his crew is set for 6:30.
The Vikings, who stand at 2-5 after losses to NEC rivals Saugus (54-33) and Salem (50-30) last week, took on NEC North rival Peabody this past Tuesday. After tomorrow’s (Friday’s) contest with Gloucester, they will make the long journey northward to non-league opponent Rockport on Saturday to complete the first half of their season.
The Vikings presently are ranked 23rd in the MIAA Division 4 power rankings, a spot that would automatically qualify them for the post-season D-4 state tournament. Automatic bids are granted to teams in the top-32 of the power rankings, regardless of their record. Schools ranked below the top-32, but which have .500 or better records also qualify for the post-season.
WHS boys track defeats Saugus
The Winthrop High boys indoor track and field team defeated Northeastern Conference (NEC) rival Saugus in their season-opener by a score of 50-10.
Among the highlights for the Vikings was their sweep in the 300 dash led by Faris Maid in 49.3 seconds, who was followed by teammates Joseph Disney and Owen Munson.
Winthrop also swept the 600, led by Thomas D’Amico in 1:43,3, followed closely by teammate Liam Kenney in 1:43.8. Elvys Paula grabbed third spot.
In the mile, Paula captured first place with his time of 5:48 and Matteo Agri won the two-mile in 12:49. Brady Tallent won the 55 hurdles with his clocking of 10.4 and Owen Harty captured the 1000 with a clocking of 3:01.4.
Scoring three points for the Viking cause with second-place finishes were Carmen Diprisco in the 55 meter dash and Nicolas Lamiaux in the mile.
Adding a single point to the Winthrop scoresheet with third place efforts were Max Konopaska in the 1000 and Guilherme Sodre in the shot-put.
Winthrop won the 4 x 400 relay in 4:19.6 to round out their scoresheet.
On the girls’ side, Annabelle Giardino won the 1000 meter event with a time of 4:36.9 and Marissa McMullen scored a point with a third-place effort in the 55 dash.
In a meet with Swampscott last week, point-scorers for the boys were: D’Amico with a second-place in the 600; Agri with a second-place in the two mle; and the trio of Diprisco in the 55 dash, Harty in the 1000, and Paula in the mile with third-place points.
For the girls vs. Swampscott, Hailey DeMarco scored six points with a first-place leap of 4′-1″ in the high jump and a third-place effort in the 300 dash. Maria Pimental added a point for the Lady Viking cause with a third-place performance in the 55 dash.