RHS Sports Roundup

All Systems Go For RHS Football In Opener Friday

The Revere High football team is set to open its season this Friday evening under the lights at Harry Della Russo Stadium when Gloucester, perennially one of the best teams on the North Shore and the defending D-4 North champion, comes to town.

Kick off is set for 6:30 p.m.

The RHS football program is coming off one of its most successful seasons in its history. After an 0-2 start, the Patriots finished at 7-4 in the regular season and then added the program’s first-ever triumph in the post-season, a victory over North Reading in the D-4 North sectional quarterfinals, before falling to Gloucester in the semifinals.

“We’re looking to build on last year’s success,” said RHS head coach Lou Cicatelli. “We’ve had a good week of practice ahead of the first game and the team is upbeat.”

Although the Patriots generally have made it through the pre-season in good shape health-wise, the Patriots received some bad news when it was learned that junior Mark Galvez will be lost for the season with a broken bone he suffered during a drill.

“Mark will be missed,” said Cicatelli.

Friday night’s contest will be the season-opener for both teams, with both having taken a “bye” week in Week 1 of the schoolboy grid schedule.

Although the RHS sports program has rejoined the Greater Boston League after departing the Northeastern Conference, of which Revere had been a member since 2005, the football team will continue to play in the NEC for this year and 2020.

The Patriots are in a division with Winthrop, Saugus, Lynn Classical, Lynn English, and Salem.

Friday’s game will begin with a moment of silence for the late Mickey “Just Say No to Drugs” Casoli, who was a huge supporter of the RHS football team and who spoke to literally thousands of RHS athletes in the past few decades.

After this week’s contest, the Patriots will entertain Peabody on Sept. 20 for another edition of Friday Night Lights.

Superb Opening Week for Revere Field Hockey

The Revere High field hockey team enjoyed an outstanding start to its season, winning two games and tying another.

“This week seemed endless,” said RHS head coach Briana Scata. “We had three games in a row on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. “

In Wednesday’s opener against Haverhill, after a slow start, the Lady Patriots began to gel, and once they got going, they couldn’t be stopped en route to a 5-0 victory.

Katie O’Donnell scored two goals, assisted by Emily Woodman and Kayla Armetta. First-time goal-scorers for Revere were Julianna Raffa, Sonia Salazar, and Nina Cassinello, who were assisted by O’Donnell, Giulia Cincinnato, and Eve Lescovitz.

On Thursday the Lady Patriots made the long trek to Lowell. They got to work right away to take a 1-0 lead on Raffa’s second goal of the season, assisted by Cincinnato.

Lowell rebounded, scoring a goal off a corner — a play on which RHS goalie Chloe Giordano made an amazing dive in an effort to make the save — to knot matters at 1-1, which is where the contest ended.

“We certainly were tired from our first game the day before and after the long bus ride,” noted Scata.

However, the Lady Patriots were back on their home turf Friday to host Malden and controlled the game from the outset en route to a 4-0 victory.

O’Donnell set a new mark in RHS program history by scoring four goals, including a hat trick in one-half, which also is a first for the field hockey program.

Four teammates, Julia Raffa, Crystal Valente, Kathy Umanzor, and Skyla DeSimone (who it was later learned was playing with a broke thumb) provided the assists in O’Donnell’s record-setting, goal-scoring binge.

“Our girls were on fire the entire game,” said Scata. “Although they played against many male athletes on the Malden team, we remained mentally-tough and battled alongside our opponents. The team used everything we’ve been practicing and it paid off.

“Katie O’Donnell brought the ball up the field over and over again,” Scata added. “She is the first player in RHS field hockey history to score four goals in one game and first ever to get a hat trick in one half. It was exhilarating to watch!”

Scata and her crew were set to face Saugus yesterday (Tuesday) and will be off for more than a week when they will travel to Everett next Thursday, September 19.

Girls Soccer Plays at Everett Today

The Revere High girls soccer team will open its season today (Wednesday) when the Lady Patriots make the short trek to Everett.

The RHS sports program (other than football) has returned to its former roots in the Greater Boston League after a 13-year hiatus in the Northeastern Conference. The move has created great anticipation for many of the Patriot sports programs.

“The girls soccer team is looking to make a statement in the GBL,” said RHS head coach Megan O’Donnell. “We have a lot of returnees and a handful of freshmen who are going to help us reach our goal, which is to make it deep into the Division 1 state tournament. “

The Lady Patriots competed in a pre-season jamboree in Medford and played against two tough teams, but came out with two wins. Revere took on Chelsea and Arlington Catholic and won both games by scores of 2-1.

“We had solid play by everyone,” noted O’Donnell, who was setting her final rosters this week.

“We are looking forward to a good season,” O’Donnell added. “As long as everyone stay healthy, the season will go as planned.”

RHS Golfers Play at English

The Revere High golf team opened their season in successful fashion, claiming a victory over Everett this past Monday at the Cedar Glen course.

The Patriots are led this year by a quartet of senior players, captain Dante Raffa, Michael Hayes, Michael Marchese, and William Ly.

The Patriots are scheduled to make the short journey to the Gannon golf course in Lynn to face Lynn English today (Wednesday).

Coach Brandon Pezzuto and his crew then will take on Somerville in a home-and-home match-up, with the Patriots traveling to the Highlanders’ home course at Indian Ridge tomorrow and Somerville coming to the Pats’ home links at Cedar Glen on Monday.

RHS Cross Country Opens Season Today

The Revere High boys and girls cross country teams will kick off their season when they compete today (Wednesday) in the Greater Boston League’s annual open meet at Macdonald Park in Medford.

“It will be a race including all GBL teams, but it won’t count in the record book,” said RHS girls head coach Katie Sinnott. “It is a way for us to see the other teams in the league and get the runners familiar with the course that will host the GBL Meet at the end of the season.”

The Patriot cross-country program is reuniting with its former, longtime rival schools — Medford, Malden, Everett, and Somerville — from the Greater Boston League after RHS decided to leave the Northeastern Conference, in which RHS teams had competed since 2005.

“As for the move, I never coached when we were part of the original GBL – only in the NEC,” noted Sinnott. “The teams in the GBL seem to be more similar to us, smaller programs, more urban environment.  It should lead to more competitive meets, as opposed to meets where we are outmatched and race for our own personal bests instead of trying to get a win. It will be good to see how we stack up against teams that have similar situations to ourselves.

“The girls seem pretty excited for that too,” Sinnott added. “They are looking forward to really racing meets where the decision could go either way. We have a strong group of returning runners and some newer runners who will be surely showing major improvements over the course of the season.”