Sports 05-13-2015

RHS baseball TEAM

Coaches Sean Brinkley and Brian Hartman are shown with the 2015 Revere High School Baseball team squad that includes Anthony Cecca, Chris Anderson, Christian Ordonez, Dan Murphy, Gilberto Perez, Hector Zavala, Jake DeAngelo, James Furlong, John DeSimone, John Galitas, Matt Bonaventura, Maxx Anderson, Nick Castellarin, Noah Jaynes, Oscar Rudicindo, Oscar Zavala and Vinny DiGregorio.

RhS sports Roundup

Lady Patriot softball team wins three more

The Revere High girls softball team rounded the halfway point of the season by picking up three victories this past week to improve their record to 9-2 overall and solidify their claim to a second straight Northeastern Conference Large Division title.

The Lady Patriots opened their week last Monday by handily taking the measure of a good Winthrop team, 14-2, in a contest that was called after five innings because of the mercy rule. Senior captain Kristina Stella staked her claim to the designation as the NEC’s most valuable in-the-field player with a powerful 4-for-5 performance that included a double, a triple, and five RBI. Junior Ally Hinojosa had two hits with a double and an RBI and junior Gabrielle Cammaratta had two hits with a triple.

Senior captain Sabrina Palermo, another Lady Patriot for league MVP honors, spun a three-hitter and fanned eight Winthrop opponents in her five innings of work.

“This was a nice rebound game for us,” said RHS head coach Joe Ciccarello (himself the returning Division 1 Coach of the Year and the odds-on favorite for the NEC’s Coach of the Year honors), referring to his team’s only league loss three days earlier to Swampscott. “We hit the ball really well against a good Winthrop pitcher (Maura Lanza).”

Two days later the Lady Patriots trekked to Beverly for an evening contest with the Lady Panthers, who at the time were in second place in the NEC North just one game behind Revere. “It was obvious they were looking forward to us,” said Cicarello. “They were taking batting practice when we arrived and they were very enthusiastic in their pre-game drills.”

The Lady Patriots on the other hand, perhaps a bit lethargic from the long bus ride at rush hour, were anything but ‘up’ when they took the field. After a scoreless top of the first for Revere, Beverly went on a rampage, as four Lady Panthers crossed the plate (aided by three Revere errors) before Palermo got the third out with the bases still loaded.

The teams traded runs in the second frame, but shortly thereafter, the proverbial tide changed. Palermo found her groove and the Revere defense tightened up, not allowing a Beverly runner to get past second base the rest of the way.

The Lady Patriots also found their groove at the plate, cutting the Beverly lead in half with two runs in the fourth before forging ahead with four markers in the fifth and tacking on four more in the seventh for a 12-5 finale.

“We had a quick team meeting after the second inning and I challenged the girls to find out what they’re made of,” said Ciccarello. “We weren’t playing well in any aspect of the game to that point, but this group is as tough as nails. They don’t quit and they responded with positive energy.”

Leading the way at the plate for Revere were Hinojosa (two hits, a double, and four RBI), Julianna Cecere (a  double and two RBI), and Victoria Correia (two hits and two runs scored).

Beverly made the return trip to Revere two days later, but this time Palermo and the Revere defense were ready to play ball from the opening pitch. Although Sabrina fanned only four Lady Panthers, she allowed just one hit — a slapper up the middle — and her teammates’ defense was impeccable en route to a 4-0 conquest that all but eliminated Beverly from contention for the NEC North title.

“Our defense was phenomenal,” said Ciccarello. “Everybody made plays. We usually give a game ball to one of the girls, but this time we gave the game ball to the entire defense. Teams now are gearing up just to make contact with Sabrina, so it will be up to our defense to make the plays in the field.”

The Lady Patriots scored a run in the third on an RBI base hit by Cecere, added two in the fourth on an RBI hit by Cheyenne Fullen (who also would come around to score), and then tacked on a solo marker in the sixth on an RBI hit by Stella for some extra insurance.

Cicarello and his crew were set to host Salem this past Monday and then will entertain Lynn Classical under the lights tonight (Wednesday) at 7:00 at the St. Mary’s field. Classical is in second place in the NEC North, two games behind the Lady Patriots, and thus a victory will all but wrap up an NEC North crown for Revere.

The Lady Patriots travel to Westford Academy Saturday morning (the day after the Senior Prom) and then will stay on the road to Lynn English Monday and to Peabody Wednesday.

RHS track girls top English, 75-61

The Revere girls track team went the distance — literally and figuratively — in their meet with Lynn English last week to earn a 75-61 victory.

“Our distance runners saved the day for us,” said RHS head coach Antonio LaBruna, noting that his team outscored English 24-3 in the 800, mile, and two-mile events. “Hannah Fitzpatrick, a freshman, won the mile easily (in a time of 6:16), which kept her legs fresh for the 800 where she ran a 2:40, only eight seconds off the Revere school record time, to win another first place. Tricia Cheever ran two gutsy races and finished with PRs (personal records) in both the mile (6:30, good for third place) and 800 (2:51, good for second place).”

Suellen Guerreiro won the two mile run in 13:48 to complete the Revere sweep of first place in the three distance events. Jackie Dion took a second in the mile in 6:29, Danielle Fortuna finished third in the 800 in 2:56, and Monica Posada grabbed third in the two-mile in 14:59.

In addition to Fitzpatrick, Catherine Elam was a double winner for Revere, capturing the long jump with a PR leap of 14’-4” and the triple jump with a final landing of 30’-5”. Catherine also took a second place in the 400 dash in 69.7 to finish with a team-high 13 points on the day.

Other first-place finishers for the Lady Pats were Janine So with a javelin throw of  78’-8” and Rachel Shanbar with a discus toss of 74’-5”.

Second place finishers for Revere were: Angelisa Nguyen in the 100 dash in 13.6; Shanbar with a shot-put throw of  28’-2”, which was a PR for Rachel; Ariana Licata with a spin of the  discus of 68’-10”; Jessica Cambraia with a long jump of 13’-10”;  and Angelina Nguyen with a triple jump of 28’-10”, a PR for Angelina.

Adding single points to the Revere side of the scoresheet with third place finishes were: Rayana Benzohra in the 100 hurdles in 20.1, which was a PR for Rayana; Helen Perez in the 400 hurdles in 1:17.9; So in two events, the 200 dash in 32.2 and in the discus with a spin of 62’-0”;  Haley Langis with a high jump of 4’-3”;  Angelisa Nguyen with a long jump of 13’-5.5”; and Helen Perez with a 400 dash of 1:10.

The Lady Patriots’ next meet is set for today (Wednesday) at Beverly.

So, Shanbar are NEC Frosh/Soph champions

Lady Patriot tracksters Janine So and Rachel Shanbar were crowned Northeastern Conference champions in their respective events at the annual NEC Freshmen/Sophomore meet held Saturday, May 2.

Janine won the javelin with a throw of 79’-5” and Rachel captured the discus with a toss of 77’-10”.

“Janine and Rachel are very competitive and have really bought into each of their events,” said RHS head coach Antonio LaBruna. “They came into the season never having thrown javelin or discus before and have a natural knack for each. They both still need some work on their form, but when some corrections are made, they have the potential to be two of the top throwers in the league in those events.”

In addition, the Lady Patriot 4 X 800 team comprised of Hannah Fitzpatrick, Monica Posada, Nadia Lerari, and Joanna Severino earned a ribbon with their fifth place finish with a time of 12:12.

RHS girls lacrosse team earns two wins

The ever-improving Revere High girls lacrosse team broke into the win column in a big way this past week with a pair of triumphs over Winthrop and Malden.

The Lady Patriots had dropped their two previous contests this season to archival Winthrop, but the third time proved the charm for coach Karen Atkinson’s squad Friday, as they hung close the entire game and then pulled out the victory in the final minute.

Leading the way in the scoring department for Revere were senior captains Ayah Omar and Leangcheng Chrea, who scored three goals each. Ayah’s three goals came off well-executed plays in the closing minutes of the contest, with the third tally boosting Revere into the lead with 45 seconds to play.

Also reaching the back of the Winthrop net were senior captain Jasmina Zelkanovic, who notched a goal early in the first half, junior Sophia Rivera, freshman Allegra Penn, and junior midfielder Amina Mansouri, who scored off a beautiful offensive take.

Shateya Travis played well in goal for Revere, making 10 saves for the game.

“We were composed on offense and worked well together to slow down the tempo of the game,” said Atkinson. “The first time we played Winthrop in the season-opener, we were ill-prepared and we were unable to keep the goal differential close. In our second meeting with Winthrop, the game was 12-7 and our team defense was great, but we still could not completely shut them down.  But in this encounter with them, we played very well and stayed within 1-2 goals the entire way before we won it at the end.”

The Lady Patriots were back on the field the following day against Malden and picked up where they left off in the Winthrop game to earn a solid 9-3 victory.

Chrea once again notched a hat trick for the Lady Pats. Freshman Marina Robinson zipped home a pair of goals. Adding single tallies were captain Omar, freshman defender Emily Wykes, and juniors Basma Mered, Amina Mansouri, and Sophia Rivera.

Freshman goalie Travis continued to show improvement and increased confidence at her position, leaving the crease on many occasions in order to create off-ball movement.

“We were able to win the ball off the draw most of the time, which allowed us to control the tempo of the game,” said Atkinson. “Early in the first half, we moved into the lead off our nice transition.  Then over the course of the game, we slowed down the tempo and really worked our ball movement.

“The past two games truly have shown the girls what they are capable of and we hope to continue with this progress in the last four games of the season,” added the coach. Atkinson and her crew travel to Malden for a rematch today (Wednesday) and then will host Matignon Monday. They will entertain Lowell Tech next Thursday and journey to Lowell Tech next Friday in the season finale.

RHS baseball team

defeats Winthrop, 10-4

The Revere High baseball team overcame a 4-0 deficit with big rallies in the sixth and seventh innings to come away with a 10-4 victory over Winthrop last Monday.

The Patriots tied the score with four tallies in the sixth. Dan Murphy got things going for the Patriots when he walked, stole second, and then raced home on a  base hit by John DeSimone. A walk and a base hit by captain Jake D’Angelo brought around DeSimone and successive base hits by Hector and Oscar Zavala delivered two more runs.

Revere then became the beneficiary of three successive walks in the seventh, setting the table for D’Angelo, who belted a triple and scored himself on a Winthrop throwing error that propelled the Patriots into an 8-4 advantage that proved the difference.

Revere starting pitcher Max Anderson once again delivered a superb performance on the mound with a route-going performance in which he yielded just six hits and walked three. “Max gave us another solid outing,” said RHS head coach shawn Brinkley, “and we played well on defense behind him.”

Friday evening under the lights at Everett, the Patriots turned in what Brinkley termed “our best game of the season,” though Revere came out on the short end of a 7-3 decision to their former rival from the Greater Boston League. After grabbing an early 1-0 lead thanks to an RBI base hit by DeSimone that brought in Hector Zavala, Everett scored four runs in the fourth to take a 4-1 lead. Everett added two more in the fifth, but the Patriots responded with two in the sixth on RBI base hits by DeSimone and D’Angelo. Everett got one back in its sixth,  but a Patriot rally in the seventh fizzled when the Pats loaded the bases with none out and the next three Revere hitters fanned.

Oscar Zavala started and, other than in the fourth inning when he tired and issued some bases on balls, pitched well for the Pats.

“We were battling hard right to the very end,” said Brinkley. “The team never quit and I was very proud of the way they kept fighting.”

The Patriots play at Lynn Classical this evening (Wednesday) and will meet Saugus today, ahead of Friday’s senior prom. They will host Lynn English Monday and Peabody Wednesday.

Boys tennis team

drops close matches

Although the Revere High boys tennis team dropped both of its matches this past week, the Patriots continue to put up good battles against top foes from e Northeastern Conference. Both of the Patriots’ matches this week against Winthrop and Beverly, thought 4-1 defeats, extended for more than three hours.

Victors for Revere in their matches were Mateo Lopez at second singles against his Winthrop opponent, 6-0, 6-2, and David Grujic at third singles over his Beverly foe, 6-4, 6-4. Lopez also played well in the Beverly contest before falling by a score of 2-6, 4-6. Grujic similarly played well in a 6-3, 1-6, 3-7 loss to Winthrop in a  match that was had to be decided by a lone tiebreaker set because of impending darkness.

The second doubles tandem of Naveed Jabbar and Josh Preciado fell to Winthrop, 2-6, 2-6, and took their Beverly match to another single-set tiebreaker in the third set, 7-6 (8-6), 5-7, 5-7.

Senior captain Ryan Tran played well at first singles in both matches, as did the first doubles duo of Nelson Ortiz and David Henao.

“I’m very pleased with the effort this team has put forward all season,” said RHS head coach Mike Flynn. “This group has been a pleasure to coach. We’re a young team, but have excellent leadership from our senior captains. We’ve really come a long way since the start of the season, despite the lack of practice time we had at the beginning because of the snow on the courts. If our guys work on their game this summer, next year could be very good for us.”

Flynn and his crew play at Lynn Classical today (Wednesday), host Lynn English tomorrow and Peabody Monday, and then trek to Malden next Wednesday.

RHS girls tennis team

fall in close match with Winthrop

The Revere High girls tennis team came out non the short end of a 3-2 decision too Winthrop last week.

Senior Leila Darouey pulled out another, come-from-behind victory in three sets, defeating her Winthrop counterpart, 5-7, 6-2, 6-3. Sophomore Hanadi Kobilic defeated her Winthrop counterpart at second singles in straight sets, 6-4, 6-4.

Sophomore Jocelyn Contreras played well at first singles in a 3-6, 4-6 loss. Juniors Lyba Khan and Julie Hurtado battled well at first doubles in a 3-6, 2-6 outcome. The second doubles tandem of sophomores Natalie Rossetti and Lariza Haro dropped their match, 0-6-,1-6.

In a 5-0 loss to Beverly, Kobilic played at first singles in a 3-6, 1-6 loss. Contreras and Darouey fell in straight sets at second and third singles. The combo of sophomores Alondra Esparza and Maria Hernandez fell at first doubles, 1-6, 2-6, and the duo of Khan and sophomore Victoria Mom battled well in a 4-6, 1-6 loss.

Monday the Lady Patriots dropped a 4-1 contest with Salem. Darouey, playing at second singles, once again won a tough match in three sets, 6-4, 3-6, 6-2, to provide the lone point for Revere. The duo of Mom and Hernandez at first doubles also put up a good fight in a 4-6, 3-6 loss, as did Haro and Esparza at second doubles by the same score.

RHS baseball dedicates

season to Coach Blasi

By Cary Shuman

The Revere High School baseball team dedicated its season to legendary baseball coach Al Blasi during an impressive ceremony Monday at Tony Conigliaro Field.

Mr. Blasi was the head baseball coach for 42 years, retiring in 2006. Mr. Blasi’s teams were known for being fundamentally sound while appreciating the intricacies and joys of the high school baseball experience. Players absorbed his wealth of knowledge, love and respect of the game, and experience as a player and coach.

Mr. Blasi died Nov. 8, 2014, following a lengthy illness. He was 81.

RHS director of athletics Shaun Hart said the players are wearing special jerseys and hats this season. A new flag bearing Mr. Blasi’s name waves proudly on the flagpole behind the backstop at the field.

Revere teacher Peter DiGiulio served as master of ceremonies for the program that was held before the Salem-Revere game. DiGiulio told the gathering that, “He was not only a great teacher and great coach, but most of all we lost a great person when Al Blasi passed away.”

Former RHS baseball players Steve Cushing, Brian Hartman and Rob Coppola spoke reverentially about Mr. Blasi’s impact on their lives.

Cushing, who played at St. Leo College and in the  Cleveland Indians organization before returning to coach on Mr. Blasi’s staff, credited his former coach for launching his career in baseball.

“Mr. Blasi gave me a great start to my career,” said Cushing. “He played me right away as a sophomore and gave me the foundation for college. I remained in contact with him my entire life. He was instrumental to an awful lot of kids in the city and was one of the most respected guys at that high school.”

Hartman was a varsity catcher for Mr. Blasi’s team and is currently an assistant coach on Sean Brinkley’s staff.

“Coach Blasi was a top-tier gentleman,” said Hartman. “He taught me a lot about the game of baseball, life, the brotherhood of a team, and how to be a gentleman as well.”

Coppola, a former Globe and Herald All-Scholastic who played college baseball, said Mr. Blasi helped advance his skills and taught him life’s lessons as well. “I learned so much about baseball from him, but more importantly how to be a man.”

Anthony Blasi, a football player at Revere High and Class of 1978 graduate, said he served as the batboy for his father’s teams in the early 1970s.

“It was fun to be there as batboy, a chance of a lifetime to be with my dad and I loved every minute of it,” said Blasi.

Anthony Blasi said the team’s dedication of its season to his father was an honor for the family.

“This city has always had his back,” said Blasi. “This is a remarkable tribute and I’m very proud. I’ve always been proud of him.”

 Mr. Blasi’s grandson, Andrew Spinney, was touched by the wonderful tribute that was paid to his grandfather at the ceremony.

“My grandfather was a great person and loved the community,” said Spinney. “He loved to be around the ballpark  – this was his favorite place to be. He loved teaching, all his students, and doing everything to keep everyone as happy as possible. He was the greatest person.”

Former Revere High baseball players in attendance at the ceremony, from left, Ray Forster, Marc Malfitano, Peter Lagorio, Keith Correia,  Bob Lospennato, Bobby Vitale, Mark Mattera, Rob Coppola, Steve Cushing, and Brett Deukmejian.