Sports 12-30-2015

RhS sports Roundup

Girls basketball team rolls to two more wins

The Revere High girls basketball team improved to 4-0 on the season with victories over Lynn Classical and Lynn English last week at the RHS fieldhouse.

Sophomore Valentina Pepic turned in a dominating performance in the 55-45 triumph over Classical, pumping in a game-high 28 points and pulling down 10 rebounds for her third double-double in as many games. “Our posts were a tough match-up for Classical and Valentina played exceptionally well offensively,” said RHS head coach Diana Finn.

Pamela Gonzalez also reached double-figures for Revere with 10 points, followed by Meaghan Gotham and Adanna Hector with five points each, Maritza Scott with four, and Ally Hinojosa with three.

“Classical showed up ready to play and played with intensity for the entire game,” noted Finn. “We matched their intensity on defense and we were able to come out with the win.”

Two nights later Finn and her crew entertained the other half of the Lynn high school combo and had an easier time with a 66-42 victory over Lynn English.  Gonzalez paced a balanced Lady Patriot scoring attack with 14 points. Hector hit for 12 points, Pepic added 11, Gotham struck for eight, the trio of Hinojosa, Scott, and Emily DiGiulio chipped in six each, and Natasha Iacoviello contributed two.

“This was a good team win,” commented Finn. “We pushed the tempo in this game early and pressed English to force turnovers.  Our offensive patience and balance is starting to come together.  We’re spending school vacation week improving our conditioning, team defense, and offensive efficiency.”

For Pepic, her 11 points gave her four games in which she has reached double-figures for an average of 19 points per game.

The Lady Patriots are off this week until Monday, when they will host Medford, a former foe from the Greater Boston League. Peabody comes to town Tuesday and Marblehead Friday. Tip-off for all home games is 6:00.

“We have our work to do to prepare for the increasing difficulty in our schedule,” said Finn.

The contest with Peabody looms as a key battle in the Lady Patriots’ drive to repeat as the champion of the North Division of the Northeastern Conference. The Lady Tanners are 3-1 against the same four NEC North foes whom Revere also has faced (Danvers, Beverly, Lynn Classical, and Lynn English). Peabody came out on the short end of a 48-38 decision to Classical.

RHS hockey team wins three straight, captures tournament

The Revere High hockey team reeled off three straight victories this past week and captured the championship of the East Boston Freeze-Out Cancer Tourney that was played at the Porazzo Rink this past weekend.

The Patriots gave themselves an early Christmas present two days before the holiday with a 6-4 victory over Northeast Regional Vocational School Wednesday evening at Cronin Rink.

Mike Goroshko notched the hat trick for the Patriots and Jim Pandolfo lit the lamp twice.  Anthony Cecca also added a goal.

After Northeast drew first blood in the opening frame, Revere got the equalizer before the period ended. Both teams scored twice in the middle stanza to leave matters deadlocked at 3-3 entering the final 15 minutes.

Northeast continued to maintain the advantage, taking a 4-3 lead early in the third period, but the Patriots ended the see-saw battle with three unanswered markers to claim the victory.

“Northeast is a very fast and tough team,” said RHS head coach Joe Cicariello.  “When they scored first in the third period and we came back, it showed a lot of heart and resiliency, traits we preach all the time.”

The Patriots then took to the ice Saturday evening in the first contest of the Freeze-Out Cancer Tourney and easily handled Ashland, 7-0. Mike Giordano, who lit the lamp twice, led a balanced Revere scoring attack that featured goals from Cecca, Pandolfo, Cam O’Neil, Zach Rufo, and Joe Ristino.

The following night the Patriots met the host Eastie team, which had defeated Salem in its preliminary contest, in the tourney championship encounter and skated to a 6-2 triumph.

The Patriots jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the opening period and extended their advantage to a commanding 5-0 margin after two periods. Cecca scored twice and teammates Pandolfo, Goroshko, Steve Noel, and Rick Briana also lit the lamp.

“We skated hard and put pressure on their thin depth,” said Cicariello. “I like how hard we are working every game. It’s our style to grind you until we score. As long as we maintain team defense, our goals will come. We must remember what makes us a competitive team and we can’t get caught up in thinking we are superstars.”

Cicariello and his crew, who now stand at 4-1 for the season, resume their Northeastern Conference schedule Saturday evening against Swampscott. Face-off is set for 5:10 at Cronin. The Pats then will host East Boston Wednesday at Cronin at 6:30.

Lady Patriots shine at NEC Frosh/Soph

The freshmen and sophomore members of the Revere High girls indoor track team competed in the annual Northeastern Conference Freshman/Sophomore Meet held Saturday at Beverly High School.

A number of the Lady Patriots turned in fine performances, led by sophomore Hannah Fitzpatrick, who took home a second place medal in the mile run with a time of 6:03.4.

Fellow sophomore Marina Robinson also earned a medal with a fifth place finish in the 50 yard dash in a clocking of 7.2.

The Revere 4 x 400 quartet consisting of Fitzpatrick, Rania Bensadok, Stephanie Vu, and Erin Christopher also came through with a superb showing, taking third place in a time of 5:07.

“This is one of my favorite meets of the year, because it gives us an idea of how we are going to stack up against the rest of the league in future seasons,” said RHS head coach Antonio Labruna. “It also gives the kids a chance to compete against athletes in their age group and gauge where they are from a competitive standpoint.

“I was pleased with the team’s effort,” Labruna continued. “Many girls got a chance to compete in an event they otherwise wouldn’t and we left Beverly a more experienced and versatile team.”

The full Lady Patriot indoor squad is set to resume its dual meet season tonight (Wednesday) when they host Lynn English.

On the boys’ side at the meet, Bryan Gutierrez was the top scorer with a  fifth place finish in the 600 dash in 1:45.1. Joseph Gendreau took a sixth place in the 300 dash in 45.3. The 4 x 400 relay squad came across in fourth place against its Frosh/Soph peers in 4:21.

The full Patriot boys squad also will host English this evening.

Patriots extend Lynn English to overtime

The Revere High boys basketball team gave it their all in an up-and-down battle at Lynn English before succumbing in overtime, 75-70, last Wednesday evening.

The contest was a closely-fought battle al the way. Revere trailed by three at the end of the first quarter, 20-17, but took a 35-34 advantage into the half. The Bulldogs, traditionally one of the Big Dogs of the Northeastern Conference who entered the contest with a 3-1 record, moved out to a two-point edge, 50-48, after three frames, a slim advantage they maintained until the final 15 seconds of regulation.

However, the Patriots had the ball under the English basket with a chance to tie and made the most of the opportunity after taking a timeout and drawing up a play to look to their hottest shooter of the night, Janard Jones, who ended up with 25 points and hit four three-pointers.

“We knew that Janard was feeling it all night long,” said RHS head coach Adam Rizzo. “We made sure he knew where he was going, what to expect from the defense, and what he needed to do to react to their rotations. He’s a very smart player and I knew that he was going to make the right decision.”

As Jones caught the ball in the corner, an English player ran out on him to get him off the three-point line. A pump fake, one dribble past the defender, and a mid-range, pull-up jumper was up-and-in to force overtime.

Although English pulled out the win in the OT sesssion, the Patriots had battled ferociously and evenly with English for 32 minutes.

The first quarter was a frantic up-and-down affair as two players seemingly went back-and-forth playing a game of HORSE. English’s Anthony Silfa — a leading candidate for NEC MVP — had 13 points in the opening quarter, including three bombs from deep against the Revere zone. Revere’s Jones wasn’t far off, as he struck for 11 points, including an equally impressive trio of three-pointers of his own.

“Janard was huge for us throughout the game, but specifically in the first quarter,” noted Rizzo. “In a game like that against English, you can’t afford to get down early to them. Our guards — Gerald Charles, Will Bell and Marcus Brunson — did a great job breaking the press and finding Janard in open spots and he did his part by knocking down the shots. It’s exactly what we needed to prove we were ready to play.”

The second quarter saw Patriot Gerald Charles get into the act and go for six of his 16 points, as he used his speed and strength to attack the basket and finish around and over the taller and longer English defenders. Jones also had six more points in the quarter while freshman Marcus Brunson scored four.

“The 18-point quarter was good, but holding English’s potent offense to just 14 points was even better,” said Rizzo “We were able to score and keep them off the glass. We forced them into some tough shots. While they weren’t the leading scorers by any stretch, Marvin Urdaneta and Mass Joof were huge for us all night by dominating the rebounds on our defensive end. Holding them to just one shot per possession was our goal and for the most part we did that in the first half.

“We knew that English was going to come out with their best to start the second half to try to put us away early,” continued Rizzo. “We took their best shot in the opening minutes of the half as Silfa hit a long three and got a steal on the ensuing inbounds pass for an easy layup. A couple of empty possessions down the other end and we needed a quick timeout to settle the guys. Luckily our guys responded, got back to what we did all first half, and were able to cut the English lead to two going into the fourth.”

The fourth quarter was tense as every possession took on increasing significance and every rebound, every loose ball, and every bucket was crucial. The teams traded hoops throughout the quarter, but it was freshman Brunson who made the most noise in the quarter, as Marcus drained a trio of treys in the pressure-cooker atmosphere to allow Revere to keep pace.

“For a freshman to come into Lynn English in just his fourth career high school basketball game and play the way he did is remarkable,” said Rizzo. “He’s a huge piece to the puzzle here and we know he’s going to have some great games for us this year and beyond.”

The overtime period proved to be too much for the Patriots as English went on to score nine points in the added four minutes, with the final margin inflated at the end because Revere had to foul to try to stop the clock and get the ball back.

“Heading into Lynn English is never an easy task,” said Rizzo. “We were coming off a couple of tough losses and we knew we needed to put our best effort forward to pull off an upset. Lynn English is known for its full-court, man-to-man press from start to finish. Our guards were prepped in advance of this game and knew what to expect. Pressing and constant double-teams would be the norm throughout this game and if we could handle and break the pressure, we were going to get good looks at the hoop. Convert them and we would give ourselves a chance at a big win.

“Our guys played their hearts out,” added Rizzo. “We had to go with a very short bench in this one. We actually only had seven guys see floor time with six of them seeing the majority of the minutes. Our guys were gassed at the end and that’s to be expected. For their best effort of the season to end like this is a tough blow, but they now know what effort level is necessary to be the best team they can be. We will build off this game and be sure to bring this type of fight to the rest of the NEC.”

After Jones’s team-high of 25 points (including four three-pointers), Charles hit for 16 points, Brunson struck for 13 (with four treys), Joof contributed eight, Urdaneta added six, and Bell chipped in two.

Two days earlier the Patriots trekked to Lynn Classical and came out on the short end of a 54-40 decision. The Patriots shook off a slow start (14-7 deficit after one quarter), but closed the gap to 22-19 by the intermission. However, Classical came out on fire after the half and outscored Revere 23-9 in the third period to pull away to a 45-28 lead.

“We started out the game ice cold from the floor and committed too many turnovers,” said Rizzo. “We were trying to make one too many passes on offense. Our turnovers led to easy shots for them. They also hit three three-pointers in the first quarter against our zone. Our philosophy was to limit layups and force as many contested jumpers as possible. While the layups were held to a minimum, their jumpers weren’t exactly contested early on as we were slow on our rotations.”

The second quarter was a different story as the Pats clamped down on defense and got the scoring going. Joof scored four points in the second quarter, but it was activity on the glass and on the defensive end that really sparked us.

“We got the stops we needed and allowed our guards to get out and run,” said Rizzo, as Revere cut the lead to three going into the break. “We felt like we had all the momentum.”

However, the third quarter proved fatal for Revere. “We gave up 21 points in that eight-minute stretch thanks to costly turnovers that led to uncontested fast break layups. With so many turnovers, our offense sputtered as we weren’t able to get nearly as many shots we would have liked.”

Revere made a run in the fourth period and at one point cut the lead to 10, but the Pats were unable to get enough stops and convert them for points down the other end to get it any closer. “It was one quarter that really doomed us on the night and until we play a full game without imploding, we are going to struggle to win games,” said Rizzo. “Our defensive effort was much better than the first two games of the season and our rebounding efforts improved with it. We need to continue making improvements on a game-by-game basis to get to where we want to be.”

Revere was just 3-for-19 from three-point land (compared to 6-for-11 for Classical) and the Pats hit on only 15-of-52 shots from the field overall. The trio of Joof, Jean-Charles, and Jones scored 10 points each. Bell added six and Urdaneta chipped in four.

Revere has no games scheduled during the vacation week. Rizzo and his crew next will play at Peabody Tuesday and will host Bedford in a non-league encounter Wednesday.

RHS sports Through the Years

10 years ago

December 28, 2005

The RHS hockey team defeated Lynn English, 4-1. Pat Webber (two goals), Anthony Morico, and Anthony DelloIacono scored the goals for Revere. RHS coach Jim Palumbo also praised the all-around play of junior winger Marcus Dow.

Peniel Muteba earned victories in the high jump with a leap of 4’-4” and the 50 yard hurdles in a time of 7.9 to lead the RHS girls track team to a 44-42 win over Salem. Julie Paul led a Reverte sweep in the shotput and Jamie Anderson led a sweep in the 300. In a thrilling 45-41 win over Swampscott, coach Nancy Krolewski’s squad won the meet with a triumph in the final event, the 4 x 400 relay, with the Lady Patriot quartet of Muteba, Kristina Gravallese, Kendall Zullo, and Kayla Cardone defeating their Salem rivals.

Chris Stasio won the 50 dash in 5.8, Anthony Hanslin won the 300 dash in 37.4, and Brian Hartman won the shotput with a toss of 43’-2” for the RHS boys track team in a 58-28 loss to Salem.

20 years ago

December 27, 1995

Former RHS star lefthand pitcher Mike Spinelli is working out at Fenway Park to prepare for the coming season in the Red Sox farm system. Spinelli bypassed a four-year scholarship to the Univ. of Miami to sign with the Sox after his graduation in June.

City Councillor George V. Colella has proposed a joint public-private partnership to refurbish Revere High’s athletic diamond. Colella said the new field should be named in honor of the late, former Red Sox star Tony Conigliaro, who lived in Revere for the first few years of his life.

30 years ago

December 25, 1985

The RHS boys track team opened the defense of its indoor GBL track title with an impressive 55-32 win over Somerville. Bob DeFlumeri won the 50 dash in 6.0; Jeff Pitzi led a Revere sweep in the 300 in 35.9; Tony Losanno won the hurdles in 7.9; Joe Galvin won the 600 in 1:23; defending GBL champ John Bruzzese won the 1000 in 2:35; Al Fiore won the mile in 5:04; Dave DiMattia won the two mile in 10:32; and John Spinelli won the high jump with a leap of 5’-8”.

40 years ago

December 31, 1975

Winchester defeated the RHS basketball team 88-67 in the season-opener. Jimmy Driscoll led the Patriots with 19 points.