Sports Highlights

By Don Lyons - March 2, 2006

Hoop stats
End of season statistics for the MVRHS boys varsity basketball team show Matt Rivers leading in points scored with 422, an average of 19 per game, followed by John Swan's 215, averaging 11.3 and Jacob Vanderhoop, 169 with an average of 7.7.

Rivers also led the team in rebounds, 340. Swan had 91 and Bubba Brown, 79.

Brown had the most fouls, 64. Swan had 60, Rivers 59, and Vanderhoop 56.

Brown also led in blocked shots with 14. Also in double figures was Rivers with 11. Tim McHugh had eight and Ben Madeiras seven.

Point guard John Swan was credited with 91 assists. Terrell Johnson was next with 33. Swan was also chief thief with 65 steals. Johnson had 47 and Rivers 37. Both Ben Madeiras and Jacob Vanderhoop purloined 23.

Rivers led in percentage shooting, sinking 47 percent of his 366 shots. Cliff Ibarrondo made 44.4 percent of his 27 shots and Nick Viera 42.9 percent of his 70.

Nick Viera shot 73.3 percent from the foul line. Tim Scott made 72.3 percent of his freebies. Jacob Vanderhoop sank 70 percent of his and Ben Madeiras was good for 69.6 percent,

As a team, the Vineyarders scored an average of 65 points per game, turned the ball over an average of 14.1 times, grabbed an average of 41 rebounds, stole the ball an average of 11.6 times, sank 61.7 percent of their free throws and 38.2 percent of their shots from the floor.

Bombers claim lead
With a 9-2 mauling of Maciel's Marauders, at the P.A. Club last Thursday, Dave Bettencourt's Bombers (Dave, Joe Andrade, Laurie Maciel, and Charlene Barbosa) nudged Wood's Warriors out of first place in the Dart League standings.

The previous Thursday, four teams met in an unprecedented four-way playoff, each having squeezed by their opponents of the evening, 6-5. Wes Wood's Warriors emerged triumphant from the tie-breaking, one-game, sudden-death playoff with Maciel's Marauders, Cottrill's Commandos, and Blanchette's Bruisers.

Jake Gifford scored a 116 three-dart-out. Earlier, Eric Pachico hit a ton-80-on.

League standings
Bettencourt's Bombers 42
Wood's Warriors 39
Blanchette's Bruisers 34
Pachico's Patriots 32
Tesch's Tigers 32
O'Sullivan's Optimists 29
Maciel's Marauders 28
Cottrill's Commandos 28

Knight dubbed all-star
Jenny Knight of Oak Bluffs, now a junior at Hartwick College in Oneonta, N.Y., was named to the Empire 8 women's second basketball all-conference team, Monday.

She led the conference in field goal percentage, connecting on 134 of 246 shots for a 54.5 % average. She was the league's fourth leading rebounder with 8.7 boards per game and ranked sixth in scoring with a 13-point average. Jenny recorded eight double-doubles for the second straight year.

Jenny also made the Empire 8 conference second all-star field hockey team last fall.

Hartwick finished with an 11-14 record, 6-8 in the conference.

Simulated golf chipping
Closest-to-the-pin contests for simulated 100, 150 and 175 yard holes will be held Saturdays and Sundays from noon to 6 pm in March at The Exchange across Dukes County Ave. from Tony's Market. Entrance fee is $5.00....The Lakers and Sharky's Timberwolves will meet Monday evening at 7 pm at the Boys & Girls Club to decided which team will challenge the Heat for the 2005-6 RCBL Championship in a best two-of-three series beginning the following Monday.

Squirts finish unbeaten
The undefeated MV Youth Hockey Purple Squirts finished their season undefeated, Sunday, at the Tony Kent Arena in South Dennis, with a 9-0 trouncing of the Yarmouth-Dennis Stars. Both Shay Hill and Andrew Carroll had hat tricks. Connor Chisholm scored twice. Shay Hill scored his fourth goal of the game in the final period.

The Vineyarders were shorthanded with only six skaters plus a goalie. Even so, the game was a walk in the park for the talented Islanders.

Curling
The Winter Olympics generate a great increase in interest in curling, a game that originated in 16th century Scotland.

Curling has long been popular in Canada and Scotland, but didn't come to the attention of many Americans until the 1988 Olympics in Calgary.

Last weekend an open house at the Falmouth Curling Club attracted a capacity crowd. The Vineyard was represented at the games by a team consisting of Ed Pierce, Anne Lucas, Tom Vogl, and Lauren Lucas (subbing for Katherine Long who was under the weather). The Islanders slid to a 5-5 tie with a Cape team that included Russ Lemcke, Shirley Scholes, Mac Jones and Dave Dewees, the founder of the Cape Cod Curling Club.

From 1990 to 1993 there was a Martha's Vineyard Curling Club that played on the MV Arena ice.

This spring, March 31 to April 9, the World Men's Curling Championship games will be played at the Tsongas Arena in Lowell. Curlers from around the world will compete.

See www.wcc2006.org or call 1-888-WCC-2006 for details.

MV hoopmen win their Case
The MVRHS boys junior varsity and freshmen basketball teams closed out their seasons with impressive wins over Case HS, here on Feb. 16. The junior varsity dominated, 58-22, while the freshmen romped, 56-18.

The varsity also won their game with Case, 70-56.

With a season record of 15-7, the Island boys varsity is seeded 12th in MIAA division 3 south and plays at fifth-seeded New Bedford Voke (17-4) today.

The last time MV and NBV met was January 31, here. The Vineyard won a game that generated considerable heat, 55-50.

Grace and Cassie aweigh
Grace and Cassie, the Vineyard's Pilot Gigs, will enter the Snow Row at Hull, a 3 3/4 mile race, Saturday.

Grace will enter the mixed amateur adult boat division with a crew of six men and one woman: Cox Jimmy Warren, #6 stroke David Murphy, #5 oar Sterling Wall, #4 oar Sterling Wall the younger, #3 oar Keren Tonnessen, #2 oar Peter Rodegast, #1 bow oar Matt Cramer.

Cassie is entered in the women's amateur adult division with Tracey Jones as Cox, Tamar Russell at #6 stroke, #5 oar Wendy Gray, #4 oar Leslie Dodge-Harrer, #3 oar Melinda Loberg, # 2 oar Hope Tripp, #1 bow oar Joanne Sardini.