06/10/2018

The Campus Report: A Review of Spring 2018

The HockomockSports.com Campus Report is an update on former Hockomock League athletes currently competing in collegiate sports. If you would like to submit an update, please e-mail info@HockomockSports.com.

By Brian Hines, HockomockSports.com Contributor

Former Attleboro standout Nate Tellier had a standout season for UMass Dartmouth. The sophomore appeared in all 40 games for the Corsairs, leading the team in almost every offensive statistic category, including runs scored (34), hits (63), triples (three), runs batted in (37), runs (34), stolen bases (19), batting average (.382), on-base percentage (.464), slugging percentage (.570). The offensive outburst was good enough for Tellier to be named to the LEC Second-Team, and the D3 Baseball All-New England Second Team.

Tellier wasn’t the only former Attleboro Bombardier to standout on the diamond. MIT senior Max Lancaster finished his senior season with a career-high .325 batting average. Lancaster tied his career high with 38 hits, and set career-best with 11 doubles, 28 runs batted in and 11 stolen bases. The senior’s best series of the year came in a three-game matchup against Emerson, where he recorded eight hits, six runs scored, two home runs and nine runs batted in. Lancaster landed a spot on the New England Women’s and Men’s Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) All-Conference Second Team for his performance this season.

Former two-time HockomockSports.com Girl’s Lacrosse Player of the Year Marta Versprille had an impressive senior season at Saint Anselm. The former Franklin midfielder started all 18 games for the Hawks, recording 26 goals and seven assists. Her 33 total points were the sixth most on the team, while she ranked third on the team in ground balls (39) and draw controls (59).

Framingham State sophomore, and former North Attleboro Red Rocketeer, Mycala Moody helped the Rams reach the 2018 NCAA Division III Softball Tournament this season. Moody batted .379 with five doubles, two triples, and 18 RBI during her sophomore campaign. After earning the 2017 MASCAC Rookie of the Year, Moody earned second team All-MASCAC honors this season.

Meg Colleran, another North Attleboro alumni and the 2014 HockomockSports.com Softball Player of the Year, wrapped up her senior season at UMass Amherst in impressive fashion. Colleran started 22 games of the 27 she appeared in for the 35-win Minutewomen, going an impressive 14-6 with a 2.99 ERA. Colleran was a perfect 9-0 in Atlantic 10 conference games, boasting an impressive 1.97 ERA in 12 appearances. She finishes her UMass career as one of 10 Minutewomen in program history to eclipse the 20-win mark in 2016, while becoming one of five to reach that mark in multiple seasons in 2017.

A pair of former Hockomock standouts helped Springfield College Lacrosse to a 13-6 record. Franklin’s Jack Vail started 17 games this season at attack, scoring 26 goals and leading the team with 30 assists. Connor Eschmann of King Philip helped man Springfield’s defense, appearing in all 18 games. Eschmann racked up the third most ground balls by any defender with 30, and was tied for the team lead in caused turnovers with 21.

Taunton’s Connor Johnson was one of three Maine Black Bears to land on the America East All-Academic team. On the field, Johnson led Maine with 28 appearances on the mound and carried the third-best earned run average on the team (3.71).

Former King Phillip standout and current Endicott Gull, Jen Lacroix, had a breakout sophomore season in 2018. Lacroix led the 14-win Gulls with 70 goals and 87 points. Her 70 goals were also enough to lead the entire Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) and rank 28th in the nation. Her impressive season allowed the attack to move into the Endicott record books, as she is tied for first in game-winning goals (6), second in goals (70), and fourth in points (87). Lacroix was also named to the 2018 All-CCC First Team along with the 2018 IWLCA Division III All-Pilgrim Region Second Team. She was also a two-time CCC Offensive Player of the Week (03/12/18, 03/26/18).

Luc Valenza’s senior season at UMass Amherst was a successful one. He former Foxboro Warrior appeared in all 17 games on defense for the Minuteman, starting 14. Valenza finished the year with 24 groundballs and caused 15 turnovers. He also recorded his first ever goal and second ever collegiate point earlier this season versus Hofstra. Valenza’s efforts were rewarded with selection to the All-CAA First Team and USILA North-South All-Star Game Selection.

At Central Connecticut, King Phillip’s Tori Constantin wrapped up her senior season with the Blue Devils by playing 47 games and setting career-high in runs, hits, home runs, runs batted in, batting average, on-base percentage, and slugging percentage. Her strong season was rewarded with a spot on the 2018 NEC Women’s Softball Second Team All-Conference.

Maria Woodall started all 21 games in goal for the Westfield State University Owls. In those 21 games, Woodall led Westfield to an 18-3 record, along with winning the MASCAC regular season and tournament titles. After leading the league in goals against average (8.26), save percentage (.565) and total saves (183), Woodall was named the 2018 MASCAC women’s lacrosse player of the year. She also earned honors on the Intercollegiate Women’s Lacrosse Coaches Association’ all-region team and was a second-team choice in the IWLCA’s “Berkshire” Region.

Former Mansfield Hornet Will Kelleher provided a valuable bat for the Stonehill Skyhawks this season. Kelleher recorded the third-most at-bats for the team (144), and was second on the team in doubles (12) and runs batted in (20). The junior’s season also saw new career highs in games played (39), runs scored (20) and slugging percentage (.347).

Over at Lyndon State, Sharon’s former attack Spencer Aubin had the second most points (34) on the Hornets in 16 games. Aubin’s 20 goals were third most on the club and his 14 assists ranked second. Aubin ended the season recording points in six of his final nine games, including back-to-back hat tricks against Green Mountain and Albertus Magnus.

Attleboro’s Kayla Merritt finished with 14 points during her sophomore season with the Curry Women’s Lacrosse Team. Merritt scored 11 goals in 12 games played and added 14 assists and 11 ground balls. Merritt was named a captain for her junior season.

At Penn State, King Philip alumni Christa Wagner earned the starting right field spot for the Nittany Lions. She started 17 games in right during her sophomore season, recording 11 hits, six runs and four runs batted in. Wagner also was able to steal bases and notched 15 putouts in right field.

A pair of former Hockomock athletes provided valuable contributions to the Fitchburg State softball team. King Philip’s Melissa DiPhilippo had a career season, posting a career high in nearly every single offensive category. Her 24 hits ranked fourth best on the team, and her .343 batting average ranked third. Former Attleboro Bombardier Mikayla Harnois started 12 games for the Falcons, posting a team-high 79 innings pitched. Harnois’ best game of the season came against Mount Ida, where the sophomore went seven innings without allowing a run.

Junior Mike Ferrara posted impressive numbers in his most recent season at Worcester State. The former Oliver Ames standout led the Lancers in at-bats (135), home runs (four), runs batted in (31), and slugging percentage (.496). Ferrara also set new personal career highs in batting average (.348) and on-base percentage (.384).

The Western New England Golden Bears women’s lacrosse team saw a pair of Hockomock athletes patrolling the defensive unit, both former Franklin Panthers. Rebecca Allen started 16 of the 18 games she appeared in, setting career high for goals (three), assists (nine) and points (12). Olivia Truenow started all 17 games she appeared in, while also setting a career high in goals (five), assists (two) and points (seven). Both Allen and Truenow led the entire Golden Bears defense in ground balls with 30 and 35 respectively.

Another former Franklin Panther provided the New Haven women’s lacrosse team with a strong season. Julia Jette recorded the fourth most points on the Chargers, with 42 (28 goals, 14 assists) – a new career high. Jette wasn’t the only Hockomock athlete to impact the Chargers, as Mansfield’s Caroline Maher posted 40 goals and 26 assists.

Saint Joseph’s College of Maine’s goalie Connor Trainor had a strong senior season in net for the Monks. Trainor posted a 9.59 goals-against average with a .505 save percentage while being named to the All-Great Northeast Athletic Conference Third Team. The former Franklin Panther led the conference in wins (10), ranked second in games (19) and minutes (1000:32), and fourth in goals-against average this spring. As his career ends, Trainor ranks second in team history in goalkeeper games (60), minutes (2,906), saves (527), wins (23), and shots faced (1679) and third in goals-against average (9.81) and save percentage (.526). He was also one of two Monks to be selected to play in the 2018 New England Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association (NEILA) East-West Senior All-Star Game.

Attleboro’s Hannah Smith and King Philip’s Maddie O’Gryzek helped pace the UMass Dartmouth’s pitching staff and lineup respectively. Smith started a career-high 24-games for the Corsairs with 131.1 innings of work. She collected 13 wins while finished inside the top-three for wins and earned run average (1.97) while coming top-five for strikeouts (93) and innings pitched. Smith earned her second straight selection to the Little East Conference Second Team. O’Gryzek appeared in all but two games for the Corsairs, recording the second most at-bats on the team (126). She showcased her speed, leading the Corsairs in triples (four) and stolen bases (11). O’Gryzek also set a new career high .389 slugging percentage.

Senior attack Sam Sullivan led Plymouth State with 60 goals while starting all 18 games. The 60 goals were a career high for the former Canton Bulldog, while she also broke career highs in assists (16) and points scored (76). The new marks carried Sullivan to her second straight selection to the All-LEC First Team. She leaves the program as the second player to record three 50-goals. She also ranks in the top ten in the LEC with her 73 points (sixth) and 16 assists (ninth). The co-captain was a two-time Player of the Week selection and is currently fourth all-time in career goals (163) and eighth in program history with 194 career points.

Another former Bulldog saw success on the baseball diamond. Drew Blake belted a team and career-high with eight home runs during his senior season at Fairfield University. Blake led his team with a .477 slugging percentage while starting 40 games for the Stags. Blake was also selected to the All-MAAC Academic Team.

Over at Clark University, Brandon King was named to the NEWMAC All-Conference first team. The former King Phillip standout led the Cougars with 43 goals, which ranked third in the entire NEWMAC. He also added six assists and a team-high 49 points. King twice posted a season-high six goals in Clark’s victories over Salve Regina and Saint John Fisher.

Aimee Kistner had a strong season on the hill for the Western New England Golden Bears. The sophomore appeared in 22 games, starting 15, while recording 11 wins in 113.2 innings of work. Kistner led her team with 119 strikeouts and posted a career-best 2.46 earned run average. Her best performance of the season came against Curry College, where the Taunton graduate threw seven scoreless innings while striking out 10.

At Colorado Mesa, Brian Buckner was named to the Second Team All-Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC). Buckner started 13 games while appearing in 18 as a long stick midfielder, piling up 21 ground balls and causing eight turnovers. Buckner also put up two points on the season while scoring his first career goal.

A pair of Hockomock alums played a role in Framingham State’s 16-3 season. Former Canton Bulldog Casey Bradley started all 19 games on defense for the Rams, which marks the second straight season in which she has done so. Bradley posted a career-high 32 ground balls and 18 caused turnovers, the most out of any Ram defender. Mansfield graduate Kim Foley earned her third first team All-MASCAC honors after scoring 46 goals and 34 assists for 80 points during her senior season. Foley finishes her career with 156 goals, 71 assists and 227 career points which ranks her first all-time in career assists and second all-time in points and goals in program history.

Katie Notarangelo was named the NEWMAC Co-Defensive Athlete of the Year while earning a spot on the Intercollegiate Women’s Lacrosse Coaches Association (IWLCA) All-Region Second Team. Notarangelo scored 60 goals on the season, finishing her career with the sixth most goals in the Institute’s history (145). She also finished with a record for draw controls in a game (15) and in program history ranked third in draw controls (239), tied for fourth in groundballs (127), fifth in caused turnovers (77), and 10th in points (170). In addition, she is currently seventh in the country in free-position percentage (.733).

Former Mansfield Hornet Sabrina Pray qualified seventh in the 100-meter hurdles for the Westfield State University Owls. Pray’s seed time is 14.29 seconds, which was faster than her mark at last year’s NCAA meet. She entered the meet as the 22nd seed and advanced to the finals, where she placed seventh to earn All-America Honors.

A trio of Hockomock athletes helped Bridgewater State University men’s outdoor track and field team capture the meet title at the 11th Annual Eastern Invitational. Cameron Williamson (OA) grabbed top honors in the triple jump with 46’8″/14.22m mark. John Chretien (Taunton) finished third in the javelin, throwing 168’4’’/51.30m. Senior Austin James (Mansfield) placed second in both shot put (46’8″/14.22m) and the discus (137’3″/41.84m). All three posted Division III New England Championships qualifying marks.

On the Bridgewater State women’s track and field team, Milford’s Jenise Madden was one of three team members to earn All-New England honors at the Division III New England Women’s Outdoor Track & Field Championships. Madden placed fifth in the 5,000-meter run with a time of 18:10.48 to qualify.

Courtney Daggett earned All-East Region honors from the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA). Competing as a jumper for Stonehill College, the former Attleboro Bombardier posted her third-career regional honor. She cleared the bar at 5 feet, 4.5 inches at the Silfen Invitational, which marked a season best for the junior as she took home second from the meet.

Ben Chaffee became a regular in the WPI men’s baseball team lineup for the second half of the season, and the Franklin alum answered the bell. Chaffe slashed .386/.474/.482 and drove in 11 runs in his 24 games. The junior ended his season recording hits in 18 of his last 20 games played, including four three-hit games.

06/10/2016

The 2016 Hockomock Girls Lacrosse All Stars & HMs

Below are the official Hockomock League Girls Lacrosse All Stars.

Hockomock League MVP

Kenzie Pleshaw, Franklin

Honorable Mentions

Hannah Lamothe, Attleboro
Casey Bradley, Canton
Melissa Lynch, Foxboro
Annie Walsh, Franklin
Olivia Dort, King Philip
Maire Foley, Mansfield
Morgan Smith, Milford
Alaina Mello, North Attleboro
Sophia Masciarelli, Oliver Ames
Anna Crosby, Sharon
Lorna Li, Taunton

04/21/2016

Thursday’s Schedule & Scoreboard – 04/21/16

Today’s games are listed below.

Baseball
Foxboro, 7 @ Carver, 4 – Final

Franklin, 5 vs. Catholic Memorial, 12 – Final – Josh Macchi drove in three runs with a double but the Panthers were unable to limit the Knights’ offense. Jake Lyons had a pair of hits and two runs scored, Nick Santucci scored twice and had one hit and Tyler Gomes drove in a pair of runs and scored once himself.

King Philip, 7 @ Milford, 3 – Final – Stephen Murray cleared the bases with a three RBI triple in the fourth inning to give the Warriors the separation they needed. After scoring the game’s first run in the second inning, Murray’s triple put KP up 4-0. The Warriors added a run in the fifth and two more in the sixth. Jack DiCenso had a pair of hits for the Warriors as well. Jon Wolfe got the win, tossing a complete game with four strike outs and no walks issued.

Oliver Ames, 2 @ Falmouth, 10 – Final

Softball
Attleboro @ Foxboro, 3:45

Milford, 3 vs. Hopkinton, 2 – Final – Jess Tomaso hit a two-run homer to left to give the Hawks the lead in the bottom of the sixth inning. Milford threw out the tying run at the plate in the seventh on a relay from Kate Irwin to Kaitlyn DeCapua to catcher Megan Jacques. Kelley Reichert pitched six innings and allowed two runs on five hits while striking out four to pick up the win and Ali Atherton closed the game in the seventh.

Stoughton, 1 @ Brockton, 14 – Final – Stoughton fell behind early to the Boxers and could not recover. Jenny D’Andrea, Shannon Flaherty, Bri Ferrandiz, and Jordan Lyons each had hits for the Black Knights. Gina Carafa gave up five earned runs in 2-2/3 innings with four strikeouts and Flaherty allowed five earned in two innings of relief while striking our three.

Taunton, 16 vs. Durfee, 1 – Final (5 inn.) – Taunton’s shutout streak to start the season came to an end at 34 innings but the Tigers put up their second highest number of runs to get the win. Jordan Wade continued her torrid start to the season with a single and double and two RBI in three at bats. Aimee Kistner was 3-3 with two doubles and four RBI, Meghan Navarro had a pair of hits and two RBI, Sarah Bagge had two hits and an RBI and Bailey Clapp had two hits and two RBI. Courtney Fisher won her third game of the year with a one hit, six strikeout performance. Fisher retired the last 12 batters after allowing a walk, hit, and error in the first which produced the Durfee run.

Mansfield, 13 vs. Needham, 1 – Final (6 inn.) – Maddie Letendre struck out 10 batters, allowing just one hit to get the win in the circle. Freshman Kara Bendanillo had a pair of hits and two strong plays defensively at third. Mady Bendanillo, Marissa Staffer and Maddie Letendre each had one hit for the Hornets.

Boys Lacrosse
Canton, 9 vs. Norwood, 7 – Final – Canton jumped out to a first quarter led but faced a 5-4 deficit at halftime. The Bulldogs ended up winning the second half 5-2 to get the win. Head coach Bill Bendell said Shaun Kirby played an all-around great game and finished with five goals and one assist. Norwood focused their defense on Ben O’Neill but Bendell noted he “played unselfishly the entire time” and finished with a goal and an assist. Ryan Lodge finished with two goals and freshman Mike Shaw added one goal. Bendell said freshman Brendan Albert and sophomore Brian Ghostlaw stepped up and played well at LSM.

Foxboro, 10 vs. Sandwich, 11 – Final – Austin Ryan led Foxboro’s defense with four goals while Trey Guerrini and Louis Piccolo eached scored twice and Pete COnley

Franklin, 5 vs. Beverly, 9 – Final – Sophomore Eric Civetti scored a hat trick and had one assist but the Panthers fell in a hole by halftime and couldn’t climb out. Freshman Jacob Alexander dominated at the faceoff X, winning 15/19 draws. Packie Watson and Sam Arsenault each added a goal and an assist for Franklin.

King Philip, 13 vs. Dartmouth, 2 – Final – Junior Tim Watson set the tone very early for the Warriors, who raced out to a 7-1 lead at the end of the first quarter and then didn’t allow a goal in the entire second half. Watson played a role in each of the Warriors’ first five goals, scoring four of them an assisting on another. Watson finished with five goals and two assists. Harry Fallon scored twice and had one assist. Sam Agricola, John DeLuca, Zach D’Amico, Ben Palmer, Steven Eaton (nine groundballs) and freshman Chris Longobardi each scored once for KP.

Mansfield, 19 vs. Braintree, 9 – Final – Mansfield trailed 7-6 at halftime but dominated the second half (13-2) to pull out the win.

Taunton, 2 @ Sharon, 20 – Final – Andrew Wellington and Leon Bizinha scored for the Tigers.

Girls Lacrosse
Canton, 11 vs. Norwood, 4 – Final – Lindsey Nolte and Olivia Devoe each scored a hat trick to lead the Bulldogs to a win. Nolte also had an assist while Casey Bradley had five points with a pair of goals and three assists. Leah McClellan and Becca Eckler each scored a goal while Mary Nee scored once and had three assists.

Milford, 14 @ Hudson, 16 – Final

North Attleboro, 16 @ Oliver Ames, 8 – Final

Sharon, 17 @ Taunton, 6 – Final – Abbey Kingman scored four goals for the Tigers while Tatum Speicher found the back of the net twice.

Boys Tennis
Foxboro @ Attleboro, 10:00AM
King Philip @ Milford, 10:00AM

Girls Tennis
Attleboro, 0 @ Foxboro, 5 – Final
North Attleboro, 5 vs. Bishop Feehan, 0 – Final

Boys Volleyball
Milford, 0 @ Lawrence, 3 – Final

04/07/2016

Maher, Todesco Help Mansfield Ice Canton

Mansfield girls lacrosse — Julia Todesco (right) scored three goals and made several defensive plays to help Mansfield improve to 2-0 on the season. (Josh Perry/HockomockSports.com)

MANSFIELD, Mass. – The wind was whipping across Alumni Field on Wednesday afternoon and it felt more like the middle of the winter than the start of spring, but the turf was clear of snow and so Mansfield and Canton each took the field for the second time this season.

It took a little longer than usual for the two teams to warm up, the first half was dominated by turnovers and misplaced passes, but in the end the teams went right down to the wire. Seniors Caroline Maher and Julia Todesco each scored hat tricks for the Hornets to pull out a 10-8 victory and push Mansfield to 2-0 on the season.

Mansfield coach Alexis Kobey was not surprised that her upperclassmen led the way on Wednesday. She said, “Both Julia and Caroline played amazing. Claire Maroney anchored our defense back there…Those three are really the backbone of our team. They anchor everything for us.”

Things did not start well for the hosts. Canton opened the scoring nearly four minutes in when Caroline Hagen bounced a shot past Mansfield goalie Tori Lawlor. Jill Pulutchko answered off a feed from Katie Garvin to tie it for the Hornets two minutes later, but Canton came right back with the first of two goals by senior Casey Bradley, on an assist by Abby Colburn.

Todesco and then Maher went back-to-back for Mansfield to give the Hornets their first lead of the game at 3-2 but then Bradley tied the game and classmate Mary Nee smacked the post on a quick break. On her next chance, Nee went over the top of Lawlor (10 saves, seven in first half) to make it 4-3 Bulldogs.

Midway through the first half, Kobey made a change on the draws. She put Todesco on the initial draw and moved Maher up to the edge of the circle with Maggie Dunn and occasionally freshman Emily Vigeant to try and gain control. The switch worked and the Hornets won 8-11 draw controls in the first half and 14-20 for the game.

“We kind of switched it around to get different looks and Emily Vigeant, a freshman, we were trying to get her some looks on the draw,” said Kobey. “But Caroline is so good with those one-handed catches, she has such a good eye.”

Lawlor made a huge kick save to block a chance from Bradley with 9:25 left in the half and two minutes later Maher spun past her marker to tie the game at 4-4. Vigeant put Mansfield ahead at halftime, 6-4, with a pair of goals, the first of her career.

The first came off a turnover that she forced directly in front of Canton goalie Kathryn Doody and the second after she had earned a free position opportunity.

“Her first varsity goals, so that’s big for her,” said Kobey. “She was excited. Her and Katie Garvin are our two freshmen and they came right in and made an impact on the game.”

Canton came out of halftime with renewed energy and immediately got back into the game. Just 1:43 after the break, Colburn took advantage of a restart with Lawlor out of the cage and found Rebecca Eckler alone in front to make it 6-5.

Mansfield pressed forward looking to extend the lead but was denied by Doody, who made seven of her 12 saves in the second half, including four in the opening six minutes. Her stops allowed the Bulldogs to tie the game with 19:48 left on Nee’s second of the game.

“She had a great game; a few big saves,” said Canton coach Chrissy O’Connor of Doody. “She really stepped up and had a great game.”

O’Connor added, “I thought they did a good job in the second half of kind of pulling it together. We’re still kind of early on in the season, so we’re still trying to work some things out.”

Mansfield took less than a minute to regain the lead. Todesco forced a turnover in the defensive zone and started a quick transition that went from Mary Folan to Dunn for a 7-6 lead.

Olivia Devoe answered right back for Canton from a free position chance, but then Todesco scored two in a row, both slicing across the Bulldogs’ defense, to put the Hornets ahead 9-7.

Maroney picked up a card and Canton had an extra player on the field, but the Bulldogs struggled to make the advantage pay. Finally, Nee made a steal on defense and sparked a quick transition. Bradley picked out Hagen in the middle and she cut the lead to just one with 10:57 left.

O’Connor said, “I think it took us a little while to figure out to double team on the man down, but they did a good job of starting to pressure. Our shooting – we hit the post a couple of times, had a couple of overthrows but overall I’m happy with how they played.”

As the clock wound down under six minutes remaining, Canton was probing for the tying goal. The Bulldogs had more than a minute of sustained pressure, but the Mansfield defense was staying with cutters and not allowing good looks. The one chance that the Bulldogs had was stopped by Lawlor.

“I think that’s what really saved us, making that save that gave them the extra confidence,” said Kobey. “When the goalie saved, they’re like yeah! When we went to the timeout, we had the lead and I told them it’s our game.”

Todesco made another play, this time on the defensive side of the game, when she scooped up a ground ball to end Canton’s possession. The play transitioned into the attack and Maher capped her hat trick with a finish that made it 10-8 with 5:17 to play.

The game was sloppy at times, but Kobey admitted that the conditions were at least partly to blame. She explained, “The cold conditions are tough because the blood’s not flowing a much and your hands are freezing and you can’t feel the stick.”

O’Connor is in her first year as head coach and has started with back-to-back losses to perennial power Franklin and now Mansfield. Despite the defeats, she is pleased with how the team is coming together.

She said, “Starting off with Franklin is difficult, but I was happy with how they came back and stayed in this game. It wasn’t the outcome we wanted but I was happy with the fight the whole game…baby steps.”

Mansfield will put its perfect (2-0) record on the line on Friday against King Philip. Canton will be looking for its first win on Friday when it hosts Taunton for the first time.

Josh Perry can be contacted at JoshPerry@hockomocksports.com and followed on Twitter at @Josh_Perry10.

04/04/2016

Girls Lacrosse: Davenport Division Preview 2016

Davenport girls lacrosse — Canton and Foxboro have been the top two teams in the Davenport the past few seasons, but other programs are developing and could challenge them this season. (Josh Perry/HockomockSports.com)

By HockomockSports.com Staff

CANTON
2015 Record: 7-12
2015 Finish: Reached Div. 1 South first round
Coach: Chrissy O’Connor

There is a new coaching staff for the Canton girls’ lacrosse this season and first-year head coach Chrissy O’Connor is looking forward to surprising a few people with a strong spring.

Seniors Casey Bradley (attack) and Olivia Devoe (midfield) will be the team leaders and the keys to the Bulldogs making a charge at Foxboro for the league title. Sophomore midfielder Molly Colburn and freshman Leah McClellan will be newcomers to watch this year as well.

O’Connor said, “I think the league will be surprised with Canton’s tenacity this season. They are a confident and smart group of athletes who have handled having a new coaching staff extremely well. This should be an exciting season for Canton lacrosse.”

FOXBORO
2015 Record: 14-7-1
2015 Finish: Reached Div. 2 East semifinal
Coach: Brittany Sherry

At the end of last year’s Div. 2 East semifinal, Foxboro coach Brittany Sherry was emotional about losing the crop of seniors that had joined the program the same year she began. That group had won four straight league titles and gone further than any other team in program history. But when Sherry was asked about the future, she was confident in the talent coming back and believed that her fifth season could be another title-winning spring.

Senior Melissa Lynch was a standout in goal last year and will be back between the pipes and will have a strong defensive core in front of her including junior Hallie Canfield and senior Annie McGeary. Offensively, Foxboro will be looking for continued development from junior Lauren Flahive and sophomore Catherine Luciano, who will both be asked to fill in for senior Chloe Hurley, who begins the season with an injury.

Young players helped Foxboro on its run to the semifinal and freshman Sophia Dicenso is the next in line to try and make an instant impact for the Warriors. Juniors Ally Curran and Molly Farrell could also be poised for breakout seasons.

All eyes are on the matchup with Franklin in May, as the two teams have won their respective divisions each of the past four years, but Foxboro also has Hingham, Medfield, and Walpole on its schedule as it sets its sights on another tournament run.

MILFORD
2015 Record: 2-16
2015 Finish: Missed playoffs
Coach: Jason Gelmini

Milford comes into the new season with a young roster after losing eight seniors from last year’s squad and head coach Jason Gelmini is hoping that the many underclassmen who saw playing time in 2015 will be ready to step into bigger roles in 2016.

The Hawks will be led by senior midfielders Morgan Smith and Julie Dam and senior defender Erin Fleming and Gelmini is counting on his captains to provide leadership. In addition, the Hawks will lean on junior defender Brainna Croteau, junior goalie Hannah Cairney, junior middie Jillian Burley, and junior attackers Taylor Dube and Jordyn Lombardo.

Gelmini said, “We definitely have a young team this year, so our goals are to get better each game and compete each time we step on the field.”

OLIVER AMES
2015 Record: 10-9
2015 Finish: Reached Div. 1 East preliminary round
Coach: Craig Gardner

Oliver Ames is coming off a strong season in which the Tigers reached the Div. 1 East sectional before falling to Bishop Feehan in the opening round. This year, OA has a lot of returning players who experienced what a playoff run was like and head coach Craig Gardner is counting on that experience to pay dividends this spring.

The Tiger will be led by a strong senior class, including midfielder Erin Fitzgerald and defenders Cassie Gavin and Sarah Lewis. Senior attackers Abby Duvall and Sam Lang will help Fitzgerald provide attacking power while senior midfielder Carly Cidado and junior defender Katie Davenport will help lock things down at the back.

Gardner also noted a few young players that could be impact players this season, including sophomores Sofia Masciarelli, Chloe Kilkelly, and Ariana Waldorf and junior Kendall Clifford. Freshman defender Olivia Piazza will also be a newcomer to watch this season.

“We have a very strong and focused group of experienced upperclassmen athletes, coupled with some strong developing underclassmen athletes,” said Gardner. “The team has great chemistry, which I hope translates into a competitive season for us.”

SHARON
2015 Record: 7-10
2015 Finish: Missed playoffs
Coach: Colleen Manning

Sharon had a program best record of 7-10 last season under first-year coach Colleen Manning, who is expecting the Eagles to take an even bigger leap this year by making the postseason for the first time.

Sharon only has three seniors (Alex Miller, Alexa Levitt, and Heather Seggelin), but plenty of young talent including “top shooter” Alex Rabb, attacker Anna Crosby, and defender Samantha Rabb (all juniors).

Sophomore Sabrina Robbins is drawing attention from colleges and will be a force for the Eagles on draw controls, while freshman Lydia Chase will add a new face to the Sharon defense.

04/01/2016

Friday’s Schedule & Scoreboard – 04/01/16

Today’s games are listed below.
Baseball
North Attleboro, 7 @ Bishop Feehan, 13 – Final
Boys Lacrosse
Franklin, 13 @ Canton, 3 – Final – Ben O’Neill netted a pair of goals for the Bulldogs and Shaun Kirby added one in the loss.
Foxboro, 3 @ North Attleboro, 2 – Final – Louis Piccolo, Austin Ryan and Andrew Whalen scored for the Warriors.
Oliver Ames, 2 @ King Philip, 17 – Final – Senior Sam Agricola led the Warriors with four goals and two assists and junior Tim Watson had five goals and one assists. Harry Fallon’s made a big impact with his hustle and ball movement, which resulted in four assists for KP. John DeLuca added three goals and junior midfielder Zach D’Amico had nine ground balls. Shane Frommer, freshman Wes Bishop and freshman Colin DeVellis all had their first varsity points. Paul Macrina had 10 saves in net for KP.

Mansfield, 16 @ Milford, 0 – Final
Girls Lacrosse
Canton, 16 @ Franklin, 2 – Final – Julia Jette led Franklin with seven points, potting three goals and adding four assists. Emily Spath had a pair of goals and three assists and Jordan Jette netted a pair of goals. Dani Lonati had nine saves in goal for Franklin. Mary Nee and Casey Bradley had the goals for the Bulldogs.

North Attleboro, 9 @ Foxboro, 19 – Final

King Philip, 17 @ Oliver Ames, 5 – Final – Erin Fitzgerald scored a hat trick for Oliver Ames.
Milford, 6 @ Mansfield, 22 – Final – Caroline Maher led the way for the Hornets with seven goals and Julia Todesco added six. Also for Mansfield, Maire Foley had four goals and Tori Lawlor made five saves in goal. Junior Fiona Raleigh scored a pair of goals for Milford, her first career goals for the Hawks.
Boys Volleyball
Milford, 3 @ Essex Tech, 0 – Final
Taunton, 3 vs. Braintree, 1 – Final – Taunton picked up its second win of the season in as many days with a 25-18, 25-19, 17-25, 25-14 win. Lance Law led the Tigers with 17 kills, six aces and five digs while Ricardo DaFonseca had 29 assists, six aces and three kills. David Perry chipped in with six kills and Dawid Fusiecki played well defensively and with seven digs, two aces and three kills.

09/09/2015

Wednesday's Schedule & Scoreboard – 09/09/15

Below are today’s games.
Boys Soccer
Foxboro, 5 @ Attleboro, 3 – Final – Foxboro took a 3-1 lead into half before the Bombardiers came back to tie things up with just over 10 minutes to play on a goal from Zach Rodrigues. However, Foxboro’s Devante Teixeira scored his third and fourth goals inside the final 10 minutes to lift the Warriors. Anthony Barreira assisted on all four of Teixeira’s goals and scored a goal himself.
Canton, 2 @ North Attleboro, 2 – Final – The Rocketeers rallied from a two goal deficit with a goal midway through the second half and then in the final seconds to secure a point. Canton senior Joey Basile put the Bulldogs up on an assist from sophomore Ben Waterhouse just over 10 minutes into the game and then freshman Griffin Roach netted his first career goal to make it 2-0 Canton. North replied just two minutes later behind a goal from Zach Matracia and then Gabe Pinhancos knotted the score at two in the final seconds on a free kick.

Oliver Ames, 2 @ Franklin, 0 – Final – OA sophomore Cameron Vella and senior Chris Romero scored second half goals to lift the Tigers. Max Bamford and Romero each had an assist in the game. Head coach John Barata said Keegan Nutt and Nathaniel Cardoza played great in the middle. Jack Carroll recorded his first career shutout for OA.
Sharon, 2 @ King Philip, 4 – Final – King Philip’s Tyler Mann opened the scoring on an assist from Clay Geuss and then added another goal to give the Warriors a 3-2 lead at the break. Will Weir had the other first half goal for KP on an assist from Cam Mullins. KP’s Paul Kelley scored the lone goal of the second half.
Milford, 0 @ Mansfield, 1 – Final – Mansfield’s Jack Reilly scored the lone goal of the game for the Hornets to open the season with a win. Six minutes into the second half, Mansfield’s Brad Eames’ corner found Chris Elsner, who deflected it on to Reilly for the tap in.
Stoughton, 1 @ Taunton, 1 – Final – Taunton’s Sean Crowley put home side up a goal in the 13th minute. Stoughton’s Will Peoples converted from the penalty spot for the Black Knights in the 40th minute to level the game.
Girls Soccer
Attleboro, 0 @ Foxboro, 2 – Final – Hannah Burns opened the scoring for the Warriors and Hailey Maling added a second goal on an assist from Kristen Bortolotti.
North Attleboro, 2 @ Canton, 3 – Final – Riley Duserick, Julia Hamilton and Casey Bradley all scored for the Bulldogs. North Attleboro’s Haley Guertin scored to cut the deficit to 2-1 on an assist from Grace Guertin. Emily Schramm scored North’s second goal on an assist from Haley Guertin.

Franklin, 0 @ Oliver Ames, 0 – Final
King Philip, 0 @ Sharon, 2 – Final – Sharon’s Victoria Zambello opened the scoring for the Eagles just over 10 minutes into the game and Ally Steinberg added a second-half tally for the Eagles. Natalie Gray made nine saves in goal for Sharon. KP’s Maggie Hall recorded four saves.
Mansfield, 2 @ Milford, 0 – Final – Mansfield’s Jen Kemp scored a brace as the Hornets opened the season with a shutout win. Kemp headed home a corner in the first half and then chipped the keeper for the second goal. Milford coach Jay Mastaj said Nichole Dahlgren played well defensively and Emily Duquette made eight saves in net.

Taunton, 1 @ Stoughton, 0 – Final – Abby Small scored her first goal of the season and the Tigers picked up a season-opening win. Kayla Wentworth had eight saves for the shutout in net. Stoughton’s goalie Marissa Williams also made eight saves in goal.
Volleyball
Foxboro, 3 @ Attleboro, 1 – Final

Canton, 3 @ North Attleboro, 1 – Final – North Attleboro picked up a win 28-26 in the first set but the Bulldogs rallied to get care of business the next three sets (25-8, 25-15, 25-16). Elizabeth Hamilton slammed home 15 kills and had 14 digs, Rye Verille had seven kills and four blocks, Nicole Poole had 34 assists in her first start at setter and head coach Pat Cawley said Olivia Devoe had an “outstanding” debut at libero with 24 digs.

Oliver Ames, 1 @ Franklin, 3 – Final – Franklin senior Hannah Chase had six aces and three kills, Aubrie Kutil had six kills, sophomore Meaghan Maguire collected four blocks and Dayna McCue had six digs and an ace.
King Philip, 3 @ Sharon, 0 – Final – King Philip swept 25-17, 25-18, 25-30. Josie Rowean had 11 kills and a pair of aces, Gwen Uyrus had 10 kills and four aces and Carly Adams had 11 assists.
Milford, 1 @ Mansfield, 3 – Final – Mansfield won 25-22, 23-25, 25-19, 25-12. Cathryn Heavey had 14 service points and 13 assists for the Hornets and Sarah Mullahy added six kills and seven service points. Milford sophomore Julianna Tracy had five kills and four blocks for the Scarlet Hawks.

Stoughton, 0 @ Taunton, 3 – Final – Emily Moor had 14 kills and five aces, Tatum Speicher had 26 assists, a pair of kills and a pair of aces and Aimee Kistner had a good day at the net with three blocks, two kills and added three aces. Stoughton’s Bianca DeSousa had nine assists and five aces.
Golf
Stoughton, 186 @ Milford, 160 – Final – Anthony Arcudi had the best day for the Scarlet Hawks, shooting a 37. Ryan Tomaso shot a 38 and Zach Tammaro carded a 39 for Milford.
Taunton, 160 @ Canton, 155 – Final – Senior Jim Jenkins carded a match-low 36 for the Bulldogs while sophomore Jack Goyetch shot a 39 for Canton. Taunton’s Ryan O’Berg and Mario Wilson each shot a 39 for the Tigers.
Sharon, 164 @ Oliver Ames, 148 – Final – OA’s Brady Allbritton shot a team-low 35 for the Tigers while Brian Lambert and Mark Bissonette each carded a 37. Sharon’s Max Avartin shot a round of 35 for the Eagles.

Tag: Casey Bradley