EHS Roundup

Softball Team Tops Lynn Classical, 6-3

The Everett High softball team fired the opening salvo in the quest for the 2023 Greater Boston League (GBL) championship with a 6-3 victory over their chief rival, Lynn Classical, with whom the Lady Crimson Tide shared the GBL crown in 2022, this past Monday on the Lady Rams’ home field.

EHS ace hurler Kristi Skane tossed all seven innings, yielding two earned runs on five hits, while fanning four opponents and walking none to earn the “W.”

Everett grabbed a quick 2-0 lead in the opening inning on a bases-loaded base hit by Alex Uga that drove in teammates Emilia Marie-Babcock (who had reached base on a fielder’s choice) and Skane, who had doubled.

However, a bid for a third run ended when Gianna Masucci, who had reached base when she was hit by a pitch and moved to second on Uga’s hit, was thrown out at the plate on a base hit into center field by Ashley Seward.

“With two outs, I wanted to send Gianna home because I thought she would beat the throw, but their center fielder had an arm,” said EHS head coach Stacy Poste-Schiavo.

Classical struck back for a run in the bottom of the inning on two hits and an error, but the Lady Crimson Tide made it a two-run game once again with a solo marker in the third. After Kayley Rossi drew a walk, Masucci smacked a line-drive up the third base line for a double. Uga drew a walk to fill the bases and Seward delivered Rossi with a base hit into right.

Everett added to its margin in the fourth with two more markers. After Emilia Marie-Babcock reached first on an error and moved to second on a passed ball, Skane drew a walk. Then with two outs, Masucci delivered a clutch double with another line drive up the third base line, bringing in both of her teammates.

“I had to be aggressive with the baserunning,” noted Poste-Schiavo. “We needed a buffer with runs. I knew that around the fifth inning they would catch up and start hitting and they had their last at-bat.”

Skane set Classical down in order in the bottom of the fourth with some superb fielding by her teammates. The first out came via a grounder to Masucci at short, who made the throw to Bryanna Mason at first; the second came when Seward grabbed a fly ball along the fence in foul territory in right; and Skane herself grabbed a grounder and made the throw to Mason for the third out.

“All of these outs were important, but the ball caught in foul territory by Ashley kept their number four batter from being able to hit again,” noted Poste-Schiavo.

The fifth inning proved to be scoreless, with the Lady Crimson Tide once again playing flawlessly in the field. “We couldn’t produce any runs this inning so we knew we had to hold them on defense,” said Poste-Schiavo.

Everett added another insurance run in the sixth when Rossi drew a walk, moved to second on a base hit by Masucci, and, after both runners advanced on a passed ball, scored on a ground-out by Uga.

Classical sliced the lead to 6-3 with two runs in the bottom of the sixth on a base hit, a triple, and a sac fly, but that would prove to be as close as Skane would permit the Lady Rams to get the rest of the way with a 1-2-3 seventh inning. The first two outs came on a fly ball to Marie-Babcock in center and a pop-up to Masucci at short, and then Kristi completed her masterpiece with a flourish, striking out the final Classicat hitter.

“I can’t say enough about how proud I am of this team and this win,” said Poste-Schiavo. “Kristi Skane and Kayley Rossi are a great pitcher and catcher duo and work very well together. Kristi seems to come back stronger when under pressure or behind on the count.

“The defense was behind her the entire game and it clearly showed,” the coach continued. “Classical is always a great hitting team and we had to make sure we made every play and did not allow any errors. Our offense came out with the bats as well. When we made contact, the ball was hit hard. We have been focusing on hitting and aiming for line drives and not popping up.

“Bryanna Mason has been doing an amazing job at first and has been getting a lot of balls hit to her side,” Poste-Schiavo added. “Every single player on this team added to this win. We were cheering each other on, giving words of confidence, and making sure that we got this win. We were co-champs with them last year and we know that we need to take each game as seriously as the next.”

Last Wednesday the Lady Crimson Tide posted a 17-0 victory over Chelsea at Glendale Park in a contest that ended after five innings because of the mercy rule. Skane tossed four perfect frames, fanning 11 of the 12 Chelsea batters she faced. Peyton Warren came on in the fifth, also allowing no hits while striking out two and walking one.

The Lady Crimson Tide put this one away early, striking for nine runs in the bottom of the first. Skane and Rossi (two) both delivered RBI doubles, Seward drew a bases-loaded walk, and Mason struck for an RBI single. But the big blow of the rally was a grand slam homer by Emma Longmore.

Everett added two more in the second on RBI base hits by Uga (that scored Rossi) and Kassidy Rivera (that brought in Arabella Cvitkusic) and three more in the third on RBI hits by Uga and Rivera.

A combination of walks and a Chelsea error produced the final three runs for the Lady Crimson Tide.

“We had to adjust to the slower pitching and wait on the ball,” noted Poste-Schiavo. “Chelsea has an inexperienced team and I must say they never gave up and were positive until the end of the game. Skane did an amazing job pitching and Warren came in and pitched just as well.”

The Everett squad, which stands at 3-0 on the season, is scheduled to host GBL foe Lynn English today (Wednesday) at 4:00 at Glendale Park. They will trek to non-league opponent Cambridge on Friday and then to GBL rivals Somerville on Monday and Revere next Wednesday. Both of those contests will start at 10:00 in the morning.

Boys Track Team Topples Revere

The Everett High boys outdoor track and field team pulled off an early-season upset to start the Greater Boston League (GBL) track season with a 73-55 victory over defending GBL champion Revere, which once again figures to be one of the top teams in the GBL, last Thursday at Revere’s Harry Della Russo Stadium.

Leading the way for coach Jehu Cimea’s Crimson Tide were the duo of newcomer junior Shane MacKenzie and senior Adail Costa Fernandes, who were the boys’ top scorers with 10 points each.

Shane won the javelin with a huge toss of 119′-0″, which traveled 40 feet (that’s not a misprint) longer than his closest Revere opponent and the discus with a throw of 107′-2″, which was five feet further than his nearest Revere rival.

Adail captured the long jump with a leap of 19′-1″ and the triple jump with a hop, skip, and jump of 38′-11.”

In addition, a number of their teammates turned in outstanding performances. Senior captain Shinay Aristhene topped the field in the 400 meter hurdles with a clocking of 1:02.7 and took second in the 110 hurdles in 18.6 to score eight points on the day; Reklov Lageroy won the 200 meter dash with a sprint of 24.7 seconds; and junior Jayden Prophete won the 100 meter race with a dash of 11.7.

Adding three points to the Everett side of the scoresheet with second place performances were: sophomore Elijah Lassiter in the 400 hurdles in 1:09.8; senior Anthony Cooper in the two-mile run in 12:09.7; senior Giacobbe Ward in the mile in 5:20.8; freshman Kayshaun Eveillard in the 400 meter dash in 53.8; senior Matth Telson in the 800 meter in 2:17.2; junior Donald Michel in the high jump with a leap of 5′-4″ (Donald also took a third in the 110 hurdles in 19.2); and junior Joao Pedro Rodriguez in the long jump with a flight of 18′-7.25″.

Contributing single points with third place efforts were: junior Adoni Santos in the javelin with a toss of 77′-3″; junior Jason Stark in the shot out with a throw of 35′-7.25″; junior Khang Nguyen in the triple jump with a final landing of 35′-11″; sophomore Jayden Williams in the 200 dash in 25.1; and senior David Huezo-Erazo in the two-mile.

The Crimson Tide won the 4 x 100 relay thanks to the efforts of the quartet of Williams, Lageroy, junior Jeremiah Jean Louis, and Prophete, who came across the line in a time of 47.8, which was 0.6 faster than their Revere counterparts.

“It was a great meet,” said Cimea. “Both teams competed well. The boys’ team was fighting injuries and still pulled out an amazing win against Revere. Overall, it was a great meet for the boys. Securing the win from the defending GBL champions was big for us and started our season strong.”

Cimea and his crew were scheduled to take on GBL foe Medford yesterday (Tuesday) and will trek to GBL rival Malden next Wednesday morning, April 19.

Betancur-Cardona Sets EHS Shot-Put Mark

Although the Everett High girls outdoor track and field team came out on the short end of an 81-55 decision, a number of the Lady Crimson Tide turned in outstanding performances in their meet last week with Revere in the season-opener for both teams at Revere’s Harry Della Russo Stadium.

The chief highlight for the Everett side was the record-setting performance of junior captain Layla Betancur-Cardona, who broke the Everett High School record in the shot-put with a throw of 30′- 3.25″.

Senior captain Nyla Crowder was the top scorer for the EHS squad, winning the 100 meter dash with a sprint of 14.3 and taking second place in the high jump with a leap of 4′-6″. Nyla also was part of the winning 4 x 100 relay to finish with a total of 9.25 points on the day.

Junior Tiana Allen scored eight points with a first-place performance in the javelin with a throw of 72′-4″ and a second in the discus (60′-11″).

Junior  Darrynn Desrameaux also scored eight points with a first-place effort in the discus with a spin of 79′-11″ and a second in the shot-put with a throw of 29′-11″.

Kaesta Sandy scored six points with a victory in the 400 dash with a clocking of 72.9 and a third in the javelin with a throw of 65′-9″.

Junior Malaica Guilaume also tallied six points with second-place finishes in the triple jump with a hop, skip, and jump of 29′-3″ and in the 400 meter hurdles in a time of 81.7.

Contributing three points to the EHS scoresheet with second-place finishes were junior captain Nicole Brandao in the 100 meter hurdles in 19.1 and senior captain Suzanne Maharjan in the two mile with a clocking of 16:50.4.

Adding single points with third-place performances were: Brandao in the long jump (13′-1.25″); sophomore Zyelle Cannon in the 100 dash (15.6); Milena Antonio in the 800 meter run (3:02.6); senior captain Luca Jean Noel in the mile (7:08.5); senior captain Ida Bittaye in the 100 hurdles (19.9); and senior Jessica DeSouza in the discus.

In addition to Crowder, the other three members of the winning 4 x 100 relay quartet were Cannon, sophomore Yelsa Garcia, and Bittaye.

Coach Jehu Cimea’s squad took on Medford yesterday (Tuesday) and will trek to Malden next Wednesday morning.

EHS Baseball Team Tops Chelsea, 15-3

The Everett High baseball team earned its first victory of the season with a 15-3 triumph over Greater Boston League (GBL) rival Chelsea last week.

Nordeivy Santana picked up the “W” on the mound, pitching all five innings. Nordeivy helped his own cause at the plate, swatting a two-run homer. Alex Velasco led the way offensively with a double and a triple.

This past Monday, the Tide dropped a 10-0 decision to GBL foe Lynn Classical.

“Matt Turilli, our starting pitcher, pitched well, but early in the game our defense let him down a bit,” said EHS head coach Joel Levine. “Matt pounded the zone and pitched to contact. But the last three innings we played were the best three innings thus far this season defensively. I am hopeful we can turn some things around in the coming weeks.”

Levine and his crew are scheduled to play at GBL rival Lynn English today (Wednesday) and will travel to non-league opponent Charlestown next Wednesday morning at 11:00.

Hard-Fought Contests for EHS Volleyball Team

The Everett High volleyball team engaged in a pair of hard-fought contests this past week, coming up just short in a pair of matches that extended to five sets.

“We certainly had our chances to win both matches, the first against Greater Boston League (GBL) foe Chelsea and the second against non-league rival Wakefield, but ultimately came up short both days,” said EHS head coach Michael Fineran.

Playing in Chelsea on Wednesday, the Crimson Tide rallied in the first set from a 19-14 deficit to take the set, 25-23. Sophomore Henrique Franca led the charge, hitting three straight aces to pull the Tide within two, and added four kills in the set, including the game winner.

Junior Hyan Soares DeCasto had a kill and four service points and junior Dawens Germain had three kills in the opening set win.

In the second set, Everett did not generate as much offense and missed five serves in a 25-21 loss.

However, The Crimson Tide rebounded in the third set, led by Germain (three aces, two kills, two blocks) and sophomore Jefferson Umana (three service points, a block and a kill). Sophomore setter Dantae Bauer served the final point, with Everett taking it, 25-20.

It looked like the Tide would roll from there, with Bauer pushing Everett to a 6-0 lead in the fourth set. Junior Andrew Evangelista Linhares had a block and two kills, and senior captain Dimitar Dimitrov had two kills from the right side. Franca had three kills and had the serve with Everett leading 23-21, but the Red Devils came back to eke out the win in the set.

“I give Chelsea a ton of credit for hanging in and serving tough under pressure,” noted Fineran. “We dropped the set, 25-23, but we were confident going into the fifth set. “

Everett grabbed an early lead behind five serves from Franca that put the Tide up by a score of 6-4, but Everett only recorded one kill in the final frame, dropping the set, 15-11.

The next day on Thursday, Fineran and his crew traveled to Wakefield, looking to put the tough loss behind them.

The match started out promisingly for Everett. Senior co-captain Said Soaib starred in the first set, with two defensive digs and five service points, including two aces, that put Everett up 18-13. Franca dominated as well, with Bauer setting him up seven times in the first frame, and 21 times in the match. Linhares had three service points, an ace, and two kills. Dimitrov and Umana each added a pair of kills, as Everett rolled, 25-18.

But stouter defense by Wakefield stifled Everett’s attack in the second set and the Tide missed four out of five serves in the middle of the frame that put the set out of reach.

Everett’s offense roared back in the third set, with Franca earning four of the team’s 10 kills and DeCasto and Dimitrov earning aces en route to a 25-19 win. The fourth set was a tighter match, but six kills from Franca were not enough to put the Tide over the top.

“We had four aces in the set and served only two out, but we couldn’t put them away,” noted Fineran. “Wakefield’s defense was solid, and their confidence grew each time they sent the ball back over to us. We kept being aggressive, but eventually we made too many mistakes.”

The fifth set was even closer than it was against Chelsea. The Crimson Tide battled back from a 9-6 hole to take the lead, 11-10, and sophomore Steve Flores hit an ace to put Everett up, 13-12.

But the bounces did not go Everett’s way, resulting in a 15-13 loss.

“It was a heartbreaker,” said Fineran, “but it’s early in the season, and I hope it helps us learn what it takes to win. We made far fewer mistakes against Wakefield than we did against Chelsea, but we still have not played as well as we are capable of. We have our sights set on the postseason tournament, and to get there, we will need to stay focused, stay loose, and keep fighting.

“It’s not the opening week we had hoped to have, but there’s a long way to go, and we have the talent to compete against anyone,” Fineran added.

Everett was scheduled to host GBL foe Lynn Classical this past Monday and will trek to GBL opponent Lynn English today (Wednesday). They will entertain GBL rivals Revere next Wednesday and Somerville next Thursday at 11:30 in the morning during the vacation week.

EHS Girls Tennis Fights Hard vs. Classical

Although the Everett High girls tennis team came up short in its two matches this past week to Greater Boston League (GBL) rivals Somerville and Lynn Classical, EHS head coach Courtney Meninger saw many positive signs in her team’s performance.

In their match with Lynn Classical this past Monday, Luisa DaSilva played a strong match against a tough opponent at first singles, falling by a score of 2-6, 3-6. At second singles, Yasmine Laabadla fell short, 0-6, 1-6. However, at third singles, Brooklyn Acevedo won her first match of the season by a score of 6-0, 6-3.

In the doubles contests, the duo of Aline Silva and Rebecca Hickey came up short at first doubles, but the tenacious tandem of Nga Ho and Tracy Pham at second doubles won their match in straight sets, 6-2, 6-4.

Last week the team dropped a 5-0 decision to Somerville. DaSilva played well at first singles, but fell short, 4-6, 0-6, as did Laabadla at second singles (1-6, 2-6) and Acevedo at third singles (1-6, 1-6).

Kirsty Hall stepped up to play first doubles with Hickey and fell short 1-6, 0-6. The second doubles team of Ho and Pham had everyone on the edge of their seats, taking it to a three-set match, before falling just short, 4-6, 6-2, 5-7.

“We have a lot of potential and it is great to see the girls starting to mesh well together,” enthused Meninger. “Hopefully we will come up with a big win this week.”

Menninger and her crew were scheduled to take on GBL foe Lynn English yesterday (Tuesday) and will meet non-league rival Latin Academy tomorrow (Thursday). They will host GBL opponent Revere next Wednesday.

Boys Tennis Team Plays Well in Matches

The Everett High boys tennis team will be seeking its first win of the season when coach Greg Bluestein and his crew engage in a trio of games in the coming week.

They were scheduled to take on Lynn English yesterday (Tuesday), Boston Latin Academy tomorrow (Thursday), and Revere next Wednesday.

“Our matches with Somerville and Lynn Classical this past week were highly-competitive,” noted Bluestein. In the match with Classical, the double duo of Gabriel Ponce and Swarnim Chaudhary were victorious over their Classical counterparts.

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