Vineyard baseball blows out Nantucket in home finale
Having already been relegated from playoff contention, the Vineyarders were playing for pride when they hosted the rival Whalers on Saturday for their final game of the season. Starting with an explosive eight-run first inning, MVRHS managed to mercy-rule the Whalers by the top of the fifth, winning it 14-4.
The victory was a total team effort, in which six different Vineyarders pitched, seven knocked in runs, and everyone in the lineup got on base at least once. In the final games of their high school careers, seniors Cam Napior (two hits, two RBIs, three runs, one walk), Jake Glasgow (three RBIs, one double, one walk), and Liam Marek (two RBIs, two runs) led the way for MVRHS on offense. On the mound, Napior struck out three over one inning pitched, and Marek struck out two in the same amount of time.
Coach Kyle Crossland said after the game, “The boys strung a bunch of hits together in the first, and didn’t look back.”
The Nantucket starting pitcher was pulled before the first inning had even ended.
In addition to Napior (P, 1B), Glasgow (DH, 1B), and Marek (LF, C, P, 2B), the Vineyarders will also be graduating Tobey Roberts (CF, P) and Micah Simmons (3B, P). All season long, Crossland lauded his seniors’ selflessness, experience, and versatility, with Marek (.328 average; 2.80 ERA) serving as the epitome of the coach’s praise: “Our seniors are certainly going to be missed; they have set a positive example for Vineyard baseball.”
Next year, the Vineyarders will be led by junior pitcher Sam Zack and sophomore catcher Hunter Johnson, among others.
“We have a young core of players who gained valuable varsity experience this season … Zack became one of the best pitchers on the team this year; he finished the season with a 1.50 ERA,” Coach Crossland said. “Johnson led the team in hits and batting average, finishing [at] .431. He didn’t strike out all season.”
Girls’ tennis to host first-round playoff game
The Vineyarders’ playoff schedule was announced on Tuesday, with No. 16 MVRHS landing a first-round home playoff game on Wednesday, May 31, at 3 pm, after our print deadline. They will be hosting the No. 17 Middleborough Sachems at the Ned Fennessy Courts.
The team is coming off a brief losing streak to end their season, and Coach Bill Rigali has confidence that they can bounce back on Wednesday.
“I have reminded our players to play to their strengths, focus on fundamentals, and [recognize] that they have had a good season and deserve this opportunity to play a home match in the state playoffs,” Coach Rigali said.
If the Vineyarders beat Middleborough, they will play the winner of No. 1 Weston and No. 33 Notre Dame in the second round of the MIAA Division III playoffs.
With win over Nantucket, boys’ tennis secures No. 2 seed
The Vineyarders finished their regular season in style, cruising past the Whalers 5-0 away last Thursday. They got the season sweep over Nantucket, along with their other Cape and Islands rivals, en route to an undefeated run in league play this year.
Ending with a 14-2 record overall, the Vineyarders have secured the No. 2 seed in the MIAA Division III Power Rankings. When the playoffs start this week, MVRHS will have clinched home field advantage through the first few rounds.
In the first round, the Vineyarders will host the winner of No. 31 Falmouth and No. 34 Ludlow, time and date to be determined. If the Vineyarders advance, they will host the winner of No. 15 Boston Latin and No. 18 Northampton in the Sweet 16.
Boys’ lacrosse seeking first-round playoff upset
Going into this past week, the Vineyarders were ranked No. 19, shy of the top-16 threshold that would guarantee them home field advantage for the first round of the playoffs. Needing big wins over St. John Paul II and Nantucket to catapult themselves ahead in the MIAA Division IV Power Rankings, they took the season sweep over St. John Paul II 10-4, but then lost big to Nantucket, 17-2.
Despite having to play on the road and against a higher seed (between 13 and 15) in the first round, Coach Chris Greene remains optimistic about his team’s chances. “What’s always misleading is that those matchups could very much work to our advantage,” Greene said. “I do feel the team is committed to taking the next step.”
For Greene and his coaching staff, they will look to their role players to help propel their team to victory. “We lost one of our starters to injury, so there are adjustments that we are making to work through it,” he said. “It’s really about the role players and their ability to make plays.”
