Tag Archives: Newburyport High School

June 6, 2011 · 9:55 pm

Six-Run Fifth Gets Newburyport into the D3 North Semis over Austin Prep 8-3

Brett Fontaine collects his batting helmet after a collision with catcher Joe Barry at home in the fifth inning. Brett pitched a four-hitter and drove in two runs for Newburyport.

Ryan O’Connor congratulates Coach Bill Pettingell for a win in his last home game.

(Newburyport) Newburyport broke open a 2-2 game in the bottom of the fifth with six runs and went on to defeat Austin Prep, 8-3, on Lower Field at NHS on Monday afternoon.

The victory in the quarter finals puts the Clippers (19-5) into the D3 North semi-finals against Bishop Fenwick on Thursday at a neutral site.

Junior Brett Fontaine had a lot to do with the win as he pitched a complete-game four hitter and drove in two runs in the game-deciding fifth inning.

That fifth inning will be remembered as very good or very bad depending on where your loyalties were located.  The Clippers will remember the six runs, five hits, and the successful execution of a suicide squeeze.  For the Cougars (13-9), it’ll be the wild pitch, four walks, and mishandling the suicide squeeze.

In that decisive fifth inning, Austin Prep coach Steve Busby opted to have starter Ryley MacEachern intentionally walk Matt Mottola to load the bases and pitch to Brett Fontaine.  That didn’t work out so well for the Cougars as Brett singled to right and the Clippers fourth (Colton Fontaine) and fifth (Ryan O’Connor) runs came in.

Later in the fifth, Connor Wile put down a suicide squeeze bunt with Brett Fontaine heading full-speed from third.  Cougar catcher Joe Barry blocked Brett away from the plate before he had the ball and the umpire awarded Brett home.  Sam Barlow followed with a walk driving in the sixth run (Jim Conway) of the inning and boosting Newburyport’s advantage to, 8-2.

Ryley MacEachern breaks into a home run trot after his shot over the left field fence in the sixth inning.

Ryley MacEachern led off the sixth with a homer over the left field fence to make it 8-3 but the Cougars went quietly (one hit) the rest of the way.

This was the last home game for Newburyport’s 600+ win coach Bill Pettingell.  You could see/hear that he was fired up during this game.

The weather was excellent with plenty of sunshine although I’m not sure that the left fielders for each team were that thrilled with the sun being directly in their eyes.

Austin Prep put up a run in the first inning.  Bobby Batchelor walked and reached third after a wild pitch and a fielder’s choice.  He scored easily on Ryley MacEachern’s double to right center.

Sam Barlow tallies Newburyport’s first run in the third.

Newburyport received two gift runs in the third inning.  A two-base throwing error by left fielder Mark Mezzina followed Clipper singles by Sam Barlow and Colby Morris.  Sam scored on the error and Colby reached third.  He later crossed the plate on a MacEachern wild pitch.

The Cougars got a gift run in the fifth inning.  The visitors from Reading, loaded the bases on a single (Chris Bundock) and two walks.  Jon Saurman (pinch running for Chris Bundock) reached home on a Fontaine wild pitch.

Newburyport erupted for six runs in the bottom of the fifth and that was enough to carry them in with an 8-3 win.

Catcher Connor Wile made a nice play on a popup in the fourth inning.

Brett Fontaine – complete game 4-hitter

Winning pitcher Brett Fontaine had seven strikeouts to go with three walks.

Newburyport had eight hits including two each by leadoff batter Colby Morris and left fielder Jim Conway.  Colby also scored two runs.

Ryley MacEachern had two of the four Cougar hits, including the long home run to left in the sixth inning, and two RBI.

Austin Prep stranded five runners.

(I collect my own information and take my own pictures.  Inaccuracies happen unintentionally.)

Ryan O’Connor reaches home in the fifth

Newburyport viewers

Bobby Batchelor scores AP’s first run

Matt Mottola beats the throw home in the fifth inning

Leave a comment

Filed under Austin Prep, Newburyport

Tagged as , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

June 4, 2011 · 10:47 pm

Newburyport Rallies Over Arlington 6-5 in D2 North Softball With 3-Run Seventh

Sam Wahlgren get congrats from JV teammate Casey Barlow at game’s end after Sam delivered a key hit in the final inning.

Taylor Summit heads home with the game-winner in the bottom of the seventh.

(Newburyport) Plenty of excitement at Cashman Park on Saturday afternoon as Newburyport defeated Arlington, 6-5, in the first round of Division 2 North softball.

There were five lead changes and the Clippers (17-4) entered their last at-bats trailing, 5-3, after the Spy Ponders (there is a pond in Arlington called Spy Pond!) had grabbed the lead with three runs in the top of the 7th.

Lea Tomasz led the final inning with a single to right.  She reached second on a fielder’s choice and third on a passed ball.  Rachel Webster earned a 2-strike walk on a pitch that went past the Arlington catcher.  Lea scored Newburyport’s 4th run on that wild pitch.  Kendra Dow reached on a fielder’s choice but the Clippers were down to their last out.  The Clippers, in fact, got down to their last strike with their next batter (Taylor Summit) before she singled to center sending Kendra to 3B with two outs.

Still with two outs, junior varsity call-up Sam Wahlgren drilled a shot to left easily scoring Kendra from third with the tying run.  The other runner on the bases, (Taylor Summit) was off from first on contact with two outs and looked content to pull up at third on Sam’s hit but when Arlington botched the relay Taylor flew home with the game winner and scored standing up.

Kaleigh Tomaszewski reaches third on Courtney Sacca’s double in the second inning.

This was a game with plenty of hitting (each team had ten hits) and plenty of opportunities to score (runners were stranded by both teams in every inning).

Arlington (12-9) picked up three runs in the top of the seventh on five hits.  A key piece of strategy was when NHS coach Peter Murray’s opted to walk the very dangerous Courtney Sacca (two doubles) to load the bases with two outs.  Pitcher Beth Castantini got the next batter (Kayleen McLaughlin) to pop to second to limit Arlington to three runs and a 2-run (5-3) advantage.

Another piece of strategy that also worked was Coach Murray’s willingness to use the sophomore from the JV’s (Sam Wahlgren) in the last two innings.  She delivered hits in both innings and had plenty to do with extending Newburyport’s season into Monday when they will travel to play #4 seed Reading (18-3) in the D2 North quarter finals.  The MIAA site currently has game-time listed at 3:45 AM!  I suspect that time will be changed.

Kayleen McLaughlin out at home in the second.

Cassie Davis out at home in the first.

Sophomore leadoff batter Kaitlyn Morse led Arlington hitters with three singles.  She also scored a run.  Courtney Sacca had two doubles and also scored a run.

For Newburyport, Lea Tomasz, Taylor Summit, and Sam Wahlgren had two hit’s apiece.  Each of them had a key hit in the crucial seventh inning.  Lea ended up scoring three times while Taylor reached home twice including the seventh inning game winner.

Newburyport opened the scoring in the first as Cassie Davis’ triple to left drove in Maddy Stanton who had singled.  Later in the same inning Cassie was thrown out at the plate attempting to score in a delayed fashion after Kendra Dow had bunted.

Leah Tomasz – two hits and scored three runs

Arlington jumped into the lead in the second inning with two runs, one of them unearned.  Kaleigh Tomaszewski walked, went to third on Courtney Sacca’s double and scored on Kayleen McLaughlin’s single.  Courtney came around to score when Taylor Summit dropped a throw covering first.

Newburyport tied the score with a single run in the 4th.  Taylor Summit singled to center, reached second on a passed ball, and scored on Eleni Kacher’s single on the ground into right field.

The Clippers pulled ahead (3-2) in the fifth inning with another single run.  Lea Tomasz reached on an infield single and advanced to third on two ground outs.  Kendra Dow hit a ground single to left to score Lea.

The Ponders collected five hits in a bat-around top of the seventh.  Natalie Tarantino (double), Michelle Reilly (single), and Kaleigh Tomaszewski (single) had the RBI for Arlington.  Three runs were scored and the visitors left the bases loaded.  Those runs, and the 2-run lead they gave Arlington, looked to be enough but weren’t as Newburyport rallied in the bottom of the seventh.

Eleni Kacher steals second base in the 4th inning.

Kayleen McLaughlin was thrown out at the plate to end the second inning.

The weather was fabulous – sunny with a light breeze.  Certainly not what we’ve been used to over the past two months!

Both pitchers (Beth Castantini and Erica County) pitched complete games.

Newburyport AD John Daileanes delivered timely rosters for the good-sized crowd on hand.  Some potential spectators were probably watching the NHS baseball team in action about the same time at the high school.

That roster was especially helpful for identifying Sam Wahlgren.

#1 seed Amesbury lost today to Marblehead.  I wasn’t totally surprised by that because I had seen Marblehead defeat Triton on Thursday.  The Magicians didn’t use their top pitcher versus Triton so she was available for Amesbury.

(I collect my own information and take my own pictures.  Inaccuracies can result for which I apologize for in advance.)

Leadoff batter Kaitlyn Morse (reaching third) paced Arlington with three hits.

Natalie Tarantino – a hit, an RBI, and a run scored

Shortstop Kendra Dow catches a popup to end the sixth inning.

Courtney Sacca smiles after fourth inning double.

Leave a comment

Filed under Arlington, Newburyport

Tagged as , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

May 11, 2011 · 9:11 pm

Julianne Meehan K’s Thirteen in 3-1 Pentucket Win Over Newburyport

Bernadette Corrado stretches for the throw beating Cassie Davis for the final out as Julianne Meehan (#12) watches.

Julianne Meehan – thirteen strikouts/ two hits/1 run scored/1 RBI

(Newburyport) Pentucket scored three runs in the first and they held up as the Sachems defeated Newburyport, 3-1, in Cape Ann League softball on Wednesday afternoon at Cashman Park.

Weather conditions were challenging with a steady gale blowing in from right field under a cloudy sky.  I thought I saw whitecaps on the Merrimac River in the distance!

Julianne Meehan struck out thirteen batters after she had those three runs to work with in the top of the first.

The Sachem runs were the result of two Clipper errors.  Taylor Summit’s bobble on a grounder allowed Colleen Jenkins to reach safely and she was driven home on Julianne Meehan’s double to left.  Beth Castantini had the next batter (Megan Haley) struck out but catcher Cassie Davis dropped the ball and then threw it into right field scoring Julianne with the second run.  Bernadette Corrado long triple to left scored Megan with Pentucket’s third and final run.

Megan Haley rounds third heading home as Bernadette Corrado runs out an RBI triple in the background.

Those runs didn’t seem like that many early on but as Julianne flashed the K pitch it became difficult for the Clippers to string hits together.  In fact, they didn’t get their first hit until Shannon Brunault’s infield one in the 5th.

The Clippers (8-3) didn’t lack base runners through five innings.  They stranded eight.  The key for Julianne was her ability to strike out Kendra Dow.  She did it in the 1st, 3rd, and 5th.  Each time for the last out of the inning with runners aboard.  Kendra ended up stranding seven runners.

The Clippers broke through for an unearned run in the sixth inning.  Molly Rowe, who had replaced Beth Castantini in the fifth, hit a sinking liner to right that got by right fielder Julia Torvi and Molly reached third.  Taylor Summit’s single to center drove in the run.

Molly Rowe reaches third in the sixth inning.

Newburyport didn’t get another hit or base runner over the final inning and 2/3.

Pentucket (7-5) has now won two straight.

CF Eleni Kacher and SS Kendra Dow had a near collision in the sixth chasing a pop fly.

Sarah Dickinson made several strong throws from short for Pentucket.

Pentucket stranded runners in every inning.

Julianna allowed just four hits.

Pentucket had seven hits including two infield hits by Kaci Dumas.

( I collect my own stats and take my own pictures.  Mistakes sometimes happen.)

Eleni Kacher and Kendra Dow converge on a pop up. They did collide but Eleni held onto the ball and neither player was injured.

Leave a comment

Filed under Newburyport, Pentucket

Tagged as , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

May 9, 2011 · 8:32 pm

Brett Fontaine’s Complete Game Two-Hitter Leads Newburyport Past Rockport 3-0

Newburyport first baseman Ryan O’Connor touches first to record the last out in Newburyport’s 3-0 win over Rockport.

Brett Fontaine – complete game 2-hitter

(Newburyport) It didn’t take any late-game heroics for NHS coach Bill Pettingell to get Win #601.  What it took was a 2-hit shutout from Brett Fontaine and sound fundamentals.

Newburyport (8-3) defeated Rockport, 3-0, on a drizzly Monday afternoon in Cape Ann League action.

Brett Fontaine went the route for Newburyport and retired the final eight Vikings in order.

The sound fundamentals appeared in the 5th and 6th.  The 5th inning piece kicked in after Rockport (4-5) had it’s first two batters on.  A strikeout and a force out put runners on first and third.  Rockport then sent the runner from first hoping to get the runner home from third during the attempt.  The Clipper infield reacted properly and Mike Tupper ended up getting caught between third and home for the final out.

In the sixth, Colby Morris led off with a rope past third.  The Clippers, with Ryan O’Connor at bat, executed a perfect hit-and-run play.  Ryan’s grounder toward the right-side hole could have been a double play except that Colby had taken off for second and the second baseman headed toward 2B to cover as the ball went into right field.

Colby Morris scores Newburyport’s second run in the game in the sixth inning.

Defensive replacement Mike Petrino rushed in on the grounder seeing that the runner from first was going to try for third.  Unfortunately for Rockport, the ball got past Mike and this allowed Colby to came all the way around and score Newburyport’s second run.  Ryan reached 2B on the play and was driven home by Matt Mottola’s single off the fence in left.

So, in one inning the Clippers prevented a run and in the next they manufactured two runs in both cases with excellent execution of baseball fundamentals.

Viking starter Tucker Meredith gave up six hits and had no walks.  He also had one of the two Rockport hits.  In the 4th inning, he flied deep to David Cusack in center.

Newburyport scored a run in the first inning with a single (David Cusack), double (Colby Morris), and an RBI fielder’s choice by Ryan O’Connor.

Colby Morris – paced Newburyport with two hits

Colby Morris paced the Clippers with two hits.

Jim Conway reached the fence in center for a double.

Matt Mottola put a ball up the screen in left but was thrown out trying to get two bases out of it.  He did drive in a run with that hit, though.

Sam Scatterday was gunned down trying to steal second in the third inning.

Keady Segel made a nice catch on a popup in front of the Clipper dugout in third.  The last time I saw him he was in goal for the Viking soccer team versus Lynnfield in tourney soccer at Manchester-Essex.  The pink shirt was gone but the sun glasses weren’t……..even on an overcast day.

There is a lot of luck involved in seeing games.  The weather can’t be trusted.  Will it rain or won’t it?

Your luck also has to extend in finding out that there even is a game.  Today the Newburyport Daily News had last week’s schedule listed, the Gloucester Times didn’t list the game at all, the Rockport schedule on High School Net had the game at 3:45, and on the same site the Newburyport schedule had it at 4:45!   How lucky do you feel??

(I collect my own stats and take my own pictures.  Mistakes are made unintentionally.)

Tucker Meredith – sophomore pitched six innings and had one of Rockport’s two hits

Leave a comment

Filed under Newburyport, Rockport

Tagged as , , , , , , , , ,

April 27, 2011 · 8:29 pm

Newburyport Takes Triton 2-1 in Softball

Cori Simons slides in under Cassie Davis while Molly Rowe backs up the play.

(Newburyport)  I hoped to take in/write about the Newburyport/Triton softball game this afternoon but was misguided by the online edition of the Newburyport Daily News to Byfield rather than Cashman Park.

Beth Castantini catches the final out for Newburyport

I did end up seeing almost all of the game and watched Newburyport (4-2) prevail, 2-1, in a Cape Ann League contest on Wednesday afternoon that was undecided until Beth Castantini, playing first, latched onto a last-out popup in the top of the 7th.

Beth at first base was a bit of a novelty by her account.  “I haven’t played there since, like, seventh grade,” I overheard her say during between-innings practice after she had taken over first.  She did fine there.  She handled a low throw from Maddie Stanton (3B) and later took in the final out.

Before that final out, the Vikings (2-5) had runners on second and third and were in excellent position to tie or even go ahead, but it didn’t happen.

Molly Rowe (six strikeouts) was the complete-game winner for the Clippers.  Marion Dullea (eight strikeouts) went the distance for Triton.

Rachel Webster heads for third after a long triple to center. Her pinch runner (Molly Sullivan) would later score what turned out to be the winning run with Eleni Kacher getting the RBI.

A long triple by Rachel Webster set up Newburyport’s winning run in the 4th.

Cori Simons scored Triton’s only run in the 6th.

(I take my own pictures and collect my own stats……as best I can.)

Taylor Summit takes the throw as Cori Simons slides into 2B

Everyone wanted to play!

Leave a comment

Filed under Newburyport, Triton

Tagged as , , , , , , , , ,

April 14, 2011 · 9:15 pm

Ryan O’Connor K’s Thirteen and Drives in the Winning Run for Clippers 4-3 over North Reading

David Cusack heads for home with the winning run as Keith Linnane awaits the throw.

Ryan O’Connor – 13 strikeouts plus game-winning hit

(Newburyport) He didn’t do everything….but he came awfully close.  Who?  Ryan O’Connor.

Newburyport (3-1) defeated North Reading, 4-3, as Ryan struck out thirteen Hornets and drove in the game-winner in the bottom of the seventh.

A walk by Dave Cusack and a sacrifice bunt by Jim Conway put Ryan into position to end it for the Clippers.  His grounder against reliever Ryley Warnock, in the hole between first and second, did the trick.  With first base open you had to wonder why the Hornets opted to pitch to the other team’s cleanup hitter who already had two hits.  But they did……and paid the price.

North Reading (1-1) took a 3-1 lead in the top of the 5th on a 2-run blast over the fence in left center by Nick Moscaritolo.

The Clippers tallied single runs in the 5th and 6th on misplays by the Hornets to draw even.

In the 5th,  a two-base throwing error by NR shortstop Chris Cincotta put David Cusack in scoring position and from there he was driven across by Brett Fontaine’s single to left.

In the 6th, Colby Morris doubled down the third base line with one out and got to third on a fielder’s choice.  NR sophomore starter Ryan McAuliffe then tossed a 2-strike wild pitch that allowed Colby to tie the score at 3-3.

The defensive play of the game was a diving catch by Hornet right fielder Chris Kavanaugh to rob Brett Fontaine in the 7th inning.

Eric Popp was 3-for-3 for North Reading, including a double off the right centerfield fence. He also scored a run.

The Hornet’s top returning hitter (Ben Harrow) had a rough afternoon striking out three times to end innings and stranding five runners.

The Clippers squandered a glorious chance with two outs in the 4th after they loaded the bases with a collection of hits and walks.  Connor Wile then hit a laser toward short that might have driven in two runs but instead caught base runner Drew Carter in the leg to end the threat.

Ryan O’Connor struck out the side in the first inning and had at least one strikeout in every other inning.  The lefty also struck out four of the last six batters he faced.

Frank Carey and Bill Pettingell

Experience was in abundance with NR coach Frank Carey (44th season) and Newburyport coach Bill Pettingell (40th season) directing the two teams.

( I collect my own statistics, take my own pictures, and draw my own conclusions.  Mistakes happen….but are unintentional.)

Leave a comment

Filed under Newburyport, North Reading

Tagged as , , , , , , , , ,

March 12, 2011 · 11:23 pm

Watertown Easily Defeats Newburyport Boys 55-31 to Take D3 North Title

Danny Kelly (14 points)

Marco Coppola (21 points)

 

(Lowell) I suspect it’s rare to see a mismatch of this proportion so far along in the tournament but that’s what it looked like as the Watertown boys decisively defeated Newburyport, 55-31, to take the Division 3 North title on Saturday night at the Tsongas Center.

The state‘s leading scorer (Marco Coppola) paced the Raiders with twenty-one points and teammate Danny Kelly added fourteen.

Chris Jayne finished his Clipper career with a team-high eleven points, all in the second half.

When I checked my stats after this game I was stunned by three of the results from this game:
(1) Watertown had only five turnovers,
(2) Newburyport had twenty-six turnovers,
(3) Watertown shot 3-for-20 from long range and the state’s leading scorer missed all seven of his attempts from beyond the arc.

Chris Jayne rushes to cover Marco Coppola in front of the Newburyport bench.

Obviously, Watertown (18-5) took great care of the basketball.  All five starters handled the ball like guards.  They were very good at penetrating as far as they could go and then dishing to an open teammate.  The Raiders had great looks all game long.

On the other hand, Newburyport made uncharacteristically bad ball-management decisions over and over.  Some of the turnovers led to breakaway layups while others robbed them of shot attempts.  Watertown had twenty-eight more shot attempts than the Clippers!

Newburyport (15-8) lost by twenty-four points in a game in which their opponent missed seventeen 3’s.  The final score could have been significantly more lopsided.

The teams were tied, 6-6, three minutes into this game before the Raiders ran eleven straight stretching into the second period.  Watertown hit two of their three’s (Tyler Romanelli and Danny Kelly), got an old-fashioned three (Marco Coppola), and a layup by Connor Stockdale on an assist by Marco.  This run gave the Raiders a 17-6 lead.

Marco Coppola shoots a free throw.

Later in the second period and into the second half, Watertown put a 17-2 stretch together over 7 ½ minutes to put this one away, 36-14, with four minutes left in the 3rd period.  Marco Coppola contributed ten points and other seven were scored by Danny Kelly.

The rest of the game needed to be played and was.  Both teams cleared their benches.

Watertown moves on to the D3 state semi-finals on Tuesday night at the TD Garden against Cardinal Spellman.  I can assure you that if the Raiders get turnover numbers like they had against Newburyport and start to connect on 3-point shots, they could win two more games and be state champs again.  The Raiders were state champs in 2007 and 2009.

Connor Stockdale and Marco Coppola hoist the D3 North trophy.

Watertown has a 98-23 record over the last five seasons and have made the state tournament fifteen straight years.  Let’s just say that they’ve been good and they still are.

Newburyport loses eight seniors off of their 12-man roster and will have to rebuild around the team’s lone returning starter and leading scorer (Brett Fontaine – 13.1 points per game).

(I gather my own stats and take my own pictures.  I also make my own assumptions.  Mistakes in doing this are unintentional.)

Coach Tom L’Italien waits with his team for the runner-up trophy.

Leave a comment

Filed under Newburyport, Watertown

Tagged as , , , , , , ,

January 7, 2011 · 11:58 pm

Tim McCarthy (21 points) leads Wilmington past Newburyport 66-58

Tim McCarthy (#20) is defended by Chris Jayne (#5). Tim finished as the game’s top scorer with 21 points.

(Newburyport) Consistent Wilmington (6-1) outlasted scrappy Newburyport (4-4), 66-58, in Cape Ann League action at Newburyport on Friday night.

The Wildcats took the lead (18-16) for good late in the first quarter on a Nick Godzyk (13 points) layup.

This was a game of layups and 3’s with very little in between.

The Clippers ran into dry spells in the middle quarters and couldn’t muster the firepower to recover in the final quarter.

Newburyport did put together a 9-1 run late to get to within four (60-56) with forty-six seconds left.  Layups by Eric Meyer, Chris Jayne, and Brett Fontaine plus a Chris Jayne trey provided the points.  However, Vinny Scifo (7 points) and Tim McCarthy (21 points) answered with six straight free throws to clinch the win for the Wildcats.

Tim McCarthy was impressive.  The Wilmington junior guard did not force his offense and set up several teammates for layups.  He nailed four 3’s and was 5-for-5 from the foul line.   He was an important part of the consistent offense Newburyport faced.

I mentioned two runs doing Newburyport in.  The first one was 10-3 in the second period.  Nick Godzyk and James Wilkinson put up the points for the Wildcats.  Nick had a three off the backboard in the mix.  I guess that’s when you know, as an opponent, that you may be in trouble.

Newburyport trailed 30-21 after that run.

The killer run started late in the 3rd quarter and went almost six minutes into the final period.  Newburyport was held to four points (Eric Meyer free throw & Matt Leavitt three) while the Wildcats collected thirteen points.

I mentioned Wilmington’s consistency.  During the 13-4 run, five different players contributed points.  The Clippers had only twelve turnovers during the game but five of them were during this 13-4 run including three in a row early in the 4th period.

Matt Leavitt (#3) shown here with Tim McCarthy hit four 3’s and led Clipper scorers with sixteen points.

The Clippers ended up with four players reaching double figures (Matt Leavitt-16, Eric Meyer-12, Chris Jayne-10, and Brett Fontaine-10).

Newburyport faced a solid man-to-man defense the whole game yet with their outside weave and slashes to the basket opened up some good shots.  Wilmington turned up enough open shots to generate the runs that won the game for them.

Eric Meyer (#44) tallied twelve points and drew plenty of defensive interest in the post.

With 6-5 Eric Meyer inside, the Clippers have the potential of a very effective inside-out game.  The Wildcats were very keen on keeping the ball out of the post and once it got there they sent help.

(I keep track of my own stats.  I offer my own opinions.  I take my own pictures.  I apologize in advance for any statistical errors and misguided conclusions.)

Leave a comment

Filed under Cape Ann League, Newburyport, North Reading

Tagged as , , , , , ,

December 14, 2010 · 10:35 pm

Newburyport Boys Survive Slow Start Defeating Amesbury 52-44 In Season Opener

Amesbury coach Thom Connors and Newburyport coach Tom L’Italien chat before the season opener.

Clipper Chris Jayne tallied 13 points and did a nice job defending dangerous Stephan Deas of Amesbury.

(Amesbury) The Newburyport Clippers (1-0) survived a terrible start and defeated the Amesbury Indians (0-1), 52-44, in the season opener for both teams on Tuesday night at Amesbury.

The Clippers missed all seventeen shots they took from the field in the first quarter while the Indians missed all fourteen shots they took in the second quarter.  First game jitters?  Did that breeze from the outside escape into the gym?

The difference in the game?  While Newburyport was shooting poorly in the first quarter, Amesbury could only put seven points on the board because the Indians had nine turnovers.  On the other hand, when Amesbury turned cold in the second quarter the Clippers put together a 9-1 run to get the lead (11-8) and later nine straight to start to pull away, 22-12.

In that crucial second quarter Newburyport showed long range accuracy (Matt Leavitt/Zach Fenton/Chris Jayne) and inside strength with rebound conversions by Ian Michaels and Eric Meyer.

Matt Leavitt was covered closely (here by Stephan Deas) but his consecutive 3’s early in the second half gave Newburyport a 15-point lead.

Matt Leavitt put two 3’s together in the first minute of the 3rd quarter and Newburyport was away 30-15.  In the 4th quarter it was Chris Jayne’s turn to put a couple of 3’s together and his twosome gave the Clippers a 49-30 spread with 4:40 left.

This was more than enough despite a late seven-point unanswered rush by Amesbury in the last 2:46 of the game.

The Clippers showed plenty of offensive weapons after the slow start.  They also took very good care of the ball with just 13 turnovers – 3 of them came in the last frantic two minutes of the game.

The Clippers also have some outside shooters.  Their top scorers (Matt Leavitt and Chris Jayne) each registered thirteen points.

I kept no rebound stats but you should know that Newburyport had 21 more shots than Amesbury.  There were thirteen times that the Clippers had an extra shot at the basket.  Amesbury had just five.

Matt Talbot led Amesbury’s scorers with 18 points.  He didn’t create his own offense but could make an open shot including four 3’s in this one.

Stephan Deas ended up with fourteen points but an excellent defensive job by Chris Jayne was evident.  Newburyport also employed a zone that gave Stephan few good looks.  The speedy junior deserves the special attention.

A good crowd turned out for the season opener.  It looked as if one Amesbury student got the gate while a Newburyport 26-0 sign didn’t last the entire game.  The enthusiasm in both sections was evident.

(I keep my own stats, take my own pictures, and interview no one.  Therefore, everything in this blog entry is unofficial statistically.  Inaccuracies are unintentional.)

Leave a comment

Filed under Amesbury, Newburyport

Tagged as , , , , , , , , ,