It was a good week to be a Bulldog.
With national-caliber performances by individuals on the track team and a historic state championship win for the boys’ basketball team, this week exemplified the outstanding facets of the Old Rochester athletics program.
For many, the highlight of the week was watching as the boys’ basketball team won two huge games to finish off their incredible season with a Division 3 state championship, the first in the school’s history. The Bulldogs began their week by playing at the legendary TD Garden in Boston in the semifinals against fifth-seeded Pentucket. ORR’s defense was the star player in the game, as they applied consistent pressure to a tough Pentucket team to claim the Eastern Massachusetts title in a 63-49 victory. The Bulldogs had an explosive start, jumping out to a 10-point lead by limiting Pentucket to a mere two points in the first quarter. Playing a tight man-to-man, full court-press defense, the Bulldogs continued the defensive pressure throughout the remainder of the game, effectively squandering any opportunities for Pentucket to make a comeback against the Bulldog offense. Will Santos played very well on both ends of the court, scoring 16 points to lead ORR offensively while also shutting down Pentucket’s star player, Pat Freiermuth, underneath the basket.
The game was extremely well-attended by the Tri-Town community, as nearly 2,000 Bulldog fans clad in red flooded TD Garden to cheer the Bulldogs to a spot in the Division 3 finals at the DCU Center in Worcester.
Then came the championship game that will likely go down in ORR legend, as the boys claimed the program’s first-ever state championship with a 61-47 victory over Hoosac Valley. Thanks to an incredible performance by freshman Noah Fernandes, who scored a game high 20 points, the Bulldogs took a commanding lead in the first quarter and managed to more than hold their own for the remainder of the game. Fernandes was effective not only in the paint, but also beyond the three-point arc, as he hit four three-pointers to pull Old Rochester out of some tight situations later as the clock wound down.
Hoosac Valley came out in the third quarter seeking vengeance, and managed to tie the game up at 35 points apiece. According to senior co-captain Jordan Menard, the key was to stay focused defensively.
“We knew that playing better defense would win us the game,” said Menard. “We knew that the offense would come so we had to just work on defense and grabbing some rebounds.”
The refocusing worked. Thanks to the strong presence in the paint by Evan Santos, Will Santos, and Matt Valles, ORR held possession for a majority of the fourth quarter, and thanks to the sharp-shooting of Ryan Beatty and Fernandes, as well as the leadership of Menard, the Bulldogs fought back to extend their lead to an unreachable ten points with 3:52 remaining in the fourth quarter to all but secure the championship. As the final buzzer sounded, the team stormed the court to celebrate, cheered on by hundreds upon hundreds of ORR fans.
“It’s unbelievable,” said Beatty when asked on the feeling. “I couldn’t have asked for a better senior year and I’m so glad I ended my high-school basketball career with a state championship title.”
“The state championship was the best moment in my high school career,” said Menard. “It’s every kid’s dream and not many people get the chance to do it. It’s something I’ll remember forever and something that people will talk about for a long time.”
The Bulldogs graduate three talented seniors in Menard, Beatty, and Mitch Midwood.
And the boys’ basketball team wasn’t the only victory of the week for the ORR athletic community. Down at the New Balance Nationals Indoor Championships in New York, several track athletes performed on a national stage with incredible results. The highlight would be the girls’ shuttle hurdles team, consisted of Zoe Smith, Bailey Truesdale, Lexi Afonso, Morgan Middleton, and Brooke Santos, which placed seventh in the nation with a school-record time of 34.2 seconds. The girls were seeded last out of 22 teams, but managed to defy all expectations, each running a fantastic leg to grab a top-ten finish. The boys’ shuttle hurdles team also did well, placing 20th out of 36 teams and setting their respective school record in the process. On the squad was Eli Spevack, Ben Rounseville, Will Hopkins, and Kevin Saccone, who went on to compete individually in the 60-meter hurdles, where he placed 28th overall.
With the dramatic and exciting finale of the winter season, student athletes at ORR look to emulate the same success in the spring season, which starts Monday.
Below are the final winter team records, followed by the conference records in wins, losses, and ties as of March 15.
Boys’ Basketball: (22-3-0) (16-0-0); Girls’ Basketball: (12-9-0) (10-6-0); Boys’ Track: (8-1-0) (7-1-0); Girls’ Track: (9-0-0) (8-0-0); Boys’ Swimming: (1-5-0) (0-5-0); Girls’ Swimming: (2-4-0) (1-3-0); Ice Hockey: (16-6-1) (9-1-0).
By Michael Kassabian