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Season Review: Boys’ basketball courts success

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Photo by: Sue Moss

The boys’ basketball team finished the year 18-7, including a pair of playoff wins.

Once again, the Whitman-Hanson Regional High boys’ basketball team was tasked with replacing its entire starting five at the outset of the season. Once again, it was no problem as the Panthers marched to their 11th straight tournament appearance.

“It sets the foundation for future teams to build on,” said 19-year head coach Bob Rodgers, whose team finished the year 18-7. “It’s now an expectation that we’re gonna make the state tournament.”

However, unlike last season, the Panthers advanced in the tournament, winning their first two games as the eight seed. In the first round of the Div. 2 South playoffs, they knocked off ninth-ranked Dennis-Yarmouth, 60-57, followed by a win over top-seeded Randolph, 60-51, in the quarterfinals.

“I didn’t really know what to expect going into the season,” Rodgers said. “It was really a case of a really balanced team. We didn’t have anyone who scored 15 or 20 points per game. I couldn’t be more happy than what this team accomplished and how we grew from the beginning of the year to where we were at the end.”

In their third trip to the semifinals in the past four seasons, they succumbed to second-ranked New Mission, 79-70, in overtime.

The Panthers were indeed led by a balanced effort on offense with five players contributing 5.5 ppg or more.

“We didn’t have any inside presence, in terms of pounding it into a post player, but we really got to the hoop really well,” Rodgers said. “We had a lot of guys that could drive and knock down the 3 really well.”

The Panthers certainty did knock down the 3 ball really well. After connecting on just 149 triples last season, one that Rodgers coined an apparition, they sunk around 200 this year.

Junior Ben Rice scorer led the 3-point barrage with around 50. He also led the team in scoring with over 11.6 ppg.

“Ben is an absolute gym rat,” Rodgers said. “He’s always in the gym working on his shot. He had steady improvement in his game in terms of becoming a better defender and becoming someone we can rely on to do more than just shoot the ball.”

With an ability to get into the lane for a quick two and knock down a shot from beyond the arc, sophomore Cole LeVangie produced close to 10 ppg, which was good for second on the team.

“He can handle the ball and can shoot it,” Rodgers said. “He’s very unselfish and plays a total team basketball game.”

Junior Stevie Kelly was a sparkplug at the point for the Panthers’ offense, delivering over 130 assists on the season and averaging right around 8.3 ppg.

“He’s just a hard-nosed, tough player who can affect the game on both ends of the court,” Rodgers said. “He’s a terrific defensive player. He’s physically stronger than most guards he goes up against. He was an outstanding player for us this year.”

Rodgers said he knows exactly what he is looking for from his players this offseason.

“It’s going to take the entire group to committing to getting stronger and basically playing the game together, and still improving our shooting and still improving our basketball skill,” said the coach. “It’s going to depend on which guys are bringing guys into the gym with them, not just going into the gym themselves.”

Season Review: Boys’ hockey team leaves Googins with many reasons to be proud

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Many stepped up this season to push the Panthers to their first tournament appearance since 2013. (Photo by Sue Moss)

After the Whitman-Hanson Regional High boys’ hockey team fell to Westwood, 5-1, in the first round of the Division 2 South Sectional tournament, head coach Chris Googins had a simple message for his team.

“I told them, ‘Don’t underestimate what we achieved as a team this year. It was a few years since we’ve been to the tournament. There were a lot of good things that were accomplished this year,’” said the eighth-year coach, in his third season of his second stint with W-H.

A few years is an understatement. It had been since 2013 when the Panthers last made the playoffs. After coming within two points last season, they made it by one point this time around with a 10-9-1 mark.

“The big difference is there was a little bit more depth this year,” Googins said. “There’s some kids that emerged. A lot more depth was the key to it and when we did have injures this year, there were kids that stepped up and filled the voids and we moved on.”

Some games the Panthers were even able to roll out a third line featuring sophomore Josh Pike and juniors Calvin Cooper and Reed Watson.

“It’s the first time in my three years [back] here I can actually say we played at times three lines,” Googins said. “They did a real nice job.”

The Panthers’ top line was where of course they received a bulk of their production. Junior Adam Solari paced the Panthers with 10 goals and 14 assists and classmate Chris Stoddard was close behind with 13 goals and 10 assists.

“Adam had a nice season offensively,” Googins said. “When given time and space, he’s pretty creative.

“Chris Stoddard had multiple games with multiple goals. It was to absolute no surprise he could do that. He’s a gritty little kid who has good hockey IQ. He’s a very deceptive player.”

Senior assistant captain and forward Owen Manning was also a playmaker up front, potting six goals and dishing out 14 assists. Along with being one of two Panthers league all-stars, he was selected a Shriners All-Star Classic participant.

Senior captain Ed Scriven (11 goals and 12 assists) started the season on the first line but converted to defense to fill a void. He was also named a league all-star. Behind Scriven, sophomore goalie Bob Siders, a transfer from Archbishop Williams, emerged as a rock. He held Duxbury, the eventual Division 1 state champion, to three goals over six periods of action and won consecutive do-or-die games down the stretch.

“He was given the opportunity to come in and earn the starting job, he did and for the most part he was steady,” Googins said of Siders.

Googins said he can visualize Whitman-Hanson hockey becoming a contender in the not so distant future. It all starts in the spring.

“The kids are really buying into the importance of how much you have to work in the offseason and getting out of your comfort zone,” he said. “Whether it’s working out or whether it’s trying to play high-level hockey in the offseason to compete with surrounding towns. It’s happening. Kids are actually taking this sport seriously and realizing that you got to play the game and train for the game year round if you want to compete.”

Season Review: For WHSL, ‘We’re so close’

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WHSL skated to a four-win season. (Photo by Sue Moss)

Inconsistency. It was a thorn in the Whitman-Hanson/Silver Lake high school girls’ hockey team’s side all season.

“We’ll play two really good periods and have one really bad period and every time we had a really bad period, it hurt us,” said fourth-year WHSL head coach Kevin Marani, whose team finished the winter 4-13-2.

The co-op’s youth played a large factor in its inability to string together a full three periods. Fifteen of its 19 skaters were either freshmen or sophomores. They dropped five games by two goals or less. Wins came against Stoughton (twice), Quincy/North Quincy and Shawsheen.

“I said to the girls, ‘We’re so close. Once you start to win, it becomes a habit,’” Marani said. “We had a ton of one-goal games, two-goal games with an empty net.”

The Panthers did make strides from last season, doubling their win total, upping their points total from four to 10 and potting 62 goals as opposed to 31.

Back with WHSL  after playing club hockey last season, junior captain Alyssa Murphy (Kingston) was a force on offense, netting 27 goals and dishing out 15 assists. She was in on 67 percent of the team’s tallies.

“She’s such a good talent,” Marani said. “Her talent speaks for herself. She was very unselfish, all about the team. Everything she does is team first. “

Sophomore Emily McDonald (Whitman) was second on the team with 15 points (6 goals and 9 assists). Not only did she play on the same line as Murphy, but she’ll serve as a captain with her next season as well.

“She’s another great kid,” Marani said. “She’s a leader. She is a quiet girl that leads by example. She is probably the hardest working player on our team. Every practice she is there. She is exactly what we want from every single player. If we had 20 Emily’s we’d be very, very good.”

Surprisingly enough, Marani said the strength of the team was defense. To be strong on defense, you need a steady presence in net, and sophomore Kat Gilbert (Halifax) provided that, turning away 481 shots.

“Kat is becoming a really goalie,” Marani said. “She is one of the better goalies in the league and that is a big part because she was committed. A lot of her issues were concentration.”

Freshmen Lilly Ulvila (Kingston) and Abby Powers (Kingston) provided the Panthers with a look into the future. The two combined for 11 goals and 10 assists.

Marani said he has the same expectations heading into the offseason as he did coming into this year.

“We should make the state tournament next year,” said the coach. “If we don’t, it’s going to be a disappointment.”

Season Review: Boys’ indoor track a ‘dedicated’ team

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The boys’ track team finished 2-3.

In Mike Driscoll’s 20-plus years coaching track at Whitman-Hanson Regional High, this winter’s boys’ team holds a special place in his heart.

Not only is it his last, but it is one of the most dedicated groups he’s coached.

“I was telling some of the coaches that this is one of the hardest working groups we’ve had,” said Driscoll, who is stepping away from track to spend more time with his family. “They never complained and they just went about their business every day and it makes going to practice a lot of fun.”

It’s that sort of attitude that payed off for many of the Panthers.

Senior captain Billy Martell embodied selflessness and hard work. Already one of the best sprinters in the Patriot League, Martell took on the shot put, and flourished.

“At the beginning of the year we circled the shot put and said, ‘I don’t know how we’ll be,’” recalled Driscoll. “He goes, ‘Nah, I’ll be alright.’”

He was alright, finishing sixth at the Patriot League championships with a throw of over 41-feet-1 1/2 inches. Junior Pat Bui was another sprinter who took on the shot put, finishing eighth at the Patriot League championships with a throw of 37-feet-8 inches.

“He had a great season,” said Driscoll. “It was huge for us.”

Senior Kyle O’Brien burst onto the scene for the Panthers, who finished 2-3, posting a career year, capped by a ninth-place performance in the 600-meter run in the Div. 3 championships with a time of 1:28.35.

“He stepped it up,” said Driscoll. “He told us before the year that he was going to have a good year and he really worked his tail off to be good and it was awesome to see. Meet after meet he would get better and better. He was dedicated to his craft.”

Crossovers from cross country in sophomore Theo Kamperides and junior Brandon Hager were huge for the Panthers. Kamperides had a pair of wins in the 2-mile run.

“He was a great addition to the winter team,” Driscoll said of Kamperides. “He carried it over from the great pace that he had and he had a really good year. He ran with everybody and never backed down.”

Hager starred in the 1-mile run.

“Brandon had a lot of depth,” Driscoll said. “He’s just kind of tapping the surface of how good he can be as a runner. I really feel like those kids are going to jell in the fall. He works so hard in the races that you just see it in the guys he’s racing like, ‘Oh boy this guy’s not going to go away.’ And he doesn’t. He’s got a lot of depth.”

Driscoll said the highlight of the winter came Jan. 4 in a 51-48 victory over Pembroke, where the 4×200 relay team of Bui, Martell, fellow seniors Sean Kukauskas and Nic Fernandes clinched the win.

“That was a huge win for us,” Driscoll said. “That was a big night for the kids. [Pembroke] is someone we all respect in the track world, and to beat them was a cool thing.”

While Driscoll won’t be back next season, he said he believes the program only get better.

“I think they’re in good shape,” Driscoll said. “I think they’ll continue to grow. I think they’ll continue to get better and the numbers will grow.

“I told all the coaches, ‘I’m always going to be pushing Whitman-Hanson track. It’s in my blood forever and anything I can do to help them I will.’”

Season Review: No quit in girls’ basketball team

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The Panthers before the anthem. / Photo by: Sue Moss

W-H finished the season at 12-10.

Shortly into its first practice, the Whitman-Hanson Regional High girls’ basketball team was dealt a major blow. Senior co-captain Erin Leahy went down with an injury.

Leahy, who was a Patriot League All-Star last season after missing a chunk of her sophomore campaign with a torn ACL, was expected to be a major contributor. She wouldn’t see the floor all season.

It took the Panthers a few games to find their rhythm, stumbling out of the gate to an 0-2 record. After that second loss, 42-34 to Hingham, sixth-year head coach Jenna Olem remained assured her team would figure it out.

“We’re gonna be better than you think,” she said at the time. “It’s a work in progress.”

She was right. The Panthers locked down wins in their next five games. Two of those wins came in the Hoosac Valley tournament, as the Panthers knocked off the host Hurricanes (this season’s D3 Western Mass champions) and Greenfield (this season’s D3 Western Mass. runner-up).

The Panthers first league test was a matchup against Duxbury, and an Ann O’Neill 3-pointer sent them to victory.

W-H ended league play at 7-7. It had both Plymouth North and Duxbury, in its rematch, on the ropes, but just couldn’t finish them off.

The Panthers capped the season with wins over Abington (44-25) and Rockland (59-53), two tournament teams, to claim the Shawn Cotter Invitational Tournament. The Panthers, who allowed 37.5 points per game during their last six regular-season contests, set out to win at least one in-season tournament this winter and they won both.

In the D1 South tournament, the 11th-seeded Panthers succumbed to sixth-seeded Mansfield in a nail bitter, 45-41, finishing 12-10 on the year.

W-H was paced by the play of senior forward Kathryn Dunn (11.5 ppg , 8 rpg and 3.5 apg) and junior Britany Gacicica (8.4 ppg and 7.3 rpg) this season, both of whom league all-stars. O’Neill, juniors Olivia Martin (third on team with 6.6 ppg) and Hannah Damon (second on team with 2.5 apg) and sophomore Reese Codero all stepped up in spurts.

Season Review: Girls’ indoor track team put forth strong effort

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The Panthers set many individual marks.

For the Whitman-Hanson Regional High girls’ indoor track team, the record wasn’t there, but the effort was.

The Panthers, despite an 0-5 mark on the season, did what they could.

“Indoor track is always a tough sell because we train in the cold and there are, admittedly, other options for the student-athletes,” said head coach Steve George. “I couldn’t have been more pleased with their efforts.”

George credited the 0-5 campaign to a lack of depth. The Panthers had nearly 40 participants, which is low compared to the rest of the Patriot League.

“We are rarely shut out in any single event, but while we have one athlete scoring, our opponents have two,” said George, whose team dropped three meets by 18 points or less. “It’s tough to win when you’re outmanned to that degree.”

The Panthers did still have their share of wins, even if they didn’t show up in their record.

“Victories for a team like ours come every week in individual events, so each time we compete there are bright spots,” George said. “We were competitive each week overall.”

Junior Courtney Woodward was one of many bright spots for W-H.

“[She] moved from distance to mid-distance this year and ran the team’s best times in the 300- and 600-meter runs, along with jumping in with our 4×200 and 4×400 at times, [and] was a major contributor,” George said. “The switch to mid-distance, which she suggested following last year’s campaign, was the right move at the right time for both Courtney and the team.”

Just a sophomore, Izzy Amado was a key contributor.

“In my opinion, [she’s] the strongest athlete since Samantha Coletti graduated three years ago,” George said. “Izzy is a very good miler, an extraordinary 1,000-meter runner and closes the gap or extends the lead in incredible fashion in every relay she enters. One of our spring heptathletes.”

Amado’s classmate, Anna Sullivan, was also strong in bevy of events and is another spring track heptathlete.

“[She’s] our top miler and two miler and anchors our 4×400 and 4×800 relays,” George said. “Just a gifted distance runner who impressed in her first indoor season.”

George coined Dorothy DiMascio-Donohue as a ‘senior who can do it all.’”

“She can sprint, hurdle, high jump, long jump and run mid-distance and relay events,” George said. “[She] competes in both the Indoor pentathlon and spring heptathlon and is a leader in track and in the classroom.”

Senior captain Ally Bartlett was W-H top points getter, scoring in nearly 40 percent of the team’s points.

“[She is] the team’s best in hurdles, long jump and shot put,” George said. “Also a pentathlete/heptathlete and team MVP and Commitment Award recipient.”

George said his vision for the program remain unwavered.

“The goal is to increase participation and with more athletes, achieve greater success in competition,” he said. “Our kids are out there spreading the word that track is not all work, it can be a lot of fun, too.

“What I always hear is that kids just don’t want to put in the effort involved in the sport. While that may apply to some, I don’t think it can be universally applied to our students. All I hope for is that kids will try it, then decide. Nearly 50 years ago I did and fell in love with the sport.”

Season Review: Togetherness a strength for wrestling team

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Photo by: Sue Moss

The wrestling team finished with a 7-20 mark, but was white-hot in the homestretch.

Whitman-Hanson Regional High wrestling coach Gary Rabinovitz is coining the 2018-19 season a success.

For the Panthers, who finished the year with wins in four of seven matches, despite their 7-20 mark, they made progress. They sent three wrestlers to state tournaments, as opposed to zero last season, had a sectional finalist and their first tournament champion in two years.

Sophomore Damari Goldsmith-Greene (138 pounds) was a standout for W-H all season long, collecting a team-high 29 wins, placing in four tournaments and finishing seventh at states.

“Damari is a very coachable student-athlete and gives it 100 percent every day in both practice and matches,” Rabinovitz said. “He is a class act and has not even come close to reaching his potential as of yet. I like to say when a wrestler really gets it that he flicks the switch. Damari has certainly flicked the switch and this happened at the sectional tournament. Going forward he will not look back.”

Rabinovitz credited junior captain Steve Brooks (152), who missed 17 matches, with providing the Panthers with their first high point of the season with a win at the Weymouth Tournament on Jan. 12.

“Steve does a great deal of offseason wrestling and I believe that is the key to his continued success,” Rabinvotiz said. “Steve is in the same zone as Damari, he too believes he can win every match that he competes in.”

Junior Bethany Ralph provided the Panthers with another high point, finishing second in the first ever girls’ wrestling state championship.

“For the past three years Bethany Ralph has been a model of consistency for our team,” Rabinovitz said. “She is one of the hardest workers on our team day in and day out, giving 110 percent every single day. She took a big lead this season and I look forward to her senior leadership next season. Bethany has proven that hard work does pay off.”

Freshmen Jason Rapoza (13 wins at 182) and Rocco Ruffini (10 wins at 220) gave the Panthers a quick glimpse into the future. Junior captain Tyler Cullinan boasted 19 wins, 12 of which came by pinfall, at 160 pounds.

Rabinovitz said togetherness was his team’s strength.

“The team support, especially at the end of a long season when only two wrestlers are left competing was impressive,” Rabinovitz said. “Nearly half the team showed up to practice over the final two weeks to support both Damari and Bethany.”

Sophomore Matt Butler, who was second on the team last season with 16 wins, was held to just 7 matches, in which he was 6-1 in, due to injury.

As for the future, the Panthers will return 12 of 16 tournament place winners and Rabinovitz said he has high optimism for the 2019-20 season already.

“We have several really competitive eighth graders that we have been waiting for and they will finally arrive for next season,” Rabinovitz said. “We are losing only three seniors and two were starters. Time will tell, but offseason wrestling is the key for next season.”

Season Review: Football team seniors made their mark from the start

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Seniors with trophy. / Photo by: Sue Moss

The senior-laden Panthers went 8-3 on the season.

When they were freshmen, Whitman-Hanson Regional High football head coach Mike Driscoll knew there was just something different about this season’s group of seniors.

“There were a bunch of them,” Driscoll said. “They started with like 40 kids and they were rolling people and playing good football.”

But the success isn’t what caught his immediate attention.

“You could tell the core of the kids really loved the game,” Driscoll said. “We kind of knew coming into their sophomore year that we were going to get something out a few of the kids. We knew early on that they were going to be a pretty good group.”

As sophomores they helped lead the team to a 7-4 season, as juniors they did the same, but in their final seasons the 16 of them helped Driscoll hit a mark he hadn’t since his first year as head coach. That’s the eight-win plateau.

“I told the seniors how proud we were of them for their four years in the program, and I told the younger guys to remember how it feels and do what those kids did and just continue on what they did,” said the eighth-year head coach.

The Panthers posted statement wins over Marshfield (41-13) in their opener, Quincy (39-0), Silver Lake (29-6) and Abington (16-0) on Thanksgiving.

“They were a hard-working group,” Driscoll said. “They were a resilient group and they were talented.”

With its offense working through some changes throughout the season, W-H’s defense was its one constant, as it recorded three shutouts and surrendered just 11.7 points per game. The unit was led by senior captain and league all-star Mike Connors. The middle linebacker racked up a team-leading 100 tackles.

“Mike is the quarterback in the middle and made our defense run,” Driscoll said. “He knows the game inside and out and it pays off. Mike is a student of the game.”

While Connors shored up the middle, senior Billy Martell was the rock in the secondary, recording 52 tackles and three interceptions from his safety position. On offense, he chipped in 518 rushing yards and three scores. The two-way threat was also a league all-star.

“He’s very dynamic in the backfield but his defense was really, really impressive at safety,” Driscoll said. “You didn’t have to worry about too much with him in the back.”

Senior captain Quinn Sweeney and classmate Ryan Trongone were also two-way stars for W-H on the line. Sweeney was second on the team with 85 tackles and led it with 24 tackles for loss and seven sacks en route to a league all-star selection. Trongone was second on the team with 17 tackles for loss to go with 65 tackles.

“They’re the heart and soul of the team,” Driscoll said. “[They’re] gritty, tough and hard-nosed football players. They played great, but they also practiced great.”

Senior Nate Beath, a transfer from Pembroke, was a three-way asset for W-H due to his punting (31.8 punt average), blocking, rushing (244 yards, two TDs) and tackling (58 tackles and 5.5 sacks).

“Nate can do it all, he’s a really, really good football player,” Driscoll said. “I wish we had him in our program for all four years because I think he’s a legit player. He’s as good as they come.”

On offense, senior captain Ethan Phelps rushed for 654 yards and 12 TDs and was tabbed a league all-star.

“He could see the field pretty well,” Driscoll said. “We knew he was a great runner so he stepped into that role and from Day 1 he moved forward and got better at it as the season went on.”

It’s tough to find one player who had a more immense impact on the offense than senior captain Rian Schwede, who switched from wide receiver to fill a void at quarterback early in the season. In an Oct. 15 win over Quincy, he ran for, caught and threw a TD.

“Without Rian, we don’t win eight games,” Driscoll said. “That’s a fact. Rian Schwede gave up being an allleague receiver to switch to quarterback to help the team and that shows a lot about him as a person and his character.”

Driscoll said that while he’s graduating significant talent off this season’s roster, he’s optimistic about what the future holds for his program that finished off the year with a combined freshman, JV and varsity record of 20-1.

“We won a lot of football games this fall,” he said. “These kids know how to win, they work hard. They’re already working hard. We think we’re in good shape. We’re not where we want to be yet but we’re going to get there.”

Season Review: For boys’ soccer team, an ‘unlucky, learning’ season

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The Panthers huddle up. / Photo by: Sue Moss

The Panthers had a four-win season due to a variety of reasons.

Head coach Dave Leahy described this past season as an unlucky, learning experience for the Whitman-Hanson Regional High boys’ soccer team, which went 4-14-1.

The Panthers were down three key pieces before the season even began with the transfers of sophomores Peyton Collins to BC High and Joel Arsenault to Brockton and broken ankle of junior midfielder Adam Milewski, sustained in the preseason.

However, the Panthers hung tough at the outset — rallying around the losses rather than using them as excuses — as evident by their 2-0 start.

But once they got into their first half of league play, the Panthers dropped six of their next seven, and finding the net was becoming an issue. W-H pumped in just 10 goals over those seven games. Four of them came in a 4-1 victory over Plymouth South.

“The biggest difference between this year and last year (11-8-1) was the group of seniors,” the second-year head coach said. “Last year we had more seniors who had played together for many years. This year our group of seniors was smaller in numbers and had played together a lot less.”

As the fall wore on, W-H lost sophomore starter Brendan Nehiley for two weeks and junior starting goalie Andrew Sullivan for the last fourth of the season.

With the rash of injuries came opportunities, and sophomore Dalton Desrocher took his advantage.

“Dalton Desrocher stepped up and had a consistent season in the center midfield positions, playing consistent defense, passing the ball well and adding a fewgoals,” Leahy said.

The boys did finish the year on a high note with a 2-1 triumph over Rockland.

“It was like our only playoff game,” Leahy said. “It was important for seniors to go away with a positive and for returningplayers to have something to build on in the preseason.”

The Panthers were led on offense by nine goals and three assists from junior captain Jason Broduer and seven goals and four assists from senior Nolan Clack.

The defense was buoyed by senior Ben Rogers and junior captain Stevie Kelly, the team’s lone Patriot League All-Star.

Leahy said as disappointing as the campaign was, he’s optimistic the team can use it to its advantage.

“We worked very hard as a group heading into the 2018 season, but bad luck got in our way,” Leahy said. “I hope the disappointments felt by returning players in the program will feel motivated to improve as much as they possibly can to get us back on the more successful side in 2019.”

Season Review: Girls’ volleyball doubles win total

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The Panthers huddle up. / Photo by: Sue Moss

The Panthers were two wins away from making the tournament, and they certainly had their chances.

Whitman-Hanson Regional High girls’ volleyball team second-year head coach Ashley Balbian strongly believes her team had what it takes to make the postseason, despite falling short.

The Panthers finished the fall with an 8-11 record, which doubled their win total from the previous season, and put them two victories away from the playoffs. 

Of those 11 losses, three times the Panthers jumped out to advantages and twice took a 2-1 lead into fourth the set, only to have their opposition to battle back and claim the victory.

“I feel like that was our biggest challenge once we got halfway through the season, we could be successful in many one or two sets and we just couldn’t sustain it,” Balbian said. “It’s a long stretch of time, but just keeping our energy up and positivity was hard for us sometimes.”

Balbian said the biggest difference between this season’s team and last fall’s club was experience. The Panthers returned nine players, all of whom received playing time at the top level.

“I had so many girls returning on varsity,” Balbian said. “They had been playing together obviously last year but throughout the summer. A lot of them played on club teams together, which was helpful. I expected that this team would do well.”

But what Balbian didn’t expect was the starting lineup she’d be penning in at the end of the season. All five of the Panthers’ seniors ended the fall as starters, which was not foreseen going into the season. Kayla Crawford worked her way up to starting defensive specialist, Kylie Gervasio became a starting setter and Erin Leahy started at middle hitter. Seniors Allison Hanlon starred at outside hitter and Nicole Scott at libero, and both were league all-stars.

“I’m proud of them for [starting] because I wasn’t expecting all of the seniors to necessarily be starting,” Balbain said. “I’m proud they were able to earn those spots in the end and play together really well. That was huge for us.”

Hanlon registered her 200th career kill in the final game of the season, a 3-2 win over Bridgewater-Raynham.

“That’s a huge deal,” Balbian said.

Balbian did have some players set to return sprinkled in her lineup as well with junior captains Olivia Martin at right side hitter, Alexis Connolly at outside hitter, classmate Ella Sweeney at middle hitter and sophomore Caileen Hurley at setter.

“I want to see them be more confident on the court,” Balbian said. “I want to see them play together as much as possible.”