RHS Sports Roundup

RHS hockey team wins two in a row
The Revere High hockey team put it all together at both ends of the ice to skate to a pair of impressive victories this past week.
Last Saturday, the Patriots took on Northeast Regional, a team that handily had defeated Revere in their first meeting, 5-3.
However, the Patriots turned the tables on the Golden Knights in the rematch to earn a hard-fought 2-1 triumph.
After a scoreless first period, Northeast broke the deadlock in the middle stanza to take a 1-0 lead.
However, the Patriots remained resolute in their game plan and scored a pair of goals in the third period. Corey Rufo, assisted by Joe Papasodora, lit the lamp midway through the period for the equalizer. A few minutes later, James Marini, assisted by Evan Platcow, reached the back of the Northeast net for the game-winner.
“This was our best game of the year,” said RHS head coach Joe Ciccarello. “Northeast had beaten us fairly soundly in our first game earlier in the month, but we changed our game plan, the team stuck with it, and their effort paid off.”
The Patriots received a strong game in net from goalie Cam Wickens, who turned aside 35 enemy shots on the night.
Wickens and his teammates continued their hot play this past Monday when Revere hosted Nashoba Tech/Greater Lowell in a make-up game.
Wickens, who is a freshman, made 22 saves to earn the shutout, while his teammates methodically built a lead that never was threatened by the visitors.
Alexio Trichilo scored the first two goals, one in each of the first two periods, and Matt D’Annolfo added an extra insurance marker in the third for the 3-0 finale.
“We’re playing  well,” said Ciccarello, who lauded the play in the past two games of captain Platcow on defense and forwards Gerry Visconti, Kevin Ivany, and Marini. “Hopefully we can keep it going.”
The Patriots now stand at 4-7-2 on the season and have elevated themselves into contention for a berth in the post-season state tourney if they can achieve a .500 record. With seven games remaining on their schedule, Revere will need 10 points in order to punch a ticket for a Journey to the Tourney.
Cicarello and his crew have a trio of encounters with Greater Boston League rivals on tap this week: They are scheduled to play at Medford this evening (Wednesday); they will make the short ride to Allied Veterans Rink in Everett on Saturday; and then they will return home to host Somerville next Wednesday.

RHS boys track cruises to 67-14 win
The Revere High boys indoor track and field team celebrated Senior Night in fitting fashion, easily outdistancing Medford by a score of 67-14 last Thursday at the Merullo Fieldhouse, to remain undefeated in the Greater Boston League,
The Patriots captured seven of the nine individual events and swept three, the 50-yard hurdles, the shot-put, and the high jump.
Antony Arias hurdled faster than the field with a time of 6.9 seconds, closely followed by teammates Ricardo Goncalves (7.0) and Rayan Riazi (7.4).
In the shot-put, Alaa Atoui’s throw of 42′-4.75″ was the top toss of day. Riazi took second with a distance of 40′-9.75″ and Jaryd Benson was third at 40′-8.75″.
The high jump trio of Cam Ventura (5′-6″), Arias (5′-4″), and Joe Llanos (5′-4″) made it a clean sweep for the Patriots in that event.
Other first-place finishers for Revere were: Llanos in he 50 yard dash with a sprint  of 5.8; Christian Madrid in the 1,000 with a clocking of 2:57.9; Fabio Tran with a mile run of 5:30.1; and Victor Pelatere with a two-mile time of 11:34.6.
Patriots who added three points to the Revere side of the scoresheet with second-place performances were: Billy Ginepra in the 50 dash in 5.9; Marco Cerbone in the 300 dash in 1:37.6; Michael Adolphus in the 600 dash in 1:37.6; James Carpinelli in the 1000 dash in 2:58.9; Brayden Shanley in the mile in 6:00.4; and Carlos Quintanilla in the two mile in 11:34.8.
Third place points were scored by Mark Marchese in the 300 in 43.8 and Sami El Asri in the 600 in 1:39.7.
“The meet for the most part went as I expected it to,” said RHS head coach Sam Ros. “We won most of the events and Medford won the events I thought they would. Our boys in the 300 had their hands full, as Medford’s Tristen Howard is one of the best sprinters in the state. He reportedly already has committed to D-1 University of Rhode Island.
“The win was a great way to send our seniors off on Senior Night,” Ros added. “As the year winds down and gears up for championship season, our goal is still to get more kids to qualify for the State Meet in a few weeks.”
Ros and his crew are scheduled to face Malden today (Wednesday) with a chance to complete a perfect dual-meet season and attain an undisputed championship of the GBL. 
They will compete Saturday at the GBL Meet.

RHS girls track defeats Medford
The Revere High girls indoor track & field team remained undefeated with a closely-fought, 48-38 decision over Medford this past Thursday in a meet that was decided in the final event, the 4 x 400 relay, by a margin of just one second.
Prior to the exciting relay race, four Lady Patriots captured first-place in their individual events:
Carolina Bettero – High Hurdles (7.9)
Salome Gezehagn – 2 Mile (16:16)
Crystal Valente – Shot-put (24’1”)
Lorina Tran – High Jump (4’8”)
Second-place finishers for Revere who added three points to the Lady Patriot side of the scoresheet were:
Luana Barbosa – High Hurdles (8.1)
Jerelys Canales – 50Y Dash (6.8)
Astrid Umanzor – 600M (2:00)
Arianna Keohane – Shot-Put (22’9 ¾”)
Luana Barbosa – High Jump (4’8”)
Revere girls who contributed crucial third-place points in a meet in which every point was needed were:
Lorina Tran – 50Y Dash (6.9)
Kathy Umanzor – 300M (49.9)
Nubya Filho – 600M (2:00.2)
Kyara Rodriguez – 1000M (4:08.8)
Keneisha Germain – Mile (8:03.7)
Carolina Bettero – High Jump (4’4”)
Isabella Mellone – Shot-Put (22’9”)
Yulissa Santana – 2 Mile (16:33)
In the final event, the  4 X 400 meter relay, the quartet of Nubya Filho, Allanah Burke, Astrid Umanzor, and Carolina Bettero brought the baton across the line with a winning time of 4:45.6.
“It was an extremely competitive meet that ended up coming down to the 4 X 400, which we won by a second,” said RHS head coach Antonio LaBruna. “If they had beaten us in the relay, we would have tied.
“Medford won five of the eight running events, but we outscored them 18-0 in the high jump and shot-put which carried us to a victory,” LaBruna added.
“Salome Gezehagn ended up winning the two-mile with a time of 16:16, which was a personal record (PR) for her,” LaBruna noted. “We were short-handed in the distance events and she stepped up and ran the best race of her four-year track career.
“Lorina Tran had another great meet and ended up scoring a valuable point for us by finishing third in the 50-yard dash,” LaBruna continued. “She also won the high jump for the third meet in a row jumping, 4’-8”.”
“Jerelys Canales ran a PR time of 6.8 in the 50 yard dash,” LaBruna added. “Jerelys is having a phenomenal season and I believe she has a shot of breaking the school record of 6.5 over the next couple of years.”
LaBruna and his crew are set to meet Malden today (Wednesday) in a battle of unbeaten teams in the final dual meet of the season for both squads.
“Both teams are undefeated and the winner of the meet will be crowned champion of the Greater Boston League,” said LaBruna. “They are a very good team and we are going to need everyone’s best effort of the season in order to beat them.”
The Lady Patriots then will compete in he GBL Meet that is scheduled for this Saturday.

Swimmers split meets with Medford, Malden
The Revere High swim team split its two meets this past week with Greater Boston League rivals Medford and Malden.
Last Tuesday the Patriots defeated the Medford Mustangs, 97-71. 
Revere took first place in the 200 medley relay with the quartet of David Del Rio, Ashton Hoang, Reked Caushaj, and Ahmed Khalid.
Del Rio, Caushaj and Khalid then were joined by Jeffrey Martinez to win the 200 free relay. 
Del Rio then took center stage in the individual events, topping the field with first-place finishes in the 200 IM and the 100 free.
Caushaj likewise was a double-winner, capturing the 50 free and 100 back.
Also contributing points for the Revere side of the scoresheet were: Hoang, who was first in the 500 free and second in the 200 IM;  Martinez, who took second in both the 100 fly and 100 breast; and Isabella Veraldi, who earned second in the back and third in the fly.
“The meet was fairly close until the backstroke, when Caushaj, Veraldi, and Mohamed Benzerdjeb went 1-2-3 and we won the event 13-3, which put us ahead for good,” said RHS head coach Chris Hill.
Two nights later, the Patriots came up short in their meet with the Malden Golden Tornadoes, 93-75, that was highlighted by Senior Night festivities at the Garfield School pool.
Malden started out strong, winning the first six events, including a sweep of the top three spots in the 200 free, enabling the Golden Tornadoes to move out to .  a 30-point lead after the 100 fly.
Revere rallied, thanks to wins in the 500 free by Hoang and in the 200 free relay by the crew of Caushaj, Del Rio, Khalid, and Martinez.  However, Malden won the next two events to seal the victory, despite a win by Revere in the final relay, the 400 free.
Hill and his swimmers are set to compete in the GBL championship meet at Medford this Friday.

DeSimone, Cheever hit for double figures
The Revere High girls basketball team came up on the short end of a 59-39 decision to Winthrop last week.
Skyla DeSimone and Erika Cheever led the way in the scoring column for the Lady Patriots with 15 points and 14 points respectively.
Coach Matt Willis and his crew, who now stand at 3-8 on the year, have a busy week. They were scheduled to face Greater Boston League rivals Everett yesterday (Tuesday) and Somerville this Friday.
They then will meet two non-league opponents, trekking to Andover on Saturday and entertaining Boston Latin next Monday at 6:30 p.m.
Boys basketball drops close battle, 60-57
The Revere High boys basketball team put up a valiant effort, but came up just short in a 60-57 loss to Wakefield last Wednesday at the Merullo Fieldhouse.
The Patriots started fast against the visiting Warriors, thanks to early three-pointers by junior forward Dillan Day (16 points, four rebounds) and senior captain Robert Raduazzo (11 points, two steals), followed by another Day layup that Revere an early 8-0 lead. 
Following a timeout by the visitors, Wakefield began to close the gap and trailed just 13-11, but Revere answered with a three pointer by junior guard Crisrael Lithgow (16 points, four steals) and a basket by sophomore forward John Capozzi (four points, six rebounds) to end the first quarter with an 18-11 advantage. 
Wakefield made some adjustments in between periods and began to get the three pointers on their side. Wakefield senior guard Marcus Masterson (18 points, all in the first half) made four three-pointers in a row and the visitors came back to take a 34-30 lead with 1:23 remaining before halftime.
Revere had an answer as senior guard Derek Avery made a nice fast break layup, and after a steal and layup by senior point guard and captain Amara Bockarie (eight points, six rebounds, five assists, and three steals) right before the buzzer, the game was even at 34-34 at halftime. 
The Patriots made a defensive adjustment of their own during the intermission,  switching to a man-to-man defense to better defend against the three-point shot and the strategy worked.
Revere held Wakefield to just eight points in the third quarter and Bockarie, Raduazzo, Day, and Lithgow continued to distribute to each other to help build a nine point lead, 51-42, heading into the fourth quarter.
The momentum appeared to be on Revere’s side, but the road Warriors had some more fight left in them. Wakefield got the ball inside to senior forward Kodi Okundaye (21 points, 10 in the fourth period) and began their comeback.
Revere needed to use a timeout to try to slow down their opponent’s momentum, and it did for a bit, but then the Patriots offense went cold. The home team managed only one free throw in the first 6:40 of the final quarter and trailed 56-52 with 1:20 on the clock. 
Day made a nice baseline basket from a Lithgow assist and after another Revere stop on defense, Lithgow pulled up and made a transition three-pointer with 40 seconds remaining to move the Patriots ahead, 57-56.
The final few possessions of the game were wild, as twice Revere made defensive stops, but each time the Patriots got the ball back, they could not execute an inbounds play to get the ball in cleanly.
Wakefield first caused a five-second violation on the baseline and then, after another stop by Revere, stole the inbounds pass from the sideline and got fouled with seven seconds remaining. 
Okundaye made the first free throw to tie it up but missed the second shot. The two teams fought for the rebound out near half court and Wakefield came away with the ball and swung a pass to senior guard Casey Alden, who sank a three pointer with 1.5 seconds left. 
Revere failed a desperation attempt to tie it and came away with a 60-57 loss. 
“We absolutely had our chances, we just did not execute down the stretch and picked a bad time to turn the ball over and cool down offensively,” said RHS head coach David Leary. “This one will sting for a while, but these kids have shown fight and resolve all season. They’ll bounce back.” 
The Patriots, who now stand at 5-6, were set to start the second half of their season yesterday (Tuesday) against Everett, the first place-team in the Greater Boston League, and then will host GBL rival Somerville Friday at 7 p.m. at the Merullo Fieldhouse. Next week they will have a pair of non-league encounters, traveling to Peabody on Monday and then to Woburn next Wednesday.