RHS sports Roundup
Boys basketball team nips Beverly at the buzzer, 75-72
RHS captain Camilo Gomez banked a three-pointer at the buzzer to give the Revere High boys basketball team a thrilling and dramatic 75-72 victory over Beverly last Tuesday.
Camilo’s winning bucket climaxed what had been a fast-paced and hard-fought game from the beginning and that came down to a frantic, final 15 seconds in which the teams took turns bombing away with threes.
Patriot Janard Jones appeared to have donned the hero’s cape when he sank a three-pointer with about 10 seconds to play that gave Revere a 72-69 advantage.
However, just moments after that, Beverly sharpshooter Sam Traicoff, who hit for all 17 of his points in the second half, momentarily stole the spotlight when he drained a trey to knot matters at 72-72 with 5.8 seconds showing on the clock.
Revere then called a timeout to set up a chance for a game-winning look at the basket. Ironically (and fortunately for Revere) however, things did not go as planned.
“We drew up a play in the timeout, but Beverly defended it well,†said RHS head coach Adam Rizzo. “The ball ended up in Camilo’s hands and he got by his guy. Three dribbles later, he found himself at the top of the key with under a second left. He let it fly on the run with a hand in his face and banked it in at the buzzer.â€
The final flurries by both teams were an appropriate ending to a contest in which the teams took turns punching, counter-punching, and trading momentum from start to finish.
After the teams battled to 16-16 deadlock through the first frame, Revere moved out to a 36-28 advantage at the half, led principally by Gomez (nine points in the second quarter) and Gerald Charles (six in the period).
However, Beverly’s Traicoff  and Kyle Coughlin (a game-high 20 points) came to life after the intermission and pulled the Panthers within three, 52-49, entering the final quarter.
Beverly temporarily pulled ahead at the start of the last eight minutes, but the Patriots withstood the Beverly push and it was Revere that would prove to have the final word.
“Beverly took a slight lead in the fourth, but we fought through it,†said Rizzo. “Every timeout we stressed, ‘One stop, one bucket at a time,’ and that’s what we did.â€
Gomez was one of three Patriots to reach double figures with his 19 points. Charles hit for 16 and Tommy Chea added 13. Mass Joof, who tingled the twine for nine points, was a powerful force underneath, with a double-double of more than 10 rebounds and more than 10 blocked shots.
Romeo Thomas (whose three-pointer off the opening tip set the tone for the offensive fireworks to come) added seven points, Nermin Ibreljic chipped in six, Jones sank his clutch three, and Brendan Hayes added two.
“For the first time of the season we were able to come out and get some good looks off our set plays that we haven’t generated yet,†noted Rizzo.
The Patriots did not have as much luck in their two contests post-Christmas, falling to non-league rivals Malden, 77-63, and Arlington Catholic, 85-65 over the weekend.
“Right now we just are not a good defensive basketball team and we need to put in a lot of work on that end of the floor,†said Rizzo. “Against Malden, we knew their size and athleticism would be a problem and they beat us on the offensive glass. The extra chance points were bad enough, but the turnovers that turned into easy layups compounded the problems.â€
Thomas, who came off the bench to score 17 points, led the Patriots in that department. Romeo had a flurry in the third quarter where he scored 11 points in a matter of two minutes. “Romeo’s been our best scorer this season and we have needed every point he’s given us,â€Â said Rizzo.
In the Arlington Catholic contest, foul trouble plagued a Patriot squad that had only nine players available to play. “It was just poor defense from the start,†noted Rizzo. “We had most of our team in foul trouble in the first quarter. With only nine varsity players available because of injuries and illness, we were light on the bench. Every time we made plays to come back in the game, we would have a defensive lapse or a foolish turnover to kill all the momentum.â€
Senior Nermin Ibreljic, who scored a career-high 20 points, kept the Patriots alive for most of the contest.
Rizzo and his crew will be back in action after the New Year on Monday, January 5, when they will host Peabody.
RHS track girls nip Classical in final event
When the outcome of an indoor track meet comes down to the final event, the 4 x 400 relay, it’s about as exciting and dramatic as it can get in the track world. Such was the case for the Revere High girls’ team last week in its meet with Lynn Classical, but it was the Lady Patriots who won the final race of the day to claim the victory.
“Going into the relay the score was 42-39 in favor of Classical,â€Â said RHS head coach Antonio LaBruna, “but Classical ended up getting disqualified because their lead runner cut into the inside lane too early and the official caught it. It was a tough break for them because their relay team is one of the best in the conference, but we’ll take it and our girls certainly earned the victory.â€
The contest prior to the relay had been a nip-and-tuck battle between the two rivals, each of whom took full advantage of their respective strengths to keep matters close.
“We knew the meet was going to be close and that we would need some of the events to break our way. Fortunately, that’s what happened,†noted LaBruna. “We got a lot of seconds and thirds in the sprint events to keep the meet close and won all four of the middle distance and distance events to get it even closer.â€
Individual winners for Revere in their events were: Sam Myrtil in the shotput with a toss of 26’-10â€; Danielle Fortuna in the 600 in a time of 1:55.5; Nadia Lerari in the 1000 with a clocking of 3:46.2; Hannah Fitzpatrick in the mile with a run of 6:42.8; and Jaclynne Dion in the two mile with a time of 14:27.
Earning three points for the Revere side of the score sheet with second place performances were: Romessa Ali Moussa with a high jump of 4’-0†(Romessa tied for that position with a Lady Ram opponent to earn a crucial point); Angelina Nguyen in the 50 hurdles in 6.7; and Yesenia Arango in the mile in 6:44.3.
And in a meet where every point mattered, adding single points to the Revere total with third place finishes were: Fiona Kerthi with a shotput toss of 26’-1â€; Sarah Almeida in the 300 in 50.7; Jasmin Zelkanovic in the 50 hurdles in 9.2; Angelisa Nguyen in the 50 dash in 6.8; Cristiana Martinez in the 1000 in 3:55.8; and Joanna Severino in the two mile in 15:08.
The winning relay team, which finished in 5:14.3, consisted of Nadia Lelari, Sarah Almeida, Hannah Fitzpatrick, and Danielle Fortuna.
“The shotput was the key event for us,†said LaBruna. “Sam Myrtil, a first year thrower, won the event on her final throw and Fiona Kerthi also picked up a crucial third that kept us alive and set up the 4 x 400 relay. Our throwers are getting better by the day and assistant coach Briana Scata has done a great job working with that group of young throwers.â€
LaBruna also had words of praise for some of his other performers. “Nadia Lelari is a freshmen who ran an impressive 3:42 in the 1000 and Yesenia Arango is a senior captain who stepped in and ran the mile (6:44) for the first time.
“But overall, this was a total team win,†added the coach.
RHS hockey team
defeats Lowell, 2-1
The Revere High hockey team gave itself a nice Christmas gift last Tuesday with a come-from-behind 2-1 victory at Lowell. After a horrendous bus ride northward during rush hour that took almost two hours, coach Joe Ciccarello’s squad spotted Lowell a 1-0 lead in the opening period. However, the Patriots came to life in the second frame, lighting the lamp twice to take a 2-1 advantage. Rich Polignone notched the equalizer, assisted by Steve Noel, and then Noel struck for what would prove to be the game-winner, assisted by Joe Ristaino.
That left matters in the capable stick-and-glove hands of Patriot goalie Max Anderson, who once again turned in a superb effort between the pipes. Anderson was impenetrable in the final two frames and ended up with 35 saves on the evening. “Max played a great game,†said Ciccarello of his junior netminder, who rapidly is acquiring a reputation as one of the top schoolboy goalies in the area
“We didn’t play all that well, but it was nice to see the team have the maturity to come back and win the game, “ noted Ciccarello.
Four days later the Patriots trekked to Everett for an encounter with their former rival from the Greater Boston League. Revere grabbed a 1-0 lead in the opening period on a goal by Polignone (assisted by Noel), but the Crimson Tide took control in the second frame and lit the lamp four times, the last coming with just 11 seconds to play in the period. “That last on was a real killer for us,†said Ciccarello.
As things would turn out, that also would prove to be the decisive marker. The Patriots came out strong in the third period and two goals by Antony Cecca drew Revere within 4-3. With the game entering the final minutes, Everett was called for a penalty, giving the Patriots the man advantage. Ciccarello then pulled Anderson in the final minute to make it a 6-on-4 power play. However, a Crimson Tide player cleared the puck off the boards and the disk caromed at a weird angle into the Revere goal for the empty-netter.
“It was a tough one to lose,†said Ciccarello. “Everett is a big team and has a number of upperclassmen with more experience than us. We made some mistakes that cost us early in the game, but we never quit and battled back, only to have them get a lucky break at the end when they got the empty-net goal.â€
Ciccarello and his crew, who now stand at an even-steven 2-2-2 on the season, will hit the road for their next three games, playing at Somerville tomorrow (Wednesday), at Swampscott Saturday, and at Northeast Regional next Wednesday.
RHS boys track team
rolls past Classical
The Revere High boys indoor track team handily dispatched Lynn Classical last week, 64-13.
The Patriots won seven of the nine individual events: Mirza Liskovica with a shotput toss of 40’-1â€; Lionel Forbes in the hurdles with a clocking of 7.3; Dan Murphy in the 50 dash in 5.8; Anthony Berry in the 300 in 42.1; Bounlaing Chea in the 600 in 1:36.7; Richie Damiano in the 1000 in 3:00.4; and Zakaria Attioui in the mile in 5:26.9.
Second place finishers for the Patriots were: James Petrozelli with a shotput throw of 36’-10â€; David Sinatra in the 50 hurdles in 7.4; Derek Duran in the 50 dash in 5.9; Edi Murjan in the 300 in 42.5; Zachary Gentile in the 600 in 1:38.4; Abubakir Aldarazy in the 1000 in 3:14.3; John Simonini in the mile in 5:44; and Sebastian Mejia in the two mile in 11:55.
Salah Barhoum added a point for the Revere side with a third place finish in the two mile in 11:55.