ON FIRE
Revere High girls basketball team nets back-to-back victories
The Revere High girls basketball team broke into the win column in a big way, defeating Northeastern Conference rivals Malden and Somerville this past week.
In the home opener for the Lady Patriots last Monday against Malden, Revere rolled to a dominating 34-7 lead at the half en route to a 49-24 triumph.
RHS junior captain Erika Cheever was on fire, torching the Lady Golden Tornadoes for 18 points in just over two quarters of playing time
Revere freshman Skyla DeSimone also reached double figures with 12 points. Caroline Stasio and senior captain Emily DiGulio did a superb job controlling the boards for the undersized Lady Patriot squad, who gave their new head coach, Matt Willis, his first victory at the helm of the RHS girls program.
Three nights later, Revere trekked to Somerville and came home with another impressive victory, 57-34. Cheever and DeSimone once again led the way in the scoring department, hitting for 22 and 13 points respectively.
Willis also praised the play of Lady Patriots Katie O’Donnell, who at 5’-4†battled taller opponents all night for rebounds and jump balls, and freshman Carolina Bettero, who continued to force turnovers with her great hustle.
Willis and his crew, who now are 2-2 on the season (2-1 in the NEC) will host non-league rival Fontbonne Academy tomorrow (Thursday) afternoon during the vacation week. The varsity game tip-off is set for 2:00 with the JV tipping off at 12:30.
RHS swim team
wins third straight
The Revere High swim team earned its third straight victory to remain undefeated with a come-from-behind, 92-84 triumph over Swampscott last Tuesday at the Garfield School pool.
“This was our toughest challenge so far, going up against a very strong team from Swampscott High School,†said RHS coach Janel Whelton.
The visiting Big Blue opened the meet by winning four of the first six events. The Patriots were able to keep pace thanks to victories in the 200 free by senior co-captain Andrey Carvalhais and in the 50 free by freshman speedster Jeffrey Martinez Gomez.
Still, Revere was down, 45-39, at the mid-point of the meet. The Patriots then launched their comeback, starting with the 100 free, with three of Revere’s captains, Carvalhais, Leila Cesic (whose time qualified her for the state sectionals), and William Arias Rodriguez, finishing second, third, and fourth.
Revere still trailed, 61-55, going into the 200 free relay, but outscored Swampscott 12-2 by taking 1st and 2nd place.
Coach Chris Hill’s Patriots continued to rally with another 1-2 finish in the next event, the 100 back. Sophomores Reked Caushaj and Isabella Veraldi took first and second, turning Revere’s six-point deficit into a 10-point lead.
Swampscott didn’t give up, winning both of the final races. However, Revere was able to maintain its advantage because of the Patriots’ depth, taking second and third places in those last events.
In the final race of the meet, the Revere girls’ quartet of Veraldi, Cesic, Sonia Salazar, and Olivia Winsor captured second place, a performance that both clinched the Patriot victory and earned them a berth in the north sectional with their tourney-qualifying time.
Hill and his crew will return to action after the vacation week at Somerville on January 4.
RHS boys track
edges Marblehead
The Revere High boys indoor track & field team earned a thrilling, 44-42 triumph over Marblehead in a meet held last Tuesday at the Swampscott field house.
The Patriots entered the final event, the 4 x 400 relay, trailing by a score of 42-39. The winning quartet in the relay would earn the final five points of the meet to give their team the victory.
Up to that point, Patriot Lucas Barbosa had been the star of the meet, earning 10 points for the Revere cause with first place finishes in the high jump with a leap of 5’-8†and the 50 hurdles in a clocking of 8.0.
Another highlight of the meet for Revere was a sweep in the 300 dash led by Samuel Gonzalez (1:35.8), with teammates Eric Bua (1:37.3) and Antony Arias (1:37.8), in a closely-fought race in which the top five finishers were separated by just two seconds.
The other first-place finisher for the Patriots was Victor Pelatere in the 1000 in 2:57.9.
Earning three points for the Revere cause with second-place performances were: Christian Madrid in the mile in 4:59; Jonathan Nushi in the two mile in 11:15.3; Augusto Goncalves in the 300 dash in 40.7; and Rayan Riazi in the shot put with a toss of 36’-4â€.
Adding crucial third-place points in a meet where every point mattered were: Alaa Atoui in the shot put with a throw of 35’-10â€; Fraynel Amparao Del Rosario in the hurdles in 8.9; and Fabio Tran in the mile in 5:03.
That set the stage for the winner-take-all final event, the 4 x 400 relay. Although Revere had swept the 600 dash, Marblehead had swept the 300, thereby setting the stage for a classic match-up between the top runners from both schools in those events.
The race itself did not disappoint, with the Revere quartet barely edging their Marblehead counterparts by a slim margin of just .2 of a second, 3:53.9-3:54.1.
The Patriot trackmen will return to action after the holiday break, hosting Malden on January 3 at the Merullo Fieldhouse.
Strong outing for RHS girls track
Although the Revere High girls indoor track & field team came up on the short end of a 54-32 decision to Marblehead last Tuesday at the Swampscott field house, RHS head coach Antonio LaBruna was pleased with his team’s overall performance.
“It was a very competitive meet throughout,†said LaBruna, “but Marblehead just had too much depth in the distance events for us to overcome. We outscored them 16-2 in the field events, but Marblehead has always been a distance-based team and that was the case again this year.â€
Kiana Napolitano led the Lady Patriots in the scoring department with 10 points with first-place finishes in the 55 meter dash in 7.9 seconds and the shot put with a throw of 26’-1â€.
“We swept the dash and all three girls, Kiana, Lily DellloIacono, and Taylor Sujko, ran their best times of the season,†LaBruna said. “Lily and Taylor are both first year seniors and have been huge additions to our team. I just wish I had gotten them both out for track a couple years earlier, but they’ve both been great.â€
Luana Barbosa was the other winner for Revere in an individual event, taking first in the high jump with a leap of 4’-8â€. Luana also grabbed a second place in the hurdles in 10.3 to score eight points on the day.
“Luana’s 4’-8†was a personal record (PR) and just two inches shy of the state- qualifying jump of 4’-10â€,†said LaBruna. “I’m going to move her mark back so she gets a little more speed on her approach and I think that might be the difference.â€
Other second-place finishers for Revere were:
Lily DellaIacono – 55M – 8.1
Giulia Cincinnato – 600M – 1:57.5
Taylor Sujko – High Jump – 4’6â€
Hilina Tafesse – Shot Put – 25’1â€
Adding single points to the Revere side of the scoresheet with third-place performances were:
Jessica Vo – Hurdles – 10.7
Taylor Sujko – 55M Dash – 8.2
“Going into the season, we had some holes in the mid-distance events, but Giulia Cincinnato and Thalia Ramos have really stepped up and have been running well in both the 600 and the 4 x 400 relay,†said LaBruna. “Thalia had a great end to her season last spring and is starting to run with confidence and a competitive fire.â€
The Lady Patriots’ next dual meet is not until after the vacation week on January 3 when Revere will host Malden.
RHS hockey to play
in holiday tourney
The Revere High hockey team will be busy during the Christmas vacation break. Coach Joe Ciccarello’s Patriots, who came up on the short end of a 4-1 decision last Wednesday to Swampscott, will compete in the First Responders Cup on Wednesday and Thursday at the Simoni Memorial Rink in Cambridge.
Revere will face off against Methuen in the tourney opener Wednesday at 4:00 and then will meet either Cambridge or Somerville on Thursday.
The Patriots will travel to Essex Tech Saturday and will play at Somerville next Wednesday.
RHS boys hoop in
action during vacation
The Revere High boys basketball team will travel to Northeastern Conference foe Malden tomorrow (Thursday) to compete in the Tornado Holiday Classic. The Patriots then will play Friday in either the tourney championship or consolation game.
The Patriots will entertain non-league Chelsea next Wednesday, the day after the New Year.