The Winthrop High softball team is on a roll with a three-game winning streak against Northeastern Conference opponents Saugus, Beverly, and Peabody this past week.
Standout pitching by Lady Viking hurler Maura Lanza, the power hitting of Jen Adamson, and outstanding defensive plays have been the common denominator in all three triumphs.
For her part, Maura has tossed 56 innings thus far this season and allowed only seven earned runs to sport a 0.75 ERA. She has fanned 62 enemy batters while walking only 13.
Lanza has been supported by some stellar defense by her teammates in the field. In last week’s 4-0 triumph over Peabody, Lanza scattered eight hits over the seven inning distance, with a heads-up play by centerfielder Liana Ferullo preserving the shutout and snuffing out a bases-loaded rally by Peabody in the final inning.
The Lady Tanners had filled the sacks with one out when a short fly ball fell in front of Ferullo in center. However, she gunned the ball homeward to catcher Adamson for the force-out of the Peabody runner, who had held up on the fly ball. Lady Viking Kelly Swanson then made the final putout on a fly ball to left.
Winthrop had taken a 1-0 lead in the first inning when Michelle Lasala led off with a single, advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt by Olivia Grillo, and scored on a double by Adamson.
Peabody threatened in both the second and third frames, but Lanza struck out two Lady Tanners to get out of a one-out, runners-at-second-and-third jam in the second and stifled a similar Peabody threat the following inning.
Adamson, who is tearing up the NEC with a .521 average, including a homer, a triple, and three doubles, belted a two run roundtripper in the bottom of the third with Taylor Thomas aboard to extend the margin to 3-0.
The Peabody fifth once again saw the Lady Tanners put runners at second and third with two outs, but Adamson snapped a throw to third to pick off the Peabody runner to end the threat.
The Lady Vikings added an additional insurance tally in the fifth on base hits by LaSala, Grillo, and Adamson to load the bases and an RBI hit by Lanza.
On Monday the Lady Vikings nipped Beverly, 2-1. Winthrop scored both of its runs in the fifth with Adamson once again delivering the key blow, a two run double that scored Amanda Pelletier and Ferullo.
Clutch defense by Winthrop also played a big role in the victory. A throw from Ally Scarfo to the cutoff, LaSala, who in turn fired to Adamson at home, erased a Beverly runner at the plate in the sixth. In the seventh, Scarfo made a nice catch to end the game with two runners aboard.
On Tuesday the Lady Vikings took the measure of Saugus, 4-1. After spotting Saugus a 1-0 lead in the opening inning (with Ferullo making a great play to throw out a Saugus runner at third to prevent more damage), Winthrop took control the rest of the way. Adamson once again was the top run-producer with two RBI. Teammates Lanza and Swanson contributed an RBI apiece. Ferullo had two hits, reached on an error, and scored two runs.
Coach Dave Guffey and his crew, who now are 6-3 on the season, met Salem yesterday (Wednesday) and host Lynn English tomorrow (Friday), Revere Monday, and Gloucester on Wednesday.
WHS girls track defeats Saugus 76-52
The Winthrop High girls track team captured first place in 10 of the 13 individual events to power their way to a 76-52 victory over Saugus this past week.
Amy Sena led the way for the Lady Vikings with four first place performances, taking the 100 high hurdles in 17.2, the 800 in 2:37, the triple jump with a distance of 30-2, and tying with teammate Carly O’Keefe in the 400 low hurdles in 72.4.
O’Keefe also took a first place in the 100 high hurdles in 17.2.
Ashley Jurovich was a double winner for Winthrop, capturing first in the discus with a toss of 88-7 and in the shotput with a heave of 30-5.
Other Lady Vikings who added five points to the Winthrop side of the scoresheet with first place performances were: Christa Vaccaro and Shanel Turransky, who tied in the two mile run in 14:01; Jordan Griffiths in the 400 dash in 64.5; and Mayomi Meggison with a long jump of 15-2.
Lady Vikings Isabella Kennedy, Lexi Vaccaro, and Julia Wallace all took second place in their events to contribute valuable points to the winning Winthrop effort.
In a meet with Danvers, the Winthrop girls came out on the short end of an 82-46 decision in which a number of Lady Vikings turned in outstanding efforts.
O’Keefe continued her terrific season by remaining undefeated in the 400 hurdles in 70.1 and 100 hurdles in 17.2.
Jurovich was a winner in the shotput with a throw of 30-3. Christa Vaccaro outran the field in the two mile in 13:16. Meggison leapt to victory in the long jump in 14-7.
Second place finishers for Winthrop were: Lexi Vaccaro in the 200 dash, Griffiths in the 400 dash, Jurovich in the discus, Kennedy in the 800, and Wallace in the high jump.
Third place efforts came from Michaela McCarthy in the triple jump and Kristen Ford in the mile.
Personal records (PR) were attained by Jillian Kfoury in the 400 dash, Caralyn Hetherton in the 400 dash, Kristen Ford in the mile, and Mary Teixeira in the mile.
Coach Warren MacPhail and his crew will meet Gloucester tomorrow (Thursday) at Saugus. The freshmen and sophomores will compete Saturday in the Northeastern Conference Frosh-Soph Meet.
WHS baseball team edged by Classical
“The one that got away,” is the well-known fisherman’s lament, and so too, it was for the Winthrop High baseball team Tuesday in an 8-7 loss to Lynn Classical.
The Vikings had played a complete game through the first six innings. They received fine pitching from Steve Goddard (who got through a rough first frame and settled down nicely until he was pulled in the seventh when his pitch count got too high) and played fine defense behind him.
The Vikings also put together some timely hitting to score a solo run in the second, four in the third, and two in the sixth to build a 7-5 advantage.
The tally in the second came via an RBI base hit by Ben Spinazzola that scored Mike Rich. The four markers in the fourth were produced by a barrage of hits from James Baxter, Dylan Driscoll, Brendan Van Dalinda, Cody Wasson, Rich, and David Kirby.
Spinazzola started the two-run rally in the sixth with a base hit, after which Baxter and Michael Ferrino both reached safely on bunts to load the bases. A ground ball by Van Dalinda was errored by Saugus, allowing Spinazzola and Baxter to cross the plate to make it 7-5.
With the score still at 7-5, Classical was down to its final out with runners at first and second. The next sequence of events will be mindful (for anyone over the age of 35) of that memorable Mets-Red Sox game 6 in the 1986 World Series.
A pick-off attempt by the Winthrop pitcher at second base went into centerfield, allowing both baserunners to move into scoring position. A base hit delivered them both and subsequent misplays in the field by the Vikes eventually allowed in the winning tally.
“We’re a young team and we’re still in the process of gaining the experience we need to be able to win the close games,” said WHS had coach Frank DeMarco. “We’ve hit a rough patch, but the team’s spirit is high and everyone is giving a 100 percent effort in our games and practices.”
The Vikings hosted Salem yesterday (Wednesday) and will trek to Lynn English tomorrow. They stay on the road to Revere Monday and to Gloucester next Wednesday.