Sports Round-up

Boys soccer team wins opening contests

The Everett High (EHS) boys soccer team served notice that they intend to present a strong defense of their GBL championship, winning both games in their season opening week against non-league rivals in convincing fashion.

Coach Fred Jannino’s squad first dispatched with Xaverian by a 5-1 margin on Thursday and then conquered Central Catholic of Lawrence Sunday evening with a 5-0 shutout.

“We played very well in all aspects of the game in both wins,” said Jannino.

Sophomore sensation Felix DeBona picked up where he left off last season with six goals in the two victories, finding the back of the net four times against Xaverian and twice against Central Catholic.

Forward running mate David Lima scored the first goal of the 2009 campaign against Xaverian and then DeBona rang in four more, including three in the first 10 minutes of the second half that broke open a tight 2-1 contest. Midfielder Ahmed Bourhaba earned assists on two of the goals.

In the shutout victory over Central Catholic, DeBona scored twice in the first half. Lima added a marker shortly after the intermission, and Marcos Rodrigues scored two goals to put the icing on the 5-0 Everett victory cake.

In addition to his offensive stars, Jannino lauded the play of Bourhaba at center midfield. “Ahmed is the playmaker for our team,” said Jannino. “He sets up our strikers and he did a great job in both wins.”

The coach also cited the fine efforts of defenders Philip Cunha, Lohan Moreira, and David Carvalho, defensive midfielder Ryan Canillas, and outside midfielder Eric Chojan, and the performance of first-year keeper Eric Westphal, who volunteered to move into the goalie slot this season when graduation left the Crimson Tide without an experienced keeper.

“Eric’s a natural athlete, and he’s really doing a great job for us in net,” said Jannino.

Jannino and his charges will face the acid test of the young season tomorrow (Thursday) when they host perennial power Brockton, which already is ranked No. 3 in Eastern Mass. soccer.

That contest is set for 4 p.m. at Glendale and should attract a large number of Crimson Tide fans. The boys then will host Malden Friday, travel to Cambridge Monday, and journey to St. John’s Prep next Wednesday.

Volleyball team opens with win vs. Malden

The Everett High volleyball team opened its season in exciting fashion, earning a hardfought, come-from-behind, five set triumph at Malden last Wednesday.

“It was a tremendous match,” said EHS head coach Mike Fineran. “I was very proud of the way our team played and hung in there to pull out the victory.”

The final line score of 19-25, 25-21, 20-25, 26-24, 15-12, truly was indicative both of the grueling nature of the contest and its back-and-forth parrying between two well-matched teams.

Ingrid Serafim got Everett off to a quick start in the first set with seven straight service points, but the Crimson Tide was unable to sustain its momentum as Malden rallied to claim the opening set.

The seesaw nature of the match continued, with Everett taking the next set and Malden counterpunching to win the third. Malden then was poised to win the match when the Golden Tornadoes moved out to a 24-22 advantage in the fourth set.

However, after a tense, back-and-forth battle, Everett won the next point, and captain Kristi Joti served out the set to capture the next two points for the 26-24 win.

Joti then continued her magic in the service department in the fifth and deciding set with five points on her serve that broke open a 2-1 affair and moved the Crimson Tide into a 7-2 lead, which they never relinquished.

”It was a great win for us,” noted Fineran. “Both teams played hard, but we had just that little bit extra at the end.”

The coach in particular noted the strong contribution of Linda Salazar who came off the bench to play great defense and score two kills.

Fineran and his crew turned in another solid effort two days later in their home opener against Somerville, but this time, the Crimson Tide came out on the short end of a 21-25, 21-25, 25-16, 24-26 decision.

“The first week always is tough because the team still is trying to figure out what to expect from each other,” noted Fineran. “But the heart they showed in both games was incredible. I could not have been happier with their effort.”

Fineran lauded the play of juniors Bersa Shkreta and Tamires Machado, both of whom hit the floor numerous times to save balls. Sophomore Amanda Souza was a force on the game with three blocks and 13 service points, including seven aces.

“[Senior] Laura Michel came off the bench and proved to be the best all-around player for us,” added Fineran. “She set a lot of plays for us and really stood out.”

The EHS volleyball team was set to be back in action today (Wednesday) at Medford and will journey to perennial GBL power Cambridge on Friday.

Urquiza races to win in meet with Chelsea

A young Everett High girls cross country team ran well, but came out on the short end of a 23-32 decision to Chelsea on the latter’s home course at Admiral’s Hill last week.

Leading the way for the Lady Crimson Tide was junior captain Delmis Urquiza, who took first place in the meet, covering the 2.9 mile loop in 24:53.

Teammate and sophomore Jessica Mangan placed fifth in 26:48, followed by the seventh place finish of junior Angele Louis-Jean. Adra Ringdahl came home in ninth spot and sophomore Melissa Michel rounded out the Everett scoring with a 10th place effort.

Senior Erica Fuentes won the 1.8 mile junior varsity meet.

“Delmis ran a good race, though she played it safe running with two Chelsea girls the entire meet,” Irish said afterwards. “She was very relaxed throughout the entire race.  I think she is going to have a very good season.

“Jessica was right behind Delmis and ran a good first race,” continued Irish. “She justmissed fourth place. Erica, Angele, and Melissa are running their first seasons of cross country and are steadily improving.

“We have a small group again this season for cross country, with only six girls,” added the coach. “We have a solid competition schedule, so the goal this season is for everyone to perform to their ability at each and every meet. It’s also critical that we don’t have any injuries.”

On the boys’ side, there were only three Everett competitors. Senior Matt Turra was the first Crimson Tide runner across the line in 22:11.Sophomore Ricky Perez placed second for Everett in 22:14, and placing third for Everett was junior Nick D’Angelo in 23:38.  Senior captain Braythener Machado didn’t finish the race due to injury.

“The boys are going to have a challenging season because, like the girls, we have a small group,” said Irish. “But I expect the same the level of competitiveness from the boys as I do the girls.  Right now, we’re hoping Braythener will be able to compete this season as he’s struggling with a nagging ankle/calf injury.

“I an really enjoying working with these kids this season,” added Irish. “They are all very hard workers.”

The boys and girls cross country teams will be back in action tomorrow in the GBL Open at Fresh Pond in Cambridge.

Golfers do well in opener

Although the Everett High golf team dropped a 46-26 decision to Medford last week at the Mt. Hood golf course, EHS head coach Iggy Giangregorio said he was pleased with his team’s performance.

“Overall, we did pretty well,” said Giangregorio. “Medford is the defending GBL champ, with many of its players returning. We have a lot of newcomers, and everybody held their own against their individual rivals.”

Mike Russo, playing on the No. 3 slot, was the lone victor for the Crimson Tide, defeating his Mustang opponent by a 5-4 margin.

However, Matt Huse, playing at No. 1, came close to a win with a 4-5 effort against his Medford counterpart, who was the top golfer in the GBL last season. Chris Mini at No. 7 also came close with a 4-5 performance.

Eric Russo, playing at No. 2, fell by a 2-7 margin; Dan Concannon lost 3.5-5.5 at No. 4; sophomore Mike Vitukevich dropped a 2-7 decision at No. 5; freshman Mike Yebba at No. 6 came out on the short end of a 3-6 score; and Steven Chaves at No. 8 lost 2.5-6.5.

Giangregorio and his squad were set to play at the Unicorn course yesterday (Tuesday) against Malden and then host Somerville tomorrow (Thursday) and Saugus Monday at Mt. Hood.

Field hockey team drops pair

The Everett High field hockey team may have dropped its opening two contests of the season, but EHS head coach Janet Colameta said her team played well against two strong opponents.

“Despite the final outcomes, I was very proud of how well we played, both as a team and individually,” said Colameta. “We have a lot of things to work on, but everybody gave 100 percent and played their best.

“In the season opener against Beverly, we played tremendously in the first 15 minutes,” continued Colameta. “But their first goal took some of the wind out of our sails, and we never recovered our momentum.”

In the next contest at Waltham, Everett trailed by a slim 1-0 margin at the half before eventually coming out on the short end of a 4-0 final score.

Colameta noted the fine play of Lisa Aylward and goalie Martine Mathurin against Waltham. “All of the girls have a great attitude and have really come a long way,” said Colameta. “We’re working hard, and we hope to continue to improve as the season progresses.”

Colameta and her crew were set to play at Danvers this past Monday and host Ursuline today (Wednesday) and Marblehead tomorrow. They will travel to Malden on Monday.

Fernandes scores two goals for EHS girls soccer

The Everett High girls soccer team turned in a solid all-around effort in its season opener, but ended up on the short end of a 5-2 decision to Lynn English last week.

Eighth-grader Kamilla Fernandes scored both goals for the Lady Crimson Tide. Captain and midfielder Jess Fuentes assisted on the first marker, which gave Everett a 1-0 lead in the first half, and Luana Demenezes, another eighth-grader who also plays at midfield, assisted on the second goal.

“It was an exciting, up-and-down game right to the end,” said EHS head coach DeAnn Larrabee.

Although the EHS girls dropped a 5-0 contest to Ursuline Academy in their next contest, Larrabee noted the fine play of captain Tracey Nicholson. “Tracey is a great all-around player who can play any position,” noted Larrabee. “I moved her from midfield to defense, and she played a solid game for us.”

The coach also noted the fine efforts of Jacqueline Steeves, one of the three Steeves sisters on the team this year, and Zoulikha Madkour, who has done a fine job in goal in her first season at keeper.

Larrabee and her team have a busy week on tap. They were set to play at Quincy Monday and will meet Pope John tomorrow (Thursday) under the lights at 6:30 at the English School. They will travel to Malden on Friday and host Cambridge on Monday.

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