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Ford charts new course as Mass Maritime coach

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She continues to be a trailblazer. 
Whitman-Hanson Regional High grad Meghan Ford has been hired as the wide receivers coach at Mass Maritime Academy.  
Ford served as a student-athlete coach working with wide receivers at Coastal Carolina, where she graduated from in 2023. 
“I’m so thrilled for this next step, I know with it will come so much growth,” Ford tweeted. “I am so grateful and so excited.”
Earlier this year Ford participated in an NFL Women’s forum. 
“I am so honored to be apart of this class,” Ford tweeted. “Truly an experience I will never forget. Your dedication and efforts for change in the sport of football does not go unnoticed. I’m so blessed to have been apart.”  
Mass Maritime kicks off their season Friday, Sept. 3 at 7 pm at Maritime (N.Y.).

—Nathan Rollins

Sam Mewis announces retirement from soccer

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Hanson’s hometown hero, Sam Mewis, has called it a career. 
The 31-year-old Mewis announced she has retired from soccer due to a repetitive knee injury.
“With both sadness and clarity, I am retiring from professional soccer,” Mewis posted on X, formerly known as Twitter. “Unfortunately, my knee can no longer tolerate the impact that elite soccer requires. Though this isn’t what I wanted, it’s clear that this is the only path forward for me.”
Mewis became the talk of the town during summer of 2019, when she helped lift the United States Women’s team to a World Cup title. She played in six of seven matches and had two goals. 
In 2020, Mewis was voted the U.S. Soccer Female Player of the Year. 
Then in 2021, the midfielder, along with her sister, Kristie, was a member of bronze medal winning team US at the Tokyo Olympics. She netted a hat trick in a 4-0 friendly victory over Colombia. 
Mewis graduated from Whitman-Hanson Regional High in 2010. 
Mewis out,
Sentnor in
While Mewis has called it a career, Hanson’s next soccer star has arrived in the big stage. 
Her name is Ally Sentnor. 
Sentnor, who graduated from Thayer Academy in 2021 before heading off to play at the University of North Carolina, was selected first overall by the Utah Royals in the 2024 National Women’s Soccer League Draft.

— Nathan Rollins

Marshfield swamps Panthers’ season

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It’s not how you start but how you finish. 
The Whitman-Hanson Regional High football team learned that the hard way last Friday night. 
The Panthers roared out to a 9-6 lead on Marshfield at the half. 
W-H got on the board first with a Tim Brown blocked punt for a safety in the first quarter.
Marshfield would then retake the lead until Johnny Walker punched it in from 1-yard out and a 9-6 Panthers advantage at the half. 
The Rams edged ahead in the third with a pick-6, before W-H answered with a 20-yard TD from Ryan Nash to Brendan Moore to regain the lead, 15-13.
It didn’t last. In fact, that was the last time the Panthers scored. 
That’s because Marshfield responded with 31 unanswered points to pull away for the 44-15 victory.
W-H finished the regular season at 3-5. 
Walker and Cam Beltramini led the way for the Panthers on both sides of the ball. They combined for 160 yards on the ground, with Walker finding the end zone once. Defensively, Walker had 14 tackles and Beltramini added an interception.

— Nathan Rollins

Kelly signs on at Babson

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College tours are mostly for high school students. That is unless you’re Marina Kelly. 
The 2014 Whitman-Hanson Regional High grad is continuing her passion for sports, signing on at Babson College as its new athletics administrator. 
Kelly served as Brown University’s men’s soccer team’s director of operations last year. 
“I am excited to welcome Marina to our Babson Athletics team,” Babson Associate Vice President for Athletics and Athletics Advancement Mike Lynch said in a press release. “She has a strong passion for athletics and her experience as a coach and two-sport collegiate athlete stood out during our search. Marina will play an important role in the success of our department and I look forward to working with her.”
Prior to Brown, Kelly served as an assistant women’s soccer at Scranton University and Regis College before that. 
“I am very excited for this opportunity as the new Athletic Department Administrator at Babson,” Kelly said. “I would like to thank Mike Lynch and the hiring committee and I look forward to working with everyone on campus. It is an honor to join the Babson Athletics family.”
The Whitman native was a two-sport standout at W-H in both soccer and basketball. 

Panthers are ready for Thanksgiving

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Turkey and football. 

Name two things that are more synonymous. 

Good luck, especially if you’re from the towns of Whitman, Hanson or Abington. 

That’s right. Those three towns are set to see their local high schools clash for the 111th time this Thursday at 10 a.m. at Abington. 

The Panthers are 5-5 on the season. 

They’re coming off of a 21-14 non-playoff victory over Westwood in which senior Ben Pace racked up three interceptions from his safety position.

W-H also owns wins against Pembroke, Foxboro, Silver Lake and Plymouth North. 

Abington sits at 4-6, fresh off a 28-0 loss to Rockland in the state quarterfinals. 

W-H leads the all-time series 60-47-3. 

Elsewhere around W-H: 

The Massachusetts All-State Championships were held on Saturday, Mov. 19, at Devens, Massachusetts. Whitman-Hanson had one runner entered in the meet.  Junior Sky Bucci-Anderson finished 101st among 189 of the state Div. 1 cross country runners, covering the 5K course in a time of 20:30. 

On the mat, W-H cheer placed fourth at states on Sunday, Nov. 20. 

— Nathan Rollins

Panthers are Back

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Thanks in large part to Ben Pace, the Whitman-Hanson Regional High football team is back on track. 

The senior captain hauled down three interceptions from his safety position in a 21-14 victory over Westwood in a non-playoff game on Saturday, Nov. 12. 

The Panthers’ defense was stout all contest. Fellow senior Nick Beauregard also came down with a pick of his own. 

Also on defense, classmate Collin Murphy added two sacks, bringing his season total to 10. 

On the other side of the ball, the Panthers were balanced all night with seniors Trevor Googins, Evan Casey, and Will Frazier all scoring on the ground. 

The win leveled W-H’s record at 5-5. 

The Panthers are back 

— Nathan Rollins

Tournament heartbreaker

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On the heels of a shutout  win in their tournament opener, the Lady Panthers soccer team fell to Notre Dame Academy 4-0.

 “It’s amazing how much adversity our tea, has faced this season with injuries, but the girls and coaches never gave up,” Athletic Director Bob Rodgers Tweeted after the Monday, Nov. 7 game. “They made us all proud.”

After a scoreless first half, Notre Dame poured on the offense, scoring their first goal five minutes into the second half. There was only 15 minutes to play when they capped off the scoring with their fourth goal.

The girls’ soccer team defeated Amherst-Pelham, 6-0, in their opening game of the MIAA tournament on Sunday, Nov. 6.

Makenna Marshall opened the scoring for W-H with a blast from 20 yards out, according to AD Bob Rodgers, and Kennedy Frazier doubled the goal with a put back off a Savannah Kamperides cross. The score remained 2-0 until the half.

The Panthers came out flying in the second half with goals from Anna Schnabel, Elizabeth Kowlski, Olivia Godwin and Ella Nagle. The defense of Brooke McAloney, Lexi Cole, Hayley Gillis and Kamperides were strong all night, helping goalkeeper Aylla Dernier earn the shutout. Ayla Dernier was outstandind in the midfield.

Season Preview: Youth movement for girls’ soccer

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Junior Savannah Kamperides vs. Plymouth South. / Photo by: Sue Moss

The defending Division 2 state champs have plenty of new faces around.

The Whitman-Hanson Regional High girls’ soccer team has its work cut out for it in 2022. 

Patriot League All-Stars Olivia Borgen, Ava Melia and Nora Manning have all graduated from last year’s D2 state title team. Borgen (Penn State) and Melia (Bryant) are both playing Division 1 soccer. Melia anchored the backline, while Borgen (team-high 23 goals and 14 assists) and Manning (12 goals and team-high 15 assists) provided some serious firepower up front. 

Senior captain Kayla Cassidy, who is committed to play D1 herself for the University of Cincinnati, was supposed to shoulder even more of the load on offense. Except Cassidy, who pumped in 18 goals last fall (good for second on the team), tore her ACL and is out for the season. 

“That’s big loss,” Floeck said. “That, on top of the senior class that we lost.” 

It doesn’t end there. 

Senior midfielder Madelyn Allen is also expected to miss most of the season due to injury.

There’s more. 

“Between June and July, five of our players suffered season-ending injuries,” Floeck said. “It has been like nothing that I’ve ever seen. We’ve even had some other younger players that have shown well that have suffered some serious injuries that appear to have them out for the season.” 

So who is healthy?

For starters, junior captain Makenna Marshall is and will lead the defense. Marshall has been on varsity since her freshman year. 

“We’re really looking for her to provide that leadership on and off the field,” Floeck said. “She is a tremendous player. She has the respect of all her teammates and she’s been through the biggest games we’ve played in. We’re relying on her to be the leader of the team and for our back line.”

Fellow junior Savannah Kamperides joins her back there.

“Savannah played an important role for us last year so this year we’re looking for her to come back and be strong on the back line,” Floeck said. 

While just juniors, Marshall and Kamperides are elder statesmen on the team, which features just one healthy senior in Ella Nagle. 

“As our lone senior on the field right now we’re counting on her to kind of shoulder some of that load (on offense),” Floeck said. 

Sophomore Maddie Fitzgerald should also play a key role on offense. 

“She played significant time for us last year as a freshman and we’re really counting on her to step up and be a catalyst for our attack,” Floeck said. 

It’s definitely a youth movement for the Panthers. 

“We have some freshmen that are really being thrown into the fire,” Floeck said. “Even our bench is all freshmen and sophomores. Our mantra to get better every day and if you’re doing that hopefully the results are going our way.”

Floeck said he’s excited about the development of his program. 

“We want to make sure we do it the right way,” he said. “We have a great opportunity that we’re not graduating much so if we can develop these players the right way this can really set us up going forward. We understand we’re going to make mistakes or they’re going to be in satiations they’ve never been in but we’re trying to work through that with them. Our league is not forgiving nor is the fact that I’m sure everyone wants to have a shot at us because we have had such success in the league over the years.”

The defending D2 champs are back in action on Thursday, Sept. 15 when they host Plymouth South at 6:30 p.m. 

“We want to see growth,” Floeck said. “We know that there’s going to be growing pains. There are things that we’re used to our teams being able to do that we’re just not there yet and from a coaching staff perspective we have to realize that and be there to support our kids when we put them in some situations like a Whitman-Hanson-Hingham rivalry or Plymouth North or Silver Lake. Everything is an opportunity. We just want to keep a positive attitude and focus on the things that we can control. We’re hoping to get better every day and see where that puts us.”

Season Preview: New boys’ soccer coach stressing fun, resiliency

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The Panthers scrimmage. / Photo by: Sue Moss

Fun is the name of the game.

First-year Whitman-Hanson Regional High boys’ soccer head coach Dan Rudolph wants his team to have some fun this fall. 

“They should enjoy practices, they should enjoy game day — just have a positive experience,” said Rudolph, who spent the past five years as Hingham’s JV coach. 

Rudolph also wants his group, which finished 2-14-2 last fall, to play competitive soccer. Part of that is learning from your mistakes, especially in a tough Patriot League. 

“We all agreed on and promised each other that we know we’re going to face adversity this season, playing against some good teams,” Rudolph said. “But we’re a good team too and we all agreed when we do come up against some adversity, we’re going to come out the next day and try to come up with some solutions with some of the things we can improve upon. We’re going to be resilient all season. There’s going to be some challenges, but we’re going to embrace them.”

Rudolph lauded his group of seniors (Andrew Chichlowski, Chase Fostello, Jack Navicky, Manny Osorio, Jackson Preskins and Devin Walsh) for leading the charge in that mindset. 

“We have a great group of senior leaders,” Rudolph said. “I’ve seen leadership from people in all different classes. All these kids are going to make contributions.” 

As for who is going to be contributing to the Panthers’ offense this season, Rudolph said he believes the goal scoring will come from a bevy of sources. 

“We’re a team,” Rudolph said. “We’re going to get goals from a lot of different people.”

Down the other end, sophomore Dillon Galanis takes over in net for Andrew Sullivan. 

W-H is back on the pitch Thursday, Sept. 15 at 4 p.m. when it visits Plymouth South. 

“We’re a good team,” Rudolph said. “I hope to see exciting, great soccer. I think there’s potential here and we have hard working kids. These guys are going to go hard.

“We already know there’s going to be some tough games but we’re coming out the next day and we’re going to be better. We’re in it for the long haul.” 

Season Preview: Boys’ golf driving for improvement

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The Whitman-Hanson Regional High boys’ golf team has nine new golfers.

For the Whitman-Hanson Regional High boys’ golf team, the goal is pretty simple this autumn.

“To improve every day,” said head coach Brian Dempsey, now in his 11th year leading the Panthers. “Regardless of wins and losses, we’re really trying to emphasize the advantage that each player has to get better, whether it be getting out on the course, going to the driving range, practicing putting, or even watching instructional videos. It’s cliché, but every day is an opportunity to improve, and with such a short season, we can’t let any of them slip away.”

The Panthers, who went 4-12 last fall, graduated their top golfer in Pat McBroom, but do return some talent in sophomore Cooper Britton, senior captain Harry Chase, classmate Nick Manganiello and junior captain Blake Belcher. Each should find themselves near the top of the leaderboard. 

“Of course, any or all of this could change throughout the season, but we’re confident that this range of players and experience could work to our advantage,” Dempsey said. 

As for newcomers, W-H has plenty. Nine to be exact. They’re also loaded with upperclassmen; of the 16 players on the roster, nine are seniors and five are juniors with just one sophomore and freshman. Dempsey said he believes his squad’s strength will be its leadership. 

“In some ways, upperclassmen are more relaxed and confident, and having graduated a handful of players that played in a majority of our matches last year, we’ll take that approach and hope for the best,” he said. 

W-H tees off its season Thursday, Sept. 8 at 3:30 p.m. when it hosts Hanover at Ridder Farm Golf Course. 

“Early on, I really just want to see more confidence from our team,” Dempsey said. “Because golf is such a mental game, there have been several times in the past where players immediately go through the schedule to see where they will win or lose. This year, I’m hoping to see players spend more time on bettering themselves and entering each match knowing that they’ve done all that they can to succeed for that day, that match, and that round.”