A near-perfect opening day: EHS softball team blanks Malden, 12-0
The Everett High softball team, which shared the Greater Boston League (GBL) championship last year with Lynn Classical, served notice that it will be a contender for the 2023 GBL crown with a 12-0 victory at GBL rival Malden in a contest that was halted after five innings because of the mercy rule.
The Lady Crimson Tide received an outstanding performance from pitcher Kristi Skane, who spun a masterful one-hitter. Kristi fanned nine Lady Golden Tornado hitters (out of the 15 Malden outs) and walked none.
After a scoreless first inning, the Lady Crimson Tide erupted for six runs in the top of the second.
Emilia Maria-Babcock started the rally with a base hit behind shortstop and promptly stole second. Alexa Uga then delivered a double to bring in Babcock with the first EHS run of the 2023 season.
After walks to Ashley Seward and Bryanna Mason loaded the bases, Emma Longmore singled, knocking in Uga and Jayla Davila drew a walk, forcing in Seward. Skane (the Tide’s number three batter) helped her own cause with a double, knocking in both Mason and Longmore. Kaylee Rossi reached first on a dropped third strike, which also was a passed ball, allowing Davila to score.
The Lady Crimson Tide doubled their lead with another six-run outburst in the fourth.
Everett’s top-of-the-lineup batter Emma Longmore started off with a single into the outfield. Jayla Davila reached first after being hit by a pitch and Skane delivered a base hit into the outfield, knocking in Longmore.
Kayley Rossi doubled, scoring Davila and moving Skane to third, and Skane scored on a passed ball, on which Rossi moved to third. Babcock singled, bringing home Rossi, and then stole second.
Gianna Masucci doubled, delivering Babcock, and Gianna eventually scored after moving to third on a groundout and scooting home on a passed ball.
The rest of the contest was uneventful, save for Malden’s lone base hit in the bottom of the fourth with two outs and two strikes by the Tornado clean-up hitter.
“These girls came ready to play,” said EHS head coach Stacy Poste-Schiavo, whose 25th season at the helm of the Lady Crimson Tide softball program began on a near-perfect note. “Kristi Skane did an amazing job on the mound with Kayley Rossi being solid behind the plate.
“They did not allow much play in the field,” continued Poste-Schiavo. “However, when the ball was hit, Mason and Longmore made the plays.
“Kristi had a no-hitter going into the fourth inning, and I thought she had the K, but it was so close, the umpire called it a ball and then the next pitch Lightbody hit the double,” added the coach. “Starting off the season with a win is always a positive and booster. I am hopeful this enthusiasm continues. The team has been working hard in the off-season and it has definitely shown in practice.”
The Lady Crimson Tide are scheduled to host GBL foe Chelsea today (Wednesday) at Glendale Park at 4:00. They will trek to Lynn Classical on Monday and return home to entertain Lynn English next Wednesday at Glendale at 4:00.
EHS baseball team plays at Chelsea today
The Everett High baseball team will seek to shake off a 14-4 loss to Malden in its season-opener this past Monday when coach Joel Levine and his crew make the short trek across the Parkway to Carter Field in Chelsea this afternoon (Wednesday).
“We gave up seven runs in the first inning,” said Levine. “Our pitching struggled, issuing 11 walks over the course of the game.”
After today’s contest with the Red Devils, the Tide will host Lynn Classical next Monday at Glendale at 4:00 and will travel to Lynn English next Wednesday.
EHS girls tennis drops season-opener
The Everett High girls tennis team came up on the short end of a hard-fought 5-0 decision to Malden, the defending Greater Boston League champions, in the season-opener this past Monday.
Senior captain Luisa DaSilva played first singles, junior captain Yasmine Laabadla played second singles, and senior Brookelyn Acevedo played third singles. At first doubles, the Tide had senior captain Aline Silva and junior Rebecca Hickey and at second doubles, the Everett players were the duo of sophomores Nga Ho and Tracy Pham.
Coach Courtney Meninger and her crew are scheduled to host GBL foes Somerville today (Wednesday), Lynn Classical on Monday, and Lynn English next Tuesday on the courts at Rosetti Park.
Encouraging signs for boys volleyball in season-opener
Although the Everett High boys volleyball team came out on the short end of a 3-0 decision at Greater Boston League (GBL) opponent Malden in its season-opener on Monday, EHS head coach Michael Fineran saw a lot iof good signs from his team that should bode well for the 2023 season.
“t was an encouraging opener,” said Fineran, “The end result, a 3-0 loss, is not what we were looking for, but realistically, we knew we were going up against one of the top teams in the state (ranked 18 by the Boston Globe this weekend).
“For the first set and a half, we showed that we could hang with them,” Fineran said. “We actually jumped out to a decent lead in the first set. Junior Dawens Germain served four in a row to take an early 6-5 lead, and senior captain Dimitar Dimitrov served seven points right after that, taking a 7-7 tie to a 14-7 lead.
“The offense was led in the set by senior co-captain Said Soaib, who had three kills, and sophomore Henrique Franca, who had two kills. Three serves and a kill from sophomore setter Dantae Bauer pushed the lead to 20-12, and Franca had a chance to ice the set, serving up 24-21,” Fineran continued.
“But Malden tightened up their defense and utilized quick attacks to claw back and take the set 26-24,” Fineran said. “We had our chances, and the ball didn’t bounce our way, but I’m proud of our compete level.
“Junior Andrew Linhares emerged as a force to be reckoned with this season, with four kills and three blocks in the first two sets, and Franca and Soaib added four more kills in the second set,” Fineran added.
Soaib had two aces in an early serving run that put Everett up 5-1, but the set was much closer for most of the set, with Linhares’s serving tying the game in two rotations, 7-7 and then 17-17.
But that would be as close as Everett would get, as Malden rolled to a 25-17 win, and then continued to roll in set three, winning 25-11.
“We looked tired and deflated after battling hard all game, and we couldn’t stop them once they got on a roll,” Fineran noted. “But we showed that our success last season wasn’t a fluke, and that we have the talent to compete at a high level this year.”
Fineran and his crew will play the role of road warriors for the rest oif this week, We stay on the road this week, making the short trek to GBL for Chelsea today (Wednesday) and to non-league ribal Wakefield tomorrow (Thursday) before their home opener next Monday against Lynn Classical.
EHS boys tennis opens 2023 season
Although the Everett High boys tennis team dropped a 5-0 decision to Greater Boston League (GBL) opponent Malden in the season-opener this past Monday, EHS head coach Gregory Bluestein saw some positive signs from his squad,
“It was a competitive loss,” noted Bluestein. “We have some good players this year and I think we may take a couple of matches.”
The Crimson Tide lineup vs. Malden consisted of sophomore Bryant Jimenez at first singles, senior captain Shishir Pokhrel at second singles, freshman Henry Chen at third singles, the duo of senior captain Johnny Pham and senior Swarnim Chaudhary at first doubles, and the tandem of sophomore Ricardo Contreras and junior Alejandro Sanchez at second doubles.
Bluestein and his crew will hit the road for their next three matches against GBL rivals Somerville today (Wednesday), Lynn Classical next Monday, and Lynn English next Tuesday.