Townie Sports
By Kevin Kelly
- HIGH SCHOOL HOCKEY
Worcester Academy high scoring wing Micaela Sindoris notched both of her team’s goals, including a controversial last-second score, as the Hilltoppers salvaged a 2-2 deadlock with Southfield. Matignon wings Charisse Flanagan (goal, assist) and Maeve Leahy (2 assists) continue to pile up the points as the Warriors fricasseed Medford by a score of 7-1.
TEAM (boys) W-L-T (** clinched MIAA tourney bid)
**Latin Academy 10-0-4
**East Boston 13-3-1
**B.C. High 9-1-4
Malden Catholic 8-2-3
Arlington Catholic 6-5-2
Boston Latin 5-7-2
Noble & Greenough 8-12-0
TEAM (girls) W-L-T
**Boston Latin 14-1-2
**Matignon 13-2-0
Worcester Academy12-3-1
Latin Academy 0-13-0
- BASKETBALL
St. Clement punched their ticket to the MIAA tourney as Coach Leo Boucher’s Anchormen outlasted a scrappy Austin Prep by a score of 67-61. Pope John XXIII forward Patrick Kelly tallied 11 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists in a 79-64 loss to Matignon.
TEAM W-L (** clinched MIAA tourney bid)
**St. Clement 10-4
Winchester 9-6
Charlestown 9-7
Pope John XXIII 9-8
Stoneham 6-9
- COLLEGE SWIMMING
At the Little East Conference championships, UMass-Dartmouth freshman Carly Cahill finished 4th in the 200 Medley Relay, 13th in the 100 Breaststroke and 14th in the 50 Freestyle. In the last regular season meet of the year against Bridgewater State, Elms junior Aislinn Carrier finished 2nd in the 200 Freestyle and 3rd in the 100 Breaststroke.
- COLLEGE HOCKEY
UMass-Dartmouth wing Patrick Wrenn blasted three shots on net and notched an assist as the Corsairs toppled Worcester St. 5-2. Salem State wing Jacqueline Sindoris tallied an assist in the Vikings 9-2 loss to Stevenson.
Maine’s Nolan Vesey is having a good season with the Bears, notching eight goals and nine assists at this point in the season. Vesey’s team is fighting for .500, sitting at 10-14-3 on the season.
Charlestown girls’ softball league expanding, ready for sign up
By Seth Daniel
Often, when it comes to softball, girls get overlooked.
Too frequently, they’re lumped in with co-ed tee ball leagues and into fast pitch Little League programs where they don’t develop necessary softball-specific skills, and when they age out of those programs – often there is nowhere else to turn for young ladies who want to compete in softball.
Programs are few and far between.
But that’s not the case in Charlestown, at least as long as Charlestown Girls Softball League Director Jack Schievink has anything to say about it.
Schievink has been running the league for nearly 30 years for girls in Charlestown, and the last several years have seen the League expand from the first spring league, to now include a fall league and an indoor winter league for some age groups. He said they enrolled a little over 70 girls last year in five age groups.
“I think they end up competing with the boys and not developing softball skills,” said Schievink. “I saw that in Little League. There is so much more attention on the boys than on the girls and that’s too bad. I used to coach Pop Warner football too, and that’s fine, but there’s nothing like coaching girls. I see girls I coached years ago who are now mothers and are bringing their kids back to play. Some of them come back to coach too. Girls are always willing to learn and be coached.”
Charlestown has one of the few comprehensive youth softball leagues in the city, and while many other neighborhoods are just now trying to revive their girls softball traditions, the Town has a 30-year history to lean on and Schievink said it shows on the field.
“Last year we had seven girls in middle school who made the junior varsity or varsity teams at their high schools, which were Boston Latin Academy and Boston Latin School,” he said. “Two players made varsity and five made junior varsity. We must be doing something right if that’s happening.” What the League does right is start girls early in learning the basics, enrolling girls from age 5 to 18.
The 8 and under league serves as the instructional league for those just beginning. Even so, the coaches pitch to the kids and they can get thrown out at first base. There are no strike outs and no walks, but the team does travel to compete with other cities.
“All of our leagues travel and even the instructional league travels,” he said. “We go to Somerville, Medford and South Boston. The little ones think they’re big shots and they really love it. The games are one hour and last three innings, but they learn a lot in that time.”
The instructional league, he said, features one game on Saturdays and a one-hour practice during the week.
Other age groups include:
- 10 and under
- 12 and under
- 14 and under
- 18 and under
The most popular time is the spring league, and Schievink said they are doing sign ups now and indoor workouts weekly. To enroll a girl in spring leagues, which start some time in April, it costs $50 for the instructional league (April to mid-June). The older girls cost $75 and that includes the spring, summer and fall leagues. The indoor winter league costs $200 per person as it is very expensive to pay for the indoor facility.
Indoor workout practice clinics are now taking place at the Harvard Kent School gym from 6-8 p.m. every Monday. There are also sign-ups available at the same time.
Some of the older girls are just now completing their first winter season, and Schievink said they’ve had a good time.
“We have a good core of girls who play all four seasons now,” he said. “We also have girls who just play in the spring and those who just play in the summer. This year, we had our first indoor winter softball league in Peabody. It’s been a great experience.”
Schievink said his involvement goes way back to the CYO days at St. Mary’s Church, when Father Ron Coyne inducted him into coaching girls softball for the very competitive CYO League.
“They needed a coach and Father Coyne asked me to help and I started helping and have been doing that every since,” he said.
CYO ended in 2008, and the current League started up in 2009 to replace it.
Schievink said in addition to enrolling new girls, they would also like to enroll some new, experienced coaches.
“We’re always looking for experienced coaches, anyone living in the area that played in high school or college, we ask them to please apply also,” he said.
Any girls or coaches interested in the Charlestown Girls Softball League can get more information by calling (617) 201-4507 or by e-mailing [email protected].