Sports 02-03-2011

Girls basketball team improves to 12-0

The Revere High girls basketball team continued to assert its dominance over its Northeastern Conference rivals with of pair of runaway victories this past week.

Winthrop became NEC victim Number Nine last Tuesday. Coach Diana DeCristoforo had some reservations about her team’s performance coming into the game because of an 11 day layoff thanks to snow postponements. However, any doubts about her team’s readiness soon were dispelled in the opening period that saw Revere double Winthrop’s score, 18-9.

That 2-1 margin would become the theme for the evening as Revere moved out to leads that doubled their Winthrop opponent’s output at each of the quarter markers en route to a final score of 71-34.

Winthrop employed a box and one from the outset on Revere guard Gena Restiano, but Morgan Jenkins, who ordinarily plays in the low post area, essentially took over the reins of point guard. “This was just another example of how Morgan will step up to do whatever the team needs from her,” noted DeCristoforo.

Jenkins would end the night as high scorer with 24 points while also pulling down 20 rebounds. Caitlyn Caramello cracked double figures with 12 points as did Marissa Parent with 10. Kat Prince made a nice contribution with nine points and Restiano added eight.

Three nights later, Revere took on Swampscott, with the result once again a Revere show of strength with a 65-36 win. Unlike the Winthrop contest, it took the Lady Patriots a while before they got their game into high gear, though they never were seriously challenged.

Revere turned a 14-11 lead after the first quarter into a 37-21 advantage at the half. The Lady Pats then turned on the jets afer the intermission for an eventual 65-36 rout. Jenkins once again, in what is becoming the proverbial “just another day at the office” for the NEC’s Most Valuable Player (and that’s a foregone conclusion), came though with another impressive double-double of 23 points and 20 rebounds.

Parent tingled the twine for 15 points; Restiano struck for 12; Caitlyn C. hit for double figures for the second night in a row with 11; and Ashley DeFraia added four points.

DeCristoforo’s crew now is 10-0 against its NEC foes (12-0 overall) and was looking to add Danvers, its final NEC opponent, as another notch in their belt last night (Tuesday). Danvers at one time had been thought to be the only team capable of knocking off Revere, but the Lady Falcons have fallen to Beverly and Salem, both of whom Revere has defeated.

“We’re still taking things one game at a time,”cautioned DeCristoforo. “This is the time of the season when teams begin to hit their stride and how they looked at the start of the year may be totally different than how they are playing now.”

In addition to the 12-0 record of the varsity quintet, success is all around for the

RHS girls program. Coach Ben Murphy’s junior varsity Lady Patriots are 9-1 and Coach Stephanie DeCristoforo’s freshman squad sports a 10-1 mark.

“It’s really exciting to see that our girls are playing so well at all levels,” said Diana DeCristoforo.

The Lady Patriots will start round two against their fellow NEC Large School Division foes Friday when they host Salem. They will travel to Lynn English Tuesday.

Boys basketball team defeats Swampscott and Chelsea

It was an up and down week for the Revere High boys basketball team as Coach Rick Hayes’s crew split four games in a busy week of basketball.

The Patriots began their rollercoaster ride last Tuesday against ancient former Greater Boston League rival Somerville, which is enjoying a season reminiscent of its former glory with a 10-2 record.

The Patriots came out strong at both ends of the floor and grabbed a 32-19 advantage at the half. However, after the intermission the Pats were unable to do anything right and managed to score just four points in the third quarter enabling Somerville to get back into the ballgame.

Although Revere picked up the pace in the final quarter, Somerville pulled out a 53-50 victory. Chris Palladino led the Pats with 13 points. Trae Weathers hit for nine, Greg Cabral added eight, Paul Norton drained a pair of treys for six, Frank Colleran added six, Sodawine Nov added four, and Alex Urena and D.K. Khlieng contributed two points apiece.

Revere began its upswing ride Friday with a 57-55 win at Swampscott in which Cabral scored the winning bucket with 2.7 seconds to play when he split two defenders and banked a shot off the backboard.

The Patriots appeared to have the game under control with a 52-42 lead after three quarters, but a scoring drought in the final period gave Swampscott a chance to work back into a tie at 55-55. After Cabral’s bucket, D.K. pulled a “Havlicek stole the ball!” moment to seal the Patriot victory. (No doubt the RHS players will have to ask their coach what that means.)

The backcourt duo of Cabral and Sean Quiroz led the Pats with 16 points each. Palladino and Weathers also were point scoring twins with 10. Dom Boyce and D.K. added two and Frank Colleran hit a free throw.

Revere stayed on the victory track Saturday with a 76-54 triumph over another former GBL archrival, Chelsea, which entered the game with 9-3 record. The teams were tied at the half, 35-35, but unlike the previous two contests when Revere suffered a power failure after the intermission, this time the Patriots came out of the locker room firing on all cylinders. They outscored Chelsea 21-8 in the third frame and never let up en route to the 22 point triumph.

Cabral (18 points), Sean Quiroz (17), and Weathers (15) all reached double figures. Palladino (7), Colleran (six), Joseph Aut (five), Urena (four), Norton (two), and Nov (two) also got onto the score sheet.

The victory was especially satisfying because it moved Revere to .500 with a 5-5 record, marking the first time in 10 years that an RHS boys hoop team had been at .500 (which is the magic number needed to qualify for the state tourney) at the halfway point of the season.

Revere then took on Northeastern Conference rival Winthrop, a 9-5 team coming into the game, on Monday and once again was poised to come away with a victory. The Pats held a 37-31 lead at the halfway mark, only to suffer through a scoring drought of 3:52 to start the second half.

But by the time Cabral broke the ice, Winthrop had moved seized the momentum and forged a 48-44 lead after three frames. The Patriots battled back at the start of the final stanza and evened the count at 48-48, from where the teams traded punches and counterpunches the rest of the way.

However, the end game came down to free throws, as it usually does. Winthrop’s final tally of 14-of-22 from the charity stripe vs. Revere’s 8-for-17 figure tells the tale of the final outcome, a 66-62 Winthrop victory.

Hayes and Company are scheduled to play tonight (Wednesday) at home against Danvers. They travel to Salem Friday, host Lynn English Tuesday, and host Somerville next Wednesday.

Patriot skaters drop two contests

The Revere High hockey team dropped both of its contests this past week.

In a 6-2 loss to league leading Peabody, the Patriots jumped out to a 2-0 lead by the midpoint of the second period. R.J. Tiorano put Revere on the board at 10:06 of the first period, assisted by Joe Corbett, and then Chris Whalen made it 2-0 at 3:56 of the second frame, assisted by Corbett and Marco Mazzarelli.

However, that would prove to be the Patriots’ apogee, as Peabody scored four unanswered goals in a span of about eight minutes starting at 6:47 to take a 4-2 lead as the teams entered the locker room at the second horn.

Peabody added a pair of insurance markers in the final stanza for the 6-2 finale.

Saturday’s contest with Gloucester played out in a similar fashion. Revere hung tough through two periods, trailing by just a 2-1 margin. Drew Lauria notched the Revere lamplighter, assisted by Dale Paradise and Bartol, at 5:04 of the second stanza.

However, the Pats ran out gas in the final period and Gloucester pulled away for a 6-1 triumph. RHS goalie Jeff Redding played a fine game between the pipes, turning aside 42 Gloucester shots, including two breakaways.

“We played well for two periods in both games, but in the end, Peabody and Gloucester had too much,” said RHS head coach Jim Palumbo.

The Pats, who now are 4-8 on the season, are scheduled to play tonight (Wednesday) at Winthrop. They will travel to Salem State College to take on Swampscott Saturday afternoon at 1:00 and will stay on the road to former GBL rival Somerville next Wednesday.

Personal records for indoor track team

Although the Revere High boys indoor track team dropped a 61-25 decision to a strong Marblehead team last week, a number of Coach Jack Mosko’s charges turned in fine performances that included personal records (PR).

Vito LiCata captured the shotput with a toss of 42 feet, five inches, which was a PR for Vito; Joe Ritchie sped to victory in the 55 meter dash in 6.9 seconds; and  Devin Colon took first in the 300 dash in 39.9.

Breni Guzman took second in the 300 in a PR time of 40.1; Albion Lici grabbed third in the 55 meter hurdles in 9.1, which also was a PR; and Mike Fitzpatrick took a close second in the 600 in a PR clocking of 1:28.40.

Other Patriots who placed points onto the Revere scoresheet were Robert Rose with a second place effort in the 1000 in 2:55.6 in which he lost by just 0.1 of a second; Brahim Rahzi with a third in the mile in 5:20; and Leonard Giraldo with a third in the 55 dash in 7.2.

Other Revere competitors who did well were sophomore Omar Morales with a PR of 40-2 in the shotput; freshman Ricardo Maldonado with a PR of 5-4 in the high jump which placed him just outside of the medalist circle with a fourth place; and Abdul Hamadeh, who recorded a 40 foot throw in the shot but fouled.

At the State Coaches Meet held Sunday at the Reggie Lewis Track and Athletic Center, Ernesto Bonilla recorded a PR of 11:08 in the two mile run; Guzman turned in a PR of 38.6 in the 300; Rhazi sped to a PR of 38.2 in the 300; and Fitzpatrick set another PR in the 600 of 1:26.72, a race in which he defeated the Marblehead runner who had edged him a few days earlier.

Fitzpatrick’s effort also qualified him for the State Meet. Guzman is on pace to qualify in the 300, hopefully at the all league meet Thursday at the Reggie Lewis Center. Ritchie also qualified for the State Meet with a long jump of 19-7.

Telfort, DiPlatzi win for RHS girls track team

Mondy Telfort and Maggie DiPlatzi came through with first place efforts to pace the Revere High girls track team in their meet last week with Marblehead.

Telfort topped the field in the shotput with a throw of 27-4.75. DiPlatzi led her rivals in the two mile run in a time of 14:36.

Noelle Galli score three points for Revere with a second place performance in the shotput with a toss of 26-11 and Taylor O’Neil did likewise in the two mile in 16:39.

Revere girls who placed one point onto the Revere side of the score sheet with third place finishes were: DiPlatzi with a high jump leap of 4-2; Lindsay Gurska in the 55 meter hurdles in 9.9; Ha Ngyuen in the 55 meter dash in 8.2; Camden Sigouin in the 300 dash in 49.9; Alanna Pasco in the 600 in 1:58.4; Kassandra Digitale in the mile in 6:39; and Stephanie Gregorio in the two mile in 17:48.