WHS Sports Roundup

WHS baseball team qualifies for state tourney

The Winthrop High baseball team completed a marathon week of five games in six days, winning two contests, one of which punched their ticket for a berth in the MIAA state baseball tournament.

“In my entire career in coaching, I have never had a high school team play that many games in a week,” said veteran WHS head coach Frank DeMarco. “The team played hard all week with a chance to win every game.” 

The most important encounter of the stretch was a 5-1 victory on Saturday over a 12-1 Boston English team, a triumph that qualified the Vikings for the post-season tourney.

Dan Gillis pitched what DeMarco termed, “The best game of the year,” tossing a complete game, yielding just six hits and striking out four English opponents.

“Dan’s control was outstanding,” noted DeMarco. “He threw 67 of his 94 pitches for strikes. He had the English hitters off-balance the whole day, throwing both his fastball and curve ball for strikes.”

Gillis also helped his own cause with a nice day at the plate, chipping in with a single, a walk, and scoring the winning run after being hit by a pitch to lead off the seventh.

“Dan has been the unquestioned leader of our team on the field, leading by example and playing the game right, while keeping his focus on every play, every day,” added DeMarco.

The Vikings opened the scoring when Miles Albert drew a walk with the bases loaded, forcing in Jon Applebee with the first run of the game. English eventually drew matters back to level, leaving the game knotted at 1-1 entering the seventh inning.

Gillis started what would prove to be a tourney-clinching rally when he was hit by a pitch. After Bobby Hubert walked and there was a fielder’s choice, on which Gillis advanced to third, Ryan Skoczylas came through with a base hit to deliver Gillis across the plate.

After Miles Albert reached base to fill the sacks with Vikings, Sid Albert stepped up and roped a double into the gap, clearing the bases, to give the Vikings a trio of insurance runs and a 5-1 advantage.

In the bottom of the seventh, Viking catcher Miles Albert threw out the leadoff English hitter (who had singled) on a steal attempt to squelch any thought of a comeback attempt by English. It was the 10th runner that Miles has thrown out this season.

Winthrop opened its five-game stretch last Monday with a come-from-behind, 10-8 victory at Somerville in which the Vikings scored three runs in the top of the seventh to earn the victory.

Pacing the potent Winthrop attack were David DiCicco, Jon Applebee, Christian Natareno, and Sid Albert, all of whom had two hits apiece.  The game-winning blow came via Sid’s vicious, two-RBI triple in the seventh. He then scored from third to provide an insurance run. Bobby Hubert and Jon Applebee also had two RBI in the win.

For the week, Sid Albert was three-for-siz with a double, triple, and six RBI.

A trio of Vikings shared the duties on the mound. Gillis hurled the first three frames and Hubert came in for the next two. Angelo Robertson took over in the sixth and pitched the last two innings to earn the “W.”

The twin wins sandwiched a trio of contests in which Winthrop came up on the short end of hard-fought battles with Saugus, Marblehead, and Beverly.

The Vikings dropped a 5-4 contest in the last inning at Saugus last Tuesday. Dave DiCicco pitched six strong innings after Sid Albert was injured and was forced to leave the game.  Miles Albert had two hits and two RBI.

The following day, Winthrop fell 6-0 to Marblehead, a game in which the Magicians broke open a tight contest with four runs in the sixth.  Christian Natareno pitched well through the first four innings, yielding only two runs.

In Friday’s loss to Beverly, the Vikings jumped out to a 3-0 lead on doubles by Gillis and DiCicco and a single by Jon Applebee.  Angelo Robertson pitched the first five innings and threw consistent strikes. 

“Angelo put in a strong week of play, getting the win at Somerville and pitching five strong innings three days later against Beverly,” said DeMarco. “He also contributed in the field, playing a strong defensive game at both second and third base.”

There will be no rest for the weary, as DeMarco and his crew were set to embark on another busy stretch of four games in five days that no doubt will be interrupted by the rainy weather this spring that had forced the make-up games that pushed the Vikings into their marathon schedule last week and which is particularly tough on the pitching staff.

The Vikings were scheduled to entertain Saugus in a  rematch this past Monday and to travel to Swampscott yesterday (Wednesday). They will host Boston English today (Thursday) and entertain Peabody tomorrow (Friday).

They will make the long trek to Gloucester on Monday of next week and then return home to face Danvers next Wednesday.

Girls lacrosse team defeats Fontbonne, 13-11

The Winthrop High girls lacrosse team weathered both the bad playing conditions and the visitors from Fontbonne Academy to post a 13-11 victory Monday evening at Miller Field.

“Mia Martucci, Emma Carleton, and Maura Dorr continued to pace our offensive attack, while Carolyn Kinsella and the defense played a great second half to close out the game against a very good Fontbonne team that was 7-1 coming into the game,” said WHS head coach Ben Cimmino. 

Cimmino and his crew, who now stand at 9-5 on the season, were set to play at Lynnfield yesterday (Wednesday) in a rematch of last year’s Division 2 North first round game in which Lynnfield defeated the Lady Vikings.

The Winthrop girls will host Gloucester tomorrow (Friday), travel to Peabody on Monday, and return home to entertain Northeast Regional next Thursday.

WHS softball team tops Somerville, 14-2

The Winthrop High softball team defeated Somerville last week, 14 -2, in a contest that was called after six innings because of the mercy rule.

The Lady Vikings displayed consistent offense throughout the contest, scoring two runs in each of the second, third, and fourth innings, and then adding a solo run in the fifth before breaking the game open with a seven-run rally in the sixth.

Lady Viking lead-off batter Summer Tallent led the Winthrop offensive barrage, going 4-for-4, scoring four runs and accounting for three RBI.

Rachel Farley had a big day at the plate, going 3-for-5 with two runs scored and two RBI.

Bella Perrotti had two hits, including a double that drove in a run..Katie Gagnon reached base three times, with a triple, a walk, and an error, and scored three Sofia Vitale tossed all six innings, allowing just two runs on four hits. Sofia fanned 10 opponents and walked only three.

In a subsequent loss to Marblehead, Perrotti swung the big bat for Winthrop with a 3-for-4 performance at the plate. Stephanie Strangie and Katie Gagnon had two hits apiece.

Coach Dave Guffey and his crew have a busy week ahead. They were set to meet Sweampscott yesterday (Wednesday) and will trek to Peabody today (Thursday). They will make the long ride to Gloucester on Saturday morning for a doubleheader before returning home to host Weston at Cellucci Field next Wednesday evening at 6:00 in a contest that will be highlighted by Senior Night festivities.

They then will hit the road to Salem next Thursday.

Fine performances for WHS track teams

Although the Winthrop High boys and girls outdoor track & field teams came up on the short end of their meet last Thursday with Peabody, there were a number of fine individual performances by members of both squads.

On the girls’ side, Ella McCarey was the top scorer for the Lady Vikings, picking up eight points wth a victory in the discus with a toss of 61’-0” and a second place in the shot-put with a throw of 23’-1”.

Sister Nora McCarey also earned points in two events, grabbing first place in the 400 dash in a clocking of 67.7 seconds and finishing third in the 200 dash in a time of 29.7.

Two other Winthrop girls took first place in their events. Tessa Ferrandi won the triple jump with a final landing of 31’-11.5” and Camilla Miranda-Llovera outran the field in the mile in 6:15.9.

Adding single points for their third-place finishes were Claire Nargi in the 110 hurdles (18.7), Madalin Deeran in the 400 hurdles (91.5), and Julia Marcoccio in the 800 in 3:02.3.

For the boys, Pat Haskell was the top scorer on the day with eight points thanks to his first place sprint of 11.6 in the 100 dash and a second place performance in the 400 dash in 56.7.

Cormac MacPhail was the other Viking to take first place with a clocking of 5:05.1 in the mile.

Three Vikings tallied three points for the Winthrop cause with second place finishes: Stephen Hinchion in the two mile in 12:15.8; Mark Amatucci in the 400 hurdles in 66.9; and Nate Evangelista in the javelin with a toss of 121’-5”.

Both the boys’ and girls’ squads will compete in Saturday’s Northeastern Conference Meet.

Boys tennis plays well vs. Marblehead

Although the Winthrop High boys tennis team came out o the short end of a 5-0 decision to perennial Northeastern Conference power Marblehead, the Vikings were highly-competitive in all five matches, with a few points deciding the outcome of some of the contests.

Corey Cherico, Winthrop’s top player, battled his Marblehead counterpart at first singles in a three-set duel before falling by a score of 4-6, 7-5, 6-4. Michael Lupo at second singles also extended his rival to three sets in a fierce encounter, 4-6, 6-4, 4-6.

Chris Finn lost his first match of the season in another tight contest, 7-5, 6-4, at third singles.

In the doubles contest, the first doubles tandem of Sam Yarrow & Kevin Dorr fell 6-3, 6-4, and the second doubles duo of Alessio Narco & Rilind Bytyqi dropped a hard-fought battle, 6-4, 6-4.

“I was very proud of the way we played,” said WHS head coach Marie Finn. “All of the boys gave it their all on the court and we nearly pulled off some wins that might have given us the match.”

Finn and her crew, who stand at a sterling 9-2 on the season and who already have qualified for the post-season state tournament, were set to conclude their regular season starting yesterday (Wednesday) at Swampscott. They will meet Peabody next week in a home-and-home match-up, entertaining Peabody on Tuesday and then trekking to Peabody on Wednesday.

They then will host Beverly next Thursday and travel to Salem next Friday in the regular season finale.

WHS girls tennis seeking tourney spot

The Winthrop High girls tennis team played well, but came up on the short end of a 4-1 decision to Saugus on Monday.

“This was a tough match,” said WHS head coach Mike Nickerson. “It was a lot closer than the score indicated because we lost close matches at second (Kirsten Griffiths) and third (Natalia Kirilova) singles and at second doubles (Hannah Capone & Sage D’Amelio).

“Sofie LaFratta lost at first singles to one of the best players in the conference,” added Nickerson. “Our highlight came with Sara Fucillo & Olivia Driscoll’s victory at first doubles.”

Nickerson and his crew stand at 4-6 and are on the bubble for the postseason. They were scheduled to meet Swampscott yesterday (Wednesday) and will entertain Peabody tomorrow (Friday) and Gloucester on Monday. They will travel to Danvers next Wednesday.

WHS boys lacrosse defeats Revere, 19-7

The Winthrop High boys lacrosse team all but clinched an undisputed Northeastern Conference South Division championship with a dominating, 19-7 victory over Revere, the Vikings’ chief rival in the division, this week.

“This was a convincing statement win,” said WHS head coach Brian Donnelly.   “Captain Andrew DiMento was playing like a goalie possessed. He was unbelievable throughout the game, with countless key saves and clearing the ball very well.

“Our defense also played excellently,” Donnelly continued, “only letting up seven goals from what can be an explosive offense. Joe Mahoney played very tight defense against their best player, while long stick middies Chris Rodriquez and Jack Silva were all over the field with excellent slide help and clean clearing. Our down low defenseman also started to pump up the communication that allowed for early slides and excellent recovery defense.”

The Viking offense had an explosive day, reaching the back of the Revere net for the most goals Winthrop has scored this season.

“Our attack trio of senior captain Pat Sennott and sophomores Matt Hurley and Aiden Cifini continued their assault on net. The further we go into the season, it seems they are able to really read each other well,” said Donnelly.

Donnelly also had praise for his midfielders.

“Our middies also had some excellent offensive production with the usual suspects of Luke Evangelista and Austin Daignault putting in some excellent minutes, as well as a very well-timed and well-placed goal by Julian Osorio, who has continued to improve this year and we hope will step up in a huge way as the season progresses and into next year,” added the coach.

One of the key factors in the big win was the performance of Chris Ferrara, who won a number of key face-offs against his Revere counterpart, who is one of the best face-off players in the league.

“With Chris’s face-off wins, we were able to control the tempo of the game and play at our speed,” noted Donnelly.

Donnelly and his crew, who now stand at 12-1 overall on the season, were set to travel to Salem yesterday (Wednesday) and to Saugus today (Thursday).

“If we win both games, we will have solidified our spot as NEC South champions, a goal that we have been talking about since the inception of the program eight years ago,” said the coach. “During the Revere game we had a bunch of WInthrop High School lacrosse alumni come by to root the team on, which was excellent to see and a great incentive to continue to move the program forward. We just need to continue to focus going into the next couple games to prepare for the Division 3 playoffs.”

The Vikings will host Malden on Monday and Swampscott next Wednesday.

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