Wakefield Sports
Gridmen beat Winchester in home opener
Warriors start fast, maintain lead in big 28-13 win Published in the September 18, 2017 edition. By DAN PAWLOWSKI WAKEFIELD — Warrior football ran onto a misty Landrigan Field on Friday night looking for a bounce-back win in the home opener over a team that beat them 35-7 the year before. Wakefield started fast against Winchester and sustained their drives late to hold on to a huge win. Warrior fans who faced the early rain head-on will surely remember Wakefield’s first two plays from scrimmage, but it was actually the defense that set the tone in this one. On Winchester’s first drive, the Sachems picked up a first down but the defensive front, led by co-captains Alex Joly and Devin O’Brien stuffed a couple of run attempts forcing a third and long from about midfield. Joly got into the backfield and swung Sachems running back Peter Gallagher to the turf, forcing a fumble that was recovered by senior lineman Bobby Young who did a nice job in his first game on the line, moving up from his usual linebacker position. That got Wakefield’s Red Sea student section on their feet. Most of them never got a chance to sit back down, as senior running back Henry Stikeman took a run on the first play from scrimmage 54 yards for a Wakefield touchdown that really got Landrigan going. Senior co-captain Brendan Coughlin was disruptive all night from his outside linebacker position as he stood up Gallagher on first down during the Sachems next drive. After a three-and-out, the Warriors took possession at their own 45-yard line. Now if one of your fastest backs just scored his first varsity touchdown on the first play from scrimmage, wouldn’t you give him another chance on your second play? Wakefield head coach Steve Cummings would. Stikeman took another handoff on first down and torched down the field for a 55-yard touchdown giving the Warriors a 14-0 lead in the first quarter. “Stikeman with his speed, if there’s nobody in front of him you’re not catching him,” said Cummings. Stikeman finished with 113 rushing yards and two scores. The Sachems came back with a solid drive led by excellent running from Gallagher who finished with 147 yards and both of Winchester’s touchdowns. The Sachems made it to the red zone but the drive changed momentum when Wakefield’s senior co-captain Ryan Fitzpatrick jumped a slant route on second and eight, nearly intercepting Winchester’s Liam Fitzpatrick. The following third and eight was shut down at the line of scrimmage again by O’Brien and Co. bringing the first quarter to an end. Wakefield forced an incomplete pass on fourth down to start the second quarter. The Warriors offense stalled in the second quarter, with three straight three-and-outs taking them into halftime. Luckily Wakefield’s defense did the same to the Sachems and the Warriors went into halftime with a 14-0 lead, although admittedly with a little less momentum at the end of the second quarter than they had at the end of the first. “We got a little stagnant in the second quarter, I would like to clean that up a little bit,” said Cummings. “We have to do a better job of anticipating how teams are going to play us with their motions.” Winchester took back momentum in...
read moreGirls’ soccer looking forward to a great season
Start off 1-2 against a tough Middlesex League Published in the September 18, 2017 edition. By DAN BYRNE WAKEFIELD—The 2017 fall season has begun and the WMHS girls’ varsity soccer team has started their season out 1-2 in the first 3 games. It’s been a slow start for the Warriors, after dropping the first two games of the year, albeit to strong sides in Winchester and Lexington. Last Thursday, the Warriors got into the win column when they took out Burlington by a 3-1 score. The performance against Burlington was more of what head coach Steph Martin was hoping to see from her team this year, as it’s weighted heavily in senior leadership bringing expectations of success. “We have a big senior class,” Coach Martin said in a recent interview. “We have ten seniors. A lot of them have been on the team since sophomore year.” With seniors at practically every spot on the field, there is no shortage of experience with this Warriors team, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t a few new faces out there. One of the key leaders on any soccer team is the goalkeeper and in Courtney Hill, the Warriors not only have a tremendous net-minder in between the posts, but an experienced leader as well. On Hill, Martin said, “We had a tough couple of games in the beginning, but those we’re pretty good teams, but she’s been overall just playing great. She’s such a natural athlete, she makes saves that leave you wondering ‘how did she make that?’ We’re very lucky to have such a strong keeper, very, very lucky to have Courtney in net this year.” Sophomore Emma Lambiaso is backing Hill up in net and coach Martin heaped praise on the first year varsity player saying, “She’s another excellent goal keeper, she’s a really hard worker. She is really developing her game as a sophomore. We’re really surprised at how far she’s come since freshman year.” In front of Hill in goal, the Warriors defense is experienced. They are led by Seniors Jill Fiore and Megan Foley at the sweeper and stopper positions. On Fiore, Coach Martin said, “We had some of our defenders from last year graduate so it is good to have her as a returner. She really dictates whats going on in the back and is doing a great job for us.” Foley was called on to help out last year as well, coach Martin had this to say about her senior defender, “She’s really stepped up as a player from last year, and she’s continued that this year. She’s dominating in the back and balls in the air. She had a goal vs Burlington, beautiful, from outside the 18 yard box. She’s a tough kid, wins every 50/50 ball.” At full-back Megan Gibbons provides senior leadership, but an injury in the first game held her out of the next 2. Coach Martin wasn’t able to offer a timetable for her return just yet, but she expects Gibbons to be back and contributing before too long. “She is a solid defensive back,” Martin said on Gibbons. “She reads the ball well, just very smart defensively.” Senior defender Riley Parent has stepped up and helped fill the void left when Gibbons went down. “She is an unbelievably hardworking kid....
read moreGirls’ cross country edged by Arlington in great opening race
Published on the September 15, 2017 edition. Lucey takes first place for Warriors WAKEFIELD — Wakefield girls’ cross country hosted Arlington in the first meet of the season on Tuesday. This race was the first of two crossover meets to open the season for the Warriors. They will not count towards winning a championship, but Wakefield held tough against a serious numbers disadvantage and just lost 27-28. Arlington had 55 girls running, while Wakefield had 11. “I was really impressed with our first home meet,” said head coach Karen Barrett. “On paper, it looked like we were going to get beat really bad. We lost four point-scorers and Arlington did not lose anybody from last season. We really showed a lot of grit and talent.” During a meet that Barrett thought was a great test to see where the girls are at in terms of actual times in a race, sophomore Olivia Lucey came out blazing, took the lead and never looked back, winning the race with a time of 20:53, which was really close to a personal best in that heat. “She took charge and set the tone. I was extremely impressed with her aggressiveness,” said Barrett. “I believe this will be the first of many wins for her.” Isabella Kehoe (21:46) and Gillian Russell (21:49) were next for Wakefield. “Isabella and Gillian looked really strong, especially at the finish,” said Barrett. Retta Carroll was fantastic running in her first cross country race. She finished fourth for the Warriors with a time of 22:03. Yvonne Lucas (22:18) and Gabby Peduto (23:33) finished fifth and sixth for Wakefield, as both looked steady and stayed focused the whole race. Finishing off the varsity squad was freshman Shannon Driscoll who finished at 24:12. “It was really impressive to see how well she ran for her first race,” said Barrett. “She was in the mix and will continue to improve.” Freshmen Audrey Schopperly (25:18) and Grace Butler (26:39) also did a great job during their first meet, finishing eighth and ninth for the team. Kate Lynch (27:07) and Nicole Lima (27:59) were 10th and 11th for WMHS. Overall, it was an encouraging first meet for a team that is capable of accomplishing anything this season. “The girls summer training definitely payed off,” said Barrett. “They show up everyday ready to work hard. I believe we can win our seventh consecutive league title if we continue this tremendous work ethic and stay...
read moreBoys’ cross country looking to defend state title
Published in the September 14, 2017 edition. By DAN PAWLOWSKI WAKEFIELD — The Wakefield boys’ cross country team begins their 2017 season in a different division with a shiny new target on their back. The Warriors will move up to Division 3 this year, as they look to defend their 2016 state title. Last year’s team won the Division 4 Eastern Mass. state championship and finished second at all-states. The move up to D3 means that the boys would compete in the large division if they made it back to all-states this year, something that 2016’s Division 4 all-scholastic coach of the year, Perry Pappas, would love to see his team accomplish. While the boys return many members of that historic run last season, this year’s team will have to work on their depth in order to accomplish similar feats. “We’re comparable on paper to last year,” said Pappas. “We were really deep, so this year we need to improve on that depth. We need some guys to step up and start to take a role as a scorer that maybe they aren’t used to.” The Warriors will be led by senior co-captain Matt Greatorex, an all-scholastic as a junior last year, and the current record holder for the mile at WMHS. The Warriors will also lean on senior captains Riley Brackett, Tommy Lucey and Ryan Smith. Pappas reiterates the importance of depth because although cross country might seem like an individual sport, races are often won with how fast a team’s fifth and sixth runner are. Races are won by tallying up the place of the team’s top five runners. The lowest score wins, meaning it’s often the times of the fifth, sixth and sometimes seventh runners that will determine the fate of the race. “You can have a phenomenal top four individual athletes, but if you don’t have the depth, you can’t really do anything as a team,” said Pappas. Every year the team does a time trial in the preseason to get a feel for how individuals have improved over the summer. The times between the top five this year were very similar times to last year’s trial, leading Pappas to believe that his team does in fact sport the same kind of top five that led them to a state championship in 2016. Greatorex led the two-mile trial with a time of 10:23. Junior Rohan Singhvi came in second at 10:32, followed by Lucey at 10:37, Brackett at 10:58, sophomore Tanner Jellison at 10:52 and junior Casey Brackett at 10:58. Smith finished at 11:21. Some more runners that Pappas believes will compete for the top group are sophomore Matt Roberto, juniors Billy Stevens, Derek Scheeler, and Derryn Langlois, as well as seniors David Root, Dom Dennis and David Lee, who Pappas said have all worked very hard over the summer. All of these runners and more will dictate how successful the Warriors are this year, and will continue to push each other to new heights, like many did during their summer training. “The season is ten weeks long, but a major part of the season is the summer training,” said Pappas. “We’re fortunate to have kids that are motivated to do that. You might see around town 10-15 guys running as a group during the summer.” In...
read moreBoys’ soccer learns plenty in defeat to reigning state champs
Published in the September 13, 2017 edition By DAN MARGARITA WAKEFIELD — The Wakefield High boy’s soccer team hosted a powerful Lexington squad last night and was beaten solidly by a score of 7-0 at the Galvin Middle School. “I don’t know if there’s a harder schedule to open up against…a Middlesex League champ (Winchester) and a state champ (Lexington) in the first three games. That’s tough, but it’s a good indication of what we’ve got to do and where we need to go,” said Wakefield coach Andrew Tetrault. Lexington took charge right away, with Dylan Corbett leading the way. Midway through the first half Wakefield seemed to get their bearings and took control of the game for a while. Josh Ell had a shot hit the cross bar for Wakefield’s best scoring chance. “We worked our tails off for the first thirty minutes of the game, and we had our chances. We hit the cross bar and we were all over it, but I don’t know if there was any mental or physical let down or if Lexington found our weak spots and just capitalized,” said Tetrault. Wakefield’s defense kept Lexington off the scoreboard until Anthony Clough scored to give the visitors a 1-0 lead. Lexington got a pair of goals late in the half from Corbett and Lucas Aguirre to send Lexington into half time sporting a 3-0 lead. “The guys fought hard. You never like to see the score like that but we have a lot to work on. It’s the beginning of the season and now we have the small teams coming up, so we’re looking to that and hope to get some wins,” said Tetrault. Lexington broke the game open in the second half with a barrage of goals. Corbett scored to notch a hat-trick and then Alex McLaughlin scored to make it 5-0. Sancho Maroto finished with a pair of goals to put the score at 7-0, where it would stand. “The boys fought hard the whole way from the front line to the back line. We’re trying to execute some of the things we worked on in practice, playing in the direction we’re facing and trying to spread wide. You can tell they’re trying to do it but we’re just not stringing enough passes together to get any type of offense going,” noted Tetrault. Box score Lexington 3 4 7 WAKEFIELD 0 0 0 First Half Scoring: Lex, Clough (un) 22:45; Lex, Aguirre (Chung) 3:30; Lex, Corbett (McLaughlin) 2:55. Second Half Scoring: Lex, Corbett (un) 18:00; McLaughlin (un) 16:32; Lex, McLaughlin (un) 8:10; Lex, Maroto (un) 5:38. Keeper Saves: Wak, Ritchie (16 shots, 11 saves), Farrow (3 shots, 1 save); Lex, Caliri (7 shots, 7...
read moreJandrys to fight for Haymakers of Hope October 5
To be sponsored by Tony Bartolo of Tony’s Auto Body, LLC of Malden Published in the September 13, 2017 edition BOSTON — Stephanie Jean Jandrys is a local boxer who is ready to make a difference. On October 5, Jandrys is scheduled to fight at the House of Blues during the Belles of the Brawl to raise money for Haymakers of Hope. Jandrys will be sponsored by Tony Bartolo, owner of Tony’s Auto Body, LLC of Malden. “Stephanie’s true passion for the cause is what has continually driven her day-by-day to train to be the best she can be,” said Bartolo. “Her dedication is what drew me to sponsor her for this fight.” Jandrys is a trainer and an instructor at Title Boxing in Saugus/Danvers. This will be her first fight, and she has trained for four months physically and mentally to prepare herself for this event. Donations in Stephanie’s name are encouraged, as Haymakers for Hope continues the fight to knock out cancer. “Stephanie has a passion for the Haymakers Foundation as she knows the struggles families go through as she and her family have fought the fight,” said Bartolo. “All of us know someone who has been affected. Every donation goes a long way in helping with life-saving research needed to focus on finding a cure.” Bartolo would also like to thank Jandrys’ coach Gene Lawrence, and her trainer Cortney Penta for working so hard to train Stephanie for this fight of a...
read moreWakefield swimming ready to take on a tough Middlesex League
Will mix experienced returners with young talent Published in the September 12, 2017 edition. By DAN PAWLOWSKI WAKEFIELD — The WMHS swim team comes into the 2017 season with one of their most experienced teams in recent memory. Usually that only refers to the senior class, something this year’s Warriors have with five returning seniors, but in swimming, experience goes a little bit further. “A handful of year-round swimmers really makes a difference,” said head coach Kathy Byrne. “And this year we have a lot of year-round swimmers.” That includes a freshman class that coach Byrne says is the most experienced class she has had in 24 years as the Wakefield coach. That class will team with many returning swimmers who will help show them how to survive in a tough Middlesex League against powerhouse schools with big swim programs like Reading, Belmont and Lexington. The 2017 WMHS swim team will be led by senior captains Samantha Nimblett and Caroline Sweeney, who are providing a great example for the younger swimmers. “Samantha and Caroline are very organized and are really doing a great job of leading; I’m so proud of them,” said Byrne. Sweeney was a member of the 50-yard freestyle championship team last year and is a versatile swimmer who also competes in the 100-yard freestyle medley and other relays. Nimblett is quite possibly the most important swimmer on the team as her leadership is exactly what the younger members of the team will need to succeed. “Samantha is always working to improve,” said Byrne. “We’re very lucky to have her as a good example to follow.” The three other seniors include Kelly O’Connell, a very hard worker who swims the breaststroke; CC Colliton, a strong all-around swimmer whose versatility includes the freestyle and butterfly stroke for the relay team; and Anya Nardone, a sprinter, backstroke and 50-yard freestyle swimmer. Of all five returning seniors, coach Byrne says that they all share similar qualities that will benefit the team. “All of the seniors are high achievers who work hard and are very motivated students and athletes.” The Warriors got their season underway on Saturday night with a meet against Reading. Wakefield embraced the challenge of facing one of the best programs in the state and competed hard, placing in many events. “This was an opportunity to see some really good swimming and for our girls to rise to the occasion,” said Byrne. “I was very pleased with the swimming we saw.” Wakefield fell to Reading 92-70 but had many standout swims worth noting. The medley relay team took third place with a time of 2:05.20. The relay team consisted of Hannah Guay (backstroke), Laura Sweeney (breaststroke), Caroline Sweeney (butterfly) and Katherine Maloney (freestyle). Guay, a member of that deep and experienced freshman class, also placed third in the 200-yard with a time of 2:25:20 and first in the 500-yard freestyle with a time of 5:44:61. That is the longest race in high school swimming, and it got the team pumped up for their relay races. “We were very excited,” said Byrne. “It was really a fabulous swim. She (Guay) is very good at those longer races.” Laura Sweeney, another freshman and younger sister of Caroline, finished second in the 50-yard freestyle at 2:07:71, and second in the 100-yard...
read moreWarrior field hockey gets huge win
Published in the September 12, 2017 edition. Beat Reading 4-3 on the road By DAN BYRNE READING—Monday saw the Wakefield Memorial High School varsity field hockey team hit the road for the first time in the young season, as the Warriors made the short trip over to Reading for their second game of the year. It’s been a few seasons since the Warriors have taken down the Rockets, but the girls came to play and put in a dominant defensive performance en route to a 4-3 victory. “We had a great game today,” Head Coach Cara Luca said following the win, “Although Reading scored first we came right back and answered.” A satisfied Coach Luca saw plenty to be proud of from her team saying, “Offense had a great game today bringing the ball up the field. Defensively we made a lot of great stops also.” Reading opened the scoring in the first half to take a 1-0 lead, but the Warriors answered back to tie the score. For the Warriors offense, seniors Vanessa Kaddaras and Olivia Cameron filled the stat-sheet with Kaddaras netting a hat-trick and Cameron assisting on all three goals. With the Warriors up 3-2 in the second half, Cameron scored with an assist from Kaddaras to put the Warriors two goals ahead. On the defensive side, the Warriors used some real strategy to neutralize one of Reading’s top players. “We switched things up midway through first half and had Ava Vaughn face-guard one of their top players to try and shut her down, and it worked,” Luca said. Wakefield’s defense was inspired by some outstanding goal keeping by the two Warriors’ goalies. In the first half Norah Coyne stood between the pipes and turned away 4 of the 5 shots she faced. Alexa Pesce took the net in the second half and there was no let off from the bench, as she stopped three of the four shots she saw in net. With a two-goal lead and 12 minutes remaining, coach Luca called for a timeout. “We told the girls for the next 12 minutes they all needed to play defense, keep their sticks down, and intercept the ball,” said Luca postgame. For the next nine minutes, the Warriors played stout defense and took a big chunk of time off the clock. The ever-relentless Reading attack kept coming, eventually braking through and scoring with three minutes to play to make the score 4-3. The Warriors cranked up the D once again following the goal, and kept the Rockets off the scoreboard the rest of the way to bring home the victory. After the win Coach Luca said, “We did a great job keeping the ball out of the circle. I am very proud of the girls today and I know how excited they are to win it.” “We haven’t beaten Reading in a very long time,” the coach added, “So this game put them on a high.” With the win, the Warriors’ record improves to 1-1. They look to continue their winning ways later in the week as the face Lexington Sept. 13 and Burlington Sept. 15. Coach Luca finished saying, “I am hoping this enthusiasm and energy takes us into our next two games vs. Lexington and Burlington.” LINESCORE WAK—2-2—4 REA—2-1—3 WAK GOALS—Kaddaras 3;...
read moreWarrior football goes back to the drawing board
Drop season opener to Reading, 48-14 Published in the September 11, 2017 edition By DAN PAWLOWSKI READING — WMHS football knew their first game of the season was most likely going to be their toughest challenge of the year. The Reading Rockets have been a state powerhouse for a very long time, and this year is no exception. Reading was ranked number 11 in the state by the Boston Globe in the preseason and they return a plethora of talent and experience, which is exactly why Wakefield head coach Steve Cummings chose this year to renew the old Middlesex rivalry. Reading went ahead early, and even though Wakefield battled hard in the first quarter, they were ultimately worn down and couldn’t get back into the game. “We schedule these kinds of games at the beginning of the year for this reason exactly. That team operates at a very high level,” said Cummings. “We didn’t match them in any facet of the game.” After the Wakefield offense went three-and-out to start the game, Reading drove for a touchdown on their first drive. The Warriors forced a fourth and short early in the drive, but Reading’s Jack Geiger ran for a first down, kickstarting a dominant performance that saw the senior running back find the end zone twice and break off many big plays. The Rockets scored their first touchdown on a 12-yard option keeper for senior quarterback Matt Panacopoulos. That drive took a lot of time off the clock, and Wakefield’s offense stalled on the following drive, bringing the first quarter to an end with the score 7-0. Reading started the second quarter off with another long drive led by two first down runs from Geiger and more solid option runs from Panacopoulos. The Rockets dove the ball in from the one yard line and led 13-0 after a missed extra point. Wakefield started their next drive in desperate need of a momentum shift, which was provided by senior co-captiain Ryan Fitzpatrick, who took a screen pass for 12 yards on a third and nine. That play got the senior offensive line going, leading to Wakefield’s biggest play of the day. Junior Danny Marinaccio took a hand-off to the left side, following the lead of senior Dan Cataldo and co-captains Alex Joly and Devin O’Brien for a 58-yard touchdown run. The play was exactly what the team needed, and gave some life to a rowdy Wakefield student section who represented the Warriors well with a great turnout on the road. Unfortunately for Wakefield, it was all over in a flash. Reading’s John DiMare took the ensuing kickoff 75 yards for another score, giving the Rockets a 21-7 lead after Geiger ran in the two point conversation, and totally decimating the Warriors momentum in the process. “That’s why we play teams like Reading, because they’re are never going to give you anything,” said Cummings. “You make one false step, they’re gonna make you pay for it. That’s the level of play that we need to get to.” Reading’s defense seemed to gain the most from that big return as they buckled down and put a ton of pressure on Wakefield’s junior quarterback Mike Lucey. After getting the ball back, Reading scored one more touchdown right before halftime as Panacopoulos connected with...
read moreWMHS field hockey ready for the Middlesex League
Dedicated offseason work has Warriors excited about 2017 Published in the September 8, 2017 edition. By DAN BYRNE WAKEFIELD — With the 2017 fall sports season set to kick off this week, the varsity field hockey team at Wakefield Memorial High School has been working since last season ended to improve and get ready for the next season. Head Coach Cara Luca returns for another season in charge of the Warriors, she spoke recently about her team and the upcoming season. She remarked on the hard work the girls have put in after a tough season last year saying, “This year the team did a lot to get prepared for this upcoming season. Girls participated in a winter indoor league where they were coined indoor champions.” An impressive winter led to a hard working summer Luca continued, “This summer the girls first took part in a clinic (4 Goals) that was hosted by the University of Michigan Coach Marcia Pankratz. Some girls also went to Endicott College camps or Nike camps.” Some of the girls kept things local and worked out here in town. “A big part of their training was with coach JD Berry at BearFit Training in Wakefield,” said Luca. “He did a fantastic job getting the girls ready for the season. I wanted my girls stronger and I knew he could do that. What a difference from seeing them at the end of the season to the beginning of this season. The girls hits are a lot stronger and they have better ball control.” Physical preparedness is key, but Coach Luca knows that her team needs to be focused from the first whistle if they’re going to have a successful season. “As always I have high expectations for the girls,” the coach said. “We have a lot of talent and our goal this year is ‘click’ as a team right away so we can pave the way for the tournament.” “Our slogan this year is ‘make it count’. Everything we do in practice prepares us for game days. We have to make sure each drill, each strategy, each skill is done right.” If you’re familiar with the field hockey program for the past few years, you may need to pick up a program this year as there will be some new faces on the field. Coach Luca talked about the makeup of this year’s roster saying, “The varsity squad consists of 17 girls. It is led by captains Vanessa Kaddaras, Olivia Cameron, Julianne D’Ambrosio and Birdi Mylan.” “We have eight returning varsity players so our team is a young team,” Luca said. There may be some places that starters are set, but in net they’re looking at a competition battle with a couple of young goalies. “We have two goalies on the varsity squad,” Luca noted, “Norah Coyne and Alexa Pesce.” New to field hockey is Alexa Pesce. The junior has some goalie experience when she played soccer. “She has been a great asset to this program,” said Luca. “She is a determined individual who isn’t afraid of going after the ball.” “Nora is in her second year of field hockey (she took off her sophomore year). Like Alexa, Nora isn’t afraid of the ball and likes to dive for the ball. We are really excited...
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