Eight takeaways from a rainy Tuesday, including MIAA hockey committee and several coaching moves
The milestones were few on a quiet Tuesday night, but Bedford senior
Jackson Malio
scored four goals, pushing him past 100 for his career in a 12-5 win over Tewksbury and Whitman-Hanson junior captain
Shannon Balfe
scored her 100th goal in a 17-5 loss to Scituate.
On Monday, Braintree senior
Bella Duffy
netted her 250th goal as part of a six-goal day to beat Pembroke, 15-5, Westford senior
Kassidy Carmichael
, committed to Ohio State, recorded her 500th career point, Foxborough senior captain
Cate Noone
notched her 300th career point, and Ipswich juniors
Allie Wile
and
Jade Wilcox
both reached 100 career caused turnovers.
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Congratulations to WA's Kassidy Carmichael for scoring her 500th point for WA Girls Lacrosse. Next year Ohio State is getting an offensive machine!!
— WA Athletics (@TheWAGhosts)
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Tuesday offered just one walk-off victory, when sophomore
Andrew Kelly
finished off his hat trick with an overtime goal that handed Masconomet a 9-8 win over Peabody.
2. Daily lacrosse leaderboard
Goals
Alex Morin
, St. John Paul II, 7
Nathan Tremlett
, Medford, 7
Raegan Dillon
, Swampscott, 6
Nick Emsing
, BC High, 6
Sara MacLeod
, Billerica, 6
Jack Webb
, Walpole, 6
Victoria Thermidor
, Acton-Boxborough, 6
James Carr
, Brookline, 5
Trey Kean
, North Andover, 5
Ryan Jenness
, Lexington, 5
Alex Fivek
, Concord-Carlisle, 5
Brayden Mattera
, Walpole, 5
Joselyn Silva
, Beverly, 5
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Jude Sloman
, Shawsheen, 5
Leo Torres
, Brookline, 5
Akira Umbrello
, St. John Paul II, 5
Points
Mattera, Walpole, 10
Tremlett, Medford, 10
Kean, North Andover, 9
Dillon, St. John Paul II, 8
Sophie Philbrick
, St. John Paul II, 8
Richardson, St. John Paul II, 8
Webb, Walpole, 8
Ryan Wilson
, Brookline, 8
LaRosa, South Shore, 7
Emsing, BC High, 6
Charlie Hostetter
, Falmouth, 6
Jenness, Lexington, 6
Mario LaRosa
, South Shore, 6
MacLeod, Billerica, 6
Victoria Pierro
, Swampscott, 6
Russo, Swampscott, 6
Silva, Beverly, 6
Aidan Stone
, Monomoy, 6
3. Two hot topics for hockey committee
At Tuesday's MIAA Hockey Committee meeting in Franklin, the re-introduction of the Division 1A tournament (Super 8) and changing the margin of victory were hot topics of discussion.
Single elimination vs. double elimination and whether a new format is needed sparked the Super 8 debate. With all other state tournaments being single elimination, issues arose over the equity of a double-elimination format. The committee will continue its dialogue in future meetings, with more data needed to evaluate all options.
Mike Flaherty
, the Duxbury bench boss and coaching representative to the committee, presented changing the margin of victory. Currently, hockey uses a three-goal cap for power rankings.
Flaherty noted the margin of victory alters how coaches game plan, especially when it comes to pulling a goalie. The main goal of the proposal, from the coach's perspective, would be to give kids more ice time.
'I think a reduction would go a long way in helping our game,' said Flaherty. 'The biggest part for us is, how do we get more kids involved? The coaching side, we can handle — that's our own decision, how we want to handle it. But how do we get more student-athletes playing? I think that's a big part of it.'
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Needham girls' coach
Allison Furano-Foster
echoed Flaherty's statements.
'Any time you introduce these variables, you're thinking about something else other than winning the game and playing your kids,' she said.
The MIAA will run data for how one-goal and two-goal margins would have affected past seedings for further discussion at the next meeting, set for September.
4. College corner
Middlebury's
Hope Shue
, a Dover-Sherborn alumna, became the fifth women's lacrosse player to win the NESCAC Offensive Player of the Year award in back-to-back seasons. She also earned her fourth All-NESCAC accolade with a spot on the First Team for the third straight season. Shue led the league in goals (63) and points (88). She is the school's all-time leader in goals (283) and points (360) as they enter the NCAA Tournament with an at-large bid.
Amherst freshman
Lily Samoska
, a Hingham graduate, was voted NESCAC Rookie of the Year, the third Mammoth since 2018 to garner the honor. She started all 16 games in net, finishing with a 10.22 goals against average and 6.25 saves per game. Amherst also received an at-large bid to the NCAA Division 3 Tournament.
Also making the all-NESCAC First Team was Hanover's
Maggie Coughlin
(Middlebury), Bedford's
Allie Zorn
(Tufts), Boxford's
Madeline Delaney
(Tufts), Reading's
Kiara Tangney
(Wesleyan), and Scituate's
Kylie Wilson
(Middlebury).
Keene State's
Lola Varricchione
, a Mansfield High graduate, was the only freshman chosen for all-Little East Conference second team after finishing the season with 33 goals and 14 assists.
5. Commitment central
Andover quarterback
Dominic Papa
announced his commitment to Husson University after posting 50 total touchdowns and 4,722 total yards as a senior. Papa threw for 4,180 yards and 43 touchdowns, completing 58 percent of his passes, adding seven rushing touchdowns and 600 yards on the ground.
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Thank you
Thank you to everyone who helped with this journey.
my parents
my teammates
my coaches
my friends
my teachers
thank you❤️
— dominic Papa (@dominicpap7)
Two football commitments came out of Lynn, where St. Mary's 6-foot-1-inch senior cornerback/wide receiver
Devell Pamplin
announced his commitment to Curry and 5-10, 215-pound defensive end/offensive guard
Adrian Lule
put pen to paper to play at Husson.
Congratulations to Devell Pamplin on his commitment to
— St. Mary's Spartans Football (@SMH_SpartansFB)
6. Coaching carousel
Winchester boys' basketball JV coach
Mike Borgasano
is heading home, taking over the varsity program at his alma mater, Woburn. Borgasano is an ESL teacher at Kennedy Middle School in Woburn.
Beverly announced the hiring of girls' volleyball coach
Rory Harmon
, the school's former JV coach and a 2021 graduate. The former defensive specialist is also currently the head coach at Avidity Volleyball Club, bringing five years of coaching experience across all ages.
Introducing BHS new Head Volleyball Coach Rory Harmon. She is a proud alum of the Beverly High School volleyball program, and is the former JV coach. She is currently a head coach at Avidity Volleyball Club, bringing five years of coaching experience across all levels and ages.
— Beverly Panthers (@BeverlyPanthers)
Andover High announced the hiring of former NFL offensive tackle
Pete Clifford
as offensive line and run game coach. Clifford, who played at Michigan State, was signed by the Arizona Cardinals as an undrafted free agent in 2008 and later signed with the Titans and Jets.
Andover Football Welcomes Offensive Line Coach and Run game Coordinator Peter Clifford to the community and staff! Coach Clifford does an unbelievable job connecting with kids from all levels regardless of the skillset. He has played at the highest Levels of Football NFL P4 ball
— Andover High School Varsity Football (@CoachFielding)
7. Diving into swim awards
On Sunday, the Eastern Mass Swim Coaches Association held its Hall of Fame induction and presented awards at the Natick Elks Lodge.
Joining the EMISCA Hall of Fame were coach
Michael Gavin
(Waltham, Weston), diving coach
Rebecca Driscoll
(Haverhill, Chelmsford, St. John's Prep, Andover, North Andover, Central Catholic, Reading), and official
Bob Young
, who served from 1972-2005 and was a founding member and first league assignor of officials.
The college scholarships were presented to
Paul E. Phillips
(Clark University) and
Abby Brady
(MIT), the Peter Foley Student Athlete of the Year winners were was
Zuri Ferguson
(Attleboro) and
Isabela Teixeira
(Acton-Boxborough), the Priscilla Davis Silver Service Award went to
John A. Pelli
, the Richard 'Whit' Whitworth Courage award went to Duxbury's
Henry Perda
, and the Jack McDonald Award was given to Wellesley's
Doug Curtin
.
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8. Odds and ends
Uxbridge native and St. Mark's forward
Caiden Pellegrino
was taken in the seventh round (102nd overall) by the Sioux Falls Stampede in the USHL Phase I Draft. His St. Mark's classmate,
William Manchuso
, a Stow native, was selected by the Sioux City Musketeers in the 11th round (180th pick) of the USHL Phase II Draft.
With the 102nd pick in USHL Phase I draft, the Sioux Falls Stampede select Caiden Pellegrino.
Welcome to Stampede Country, Caiden.
— Sioux Falls Stampede (@sfstampede)
Arlington defenseman
Kurt Beck
was selected in the eighth round, 119th overall, by the Youngstown Phantoms; Catholic Memorial defenseman
Colin Yandle
was selected 131st overall by the Madison Capitols; and
Troy Hamelin
was taken out of Pope Francis with the 188th pick by the Musketeers.
🎥Three familiar names from the
Picked by
— MassNZ (@MassNZ)
Nobles teammates
Alex Munoz
and
LJ Bianchi
won the first high school tournament hosted at the Boston Pickleball Club at Hyde Park last weekend. They took home gold from a pool of competitors from Westwood, Cardinal Spellman, Dedham, Needham, and Governor's.
Congratulations to LJ Bianchi & Alex Munoz!!!
— Nobles Athletics (@NoblesAthletics)
Brendan Kurie can be reached at
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Boston Globe
14-06-2025
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Determined and relentless, no denying Walpole girls' lacrosse the Division 2 championship
For a perennial contender appearing in its fifth state title game in the last 10 years, including last spring, Friday's Division 2 girls' lacrosse championship game served as an opportunity to finish what they started. Walpole didn't squander it, earning a hard-fought, 16-11, victory at Babson College. UMass-bound senior standout Caitlyn Naughton, senior Jenna Wong, and junior Ava MacLean fueled the No. 2 Timberwolves (25-1) with four goals apiece. Junior twins Emily and Grace Hagan were groundball machines and the glue all night. Advertisement Sophomore Lily Rodgers and senior Molly Trahan led the No. 4 Rockets (21-4) with three goals each, and senior Megan Shanahan scored two. Junior goalie Addy Mathews made 10 saves to keep Reading afloat, but Walpole simply had too much firepower and depth. Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up The Timberwolves felt all along like it was finally their moment, and now they have the hardware to prove it. 'We've been knocking at the door many times,' Tosone said. 'It's nice to get in. It really is.' When it was over, Naughton immediately emerged from the pack and bearhugged Tosone. Tosone, who has coached the program since 2012, grinned from ear to ear and the pacing suddenly disappeared. 'There's no one that deserves it more than that man,' Naughton said. 'He's so hardworking. He's there for us every day. He takes out so much time to be there for us. Honestly, we were doing it for ourselves, and doing it for the seniors, but we were most importantly doing it for him.' Advertisement The Timberwolves bolted to a commanding 6-1 lead early in the second, then the Rockets stormed back to cut it to 6-4 at halftime and tie it at 7 early in the third. Walpole didn't panic, answering with conviction to snatch momentum for good. 'When it was on the ground, they were beating us to the footrace every time,' said Reading coach Rachel Monroe. 'Obviously their speed is a tremendous attribute to their game. They're ridiculously fast and scrappy.' Reading, which knocked off three-time defending champion and No. 1 seed Notre Dame (Hingham) in the semifinals, fared admirably in its first state title game appearance. But Walpole has been building something for years and wasn't to be denied. The heartbreak made the ultimate breakthrough even more gratifying. 'It feels so unreal,' Wong said. 'This year, we knew it was going to be different. We're all super close, and we felt like we had it in us.' At game's end, Walpole wasted no time celebrating the program's first girls' lacrosse title. Heather Diehl for the Boston Glo Reading's Abby Shanahan (9) transitions to offense against a Walpole defender in the Division 2 state final at Babson. Heather Diehl for the Boston Glo Walpole's Gianna Frederick (22) and Reading's Lily Rodgers (29) vye for possession. Heather Diehl for the Boston Globe The culmination of a 25-1 season: a banner for the Division 2 state champion Walpole girls' lacrosse team. Heather Diehl for the Boston Glo Trevor Hass can be reached at
