Sports
By Whit Griswold - February 22, 2007
Nick Viera goes up for two of his 11 points against Nantucket. Photos by jumbopix.com
Boys tops in Island Invitational
In the first game of the boys Invitational, Nantucket nipped Easthampton, 60-59.
M.V. faced Mt. Everett in the night-cap. M.V.’s full-court press from the opening tip had Mt. Everett turning the ball over and over and over, and a string of unanswered buckets put the hosts up 22-11. Mt. Everett had only three subs to fill in for the starters, and the constant pressure wore out the undermanned squad.
With six minutes to go in the half, the advantage was 20, and M.V. went into the locker room up 49-21.
Two minutes into the second half, M.V.’s lead was up to 30, which they maintained until the end. 87-55, M.V. High scorer was Nick Viera with 19 points, with three three-pointers included. Ever-active sophomore Mark Reppart had 13 points, and smooth-shooting Terrell Johnson added 10.
Monday, in the consolation game, Easthampton beat Mt. Everett, 66-48.
Ever the acrobat, Mark Reppart twists and turns in the air to get a good look at the hoop. Tim McHugh (20) and Jwann Johnson (14) look on.
In the final, M.V. built a 5-point lead after four minutes, but Nantucket stayed close. The Whalers tied it with 6 minutes to go and then went ahead by 7 a couple of minutes later. The Vineyard suffered from some cold shooting during the half, and Nantucket’s big men clogged the middle and controlled the boards. The Whalers went to the locker room up 36-29.
In the second half, the Vineyard’s patience and balance whittled away the Whaler advantage. The Sancy was rocking when the Vineyard went up 56-55 with 6:35 to play.
From then on, with bodies flying, skidding, and leaping, both sides gave it their all to the end.
The Vineyard was up by four, then by two, then by one, and by two again, until a technical foul was called on Nantucket’s coach and Mark Reppart sank two to make it 72-66. A quick Nantucket 3-pointer brought the margin back to 3, but that was as close as they came. At the buzzer it was M.V., 75-69, to the loud delight of the large, loud crowd.
Mark Reppart lead the balanced M.V. scoring with 14 points, followed by Terrell Johnson and Jwann Johnson, both with 12, Nick Viera (11), and Tim McHugh (9). Evan Hourihan had an even 20 for Nantucket.
Viera and Terrell Johnson were named to the all-tournament team, and Johnson was also recognized as the event’s MVP.
The regular season ended with M.V. posting a 13-9 record, good enough to qualify for the state tournament, which begins Tuesday. Pairings will be announced Saturday, and Coach Joyce said there was a pretty good chance the Vineyard’s first game will be at home. Stay tuned: this is a fun bunch to watch.
Brittany Stone brought her usual complete game — running, passing, and scoring.
Stewart's stalwarts come oh so close
At the Sancy, the 2007 Island Invitational Basketball Tournament got underway late Sunday, with the Nantucket girls besting Harwich in the opener, 66-53.
Against Mt. Everett, the M.V. girls made things look easy at first, jumping out to and 11-0. With guards Brittany Stone and Kelly Silvia forcing the pace, and Tiffany Smalley controlling things down low, Mt. Everett looked over-matched. But with a patient, dogged defense, they worked their way back in. By half time, Mt. Everett was down only five, 25-20. The visitors continued their tough D in the second half until, with 3 minutes to go, the score was tied at 44. But M.V. dug in at the end, outscoring Mt. Everett 7-2, for a final of 51-46. Kelly Silvia dipped and drove for 10 points, while Tiffany Smalley controlled the middle and added 10 of her own.
Sandy Bartle had 14 for Mt. Everett.
Kia Minor was a force in the frontcourt with tenacious defense and assertive rebounding.
In the consolation game on Monday, Harwich topped Mt. Everett, 43-26.
The final against Nantucket started neck and neck, with the lead changing several times. The Vineyard looked a bit tight, missing some easy buckets, and Nantucket inched away a 10-point lead with 2:17 left in the half. Coach Stewart called a timeout, after which the girls found their shooting touch and tightened up on defense. At the half, Nantucket was up 25-21.
Nantucket held the lead early in the second half, until Brittany Stone took over, first dribbling the length of the floor and through all five Whalers for a lay-up, followed by a 3-point swish from the left wing, which put M.V. up, 32-31. Then the teams traded baskets, until a Nina Butler 3-pointer put M.V. up 51-49 with 2:10 to play. Nantucket tied it seconds later and went ahead to stay with 57 seconds to play.
The final, a heartbreaker, was Nantucket 54, M.V. 51. High-scorer for the winners were Angela Paterson, with 20. With 22 points, Brittany Stone nearly carried her team home to victory, but it was anything but a one-woman show. Kia Minor pitched in 9 and Tiffany Smalley had 8, while Kelly Silvia and Alexia Schroeder stood with their passing and defense. Afterward, Coach Stewart said she’d miss this special collection of athletes. "They’re great kids, with a lot of heart.”
After finishing first in just under 2 hours, Joseph Navas looks like he could go another 20. Photo by Danielle Zerbonne
Plenty for the 20
The tenth annual Martha’s Vineyard 20 Miler, touted on the M.V. Multisport web site as a "must race for die-hard runners,” attracted more than 400 runners from all over the Northeast to the Island on Saturday. Conditions included brisk winds beneath a cold blue sky.
The race began at the Vineyard Haven Steamship Authority at 11 am, and took the runners first to Oak Bluffs, then along Beach Road to Edgartown, through fields and part of the State Forest and ultimately to the finish at the Oak Bluffs School. First over the line was 36-year-old Joseph Navas of North Eastham, who finished in 1 hour, 56 minutes and 50 seconds. Emily Raymond, 25, of Medford was the first female finisher, with a time of 2:11:43.
The first Islanders across the finish were Leonard Verville, 43, of Oak Bluffs in 2:31:43, and Marylee Schroeder, 42, of West Tisbury, who came in at 2:41:19. The awards ceremony, held inside the Oak Bluffs school, honored winners in several categories. Special awards were given to 11 runners who have finished all ten 20 Milers.
Alex Minnehan provided sure, and sometimes spectacular, goaltending all season.
The 10th Annual Fairleigh S. Dickinson Jr. Invitational Ice Hockey Tournament
The Arena was the site of the 10th Annual Invitational Fairleigh S. Dickinson Jr. Ice Hockey Tournament over the weekend. Along with the MVRHS boys varsity, entrants were Andover, Franklin, and North Reading.
In the first game Saturday afternoon, Franklin skated past North Reading, 6-3.
M.V. and Andover faced off in the nightcap at 7 pm.
Coming off a convincing victory over Lynnfield a week earlier, hopes were high for the Islanders but they came out flat against a fast, opportunistic Andover team.
Pinned in the their own end for much of the early going, and sloppy in mid-ice when they broke out, M.V. seemed stuck in second gear. Still, the home skaters scored first. Off a face-off that Stephen Greenberg won in the left circle, Darren Gazaille finished with a nice wrister through a screen.
The Franklin Panthers celebrates after their 3-1 victory over Andover for the championship.
Andover answered quickly, when Colin Brennan jumped on a loose puck in the neutral zone, zipped over the blue line, and beat MV goalie Mike Capen from 30 feet out. Four minutes later it was Brennan again, this time with a slap shot from just inside the blue line. Andover, 2-1.
Andover continued to carry the play in the second period, but couldn’t score until the last minute of the period, when Tucker Mullin scored. With center John Hyslip, Brennan and Mullin made up Andover’s top line— a fast, skilled trio.
To wrap it up, Brennan completed a hat trick in the third period for a final of Andover 4, M.V. 1.
In the consolation game on Sunday, M.V. came out with more energy against North Reading, and things were looking up when Stephen Greenberg opened the scoring with a wrister from the slot.
Captain Stephen Greenberg led the hockey team to a successful season. And there’s more to come: the state tournament starts next week.
Mitch Pachico also scored in the first period, but North Reading answered. It was 2-1 after 15 minutes.
The second period was all N.R., who scored three unanswered goals to go up 4-2.
The momentum shifted half way into the third period. M.V. upped the intensity on the forecheck, and sure enough, just like coaches predict, along came some scoring chances. Tad Gold’s persistence produced a loose puck down deep for Joel Rebello, who beat the Andover goalie with a short, quick shot.
David Campbell was a rock on defense, and didn’t hesitate to jump up into the attack when opportunity knocked.
And with only 1:33 remaining, Matt Flynn scored on a blast from the left point to tie the game at 4.
Now the crowd was completely into the game, but before they could find full voice, N.R. tucked in a power play goal with just 11 seconds left to seal, and perhaps steal, a 5-4 win. The loss left M.V. with a 10-4-5 record.
In the championship game, Franklin topped Andover, 3-1.
"It was a great tournament. I just wish we had played better,” said M.V. coach Matt Mincone.
In the last regular-season game, M.V. hosts Methuen at 6 pm tomorrow. Seniors Stephen Greenberg, Zach Sylvia, Warren West, Sam Hurd, David Campbell, Logan Russell, and Mike O’Rourke will be honored.
Pairings for the state tournament will be announced on Saturday. M.V.’s first game will most likely be on Tuesday or Wednesday.
