Yuong wins two medals at D-1 Meet; sets RHS mark in LJ
Revere High track star Liv Yuong won two medals at last week’s Division 1 State Meet that was held at the Reggie Lewis Track and Athletic Center in Roxbury.
The senior captain brought home a seventh-place medal in the long jump in which she broke her own RHS school record with a leap of 16′-8″, shattering her previous mark of 15′-11″ in a performance worthy of Bob Beamon (look him up, kids!).
“Liv had suffered a fall in her hurdle finals right before this event began and was jumping with a wrist she could not move,” said RHS head coach Racquel MacDonald-Ciambelli. “This also prevented her from taking her three additional jumps in the finals which I am confident would’ve led to a higher place and a longer school record. Talk about resilience!”
In that 55 meter hurdles race, Yuong won an eighth-place medal in which Liv set a new personal record (PR) of 9.10 seconds, a clocking that was 0.14 faster than the PR she had set just the week before.
“Liv was responsible for all three of our team’s points at this meet,” noted MacDonald-Ciambelli. “Heading into the Pentathlon on February 25, these two new PRs should help increase Liv’s overall score and move her one step closer to another school record.”
Junior Gemma Stamatopoulos, the Lady Patriots’ mid-distance standout, just missed out on scoring in the 600m with a ninth place finish.
“Gemma ran a 1:42.31 ,which was only about 0.2 seconds off her overall PR and school record,” said MacDonald-Ciambelli. “This was definitely a tight race and had some pushing and shoving which Gemma hasn’t seen yet this year. She has the fitness to go under 1:40, I’m sure of it.”
Stamatopoulos will also compete in the Pentathlon on Feb. 25 in which she will be shooting to take down the 800m indoor school record. Gemma also ran the 1000m on Saturday (February 8) at the MSTCA Last Chance Qualifier Meet where she placed fourth overall with a massive PR of 3:10.49, a time that was only one second off the 1000m school record.”which we are confident she will break before she graduates,” noted MacDonald-Ciambelli.
Junior distance star Olivia Rupp placed 17th overall in the one-mile run with what MacDonald-Ciambelli termed a “massive PR of 5:35.60. This is seven seconds faster than her previous PR of 5:42. It’s also important to note that Olivia’s PR at the start of this season was 5:55. In the last two months, she has brought her mile time down by 20 seconds. This is such a testament to her work ethic and overall talent.”
Basma Sahibi was the final Lady Patriot athlete who qualified for the Division 1 States. Basma placed 31st overall with a time of 10.23 in the 55m hurdles.
On the boys’ side, Patriots Youness Chahid and Bryan Maia were the top performers. Youness came across the line in 18th pace in the 1000m with a clocking of 2:41.51 and Bryan likewise finished in 18th spot in the shot-put with a throw of 44′-0.25″.
Patriot speedster Jeremy X qualified for the state meet in two events, the 55m dash and the 300m dash. Jeremy finished in 22nd place in the 300 in 36.85 and 26th in the 55m in 6.93.
Teammate Edwin Alarcon came across the line in 21st place in his specialty, the 600m dash, with a clocking of 1:22.99.
RHS girls await seeding, tourney foe
The Revere High girls basketball team is awaiting word of their seeding and first-round opponent in the upcoming MIAA Division 1 State Tournament.
The Lady Patriots wrapped up its regular season this past week with contests against Greater Boston League (GBL) rival Everett and non-league foe Swampscott. Although they came up on the short end in both contests, coach Ariana Rivera’s crew finished the season with an 11-9 record that qualified them for the state tourney.
As of this past Friday, Revere was ranked 46th in the MIAA’s power ratings which would place them as the #34 seed in the D-1 tourney. If Friday’s ratings were to hold for the final week, the Lady Patriots would travel to #31 Acton-Boxborough in an opening-round contest.
Patriots competing in Gen. Patton Tourney to wrap up 2025 season
The Revere high boys basketball team was scheduled to conclude its 2025 season at the General Patton Tournament at Hamilton-Wenham High School this past Monday and Tuesday (last night).
Coach David Leary’s Patriots are coming off a victory last Thursday in which they celebrated Senior Night in appropriate fashion with a 64-45 triumph over the Edward Brooke Charter School. The Patriots who are members of the RHS Class of 2025, tri-captains Ethan Day, Josh Mercado, and Avi Lung and Peter Dacelien, Gio Alexandre, Jayden Balogun, Erick Mayorga, as well as two-year senior team manager Brady Kerr (for whom the night was extra special because Brady was dressed in uniform for the first time), all were honored for their contributions to the RHS boys program.
In addition, the three senior cheerleaders, Jayla Foster, Jaelynn Smith and Captain Vita Somboun, also were honored for their efforts on behalf of the Patriots throughout their cheering careers.
Senior Night ceremonies before the game always are emotional, but the emotion and excitement continued from the start of the game when Senior Manager Kerr was able to score the Patriots’ first basket of the night in front of a packed house, for which he received a raucous standing ovation.
Although Revere displayed some early jitters in front of the big crowd, missing some shots they usually make and fouling too much on the defensive end, Day opened the scoring with a couple of layups in the paint. Alexandre made a fast break finish and Lung (14 points, three assists) drained a three-pointer from the wing.
Although the visiting Senators held a 14-13 edge after the first period, the ensuing quarter proved to be all about the RHS seniors and the their defense, who were challenged by the coaching staff between quarters.
The Patriots responded and held Brooke to just six points in the period. The tough defense also led to better offense. Freshman Charles Dobre (six points, four rebounds) hit a corner three-pointer, Mercado drained a trey, and Dacelien gave the team great energy and also sank a corner three. Day also chipped in nine points in the period and the Patriots took a 34-20 advantage into intermission.
Revere came out of the locker room poised to continue its consistency in the second half and the Patriots did so with accurate free throw shooting. Lung made two plus the basket, Dobre made three, and after two more baskets from Day, the Patriots seemed to be in control with a 21-point lead.
However, the Senators would not let up their intensity and began to come back, trailing 47-29 heading into the final quarter. But that’s when Day (who finished with 26 points, 18 rebounds, and four assists) hit a few more baskets.In addition, Ethan’s rebounding on the defensive end was a key to closing out the victory for the Patriots.
Mayorga and Lung both had nice moves to the basket. Lung hit another wing three and once again Dacelien, a crowd favorite, knocked down a corner triple. The Patriots and their seniors earned a 64-45 victory in the last home game of the season and of their careers.
“It was just a special night for our kids, our community, and our program,” an emotional Leary said after the eventful evening and victory. “Brady will always have this moment to remember, and it was so awesome that he was able to share it with his parents, our seniors and their friends. I think being a part of tonight puts a lot of the winning, losing, etc. in perspective.
“We have a great group of kids and seniors who always stayed together this year during the ups and downs and that’s important when you are a part of a sports team or just in life in general,” Leary added. “I’m so happy these guys got to go out on a positive note, but as the seniors said, ‘We still have another goal coach, to win the Hamilton-Wenham Tournament!’ “
Two nights earlier, the Patriots traveled north up to the Merrimack Valley to take on MIAA D2-11th ranked Tewksbury. The Patriots had come up short, 72-52, in the teams’ first matchup two weeks prior, but were hoping to keep their state tournament hopes alive with a win on Tewksbury’s Senior Night.
Revere came out red hot as Mercado sank a corner three-pointer, Mayorga (five points, five rebounds) made a tough hoop inside, Ethan Day had two baskets and two free throws, and freshmen guard Charles Dobre (nine points, seven rebounds) had a strong finish on the fast break.
However, despite the quick start, Revere trailed 18-15 after the first period. The second quarter was not as fast-paced, but both teams continued to play efficient basketball on the offensive side of the floor. Lung (eight points, four assists) made a couple of nice drives to the basket, Mayorga knocked down an open three-pointer, and Dobre had a nice steal for a layup. However, Tewksbury always seemed to have an answer, and the home team led 34-28 at the half.
Unlike the first game between the teams, the Patriots were hanging tough and staying within striking distance, but Tewksbury made a few adjustments in the locker room and came out with an immediate 8-0 run, forcing Leary to call a timeout to try to weather the storm. The Patriots responded, especially Day (23 points, seven rebounds, four assists), who drained back-to-back three pointers, 5-of-6 free throws, and had a nice drive-and-kick to an open Dobre, who knocked down a corner three to cut the Tewksbury advantage to just 42-41 with three minutes remaining in the third quarter.
The run to a comeback was probably the best stretch of basketball the Patriots had played all season, but unfortunately the offense went cold after that. Tewksbury found their range from three-point land and closed out the third quarter with a 54-43 lead.
The fourth period was a carry-over from the end of the third for the Patriots, who played extremely hard to give themselves a chance on the defensive end, but they could only manage a Day layup, two free throws, and a Dobre layup in the period, as Tewksbury closed it out with a 66-49 victory.
“I was proud of the way these guys fought until the end,” said Leary after the setback, which officially eliminated Revere from State Tournament contention this season. “They knew what was on the line and could have just given up early in the third quarter when we got down 16, but to their credit, they pushed back.
“Are we disappointed that we are not in the tournament? ” Leary continued. “Of course we are, but we still have some season left and these seniors want to go out strong.”
