This week marks the end of the regular sports season; although specific seedings have not yet been announced, several Vineyard teams end the spring with records strong enough to move them into the postseason.
Softball
Facing down the tail end of a schedule that had them playing seven games in eight days, the girls took complete control of their season record and won four of their last five games to earn a berth in the playoffs. They were 10-9 going into their final game against Bishop Feehan and played on Thursday (scores were unavailable at press time).
Last Friday, the team took on Bourne, winning 11-1. Sarah Williston was two for three with a double and a triple, and fellow senior Jillian Sedlier went three for four with a triple and a home run. Sophomore pitcher Hailee McCarthy took home the win in what was also the team’s first error-free game of the season.
The Vineyarders didn’t have long to wait for the second error-free game, following up the Bourne win with a clean 10-0 victory over Sturgis on Saturday. Sophomore Emily Cimeno pitched her first shutout of the season while going three for three with a triple. Senior Emma Forbes, hitting three for three, was also perfect offensively.
The girls took on Bourne again on Monday in a 14-9 win. Alicia Oliveira was three for five with a three-run over-the-fence homer. The lone loss of the week came Tuesday against Bishop Feehan, with the Vineyarders falling 19-10. Seniors Molly Ciciora and Crystal Miske were both two for four at the plate.
Wednesday brought a decisive 19-3 away victory over Chatham. Hailee McCarthy pitched six innings, striking out seven and allowing six hits. The team ran away with the win in the eighth inning by scoring eight runs, half of which came from a grand slam courtesy of Sarah Williston.
Boys’ Tennis
The boys finished their season Thursday with a match against Chatham (scores were unavailable at press time), after wins against Falmouth and Westport. Adding in a loss to Cape Cod Academy last Thursday, the team closes out with a 12-2 record.
Sophomore Justice Yennie was the lone winner against CCA, winning his set 6-0, 6-3. Second doubles players Justin Smith and Ryan Sawyer took their match to three sets, but ultimately fell in the tiebreaker with a final score of 6-4, 3-6, 7-6.
During Friday’s sweep of Westport, Bennet Schwab and Sterling Meacham paired together for the first time in the second doubles slot for their second varsity match of the year, winning 6-3, 6-3.
The team continued competition in the MIAA South Individual Tournament over the weekend. Kent Leonard advanced to the division one semi-finals with a defeat of Nauset’s Nick Majewski, but fell to the tournament’s number one seed, Jon Zelman of Cape Cod Academy, in the finals, 6-1, 6-4.
Playing in division four, Reid Yennie downed his Harwich opponent in the semifinals and defeated Falmouth’s Spencer Pinkney in the final to advance to the tournament quarterfinals. Reid fell to Ilya Levin of Wellesley, 6-1, 6-1, at this stage.
Doubles players Jackson McBride and Patrick McCarthy also advanced to the tournament quarterfinals after a victory over Barnstable in the division final. They lost to a strong Needham pair, 6-1, 6-1, but their and Reid’s overall success marked the first time in coach Ned Fennessey’s 21-year career with the team that both singles and doubles players have moved to the quarterfinal round of the tournament.
Girls’ Lacrosse
The girls finish the season with an 11-7 record. They share the EAC championship with Bishop Stang, as both teams hold a 5-1 league record, and will move on to the state tournament.
The final week of play was a mixed bag for the Vineyarders, who first took on rival Scituate last Friday in a tough 19-14 loss. Nevertheless, coach Betsy Dripps described the game as one of the best of the season, with the girls matching their opponents play for play throughout. Taylor Poggi started things off with a goal (her first of five) eleven seconds into the game, with Alayna Hutchinson putting the team up 2-0 fifteen seconds later. Scituate managed the ball for much of the first half, but Molly Fischer snuck in a goal with fifty seconds left on the clock.
The second half saw the team trailing by four, and, while every subsequent Scituate goal streak was answered by a Vineyard one, the girls could not make up the difference.
Following the Scituate loss, the girls traveled to Nantucket, where they took down the Whalers 17-7. Madison Hughes had a stellar game, scoring seven goals — three in a row in the second half — with three assists. Molly Fischer turned in five goals and two assists, and Isabel Smith scored three times (two assists). Within the crease, goalie April Hargy made eight saves.
The team played Dartmouth Monday, controlling the ball from start to finish and ending with an 18-8 victory. Alex Mark and Cat Todd had their best games yet, with Alex scoring five goals (two assists) and Cat notching six goals and one assist.
The season ended with an 18-5 loss to Wayland; Wayland’s goalie made 16 saves during the game to hold off the Vineyard attack.
Tournament seeding for the Vineyarders was announced Thursday but unavailable at press time.
Girls’ Tennis
The girls split this week’s matches, defeating Westport 5-0 last Friday and falling to Falmouth in a close 3-2 battle. Number two singles player Dylan Brockmeyer and number three singles player Alyssa Adler had particularly noteworthy sets, with Alyssa taking a 7-5, 6-1 win against Falmouth opponent Katie O’Sullivan. Dylan had a three-set showdown with Falmouth’s Sarah Gordon, winning the first 6-3 but falling behind in the next 5-7. She then won her third set 10-4.
Michaella Gaines and Annabelle Hackney paired together at first doubles against Falmouth, while Lilly Beck and Wendy Winn also teamed up for the first time. Both doubles teams swept Westport, but neither could take the victory against Falmouth.
Comments
Comment policy »