New season, new coach as WHS baseball opens with 10-0 win
The Winthrop High baseball team opened its 2026 season this past Monday with a 10-0 victory vs. non-league opponent Northeast Regional at Veterans Field, giving new head coach Tom Capasso a victory in his WHS coaching debut.
Starting pitcher Braedon Lounsbury earned the win, spinning four shutout innings in a dominating performance. Braedon allowed only one hit while fanning 11 Golden Knights (of the 12 Northeast outs). Braedon also went 2-for-3 at the plate to help his own cause.
Dom Spinale homered, walked, stole a base, and scored two runs to pace the Viking offensive attack. Nate Previte contributed a hit, an RBI, and a stolen base and scored two runs. Charlie Ferrara added a hit, a walk, and an RBI, scoring two runs and stealing two bases.
Braylen Ancillo pitched the final inning in relief, striking out one opponent.
Capasso announced his varsity roster this past week. “We’ll be carrying 19 players into the season,” said Capasso. “The roster is larger than normal, but three players are currently injured and the team needs to carry more players than we normally might have in order to give us additional options, at least for the first half of the season.”
In addition, Capasso said a number of younger players will fluctuate between the junior varsity and varsity teams this season to ensure that everyone is gaining valuable playing time and experience for the future.
“This is a unique season for us in a variety of different ways. In addition to the players currently injured, we have no seniors on the team,” said Capasso, whose 2026 squad will be led by five junior captains, Joseph Pumphret, Michael D’Ambrosio, Nathan Previte, Dominic Spinale III, and Desmond Cassidy, who were selected this past week.
In addition to that quintet, the full varsity roster includes Michael Barron, Charlie Ferrara, Ethan Staff, Jacob Buchman, Braylen Ancillo, Braedon Lounsbury, Joseph Dalton, James Lyman, Devin Giacalone, Carmen Diprisco, Jace Pereira, Ricky Mackenzie Jr., Stephen Barron, and Daniel Connolly.
The Vikings engaged in three pre-season scrimmages to help them prepare for the year ahead. In a contest with Rockport, Braedon Lounsbury started and tossed 1 and 2/3 innings of scoreless work.
“Lounsy is our ace and we eased him into the season, really limiting his pitch count,” said Capasso. “We will start out slowly with our entire pitching staff the first few weeks so as not to overuse anyone.”
On the offensive side Michael Barron, Ethan Staff, and Joseph Pumphret contributed hits for the Vikings who dropped a 6-3 decision.
The Vikings had a much tougher time when they scrimmaged Stoneham a few days later, coming up short by a score of 8-1. The Stoneham pitching staff controlled the game as the Winthrop offense just could not get on track.
Lounsbury, Ethan Staff, Joseph Dalton, Ricky Mackenzie and Braylen Ancillo all saw action on the mound. Danny Connolly, Charlie Ferrara, and Previte contributed.
This past Friday the Vikings wrapped up their pre-season with an 8-0 shutout of Everett. “This was a great way to end the pre-season,” said Capasso. “We played well and were patient offensively, drawing walks, which enabled us to be very aggressive on the bases, stealing eight bases in the game. In addition, our pitching staff really focused on throwing strikes.”
The Vikings again used a number of pitchers versus Everett, with Carmen Diprisco, Joseph Pumphret, Danny Connolly, Joseph Dalton, and Ricky Mackenzie toeing the rubber on the day and combining for the shutout. At the plate, Spinale, Connolly, Ancillo, Previte, and Michael Barron contributed hits for the Vikings in the win.
The Vikings have a full slate of 20 games this season. They will meet their four NEC South foes (Swampscott, Gloucester, Saugus, and Salem) twice each and their five NEC North rivals (Marblehead, Beverly, Masconomet, Danvers, and Peabody) once each. They will have seven matches with non-league opponents Northeast Regional, Essex Tech, Lynn Tech, Ipswich, Revere, Whittier Tech, and Greater Lawrence.
Capasso and his crew were scheduled to trek to Salem yesterday (Wednesday), to Essex Tech Saturday, and to Saugus on Monday before returning home to host Beverly next Wednesday at 4:30.
WHS boys lax looking forward to another strong season
Expectations are high once again for the Winthrop High boys lacrosse team, which opened its season yesterday (Wednesday) with a non-league match against St. Mary’s of Lynn.
“We are looking forward to another great year of lacrosse here at Winthrop High School,” said long-time WHS head coach Brian Donnelly. “We have had a good pre-season so far with our guys working hard to be ready to go for our opener against St. Mary’s Lynn before we travel to our first away game this Saturday against Lynnfield.
“We have an excellent mix of some returning starters and some new players who are going to be great additions to the team,” continued Donnelly. “We have an excellent defensive core of captain Sean Donlen, Declan Howard, Chris Beshere and long pole middie Paul Ferrara.
“We will also see captain Nick Romano in net again this year,” Donnelly added. “He is such a great goalie and communicates really well. He gives the guys a confidence that is so pivotal at that position.
“Our offense is going to be pretty explosive as well,” said the coach. “Captain midfielders Seth Sacco and Ace Daigneault will be an insane pair to have to try to guard. Both Seth and Ace are super explosive and are dangerous at any range. Seth is a ground ball machine and just a super tough player. Ace brings a finesse to the game as well that will help us out massively and he can take on any players defensively
“In addition, we will have younger players like Matt Madalone, Johnny Ferrara, Michael Ferrara, and Tyler Smith stepping it up to add to the offense,” said the coach. “We are also really happy to have Tomas Babine back on the team getting some face-offs and evening-out our attack position. We will need some of our bench players to develop early in the season so they can round out the team and give us some depth.
“I really think the sky’s the limit with this team,” Donnelly concluded. “They just need to get ready to show up every day to work and stack good practices together. I am excited to see these guys go out and compete for another year.”
After yesterday’s opener with St. Mary’s, the Vikings will travel to non-league opponent Lynnfield Saturday morning for a 10:00 encounter. Winthrop then will travel next Wednesday for a key Northeastern South Division match with perennial division rival Swampscott.
The Vikings will meet their three NEC South foes (Swampscott, Gloucester, and Salem) twice each and their five NEC North rivals (Marblehead, Beverly, Masconomet, Danvers, and Peabody) once each. Matches with non-league opponents St. Mary’s, Lynnfield, Essex Tech, Bishop Fenwick, Shawsheen Tech, Malden Catholic, and Wilmington will round out the Vikings’ 18-game regular season schedule.
WHS girls lacrosse opens with 4-3 win
The Winthrop High girls lacrosse team opened its 2026 season with a 4-3 victory over Northeastern Conference (NEC) South Division rival Saugus this past Monday at Miller Field.
Senior captain Avalina Coffey led the way offensively for coach Anthony Hatzisavas’s squad, netting three goals. Fellow senior captain Tegan Pereira also reached the back of the Saugus net and had an assist. Senior captain Reese Ferrara earned three assists.
“This was a great team win and a great way to start the season,” said Hatzisavas. “Avalina, Tegan, and Reese did a great job at midfield dominating the time of possession. Our three captains also have been doing a great job being leaders of this team.
“Our defense did a great job on the back end, led by Ari D’Amelio, Angela Coscia, Holly Nimblett, and Ella Ferrara,” added Hatzisavas. “Our goalie, Annabelle Bettano had a great game in net with double-digit saves.”
The Lady Vikings were scheduled to take on Saugus yesterday (Wednesday) in a rematch and will trek to Gloucester tomorrow (Friday). They will return to the turf at Miller next Wednesday when they will host Swampscott at 4:30.
Hatzisavas and his crew will play an 18-game schedule, meeting their four NEC South foes (Swampscott, Gloucester, Saugus, and Salem) twice each and their five NEC North rivals (Marblehead, Beverly, Masconomet, Danvers, and Peabody) once each. They will have five matches with non-league opponents Revere (2), Georgetown (2), and Malden.
Busy schedule for WHS softball
Head coach Erin Vercrusse and the Winthrop High softball team were scheduled to inaugurate their new softball field at Ingleside Park this past Tuesday with a contest against non-league opponent Hamilton-Wenham.
The Lady Vikings, who will be led in 2026 by junior captains Francesca Indrisano and Sofia Gonzalez, were scheduled to host Northeastern Conference South Division rival Salem yesterday (Wednesday) and non-league foe Rockport tomorrow (Friday).
They will entertain NEC South adversary Saugus on Monday and travel to NEC North foe Beverly next Wednesday. The opening pitch for all of the contests at Ingleside is set for 4:30.
The Lady Vikings will meet their four NEC South foes (Saugus, Gloucester, Salem, and Swampscott) twice each and their five NEC North opponents (Beverly, Masconomet, Marblehesd, Danvers, and Peabody) once each. Non-league contests include encounters with Hamilton-Wenham, Rockport, Northeast Regional, Revere, Everett, Bishop Fenwick, and Ipswich.
WHS tennis teams swing into action
The Winthrop High boys and girls tennis teams will swing into action to open their 2026 seasons in the coming week. Coach Marie Finn’s boys were scheduled to meet non-league opponent Stoneham yesterday (Wednesday). They will travel to NEC foe Salem on Monday. Coach Heidi Baker’s girls’ squad will entertain Salem on Monday and Saugus next Wednesday.