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Season Preview: Wrestlers hit mat with big plans for 2016-17 season

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Gary Rabinovitz is embarking on his first season as a wrestling head coach.

With its new campaign approaching, Whitman-Hanson Regional High wrestling team is expecting a lively season on the mat as it nears a major milestone.

After serving as an assistant coach to Dr. Kevin Broderick for the past two seasons, Gary Rabinovitz has taken over the reins of the wrestling squad.

Rabinovitz is no stranger to W-H, having also served as an assistant to Bob Gray back in 1988-89, as well as participating on the first ever Panther wrestling squad in 1977-78.

The 1990 Whitman-Hanson Hall of Fame inductee said the camaraderie within the team has been exceptional out of the gate and feels it will work in its favor this winter.

“Wrestling is like family,” Rabinovitz said. “One of our biggest strengths is helping each other to get better every day.”

Leading the charge at either the 106- or 113-pound class will be one of the Panthers’ key returnees from a year ago, co-captain Jake Filicicchia.

“Jake had an outstanding year in 2015-16 and continued all offseason, wrestling and preparing for a great senior year,” Rabinovitz said. “Jake is truly committed to be the best he can be and works hard at getting better every day.”

Senior John Will joins Filicicchia as a co-captain this year and will anchor the 220-pound weight class.

“John had an impressive junior season, winning a majority of his matches by pinfall,” Rabinovitz said.

Rabinovitz also expects contributions from seniors Josh Baker (145 pounds), Alex O’Roak (182) and Kevin Smith (145).

Rabinovitz said he credits the Whitman-Hanson youth program for helping develop numerous wrestlers, including freshman Steven Brooks (138) and Matt Rock (120) and sophomore Joel McInnis (132-138), who he feels will provide key contributions down the road on his club.

“We look to these young men to play important roles this season,” Rabinovitz said.

Junior Steve Osborne (160-170), who took a year off from the mat last season, was the recipient of captain of the week, a newly installed crown to entice additional leadership within the program.

“I am looking for great things from Steve this season,” Rabinovitz said.

Also, catching the eye of the first-year Panther head coach thus far has been junior Logan Scriven (152-160).

“[He] seems to be coming into his own,” Rabinovitz said. “Logan competes hard day in and day out and I look for great things to come from him.”

With wrestling being one of the more unique sports, relying on individual and team performance, Rabinovitz said he is looking forward to two big dates on his club’s docket of contests.

On Wednesday, Dec. 14, W-H will be unveiling its brand-new state champions banner before its meet against Quincy. The wrestling squad has produced eight individual state champions, who have been invited back for this event.

The Panthers will compete in a quad home meet Saturday, Jan. 21 and celebrate with hopefully all their past state champions, four of whom live out of state, over the past near four decades of W-H wrestling. Rabinovitz said hopes all former Panther wrestlers attend.

One key number to focus on is 500. The Panthers sit at 498 career victories as the season approaches.

W-H opens its schedule Saturday, Dec. 10 at North Attleboro against East Providence and Pathfinder.

“We are a very young team with several empty weight classes so I look to be competitive in every match we wrestle,” Rabinovitz said.

No. 300 for Floeck: W-H coach credits his staff consistency for milestone win

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Photo by: Sue Moss

David Floeck has won his 300th game at Whitman-Hanson Regional High.

After the dust settled, the final whistle was blown and the score final, Whitman-Hanson Regional High girls’ soccer head coach David Floeck had recorded his 300th career victory on the sidelines for the Panthers.

“We’ve been very fortunate to have great players,” Floeck said. “Year in and year out, great players come to us, and that’s a credit to the youth leagues.” 

It was a hard-fought game for the W-H on Tuesday, Oct. 18, but its 2-0 win over Plymouth North was enough to secure the milestone for Floeck.

After W-H athletic director Bob Rodgers alerted fans Floeck, who also serves as the school’s assistant principal, was on the verge of the 300 mark, more emphasis was put on W-H’s Saturday tilt versus Hingham as he sat at 299. Unfortunately for the Panthers, Floeck was turned back after a 2-1 loss, so he had to wait until Tuesday’s game.

Besides the constant infusion of talented players into the system, Floeck credits the consistency of his coaching staff as a large piece of his success. Tom Zamagni has been with Floeck since he started coaching at W-H 21 years ago, Brandon Dineen has guided the Panthers’ JV team for 13 years and Glenn Ward, who Floeck replaced in 1996, is now the head coach of the freshman team.

“When you try to implement a philosophy in the program, in terms of our core values and things that we stand for, it’s nice when we have a coaching staff that knows what we’re trying to do at all three levels,” Floeck said.

Floeck’s coaching career began in 1990, when he was hired to head the East Bridgewater boys’ soccer team, where he worked until 1995. Ironically for Floeck, he said he actually never thought about coaching girls.

“It was a difficult switch,” Floeck said. “But, I took the leap and I couldn’t be happier.”

One of the most influential figures in Floeck’s life he said was his father. Josef Floeck, born in Germany, played an instrumental role in getting his son involved in the game and also played a key role in helping establish soccer at East Bridgewater High School and was one of the founding members of the South Shore League.

“Soccer has always been a huge part of our family and it still is today,” Floeck said. “As soon as we could walk in the house, we were kicking a soccer ball.”

The girls’ soccer team will be back on the field Saturday at 6 p.m. when it hosts Weymouth.

5K honors memory of sparking little girl

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East Bridgewater residents Heather and Shane Craven are inviting all local towns to come out to support their late daughter in the Sydney Craven Memorial Fund 5K Tutu Run & SparkeFest.

EAST BRIDGEWATER — March 28, 2013 was a special day for Heather and Shane Craven. The couple introduced two newborns, Sydney and Logan, who were separated by one minute at birth.

Gender was about the only thing that set these two apart, as they would spend countless days and nights living the same fun-filled lives. They were certainly joined at the hip. Little did the young family know what they were about to endure.

On March 19, 2015, nine days short of the twins’ second birthday, the Cravens’ lives were about to be turned upside down. The unimaginable, the indescribable, the incomprehensible happened; their beautiful daughter stopped breathing. The family went from perfect lives to an immediate state of grief. One thing was for certain, they wanted to continue Sydney’s legacy in more ways than a gravestone.

After Sydney’s passing, friends and family began to join together to carry on her smile and special touch by creating the Sydney Craven Memorial Fund, a non-profit organization. Now, the family is expanding their efforts to honor Sydney.

On Saturday, June 18, what is intended to be an annual event — the Sydney Craven Memorial Fund 5K Tutu Run & SparkleFest — will take place.

It’s not often that you see folks running through the streets in tutus, but Heather Craven said they were her daughter’s go-to outfit.

“Sydney was always in a tutu with a matching bow,” Craven said. “She loved to dance.”

The sparkle wasn’t something Sydney had to put on, it came natural, according to Craven.

“She was spunky, full of energy, and just was a sweet girl full of personality,” Craven said.

Registration for the run begins at 8 a.m. and will cost $20 for children and $30 for adults. Kids ages six to 12 will receive a water, banana, bar, and shirt. There will also be finish line snacks and water stops along the route. The race begins at 9 a.m.

The run will start at East Bridgewater Common, head down Central Street and sweep through Chestnut and Bridge Street before heading into the home stretch.

The SparkleFest on the common will also begin at 9 a.m. and will feature dancing and lawn games, crafts, a bounce house, face painting, and much more. The event will conclude at 1 p.m.

Craven said it was a no-brainer to have an event such as this one.

“Sydney’s legacy inspired me,” Craven said. “She was taken way to early, and unexpectedly. I wanted to do something immediately so people could remember her, and I could find strength from her fund.”

All of the money raised will go towards scholarships for children under the age of 12 in the East Bridgewater, Bridgewater, and West Bridgewater communities.

You can visit the Sydney Craven Memorial Fund’s website at sydneycraven.com.

Matt Evans commits to Trinity College, football team

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Matt Evans will play football at Trinity College next year.

Hardworking, tough, and intelligent is how Whitman-Hanson Regional High senior Matt Evans describes his uncle, now he gets the chance to follow in his footsteps on the gridiron.

It’s not often that a child gets to turn on the television and say, “Hey, there is my uncle”. But, for Evans that was the case.

Throughout his childhood, Evans grew up admiring his uncle Matt Tower. Tower stared on the Boston College Eagles from 1998-2001.

“I was just a little kid watching him, but I thought it was the coolest thing ever,” Evans said. “That’s probably where I first fell in love with the game and I owe him that.”

Now, the 6-foot-3 Evans will be making his own mark at the next level, after announcing his commitment to play football at Trinity College in the fall. Evans, a three-year varsity player, contributed on both ends of the ball as a center and defensive end for the Panthers.

“Trinity is a good fit for me because college is supposed to set you up for a good career for the rest of your life and I believe Trinity will do just that,” Evans said.

Evans, a Whitman resident, has amassed some incredible feats during his time at Whitman-Hanson. Evans has been tabbed a WATD Player of the Week, an Enterprise All-Scholastic, been a part of the boys’ basketball team’s record-setting run, and will compete in the Shriners All-Star Football Classic.

Evans said his proudest moment on the field for the Panthers came during their 41-12 win over rival Abington, their first win over the Green Wave since 2011.

“The turkey that day seemed just a little bit better than usual,” Evans said. “I had a crowd of 15-20 family members cheering me on so that goes to show the support from them.”

Whitman-Hanson Regional High football head coach Mike Driscoll said he hopes one key aspect of Evans’ daily grind rubs off on his younger players heading into next season.

“Hard work in the offseason leads to results on the field,” Driscoll said.

As he prepares for the fall, Evans said he isn’t doing anything out of the ordinary and is just following his routine that has gotten him to this point.

“I’ve just been continuing to go to the gym and workout for next season to prep my body for college football,” Evans said.

Evans added he couldn’t have gotten to this point without guidance from many important people.

“I just want to thank my coaches, my teammates, and of course my parents for supporting me playing football and giving me memories that will last forever,” he said. 

Coletti runs to West Point

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Samantha Colleti will run at Army West Point next season. The Whitman-Hanson Regional High senior is a heralded runner.

One local Hanson resident is taking her talents to the collegiate level by a different route.

Samantha Coletti has officially received her appointment from the United States Military Academy at West Point, N.Y.

Coletti, a senior at Whitman-Hanson Regional High, first showed interest in attending the United States Military Academy before the school year began. Coletti reached out to the track coach about it via email over the summer, and said she was thrilled when she heard the news that she was accepted.

“I remember running downstairs in excitement after getting a call from [the track coach] a few days later,” Coletti said.

W-H girls’ indoor trach head coach, Steve George, said Coletti is the type of athlete coaches dream of having. Screen Shot 2018-01-14 at 11.00.13 AM

“Samantha is one of those student-athletes that comes along rarely, if ever, for most coaches,” George said. “I was aware of Samantha when she was in middle school, but didn’t have the opportunity to work with her until two years ago when I got the Whitman-Hanson coaching position. I kidded one of Samantha’s neighbors while I was still coaching at Notre Dame Academy in Hingham that I would be happy to pay Samantha’s tuition if she would transfer to NDA.”

Coletti said she has been running for about nine years, with four at the high school level. Her list of achievements while running for Whitman-Hanson Regional High Schoolis immense.

“My biggest accomplishments so far have been being the first Whitman-Hanson girl to win two state titles in one day,” Coletti said. “I won the MIAA Division 3 indoor mile and the MIAA Division 3 1,000-meter races.”

George said Coletti’s success stems from her passion and dedication to running.

“She is physically gifted, mentally tough, and follows our training platform to perfection, but running for her is not drudgery as it is for some,” George said. “It is what she enjoys doing. Loving your work makes it easier to succeed.”

Coletti said she has gained a wealth of knowledge over her time in high school.

“What I’ve learned at Whitman-Hanson is how important team is,” Coletti said. “You can’t do anything by yourself. On the track team, everyone is important.”

Coletti is a year-round competitor. She ran cross country in the fall, is running indoor track this winter and will run outdoor track in the spring.

As for the next level, Coletti said she is most excited to be a part of the traditions at West Point and to build strong relationships with her fellow cadets and eventually become a leader in the Army.

When Coletti isn’t running, she said she has an interest in art and an eagerness to spend time with friends andfamily. There is one more message that she would like to convey to everyone who made this opportunity come true.

There is one more message that she would like to convey to everyone who made this opportunity come true.

“I want to say thank you to anyone who has supported me,” Coletti said. “My family, coach, friends and teachers, I really appreciate everything you have done for me.”