EHS Girls Volleyball Opens With 3-1 Victory
The Everett High girls volleyball team opened its 2023 season in successful fashion with a 3-1 victory over defending Greater Boston League (GBL) champion Revere last Wednesday.
“We established ourselves pretty early on,” said EHS head coach Michael Fineran of the Lady Crimson Tide’s 25-16 victory in the opening set.
Senior captain Nicole Brandao set the tone from the outset of the match with two aces and five service points to give the Tide a quick 7-3 lead in the opening set and junior setter Victoria Rodrigues followed that with a run of four serves that pushed the margin to 12-5.
“Not only do we have good athletes, but we have more height than we’ve had in five or six years,” noted Fineran, an advantage that was on display early and often, with senior middle Kaesta Sandy hitting three kills and a block and junior opposite Tanessa Duvilaire adding a block in the set.
In the second set, although junior Emilly Nogueira served six points in a row, senior Darryn Desrameaux had a kill, and junior libero Sonia Flores made a number of plays in the back row, Everett fell by a score of 25-18.
“We missed too many serves,” noted Fineran, a problem that continued in the third set when the Tide missed seven serves early.
However, with the set deadlocked at 16-16, Nogueira and Brandao stepped up, combining for seven service points en route to a 25-18 win to take a 2-1 lead.
However, the set proved costly for Everett when the team lost Rodrigues to an injury on the final play. However, sophomore Nicole Damaceno made her varsity debut to start the fourth set and assisted on four kills and, while serving with the score tied at 5-5, delivered two aces.
Desrameaux picked up her third kill of the match, Sandy picked up her sixth and seventh kills, and Nogueira and fellow junior Murielle Campo made key digs that helped the Tide pull out a 25-22 victory to clinch the match.
Brandao finished with 25 service points and a team-high six aces. Nogueira had 23 and four.
“We have a deep team and many people contributed,” said Fineran. “We began the match with 15 eligible varsity players and 13 saw action. We’re going to need everybody and we’re going to have to battle for every game.
“There are no easy games on our schedule,” the coach continued. “We want to play in November and we are staying focused on that goal.”
Last Friday’s contest at non-league rival New Mission was postponed because of the heat wave and will be made up in October.
Fineran and his crew have a busy week, with five matches in 10 days. They were scheduled to take on GBL foe Malden this past Monday and will host GBL rival Chelsea today (Wednesday). They will host non-league opponent Saugus on Friday, travel to GBL rival Lynn Classical next Monday, and entertain GBL foe Lynn English next Wednesday.
EHS Boys Soccer Opens With 3–2 Win
The Everett High boys soccer team opened the defense of its Greater Boston League (GBL) title with a 3-2 victory over GBL rival Somerville last Tuesday.
“We did really well,” noted EHS head coach Pedro Blas of his team’s performance. The goals were scored by a trio of Crimson Tide, Bonhomme Dieff, Wilbur Romero, and Kauan Moreira, who took turns reaching the back of the Highlanders’ net.
Everett’s next scheduled match last Thursday with Medford was postponed because of the intense heat and humidity of last week.
Blas and his crew were scheduled to meet GBL foe Malden yesterday (Tuesday). They will make the short trek across the Parkway to Chelsea tomorrow (Thursday) and will travel eastbound on the Parkway to Revere next Tuesday.
EHS Girls Fight Hard in Opener
Although the Everett High girls soccer team came up on the short end of a 7-1 decision to Greater Boston League (GBL) rival Somerville in the season opener last Tuesday, EHS head coach Domenick Persuitte saw a lot of positive signs from his team’s performance.
“The team effort was great and the score does not depict the overall effort,” said Persuitte. “For a good 25 or minutes, we had Somerville on their heels. An unfortunate call resulted in a Somerville goal, leading to multiple goals in the first half.
“The overall effort came from newcomers Marina Silvestri and Adalmita Silva, who both played well in their respective positions of defense and forward,” continued Persuitte. “All three captains, Yelsa Garcia, Layla Cardona, and Shyann Ambersley, also put out an excellent effort.”
The Lady Crimson Tide’s goal was scored by freshman Layla Leles off a deflection around the penalty area late in the second half.
“Many girls were put into different positions. but overcame the adversity of learning a new position,” added Persuitte. “Laura Sanchez, our goalie, played well despite the final score.”
With last Thursday’s scheduled encounter with GBL foe Medford postponed because of the heat, Persuitte and his crew were scheduled to play at GBL rival Malden yesterday (Tuesday) and will host GBL opponent Chelsea tomorrow (Thursday) at 7-Acre Park. They will trek to non-league opponent Cambridge Rindge and Latin on Friday and return home to entertain GBL rival Revere next Tuesday.
Julien Shines in Goal for EHS Field Hockey
Although the Everett High field hockey team, under the direction of new head coach Sabrina Wright, dropped a 5-0 decision to Waltham in its season opener last Wednesday, freshman goalie and last week’s honorary captain Willins Julien, who saw about 34 shots on net and 24 penalty corners, turned in a superb performance.
“Willins was immense,” said Wright. “As a freshman goalie, he really left it all out on the field and only letting in five goals with 34 shots and 24 corners is extremely impressive in my book. I’m excited to see him grow.”
Two days later the Crimson Tide dropped an 6-0 decision to Haverhill.
“We played as a team this game and we looked so much better than our first game,” said Wright. “Haverhill was just a half a second quicker. But I was extremely impressed and happy with the team I saw out there on Friday, and they should also be proud of themselves.
“I think our biggest hurdles were the heat and first game jitters,” Wright continued. “At the end of the day, the most important thing is that after each game these players can hold their heads up and say, ‘Even though we lost, I still had fun out there,’ and if they can do that, then I have done my job as their coach.”
Wright and her crew are scheduled to host Northeast Regional today (Wednesday) and then will entertain Peabody on Friday in a game that will have a lot of meaning for Wright.
“This is a game I am looking forward to,” Wright said. “My coach when I played for the Prime Field Hockey Club is the new head coach for Peabody. So for me to play against my coach who has taught me so much is a very full circle moment for me and it will be a lot of fun.”
The Tide will travel to Wakefield next Tuesday before returning home to face Greater Lowell next Wednesday.