Category Archives: Georgetown

May 29, 2022 · 8:26 pm

Amesbury wins Spofford Tourney 6-2 over Georgetown

Amesbury wins the 2022 Spofford Tournament

(Georgetown) You can’t always tell the end from the beginning.

Amesbury starter Aiden Donovan hit the first two Georgetown batters, walked the next one, and gave up a two-run single to Jack Lucido in the first inning.

Georgetown scored two runs in the first inning.

I’m not sure you could have a worse beginning.

But at the end the final score was 6-2 in favor of Amesbury.

Amesbury won the two-day Spofford Tournament on Sunday afternoon at Georgetown.

After the shaky start, Aiden Donovan retired the next three batters he faced to limit the damage to two runs. Over the next five innings, he only allowed two baserunners (on walks). That first-inning single was the only hit he allowed. Talk about a recovery!

“Credit to (Aiden) Donovan,” said Georgetown coach Phil Desilets afterwards. “He settled down. He got in a groove, and we couldn’t get anything going against him.”

Trevor Kimball scored the third Amesbury run in the first inning

Georgetown found its own share of trouble in the first inning. A walk, a hit batsman, and two errors opened up opportunities for Amesbury.

Tourney MVP Shea Cucinotti delivered the first Amesbury run with a sacrifice fly and Aiden Donovan’s blooper to rightfield delivered two more.

Zach Gilmore took over pitching for the Royals in the second inning and quieted Amesbury for three straight innings.

The Amesbury fifth inning was a different story. Shea Cucinotta started things with a single and then Drew Scialdone homered over the 342 foot sign in left center.

Drew Scialdone hit a two-run homer in the 5th inning

“It was an outside pitch, but I pulled it,” said Drew afterwards. “I thought it was a popup, but I’ll take the home run.”

“If you have a lead, you always want to work to extend it and put more pressure on the other team,” he added. “We were able to do that today.”

“Drew’s homer put us in a nice position,” said Amesbury coach Joel Brierley post-game.

Amesbury increased its comfort zone with a run in the sixth inning. Cam Stanley beat out an infield hit and scored when Jake Harring found the gap in left center.

Coach Brierley brought in Trevor Kimball in the last inning and three straight strikeouts later Amesbury had the victory.

“I thought Aiden (Donovan) pitched awesome today,” said Coach Brierley. “We knew that he would settle down. Very proud of what he did today.”

Senior Shea Cucinotta was selected as the tourney MVP. “I think that this award is about our team, but it means a lot to me,” said Shea. “Everyone played very well. There were tons of hits and great plays in the field. I think we’re in for a heckuva playoff run.”

Amesbury finishes 16-4 in Division 4 and are currently at the top of the Power Rankings. The pairings for the tournament come out this week. If Amesbury lasts, they are assured of home games until the Final Four.

Georgetown finishes 10-10 in Division 5 and are currently fifth in the Power Rankings. That could change because of their win over Newburyport on Saturday.

“We have to turn the page from today’s loss,” said Coach Desilets, “have a great week of practice and get ready for the playoffs.”

“It’s one game at a time from here on out,” he added. “It’s the best time to be playing ball.”

One of the best defensive plays of this game was made by pitcher Zach Gilmore. A foul popup behind the plate looked likely to fall in but Zach raced off the mound to make the catch.

Amesbury pitching (Drew MacDonald, Aiden Donovan, Trevor Kimball) gave up only one hit in the tournament.

Georgetown 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 = 2

Amesbury 3 0 0 0 2 1 – = 6

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Filed under Amesbury, Georgetown

Tagged as Aiden Donovan, Drew Scialdone, Jack Lucido, Shea Cucinotta

April 18, 2022 · 9:46 pm

Molly LeBel strikes out 15 in Pentucket’s 11-1 win over Georgetown

Freshman Molly LeBel struck out 15 Royals

(Groveland) “Molly (LeBel) pitched an excellent game,” said Pentucket coach Deb Smith afterwards.

The stats confirm the assessment: 15 strikeouts, four-hitter, two walks.

Pentucket defeated Georgetown, 11-1, on Monday afternoon.

“This was our first win, and we needed that,” added Coach Smith.

Pentucket (1-3) now has something to build on.

Meanwhile, Georgetown (0-6) continues to chase that first W with a very young team. How young? Today they started six middle schoolers with the Royals only run today driven in by a seventh grader!

McKenzie Riley drove in the Georgetown run

Pentucket took control of this game in the first inning collecting five runs.

“We have been focusing on hitting,” said Coach Smith. “Today it paid off.” Pentucket had eleven hits.

Five of Pentucket’s hits were in their productive first inning when Pentucket sent up ten batters. Nikki Mitchell, Emma Lopata, Meg Hamel, Kayla Murphy, and Julia Daley all singled for the home team.

Georgetown coach Jay Santomassino thought that his team could have done better in the first inning. “We needed to make a play or two to limit the runs they scored,” said Coach Santomassino.

“We were much better defensively after that inning, but it was too late for us,” Coach Santomassino added.

Nikki Mitchell (3 rbi, 3 hits, 2 runs), Emma Lopata (3 rbi, 2 hits, 1 run), and Kayla Murphy (1 rbi, 3 hits, 1 run) put up the big numbers in the Pentucket offense.

“We’ve been working hard in practice to get better,” said senior Emma Lopata post-game.

While the hitting of Pentucket was very good, the pitching of freshman Molly LeBel was “very strong,” according to her coach.

“I was just trying to get it done out there,” said Molly afterwards.

Again, the stats confirm how successful she was. This game went the full seven innings and Molly had at least one strikeout in each inning.

Innings four, five, and six were special. Molly retired nine straight and eight of the outs were K’s. “She was hitting her spots,” said Coach Smith.

While the Royals struggled to make contact, Pentucket started adding runs. Emma Lopata drove in a run in the second on a fielder’s choice and two in the fourth on a loud double to left. Freshman Kayla Murphy tripled in the third inning and scored on a wild pitch. Nikki Mitchell knocked in two runs in the fifth inning with a single.

The Pentucket bats were good, and their pitching was excellent. Two things that will put a team into a good position to win a game.

The Royals (four hits) made solid contact in the seventh. Gillian Figueroa rapped a double to left and McKenzie Riley followed with an RBI single to right.

Windy at Groveland Pines with temperatures falling as the game went on.

Amesbury players were watching today’s action.

Pentucket seniors Emma Lopata (UMass Amherst) and Meg Hamel (Union) have settled on colleges.

Georgetown 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 = 1

Pentucket 5 1 1 2 2 2 – = 11

(The pictures will enlarge.)

2B Gillien Figueroa takes throw as Jocelyn Bickford slides in

Kayla Murphy scores the 7th Pentucket run

Shortstop Alli Mansfield dives for a grounder

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Filed under Georgetown, Pentucket

Tagged as Coach Deb Smith, Coach Jay Santomassino, Emma Lopata, Kayla Murphy, McKenzie Riley, Nikki Mitchell

April 6, 2022 · 9:06 pm

Amesbury shuts out Georgetown 17-0

Alana Delisle struck out thirteen batters

(Amesbury) The difference between the two teams was obvious even before the first pitch was thrown.

Amesbury started four seniors while Georgetown started five eighth graders, including the pitcher and the catcher.

“We’re inexperienced,” understated Royals’ coach Jay Santomassino afterwards.

Amesbury (2-0) took full advantage in the second inning gathering eleven runs on their way to a, 17-0, shutout.

Senior Alana Delisle got the start and notched thirteen strikeouts often overpowering the youthful Royals.

“It was super fun to be pitching again,” said Alana post-game. “Since July I have been playing travel ball and Ella (catcher) is on the team. We’ve done a lot of pitch/catch together.”

Everyone in the Amesbury lineup contributed to their offense. Izzy Levasseur, however, was the hitting star with three hits, three runs scored, and five RBI.

Ella Bezanson had three hits and three runs scored. Leadoff batter Ella Delisle added two hits and scored four times.

“It’s fun to watch Amesbury as a spectator but not as a coach,” Coach Santomassino said with a smile afterwards.

“I told the team that Amesbury battles for the state championship every year,” he said. “They are very good.”

Izzy Levasseur (in the middle) had three hits and five RBI

After facing hard-throwing Abby Bettencourt of Peabody two days earlier it was a problem for some of the Amesbury hitters early on to time Madelyn Grant’s slower pitches.

“It did throw us off a bit,” said AHS coach Jacquie Waters afterwards. “We tried to bring the pitching machine down yesterday to get used to slower speed. I thought that the Georgetown pitchers moved the ball around pretty well.” Five Amesbury hitters struck out.

Two of the strikeouts came during Amesbury’s fifteen-batter, eleven-run second inning.

A triple (Liv DeLong) and three doubles were part of the hitting attack that led to eleven runs during that separation second inning.

Ella Bezanson, freshman Lexi LeBlanc, and Olivia Levasseur each had two hits in the second inning.

Georgetown (0-2) finished with three hits. Allison Mansfield led the game off with a rip hit to centerfield. In the third inning, Cora Robinson dropped a nice bunt for a hit while teammate Madelyn Grant singled to center.

Most of the time, however, the Royals struggled to make contact while Amesbury made steady contact.

“There are teams ahead in the schedule that we will be much more competitive with,” said Coach Santomassino. “Hopefully the next time we face Amesbury the score will be closer.”

“I thought Alana (Delisle) did a very good job,” said Ella Bezanson afterwards. “Our hitting was also very good. The pitching today was certainly at a lot different pace.”

Alana Delisle will be at Southern Maine next year along with Ella Bezanson and Olivia Levasseur. “It is a place where I can play softball and major in nursing,” Alana, said. “Neither Ella nor I knew that the other had committed there. Olivia committed after we did. We get to play four years of softball together.”

There was a forecast of rain, but it never happened.

The mystery of the missing Amesbury uniforms continues unsolved. There is now a rush order in for a new set of uniforms.

(The pictures will enlarge.)

Shortstop Allison Mansfield throws to first

Allison Mansfield led the game off with a single

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Filed under Amesbury, Georgetown

Tagged as Alana Delisle, Allison Mansfield, Coach Jay Santomassino, Ella Bezanson, Izzy Levasseur

January 17, 2022 · 11:41 pm

Good shooting gets Georgetown past Triton 65-49

Griffin Dupuis and Matthew Torgerson (8 points)

(The pictures enlarge when you click on them.)

(Byfield MA) Georgetown can shoot and they’re not hesitant to give up a shot to get a better one for a teammate.

“It’s all about trusting your teammates,” said senior Matthew Torgerson afterwards. “They all can shoot.”

There were plenty of extra passes as Georgetown defeated Triton, 65-49, on Monday night.

The Vikings (3-6) hung with the Royals (7-2) for a quarter.

“In the beginning they were really hitting us on the glass,” said Georgetown coach Josh Keilty post-game. “In the second quarter our guys really committed to rebounding.”

The Royals limited the home team to just seven points in that decisive second quarter and gained permanent separation (35-21) at halftime.

Georgetown tortured Triton with three’s in the first half netting six. Junior Cory Walsh (15 points) drained three of them in the second quarter alone.

“Georgetown moves the ball really well,” said Triton coach Ted Schruender. “They made a lot of three’s, and that’s hard to stop.”

The Vikings were better in the second half, but the Royals never lost their double-digit lead.

Georgetown showed in the second half that they’re not all about long-range shots although they did have four more 3-pointers.

The Royals interior game was also strong because of their ability to pass into high percentage, around-the-basket, scoring opportunities.

Harrison Lien (15 points) and Grant Lyon (17 points) scored almost all their points from close to the basket.

Triton’s Dylan Wilkinson led all scorers with twenty-two points. On at least four of his baskets, Dylan secured a rebound and maneuvered his way through the entire Georgetown defense for a successful layup.

Unfortunately for the Vikings, Dylan was the only one in double figures. The Royals had three players in that zone.

“We’ve been grinding at every practice,” said Matthew, “and it showed tonight. “We’ve been playing together all summer and in fall leagues. We play like a family.”

“I thought we shot it pretty well tonight,” said Coach Keilty. “Cory Walsh played great with those five three’s.”

“Anytime you can make shots like we did it gets your defense going,” added Coach Keilty.

The Royals have now won three straight. Last year they were 5-0 before ending their season.

Both Georgetown and Triton have lost to Amesbury.

Coach Schruender is still optimistic. “I know where we’re at, but I like the way my team competed. We need to reach another level and I think we’re going to get there.”

Jack Lucido was limited to three points tonight. He had five 3’s in the Royals’ 2-point win over Newburyport. Fewer points by Jack didn’t matter tonight because they have multiple scoring options and will share the ball to locate the hot hands.

Both schools were well represented in the stands.

Georgetown 16 19 15 15 = 65

Triton 14 7 17 11 = 49

(The pictures will enlarge if you click on them.)

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Filed under Georgetown, Triton

Tagged as Cory Walsh, Dylan Wilkinson, Grant Lyon, Harrison Lien, Jack Lucido, Matthew Torgerson

October 8, 2021 · 10:43 pm

Clippers now 12-0 after 3-0 win over Royals

Georgetown GK Kyle Davies under attack from Henry Acton (6) and Max Gagnon (10)

(Newburyport MA) All Georgetown wanted to do was keep the game close on the scoreboard.

So they packed in the defense around goalie Kyle Davies.

The undefeated Clippers (12-0) were still able to win, 3-0, but their high-powered offense was slowed down a bit.

“We were just trying to keep it close,” said Georgetown coach Chris DiFranco afterwards. “I thought our guys did a good job at that.”

The Royals (3-8) gained some satisfaction defensively, but in doing so, they surrendered on the offensive end.

About thirteen minutes into the game, a weak roller reached Newburyport goalkeeper Owen Tahnk. That was the ONLY time he touched the ball the entire game.

Down the other end, Georgetown goalkeeper Kyle Davies was busy.

“It was crazy back there,” said Kyle postgame. “They had a ton of shots on net (20?), but I had my defense in front of me keeping me alive.”

Jameson Brooks and Henry Acton scored in the first half while Caelan Twitchell added a goal in the second half.

“Georgetown had a defensive plan for us, and it frustrated us for a bit,” said Coach Shawn Bleau of Newburyport afterwards. “They made it difficult for us after the first two goals.”

“They dropped a lot of guys back and were well organized,” added Coach Bleau. “They always had 2-3 players around our top players.”

“We did well possessing the ball,” recalled Clippers senior Jack Fehlner. “They didn’t seem to want to go on attack. They would boot it out. We would settle it and pass it around some more.”

“The score doesn’t show how well we played,” added Jack.

The Clippers moved closer to the school’s record for goals scored in a season. The record is currently forty-five. By adding three goals today they have now reached forty-four.

“We had some great goals today,” said Coach Bleau.

“We work in practice on getting the ball to the end line and then cutting it back,” said Coach Bleau. “That’s what happened on the first goal. Great timing and the shot (by Jameson Brooks) went inside the side post.”

“The shot was unstoppable,” said Royals GK Kyle Davies. “He got it at the top of the box and turned and shot. It went in the bottom corner.”

Jameson’s goal happened four minutes into the game.

Thirteen minutes later (23:21) it was Henry Acton’s turn to score. Instead of a pass to get closer to the goal, a back pass set Henry up further away from the goal. Henry had time to really get his foot into a shot.

“It was a complete bomb from twenty-five yards,” said Coach Bleau. “He couldn’t have gotten a much better hit.”

“It was just a rip to the top corner,” recalled Kyle Davies. “I couldn’t do anything about it.”

Coach DiFranco said that he, “hadn’t seen a shot like that all year.”

The Royals persisted with the defensive strategy in the second half.

“Their goalie was good,” said Jack Fehlner. “He’s big and he came out and caught a lot of our crosses.”

Although the outcome was settled, the Clippers wanted at least another goal.

“We pressed and pressed at the end to try and get one more goal on account of the ranking stuff,” said Coach Bleau.

With 7:50 remaining, Caelan Twitchell ruined Georgetown’s second-half shutout.

“It was off a side volley which is a pretty impressive shot,” recalled Coach Bleau.

“He made a good move,” said Kyle Davies. “It was a good turn-and-shoot.”

It has now been eight years since Georgetown had a win versus Newburyport.

The Royals have now lost four straight games. They have wins over Triton, Cristo Rey, and Hamilton-Wenham.

The twelve wins to open the season are the best in NHS history.

The Clippers have nine shutouts in their twelve wins. I did see NHS goalie Owen Tahnk make some saves in practice!

Newburyport is 49-14-17 since the start of the 2017 season.

I asked Coach Bleau what makes the 2021 team so good. “We have a lot of kids who came up through our youth system. They’ve been together for a while. We’ve got depth. We’re playing a lot of guys, so we don’t have any injuries.”

Coach DiFranco was very optimistic about the future for Newburyport this season. “They have a good chance at a state championship. It’s a special year for them.”

Senior Jack Fehlner has been a terrific athlete for NHS in soccer, basketball, and baseball. I asked him about next year: “I haven’t really decided. I probably won’t play soccer at the next level. It could well be baseball.”

New England weather! A nice warm morning and afternoon turned into a cold, windy evening.

(All pictures above and below will enlarge considerably if you click on them.)

Will Acquaviva on the attack for Newburyport

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Filed under Georgetown, Newburyport

Tagged as Caelan Twitchell, Coach Chris DiFranco, Coach Shawn Bleau, Henry Acton, Jack Fehlner, Jameson Brooks, Kyle Davies, Owen Tahnk

June 15, 2021 · 10:10 pm

Georgetown defeats Amesbury in surprising fashion

Iain Kantorski tagged out at home by catcher Tim Gilleo

(Amesbury MA) Georgetown certainly didn’t do it the easy way.

The Royals had two runners thrown out at home.

They had two others caught at third.

Didn’t matter, Georgetown still came away with a satisfying, 6-3, season-ending win over Amesbury on Tuesday afternoon.

The sunny skies at the start gave way to dark clouds, thunder, and then game-ending lightning as the Amesbury half of the sixth inning was about to start.

I usually talk to coaches and some players afterwards but not today. That lightning changed my plans and had me and my camera equipment beelining it immediately for the AHS parking lot.

Ayden Kent was one of six Royals pitchers

Not only did Georgetown (6-10) run into outs on the bases but they also used a different pitcher in each inning. Those frequent pitching changes would seem to have been a recipe for disaster sooner or later but not on this afternoon.

We’ll never know what the Indians (8-7) might have done with two more innings of batting, however. I’m betting though that we would have seen two more Georgetown pitchers.

The Royals had eleven hits, at least one in every inning, off Amesbury pitchers (Trevor Kimball & Josh Sorgini).

Georgetown got off to a great start with RBI doubles by Nick Gaeta (two hits) and Jack Lucido in the first inning.

That inning ended with Jack getting caught trying to steal third base.

Amesbury got a run back in their half of the first inning. Jeremy Lopez (three hits, two RBI) doubled home Shea Cucinotta.

Drew MacDonald was caught stealing in that inning.

Georgetown continued to hit during the next three innings but ran themselves into outs on the bases that kept them from scoring runs.

Great throws by LF Drew MacDonald (2^nd inning) and RF Drew Scialdone (3^rd inning) were key plays for the Indians in staying close on the scoreboard.

In the fourth inning, Garrett Sedgwick tried to go to third (from second) on an infield out but was thrown out at third on a good throw by 1B Tiernan Bentley.

I thought that the wasted opportunities might catch up to Georgetown, but it didn’t happen.

New pitchers came and went each inning for the Royals, yet the one-run lead stayed in place.

The Indians loaded the bases against Ayden Kent in the third inning but a two-out liner by Trevor Kimball was snagged by 1B Nick Gaeta to end the threat.

The Royals finally scored more runs in the fifth inning. RBI by Iain Kantorski & Carter Lucido finished starter Trevor Kimball’s afternoon.

Josh Sorgini came on in relief.

Twice Georgetown, with runners on first and third, sent the runner on first and were able to score the runner from third and add two more runs to their total.

Amesbury did not recover completely from those four additional runs. They did score two runs, however.

Jeremy Lopez doubled to the rightfield corner sending home Drew MacDonald. Later, Jeremy stole third and came across when the throw (from the pitcher) to third was wild.

That 6-3 score turned out to be the final as the threatening weather kicked in.

Everyone in Georgetown’s starting lineup had at least one hit. Rob Popielski and Nick Gaeta each had two hits for the Royals.

Jeremy Lopez had a perfect day going three-for-three with two RBI.

Drew MacDonald and Trevor Kimball each had two hits for the Indians.

The Georgetown season ends on an upswing as they finished winning three of their last five.

Amesbury will be in the post-season tournament. They suffered losses yesterday and today.

Amesbury defeated Georgetown, 5-4, in early May at Georgetown.

(All of the pictures above and below will enlarge considerably if you click on them.)

Ayden Kent caught off 3B by Josh Sorgini

Drew MacDonald – 2 hits and an outfield assist

2B Jake Harring tags out Nick Gaeta as a run scores

Shea Cucinotta, Jake Harring, and Trevor Kimball wait on a pitching change

Rob Popielski scores a run for Georgetown

Baserunner Iain Kantorski and SS Shea Cucinotta

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Filed under Amesbury, Georgetown

Tagged as Drew MacDonald, Iain Kantorski, Jack Lucido, Jeremy Lopez, Nick Gaeta

January 11, 2021 · 11:36 pm

Liv Kiricoples (21 points) leads Triton past Georgetown 48-35

Sophomore Liv Kiricoples (21 points) took over the second half for the Vikings

Liv Kiricoples found sixteen points for Triton on the inside in the second half

(Byfield MA) Way too much Liv Kiricoples for Georgetown to cope with in the second half.

Liv turned in a 16-point second half as Triton defeated the Royals, 48-35, on Monday night at Triton.

“#10 is a great player,” said Triton coach Bryan Shields afterwards referring to Liv. “She works as hard as she can and is never satisfied with what she’s doing. Only a sophomore, I can’t wait to see how she develops in the seasons ahead.”

The Vikings (2-0) needed that strong second half because the Royals only trailed by a point (23-22) halfway through the third quarter after a Brook Higgins put-back basket.

“We played hard,” said Royals coach Kevin Fair post-game. “I definitely liked our effort.”

And through 2 ½ quarters the effort and hard work was enough because both teams missed shots and turned the ball over with an alarming regularity.

Georgetown pressure

Triton pressure

The last half of the third quarter, however, Triton put together a string of unanswered points (thirteen) and were in control, 36-22, at quarter’s end.

A Riley Bell runner, a Molly Kimball triple, and a Caitlin Frary layup blended with six points from Liv Kiricoples to gain separation from the pesky Royals.

“That third quarter killed us,” admitted Coach Fair. “We had too many turnovers and too many missed layups.”

Even when the visitors successfully broke the persistent Triton pressure, they often missed the in-alone layup at the other end.

Caitlin Frary (11 points) gets to the basket

“We want to play fast on both ends,” said Coach Shields.

The Vikings missed plenty of shots too. Decisive for them was taking advantage in the last part of the game of having Liv Kiricoples in close to the basket.

The new rules eliminate, for the most part, taking the ball out under the basket. Triton used sidelines out-of-bounds to their advantage. The Royals tried to front Liv in the post, but the inbounds passers often lobbed over the defenders to Liv who had the lane to herself.

Neither team gave the other any kind of defensive break. Both teams committed twenty-seven turnovers by my unofficial count. Most of Georgetown’s were in the backcourt while most of Triton’s were in the frontcourt.

“We struggled against their press,” said Coach Fair. “It was disappointing because we practiced really hard against it.”

“This game was real tight early on,” said Coach Shields. “Georgetown stuck right with us.”

Liv Kiricoples finished with twenty-one points. Teammate Caitlin Frary added eleven.

Freshman Tyrah Marcelin (9 points) at the line

Tyrah Marcelin (9 points) and Carena Ziolkowski (8 points) paced Georgetown.

Everyone played even though the game was a close one for quite a while. I think, after seeing two games, that the short season and no post-season will encourage coaches to use more players. Enjoy the moment, seems to be the approach.

Triton box

Georgetown box

The link to my coverage will be on twitter (@mcclellandpeter). I also expect to post some individual shots on Instagram (McClellandMiscellanea)

(All of the pictures above and below should enlarge considerably if you click on them.)

Meaghan Loewen in a Triton double-team

Georgetown coach Kevin Fair

Caitlin Frary

Carena Ziolkowski guarded by Emily Hoggard

Bodies flying

Meghan Loewen in for a layup

Fight for the ball

Fifty-four turnovers in this game

Riley Bell

Ref repair

Ryan Gentile

Ball heading out of bounds

Maeve Heffernan set to defend

Maeve Heffernan looks to pass

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Filed under Georgetown, Triton

Tagged as Caitlin Frary, Carena Ziolkowski, Liv Kiricoples, Tyrah Marcelin

October 17, 2020 · 5:19 pm

Brady O’Donnell (2 goals/2 assists) in Clippers 5-0 shutout vs Georgetown

Brady O’Donnell (2 goals/2 assists) and Carson Purcell

Max Gagnon and Cam Rooney

(Newburyport MA) The weather changed but the Newburyport Clippers didn’t.

On a cloudy/rainy/sunny Saturday morning, the home team was consistently persistent and earned a 5-0 win over Georgetown.

“We have depth,” said NHS coach Shawn Bleau afterwards. “We can run eighteen players out there and not have much of a drop off.”

Pacing the Clippers (3-0-2) was junior Brady O’Donnell with two goals and two assists.

“Super exciting to win this one,” said Brady who had a hat trick against Amesbury last week. “Georgetown is always tough.”

Some NHS starters sat out 4th quarter

Newburyport was up by three at halftime and added two more in the third quarter. Many of the Clippers’ starters sat out the entire final period.

“Give Newburyport credit,” said Georgetown coach Chris DiFranco post-game. “They really dominated the play.”

The Royals (1-2-2) were missing their top two goalies (Luke van Galen & Riley Soucy) because of injuries.

Freshman Jake Gilstein started as a result. Sophomore Kyle Davies took over in the second half.

The Clippers poured into the Royals half of the field from the get-go. A direct kick by Trevor Ward turned into a rebound in front that senior Owen Spence cashed with an assist to Owen McNeil. Just over two minutes had gone by.

Ryan Archer (goal and assist)

Less than two minutes into the 2^nd quarter, another direct kick from the left (Ryan Archer) caromed loose on the right side and Brady O’Donnell hit the open spot.

Just over a minute later Max Gagnon boosted the NHS advantage to three. Max was in the middle with plenty of players in the way of an open, low shot on net. Instead of trying to shoot through the players, Max lofted a shot over them. It worked. Max caught the GHS goalie out from the net and his shot went just under the crossbar.

The Clippers, in five games, have only been scored on once and that was off a penalty kick. That 3-0 halftime lead was going to hard to come back against for the Royals.

“We’ve got to find our scoring,” explained Coach DiFranco. “We had chances today but didn’t finish.”

The Clippers, however, weren’t done finishing. They added two more goals in the third quarter.

Brady O’Donnell came in from the right, after a pass from Ronan Brown, with a defender (Cole Zadina) to his left. Brady was able to get off a low shot that went through the legs of GK Kyle Davies at 9:45.

Three + minutes later the “prettiest” goal of the day was scored. Brady O’Donnell had possession on the right side and was able to send a pass across the front. Ryan Archer, with perfect timing, redirected the pass past Kyle Davies.

Ryan Archer converts a crossing pass

“We’ve been working on crossing the ball on the ground, since we can’t head it,” explained Coach Bleau. “We’ve had similar chances this season, but this was the first one that ended in a goal.”

“It was an awesome pass (by Brady O’Donnell),” said Ryan Archer afterwards.

Coach Bleau rested numerous starters for the final quarter.

Coach DiFranco: “There’s no blame on the fill-in goalies today. They’re young and we didn’t help them very much.”

Ryan Archer: “The game (this year) is very different. You have to play a whole different style because there’s no heading.”

Coach DiFranco: “The season is so short (ten games) that every game really counts.”

Ryan Archer: “I am hoping at the end that there is a Cape Ann League tournament going and we get a championship here.”

Newburyport seniors honored

Newburyport seniors were honored pre-game.

The Clippers are undefeated in their last seven meetings with the Royals. There have been three ties.

I will post this story on my blog (McClelland Miscellanea). I am also on Twitter (McClellandPeter) and Instagram (McClellandMiscellanea)

All the pictures will enlarge if you click on them.

Sean Lavell and Ronan Brown

Evan Philbrook and Spencer Colwell

John Donovan makes a save for NHS

Zach Rosa and Adam Sadler

Ryan Archer and Brady O’Donnell

Graham Smith and Aidan Maguire

Kyle Davies makes a leaping save

Ronan Brown and Cam Rooney

Kyle Davies saves in front of Brady O’Donnell

Aidan Maguire kicks. Chris Thoreson defends

loose ball

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Filed under Georgetown, Newburyport

Tagged as Brady O'Donnell, Coach Chris DiFranco, Coach Shawn Bleau, Max Gagnon, Owen Spence, Ryan Archer

October 5, 2020 · 10:06 pm

Alyssa Pettet (3 goals) leads Amesbury by Georgetown 6-1 in season opener

Alyssa Pettet (5) had three goals vs Georgetown. Megan Skahan (21) defends

Alyssa Pettet splits the Royals defenders

(Amesbury MA) Senior standout Alyssa Pettet scored three times in the first half leading Amesbury to a 6-1 win over Georgetown on Monday afternoon.

The Indians (1-0) rode Alyssa’s twenty-two goals last season to the D4 state semi-finals. In the process she gained recognition in New England and will play for the Holy Cross Crusaders in 2021.

“Alyssa’s ability to run off the ball makes her so special,” explained AHS coach Adam Thibodeau post-game. “She requires so much attention that she opens up the field for her teammates.”

Containing Alyssa became extremely difficult for the Royals (0-1) when defender Erin Irons went out with a sprained ankle just four minutes into the game.

Alyssa Pettet and Erin Irons early in the game

“Erin is not someone we can replace,” said assistant Georgetown coach Kevin Fair, who was filling in for head coach Colleen Gibbs.

The Royals trailed by four at halftime but were the better team for most of the third quarter.

“Our compete level was good, and we finally got a goal for our efforts,” said Coach Fair.

The Royals goal was set up by freshman Kayla Gibbs (coach’s daughter). “She made a nice steal and put a beautiful ball to sophomore Carena Ziolkowski for the scoring play,” said Coach Fair.

There were other chances for the visitors to Landry Stadium but netminder Julia Campbell was “fantastic” according to her coach. “She had new players in front of her and she communicated well with them,” added Coach Thibodeau.

GK Mary Surette and Callie Catarius

The Georgetown goal seemed to wake up the Indians. In the final two minutes of the third quarter, MK McElaney and Callie Catarius elevated the Amesbury lead to, 6-1, and stopped any comeback plans the visitors might have had.

“It was a good first game for us,” said Alyssa Pettet afterwards. “A lot of times against Georgetown we kind of struggle because they clump things up so much in the back. But this time we found space.”

Alyssa finished with three goals, an assist, as well as two hit crossbars. The girl can play!

Maddy DiPietro shoots

Two of Alyssa’s goals in the first half came after she had drawn penalties from the Georgetown defense. One earned her a penalty kick and the other a direct kick from a short distance. She collected goals in both instances.

Royals keeper Mary Surette had a busy afternoon. She, in fact, was injured in the final quarter and was carried off the field by Coach Fair.

McKenna Hallinan followed Alyssa’s successful penalty kick with a long-range goal in the first quarter. Goalie Mary Surette came out to kick a ball away and it went directly to McKenna. The AHS junior wasted no time in taking a high shot on goal that Mary couldn’t recover to save.

Alyssa had her goal off the direct kick in the second quarter.

She also added another one in that quarter. This time she made a long run down the right side with defenders on either side. She got in close to goal with defenders still nearby and found room to squeeze a shot into the net.

MK McElaney (19) reacts to the goal she just scored

MK McElaney had one of Amesbury’s two goals in the third quarter. Alyssa Pettet set it up with a kick from the side that went past several players into the middle in front of the net. MK came down the middle and one-timed a shot for a score.

Later in that quarter, newcomer Callie Catarius hit a long-range shot from the right.

“Callie is a good counterpart to Alyssa,” said Coach Thibodeau. “She can score.”

The grass at Landry Stadium was long and it affected play.

“I love Cashman because it’s a hard, fast surface,” explained McKenna Hallinan.

The Indians practice at Cashman.

Coach Fair: “We had a couple of defensive breakdowns. We have to do a better job of marking people. I loved the effort, though.”

Avery Hallinan (11) shoots

McKenna Hallinan: “It was nice to be able to play. I wasn’t sure it was going to happen.”

Looking forward to next Saturday (10AM) when Newburyport comes to Landry. That one will feature two players (Alyssa Pettet & Allie Waters) who are committed to Holy Cross.

“The Holy Cross coach has already asked for the film from that game,” said Alyssa.

Georgetown had two close games with Amesbury last season but have lost ten of their last eleven to the Indians.

Ideal soccer weather with plenty of sun.

The pictures will enlarge if you click on them.

I am on Twitter (McClellandPeter) and Instagram (McClellandMiscellanea). This story will be on my WordPress blog (McClelland Miscellanea).

Rylie Lasquade

action in front

Sydney Aldrich (2) in on goal

Julia Mabius and Alyssa Pettet

Callie Catarius

Alyssa Pettet’s direct kick that became a goal

Elle Schneider and Sydney Aldrich

Alyssa Pettet over GK Mary Surette

Ella Marinopoulos watched by Riley Smith

McKenna Hallinan and Sarah Chace celebrate a goal

Taylor Wight

MK McElaney

GK Mary Surette reaches for Alyssa Pettet’s PK

Georgetown coach Kevin Fair

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Filed under Amesbury, Georgetown

Tagged as Alyssa Pettet, Callie Catarius, Carena Ziolkowski, Coach Adam Thibodeau, Coach Kevin Fair, Julia Campbell, Kayla Gibbs, Mary Surette, McKenna Hallinan, MK McElaney

September 25, 2019 · 10:26 pm

Georgetown gets first CAL volleyball win defeating Pentucket 3-0

Emerson Nicholas (13) extends over Meaghan Codair

Arielle Cleveland and Macey Rodrigues-Cowl

(West Newbury MA) Pentucket, the new team, took on the team they played for last year.

“This was a very special game for us,” said Pentucket’s Macy Rodrigues-Cowl afterwards. “All of us used to play for Georgetown.”

That familiarity generated plenty of excitement.

But in the end, the team with the experience together (Georgetown) prevailed.

The Royals (3-7) swept the sets, 25-6, 25-15, and 25-19 to notch their first Cape Ann League victory of this season.

The winless Sachems (0-7) got better as the match went on and that is something for them to build on.

“The team is working on controlling the ball and just getting their bodies in the right spots,” explained Pentucket coach Lauren Bennett. “I know that skill will come with time and reps.”

Georgetown coach Alexis Bedard

The experienced Royals felt pressure playing a new, excited team in their own gymnasium. “This was intense,” said Royals coach Alexis Bedard. “I coached most of the players from both sides.”

Now that Georgetown has its first CAL win, they hope that more W’s will come the rest of the way. “We’ve been playing up with all these teams, but we keep giving it away at the end,” said Coach Bedard. “We hope that his victory will push us to wins in other matches in this league.”

Grace Sorenson went out with an injury in the first set

The Royals have size and their serving was fast and deep. Freshman Grace Sorenson sent the visitors off to an 11-0 start in the first game with a nice collection of serves and sets.

“Grace is an amazing setter,” said Coach Bedard. “She had about ten assists in the first set alone before she was injured.”

Senior Emerson Nicholas was also impressive. Emerson served the Royals to 9-2 start in the second set and was deadly around the net. “Emerson is always consistent,” explained Coach Bedard. “She’s active at the net. Blocking those balls and killing them straight down.”

“The other team was serving really well,” admitted Coach Bennett, “and it challenged us. They also had a good setter.”

The approach for the Sachems is to get better and to have some fun along the way.

“Tonight was a fun environment,” recalled Macey. “We did a good job of communicating and diving for balls. We had a good crowd here. In the last set, we were really catching up to them.”

Arielle Cleveland served several aces in the final set

Still looking to win their first set, the Sachems made a strong move in that direction in the third set. The final score was 25-19 with freshman Ava Hughes serving matchpoint.

But the takeaway positive for the home team was that twice during that final set the Royals called a timeout. The hometown crowd started to get a little excited after first Arielle Cleveland and then Macey made serves that Georgetown couldn’t handle.

But experience prevailed at the end.

Unforced errors plagued the Sachems. “I think that we would be neck-and-neck with teams if we didn’t make the errors,” said Coach Bennett, “but we will get better with experience.”

Coach Bedard agreed: “Once they get a little more playing time, they’ll be better. Then they’ll be able to work as a team.”

(All of the pictures above and below will enlarge considerably if you click on them.)