Baseball Magicians snap losing streak against longtime rival
With all of the rain that was in the area last week, it was only natural that high school sports schedules were affected as one of the byproducts from the unsettled weather.
As a result, locally, the Marblehead High baseball team (3-4 in the Northeastern Conference, 7-7 overall) played just once, and that was against visiting Peabody on May 8. They lost that game, 9-0, but that was before a Saturday night thriller in Lynn against Swampscott, where the Magicians saw their three-game losing streak come to an end against their longtime rivals, 3-1.
The Swampscott game was officially a non-league game that was played at Lynn’s Fraser Field. Nonetheless, the Big Blue was still the home team.
“After struggling the last few games, we were able to put together some solid at-bats, while moving the runners consistently around the bases, when needed, to keep the threats going,” said coach Mike Giardi after the Swampscott game.
The Magicians took a 2-0 lead in the fifth, and added some insurance in the sixth, before the Big Blue broke Carter Sahagian’s shutout bid in the home half.
Sahagian (7 innings, 4 hits, 0 walks, 1 run, 0 earned, 5 strikeouts) battled the whole way in this game, especially after loading the bases in the bottom of the seventh, to pick up the much-needed win for his teammates.
The Marblehead boys banged out eight hits. Colt Wales helped power the attack with a double and a triple. E.J. Wyman and Cam Quigley collected two singles apiece. Sahagian helped his own cause with a run-producing single. Stefan Shepard was credited with a single and a walk.
In the game against Peabody, the Tanners didn’t seem to be bothered by the early week postponements, as they went on to shutout their conference rivals rather convincingly to complete the season sweep. They defeated the Magicians back on April 10, 7-2.
“We have been scuffling quite a bit lately, and Peabody took full advantage of it,” said Giardi. “We gave them free base runners and extra outs, which led to almost all of their runs early on.”
It was Marblehead’s third straight loss after they upset non-league Pope Francis in the consolation game of the St. Mary’s of Lynn Spartan Invitational Tournament, 4-3.
“We need to get back on track quickly if we hope to make a run at the postseason,” said Giardi.
Against Peabody, the Marblehead boys were quickly trailing 6-0 after two innings. The home team only managed four hits, and all of them were singles. Ethan Harwood was the hit leader with two, while Greyson Leventhal and Colt Wales each singled once.
But two days later in Lynn, the Magicians are feeling much better about themselves. There are six regular season games left on the schedule, and Giardi’s boys need to win at least three of them to clinch a Division 2 state tournament berth.
Softball secures 11th win on McGovern’s blast
The Marblehead High softball team (11-1) has won four straight games, the last one coming against host Peabody on May 7. It was a high scoring game, but the Magicians were able to prevail, 10-7. As of May 9, these Magicians are seeded 13th in the Division 2 power rankings, and with still eight regular season games left on the schedule, there’s no doubt they should crack the Top 10 to set the stage for a most memorable postseason after last year’s near miss. There are 62 teams in Division 2.
The game against Peabody was close throughout, but the visiting Magicians had the last word to seal the deal on yet another win. In the top of the seventh, first baseman Lyla McGovern belted a grand slam to account for the game-winner. The Tanners thought they had the Marblehead girls where they wanted them, but this battle-tested group never panics; they just find a way to win.
All-Star senior catcher Luka Bornhorst and Isabel Mortensen also did their part to contribute to the winning cause with three hits apiece.
Girls lacrosse clinches playoff berth against Gloucester
The Marblehead High girls lacrosse team (9-5 overall, 7-2 in the NEC, 5-1 in the Dunn Division) have been putting together a season that high school teams envision on the first day of practice, but most never experience, because of a variety of factors. With that said, they won two more games last week over Danvers and Gloucester, and are now in the playoffs with four more games still to play in the regular season.
As of May 9, these Magicians are the 23rd seed in the Division 2 power rankings, and that doesn’t include their ninth win against Gloucester. There are 54 teams in Division 2.
The Magicians have also had a couple of individual accomplishments recently. Ramona Gillett scored her 100th career goal against Beverly on May 1, and four days later in the Danvers game, Maddie Forbes reached the century mark in goals, as well.
In that game against the visiting Falcons, the Marblehead girls won it with ease, 17-5.
Kathryn Commoss (2 goals), Gretchen Smith (3 goals), Caitlyn Ryan (2 assists), Zoe Dwyer (2 goals, 2 assists), Ella McConnell (1 goal), Gillett (3 goals) and Forbes (6 goals, 1 assist) were the team’s offensive contributors. Goalie Molly Bullard did her part making six saves.
The Magicians scored another 17 goals in the May 9 home game against Gloucester, while limiting the Fishermen to just two scores.
Commoss (3 goals, 3 assists), Smith (2 goals), Ryan (2 goals, 2 assists), Dwyer (1 goal, 2 assists), Gillett (3 goals), Forbes (2 goals, 2 assists), McConnell (1 goal), Avery Barbeau (1 goal), Sydney Palamara (1 goal), Avery Wysor (1 goal) and Chloe Rowland (1 assist) took care of the offense. Bullard recorded seven more saves in this game.
