For almost all high school sports teams, making the MIAA postseason for their respective sport is a huge accomplishment. Generally speaking, to make the tournament, the team has to have an equal win-loss ratio or better. This year, boys’ baseball, boys’ lacrosse and girls’ tennis all qualified for the tournament.
The boys’ lacrosse team, seeded 13th in the Division 3 East Sectional, faced off against 20th seeded Watertown High School, where the Bulldogs lost 13-3 in a hard-fought game. After the first half, Watertown already had an 11-2 lead. The two first half goals for the Bulldogs were scored by seniors Cam Severino and Chris Marchisio, with sophomore Ryan Manning assisting Marchisio on the second goal. The Bulldogs’ defense improved in the second half, where they only allowed two goals for Watertown. Severino scored again later in the game, but the Bulldogs were not able to make up deficit to advance to the next round.
The boys’ baseball team also struggled in the opening round of their tournament. Coming off a decisive three-game win streak, the Bulldogs, seeded 12th, had momentum when they faced off against fifth-seeded East Bridgewater. Unfortunately, the boys were not able to keep their streak alive, as they fell to East Bridgewater 1-0 in a tough-luck loss. Junior Pitcher Andrew Ryan only allowed one unearned run and struck out three batters, but it was enough for the higher-seeded team to win. Senior Teddy Costa singled for the Bulldogs, and provided the only offensive play in the entire game.
There were bright spots in the postseason, one being the girls’ tennis team. The Lady Bulldogs, who are seeded fourth, easily defeated the Millis Mohawks 5-0 in their opening round of the MIAA Division 3 South Tennis Tournament. Every singles and doubles team won their matches. Senior star Abby Offringa won 6-1, 6-2, while sophomore Julia Nojeim won her match 6-2, 6-4. Third singles Casey Garstang won her match 6-0, 6-1, and both doubles teams also won to secure the victory for the Lady Bulldogs. The girls now advance to the quarterfinals, where they face off against fifth-seeded Carver.
Another bright spot was at the All-State Championship Meet at Westfield State. At this meet, the best track and field athletes in the entire state gather to determine the state champions for each event. Old Rochester’s Ally Saccone won her first state championship in the 400 hurdles, running a state-best 62.5 seconds. This time ranks her 31st in the entire nation for the event. Also, Saccone finished second in the 100 hurdles, running a great time of 14.77 seconds to finish an extremely successful high school track career.
By Michael Kassabian
