Girls secure NEC cross-country championship
The Marblehead High girls cross-country team (7-0) completed perfection after besting Winthrop by a virtual shutout, 15-50 on the Magicians’ home course at the Lead Mills Conservation Area on Oct. 15. Winning the Northeastern Conference title on Senior Day is something coach Will Herlihy’s team will never forget.
Traveling in the lead pack all by themselves, Marblehead High girls cross-country runners Ginny Donato and Marri O’Connell set the pace during the meet against Winthrop at home on Oct. 15. Teammates Norah Walsh, left, and Hailey Schmitt, right, follow close behind, along with Izzy Anayza Lanzillo, who’s running directly behind Donato. All five runners ended up capturing each of the top five spots. COURTESY PHOTO / KATE WALSH
As usual, senior captain Marri O’Connell was the first runner to cross the finish line. Throughout her entire sensational four-year scholastic career, Marri has never been beaten in a conference dual meet.
“It’s an impressive accomplishment that speaks volumes to both her talented skills as a runner and her durability on a cross-country course,” said Herlihy.
Freshman Ginny Donato was the second runner to finish the race, while breaking her own personal best time on the home course by 1:02.
Sophomore Norah Walsh and freshman Izzy Anaya Lanzillo accounted for third and fourth place. Lanzillo also turned in a personal best time on the home course by 1:50.
Senior Hailey Schmitt completed the sweep for Marblehead with a fifth-place finish. Rounding out the team’s Top 7 was junior Maggie Miller, who had help from sophomore teammate Ruby Assa. It was Miller’s varsity debut.
Boys finish up with winning record
The Marblehead High boys cross-country team (4-3) closed out the regular season with a decisive win over Winthrop, 15-48 at the Lead Mills Conservation Area on Oct. 15. The victory also enabled coach Brian Heenan’s squad to end up with a winning record.
“We were led by a group of five runners in the win over Winthrop,” said Heenan. “They all crossed the finish line together, and they were seniors Henrik Adams, Will Cruikshank, Zach Pike and Colin Hart, and one junior Filip Grubor.”
Junior Felix Regnault and senior Tom Svencer were not far behind them to round out the team’s starting seven.
It’s now time for the postseason, where the Marblehead boys can measure their skills against the rest of the state. It started last Saturday, Oct. 18, when they took part in the annual Catholic Memorial Invitational at Franklin Park in Dorchester, and this Saturday, Oct. 25, they will be at Gloucester’s Stage Fort Park for the running of the annual NEC Meet, which determines the 2025 all-star team.
Girls soccer winds down regular season with title aspirations
With only four games left on the regular season schedule, the Marblehead High girls soccer team (11-1-2) continued to pile up the wins, with the latest two coming last week against Northeastern Conference rivals Danvers (4-1, Oct. 15) and Winthrop (7-0, Oct. 17).
According to the Oct. 17 Division 2 power rankings, these Magicians are seeded 17th. There are 63 teams altogether in this division. This latest poll, however, doesn’t take into account the dominating win over the Vikings.
In the game at Danvers, Callie Gilmore was the team’s leading scorer with two goals. Liv Carlson, chipped in with one goal and two assists. Courtney Hitscherich contributed one goal and one assist to the winning cause. Ashley Mortensen was credited with one assist. Goalie Hailey Gilmore came up with four saves to keep the Falcons at bay.
“Our whole team played well in this game against Danvers,” said second-year coach Lisa Wales. “We kept the intensity level up throughout the entire game. The passing, layering and shot selection were right where they needed to be.”
Wales went on to say that Avery Gould played a “terrific game, as she continues to work incredibly hard all the time.”
The Marblehead coach also praised the efforts of Syd Ball, Ainsley McDonald and Cam O’Brien, while Ashley Mortensen held the defensive unit together. Lucy McDonald, Lucy Church and Hitsherich were phenomenal in the midfield.
In the eyes of Wales, Callie Gilmore and Carlson were fantastic up top, and specifically she mentioned that Callie played with poise, while adding that she reads the flow of the game very well.
Lucy McDonald scored on a penalty kick in the Winthrop game, but it was Callie Gilmore and Ball who paced the attack with two goals apiece. Cam O’Brien chipped in with a goal on a solo effort. Carlson also poked one home from Lucy McDonald. She also picked up an assist on one of Callie’s tallies. Church had the helper on her other marker. Isabel Mortensen set up one of Ball’s scores, while the other one was unassisted. Goalie Lily Heller recorded two saves to produce another clean sheet this fall.
“This was an all-around team effort for us,” said Wales. “Winthrop is a young team, who played hard throughout the entire game.”
The Magicians were expected to face Masco to begin the penultimate week of the regular season on Monday, Oct. 20, at Piper. This game could decide the NEC title. The Marblehead girls will then be off until Saturday, Oct. 25, when they head to Lynnfield to take on the non-league Pioneers at 10 a.m. Newton South (Oct. 27, 6:30 p.m.) and Salem (Oct. 29, 7 p.m.) will come to Piper the following week to complete the regular season schedule. The Division 2 state tournament pairings will be announced on Saturday, Nov. 1.
Field hockey remains in the playoff hunt
The field hockey team (7-6-2) dropped two games last week to Beverly (3-1, Oct. 14) and Masco (2-0, Oct. 17), but it still has a winning record, which bodes well in qualifying for the Division 2 state tournament. They still have three games left on the regular season schedule to stay on the plus side of the .500 mark. As of Oct. 17, they are ranked 34th in a division that’s comprised of 54 teams.
Danvers were expected to wrap up the home season at Piper Monday afternoon (Oct. 20). They then got on the bus for Gloucester the next day to go up against the Fishermen. Both of these games were played after press deadline. A non-league game against host Bishop Fenwick completes the regular season on Thursday, Oct. 23, in Peabody, starting at 4 p.m.
Under the lights in Beverly last Tuesday, Sadie Beane scored Marblehead’s lone goal of the game on a solo effort in the third quarter. Goalie Elizabeth Hayes came up with 12 saves to keep her teammates close on the scoreboard.
“Beverly is a smart, well-prepared team, but our defense was focused and ready for them,” said first-year coach Alison Carey. “Avery Wysor made an incredible save, and at one point I thought we might have had an opportunity for a defensive goal, either by Paige Waldman or (Wysor), who were both constantly pushing us up field.”
But the Marblehead offense also did not let up in this game. “We had some great opportunities that might have tied it up, but overall, we were still very happy with the outcome,” said Carey. “When we huddled up between quarters, we’d talk about what we were experiencing on the field, so we would know how to adjust our game. I’m also reminding them to always have fun, because we play our best field hockey, when we remember to enjoy the game. This is a special group, and it’s such a privilege to coach them.”
The first time that the Marblehead girls played Masco in September they had lost, 9-1, so naturally Carey was happy with last week’s final score. “To say that I’m pleased with our performance would be an understatement,” she said. “Masco is a powerhouse in the NEC, but in this game, we did our job. We wanted to challenge them when we could on offense, while still remaining focused on our defensive game.”
Carey knew that they needed to keep the goal scoring differential below three to help improve their placement in the power rankings, and they accomplished that goal.
“Our defense is a well-oiled machine. They can make it look easy as if they are playing intuitively,” said Carey. “They have so much trust and smart communication already built up in each other that they have become a model for the rest of the team, not to mention the program in general.”
Not to be overlooked, the offense kept on pushing throughout the rematch to create opportunities, but just couldn’t find the back of the net. Afterwards, Carey took time to single out several members of the offensive unit for their efforts.
“Nobody beats Emma Ryan’s hustle, and Zoe Dwyer was absolutely everywhere we needed her to be in this game. She was making smart passes, while also keeping the pressure on,” the coach said. “Sadie Beane and Addie Rotigliano also left it all out on the field.”
The first-year coach also praised the efforts of midfielders Keliane Salem, Julia Mann, Carolyn Black and Shea Bickell, who continued to play smart field hockey. “Overall, this was an excellent game for us,” said Carey.
Golfers end up eighth in North Sectionals
After finishing up the regular season with an 11-2-2 record, the Marblehead golfers ended up eighth out of 14 teams in the Division 2 North Sectionals at Bradford Country Club on Oct. 14.
Will Macrina posted Marblehead’s lowest round after shooting a 79. “Will just missed qualifying for the Division 2 state individual championships by one shot,” coach Bob Green said.
Max King (81), Tyler Forbes (83) and Greyson Leventhal (83) rounded out the team’s four lowest scores on this day. Colby Moore (84) and Joy Meshulam (93) also participated in the sectionals.
The top three sectional teams qualify for the state divisional title match in Foxboro this week. Marblehead’s lowest four scores totaled 326, only 10 shots higher than Billerica, the third-place team.
The final Division 2 North standings at Bradford are as follows: Canton (298), Masconomet (310), Billerica (316), Newburyport (320), Reading (321), Wakefield (322), Milton (322), Marblehead (326), Gloucester (337), Arlington Catholic (352), Woburn (352), Lynn English (378), Medford (387) and Somerville (393).
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