Girls’ Track had a successful outing at the Division 5 State Relays at the Reggie Lewis Center, winning the meet championship behind a balanced attack. The Boys’ team also excelled, finishing in fourth place. Boys’ Basketball captured big wins over Wareham and Dighton-Rehoboth, while the Girls’ Hockey team scored a much-needed 8-0 victory over Bishop Stang in an eventful week for Bulldog sports.
Boys’ Basketball: The Bulldogs faced their biggest rival, Wareham High, on Tuesday at the Vikings’ gym. The team had a commanding 48-27 lead at the half and were up by as much as 30 points in the third quarter when they led 64-34, en route to a huge victory. Wareham, however, made things interesting with a fourth quarter comeback pulling within as close as 10, but the Bulldogs wound up with a huge 87-75 victory. Seniors Evan Santos and Will Santos dominated, scoring 26 and 22, respectively. Junior center Matt Valles finished with an impressive stat line of 15 points, 11 rebounds, and 3 assists, while fellow junior Russell Noonan continued to improve, scoring 12. On Friday night, they were back home to play D-R. The Falcons posed a big challenge as they kept the game close throughout. However, the Bulldogs were too much, as they played a consistent game and held their rivals to just nine points in the fourth quarter. Valles scored 12 and grabbed 11 boards, while Evan Santos had 15 and his brother, Will, added 10. Sophomore guard Jason Gamache had a solid night on both sides of the ball, scoring 9 and playing tight defense. This week, the boys only have one game as they play Seekonk on the road on Friday.
Girls’ Basketball: Mirroring the boys’ schedule, the girls took on the Lady Vikings at home on Tuesday. They looked to get back on the right track after a loss to GNB Voc-Tech. Despite keeping things close through the half, when they were down 18-16, the girls lost control in the second half and wound up losing 39-27 to Wareham High. The leading scorers were juniors Sophie Church and Emma Collings with 9 and 6 points, respectively. On Friday, the Lady Bulldogs headed out on the road to play the Dighton-Rehoboth Falcons. Despite closing within seven points in the fourth quarter, the girls lost 61-48. Still, they showed offensive improvement that bodes well for the future. This week, the Lady Bulldogs play Seekonk at home on Friday night.
Boys’ Track: The boys participated in the Division 5 State Relays at the Reggie Lewis Center in Boston on Sunday. They earned 17 points overall, finishing tied for fourth with East Bridgewater. Some of the top performances came from the shot put relay team and the shuttle hurdles team, which earned a meet record. The team was composed of juniors Eli Spevack, Danny Renwick, and Will Hopkins, and sophomore Harry Smith. The 4x400m team of Spevack, freshman Adam Sylvia, junior Mikey Morris, and senior Kyle Camacho also had a solid showing, running 3:45.8. They’ll have their first traditional meet in over two weeks on Tuesday against Bourne, Case, and Diman Voc-Tech at the Walter Janiak Field House at New Bedford Voc-Tech.
Girls’ Track: On Sunday, the Lady Bulldogs returned to action at the D-5 State Relays at the Reggie Lewis Center in Boston. The girls emerged from the meet victorious, scoring 63 points, 27 more than second-place Ursuline Academy. Standout performances included the 4x400m team of sophomores Rachel Demmer and Madisen Martin, as well as seniors Nicole Mattson and Nina Bourgeois, which ran 4:17. Also, the shuttle hurdles team of seniors Zoe Smith, Elexus Afonso, and Morgan Middleton, as well as junior Brooke Santos, set a meet record. The excellent Long Jump relay also fared well, and that team featured Afonso, Smith, Middleton, and sophomore Maggie Adams. This Tuesday, they girls are up against Bourne, Case, and Diman Voc-Tech at New Bedford Voc-Tech.
Boys’ Swimming: The swim team will use New Bedford High School’s pool as their home base this season, and they had their home opener against Apponequet on Tuesday, which they lost 96-30. Senior Nate Wentworth grabbed a win in the 100m breaststroke however, with a time of 1:26.3. The Bulldogs have their third consecutive home meet, this one against Seekonk, on Tuesday.
Girls’ Swimming: Just like the boys, the girls had their first two ‘home’ swim meets of the season this week at New Bedford High School’s pool. They started the week on Tuesday against the Apponequet Lakers, falling 111-72. The team received wins from senior Teagan Walsh in the 1m Dive (153.65 Points) and freshman Claire Noble-Shriver in the 100m backstroke (1:12.2). They’ll stay at home to swim against Seekonk on Tuesday.
Boys’ Ice Hockey: The boys began their week on Wednesday night at home (The Travis Roy Rink at Tabor Academy) against Dighton-Rehoboth. They earned a nice 5-1 victory despite an injury to star junior Sam Henrie. Freshman Chase Lapworth of ORR scored his first two varsity goals in the game. On Saturday night, the Bulldogs/Blue Devils were up against Somerset-Berkeley at the Driscoll Skating Arena. They lost a 3-0 game, struggling without the presence of Henrie. This Wednesday, they’ll head to the popular Hetland Skating Rink to play conference rival GNB Voc-Tech.
Girls’ Ice Hockey: The Lady Bulldogs and their Bourne, Mashpee, and Wareham allies also began their week at home, as they took on Plymouth North at the John Gallo Ice Arena on Wednesday night. Despite great efforts, the team lost 7-2. They received goals from Bourne senior Natalia Gordon and Bourne sophomore Tannah O’Brien. Both goals were assisted from ORR freshman Chelsea Peterson. On Saturday, they faced rival Bishop Stang at the Hetland Skating Rink. Bourne sophomore Carly LaCasse scored four goals, while fellow Bourne sophomore Leah Hidenfelter notched four assists, behind a shutout from ORR freshman goalie Sophie Schiappa (Her first ever.) The team gets a rest with no games next week.
Below are the overall winter team records, followed by the conference records in wins, losses, and ties as of January 10.
Boys’ Basketball: (8-0-0)(8-0-0); Girls’ Basketball: (2-7-0)(2-6-0); Boys’ Track: (4-0-0)(4-0-0); Girls’ Track: (4-0-0)(4-0-0); Boys’ Swimming: (0-4-0)(0-3-0); Girls’ Swimming: (1-3-0)(0-3-0); Boys’ Ice Hockey: (4-2-4)(2-0-1); Girls’ Ice Hockey: (2-7-0)(2-6-0).
By Patrick Briand