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Season Review: Youth decks diamond this spring for softball

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Photo by: Sue Moss

The young Panthers softball team finished the year at 7-13.

It was an infusion of youth on the diamond this spring for the Whitman-Hanson Regional High softball team.

On some occasions, the Panthers had as many as six freshmen and sophomores penned into their lineup and manning pivotal positions en route to a 7-13 record.

In all, W-H worked in a half-dozen new starters while junior Kayla Crawford was converted from second base to catcher.

The Panthers did most of their business this spring without their senior captain, top returning bat and ace — all combined into one — Colleen Hughes, who hurt her patella in the third inning of the season opener, which forced her to miss the next 15 games. Hughes, a three-year starter and the team’s MVP and a Patriot League All-Star the last two seasons, entered the spring having hurled 106 of 133.2 innings last season while hitting a team-high .486 with 25 RBIs.

“She was one of the best hitters on the South Shore, in my opinion, over the course of her career,” fifth-year Panthers skipper Jenna Olem said. “No one took the injury harder than [Colleen], but she stayed so positive and became such a strong leader and even a secondary coach at practice and on the bench. She started every game for me up until this year, and picked up pitching her sophomore year out of necessity.”

Hughes returned with four games remaining and hit .467 while manning left field. However, her absence left two glaring needs: innings to be logged and runs to be driven in.

Stepping up on the bump in a big way was freshman Abby Cleary. Cleary tossed 94.1 of W-H’s 125.1 innings and collected five wins. Her finest outing came May 2 on the road against Quincy, as she went the distance and two-hit the Presidents in a 2-1 victory.

 “At first I was going to have [her and Colleen] split starts and go from there, but obviously, a lot more was put on Abby’s plate when Colleen went down,” Olem said. “When she was on and able to limit walks she got herself into a really nice groove.

“Abby has a pretty steady presence on the mound. She was able to get herself out of multiple jams this year which is a good sign going forward. I believe if she can increase her velocity and hit her spots a little better she is going to take a big leap as our ace next year.”

HOT BATS

Shining offensively were most notably senior Hailey Norris and sophomore Victoria Ryan. Both were tabbed league all-stars.

Norris hit a team-high .418, knocked in a team-high 15 runs, crossed the plate a team-high 18 times and led the team with seven steals.

“Hailey Norris has been on the varsity since her sophomore year,” Olem said. “Last year, she solidified her role as our starting third basemen and this year her offense really took off. Her batting average from last year (.200) to this year shows the huge leap she took. She also limited her strike outs from 15 last season to just three all year. Hailey always was capable of hitting for power, but bailed us out consistently this year.”

Ryan hit .382 with 12 RBIs and 13 runs scored.

“She looked real good in the cage from the onset of the season and [I] thought she was going to be able to handle varsity pitching just fine,” Olem said. “She did just that, and I only expect her to improve as she becomes a junior next year.”

Also, proving to be a catalyst for the Panthers’ offense was freshman Reese Codero, who hit at a .377 clip and scored 13 runs. Codero also had 68 putouts from her post at shortstop.

TALENT TELLS

“A lot of the things she does on the field are just from raw athleticism,” Olem said. “Reese improved so much over the season. For anyone, it is an adjustment to catch to varsity pitching and to try to eliminate some bad habits, but she is quite the competitor and chipped away and started to really improve with her approach at the plate (taking pitches that were out of the zone, fouling off 0-2 counts, etc.).

“Defensively, Reese is really solid. I think by the end of her career she will be an all-star and one of best shortstops in league.”

Also, catching Olem’s eye were two of Codero’s classmates — Emily McDonald and Kaitlyn McNaught.

“Emily is also another really athletic kid,” Olem said. “She started in the outfield for us and also got some good experience behind the plate. Her speed on the bases next year, along with Reese, and freshman Kait McNaught (mostly used as a DH), will definitely be a good thing to have.”

COMING BACK

Crawford, who is also set to return next season, was fourth on the team with a .431 on-base percentage.

Olem said the highlight of the season came May 10 against Hingham.

“We were still trying to stay afloat [and] it was a must-win game by my standards,” she explained. “We jumped out to a 1-0 lead [and] then gave up six in the first inning. Our offense couldn’t do anything until the fourth inning when we blew it up. We ended up winning 15-6. Abby didn’t allow a run after the first.”

The resiliency shown set the bar for the future and was a flash of what is to come for the young W-H softball team.

“They definitely showed glimpses of potential and how good they could be when they put it all together,” Olem said. “Whether it was for a few innings or a few games, we did a lot of good things this year despite our record.”

Kasey Molito sets single-season saves record in Panther goal

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Kasey Molito with the ball during a May 4 game against Rockland. / Photo by: Sue Moss

Kasey Molito is now the Whitman-Hanson Regional High girls’ lacrosse program’s single-season saves leader.

Whitman-Hanson Regional High girls’ lacrosse senior goalie Kasey Molito has found her way into the school’s record book. 

Molito entered last Friday’s bout at Silver Lake five saves shy of the program’s all-time single-season saves record of 213, a number set back in 2013, and she shattered that mark. 

Molito turned away 15 shots with the record-breaker coming roughly 10 minutes into the opening half. 

“I’m actually really proud,” Molito said of the accomplishment. “It’s something I’ve been aiming to work on, aiming to get.”

W-H head coach Dave Rowell recalled the first time he tested Molito, a then-sophomore, out in net. He was immediately impressed. 

“I had her and then I had the returning sophomore in goal and right from the get-go I put them both in a scrimmage, they both played half,” he said. “Kasey had something ridiculous like 12 saves, having never played the position against Dartmouth, and the other girl probably had four, who had played a whole year.” 

It was Molito’s fearlessness that caught Rowell’s eye right out of the gate.

“She went for the ball when a lot of first-time goalies move away from it, they don’t go towards it, she would go towards it and she would get banged up,” Rowell recalled. “She was confident — even with a brand-new huge stick — to throw it. She wasn’t afraid, she wasn’t timid.” 

The stellar performance earned Molito the starting spot in net for the Panthers’ season opener, against North Quincy. 

“I was terrified out of my mind because Rowell had just told me that I was going to be playing the whole game, which I was not expecting,” Molito recalled. 

After a few balls began to bounce past her, Molitobegan to question herself. 

“At first, I was very terrified because I didn’t realize how much of a high-scoring game it was, so when the score started running up, I was getting very nervous about my skill set and skill level,” Molito said. 

Even after the game, a 12-10 Panthers victory, Molitohad no idea if she performed up to par. That was until Rowell soothed her fears. 

“He was like, ‘You played really well,’” Molito said. “And I was very confused because I thought I did not do well at all, but he’s like, ‘No, it’s a high-scoring game, that’s what’s supposed to happen, so you did really well for your first time.’” 

Molito earned league all-star status that season as the Panthers cracked the tournament, a feat they also accomplished the following season on the back of an epic late-game performance from Molito in a 10-9 win over Bridgewater-Raynham. 

“Bridgewater-Raynham had beaten us 18-10, they were just a really good team so in all, we could have just laid back and said, ‘All right, we don’t make tourney this year,’” Rowell said. 

“She had four saves at the end of that game that were huge all in the end to let us be in the position to score down the other end and go to overtime. She made four huge saves and it was all her — it was just her and one player. She made four huge saves and good transition,we were down three at one point. It was goal, goal, goal to tie it and then her job was done.”

Molito has revived some of that magic this season, especially as of late. During W-H’s recent four-game winning streak, Molito had 16 saves against Abington (12-5 win May 14), 13 saves against Quincy (11-5 win May 16), 19 saves against North Quincy (11-10 win May 17) and seven saves against East Bridgewater (17-4 win May 23). 

Not only is Molito W-H’s starting netminder, butRowell considers her much more than that.  Hence why she’s a captain this season. 

“She’s out there yelling to everyone,” Rowell said. “I told them, ‘She’s the secondary coach out there cause she’s facing what’s happening.’ Everyone else is back looking at a girl, looking at the ball, she sees everything so she’s in command. She yells, ‘Slide left, crash right, cutter.’”

Molito acknowledged she doesn’t hold back in goal, but that’s what she loves the most about playing back there. 

“I yell a lot,” Molito said with a laugh. “I just like the position because it’s kind of like no other position cause everyone kind of looks at you to be the one to stop it, but you realize you get to watch everybody and just figure out how we can work together as a team to make sure the shot doesn’t happen and how to get the goals themselves.”

As for goals, Molito, who is committed to play lacrosse at Manhattanville College, has checked most of her’soff.

“I’ve kind of achieved everything that I’ve wanted to do,” Molito said.

Lauren Bonavita scores 100th goal — again

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Lauren Bonavita battles for the ball against Rockland on May 4. / Photo by: Sue Moss

Lauren Bonavita is the first Whitman-Hanson Regional High athlete ever to score 100 goals in two different sports.

After terrorizing opposing goalies all fall, Lauren Bonavita is doing the same this spring and has further cemented her spot in Panthers lore.

Seven months after breaking the school’s all-time record for goals scored in soccer of 103 before setting her own of 113, the Whitman-Hanson Regional High senior has added to her legacy. While it didn’t come with a soccer ball this time, it came with the help of a few.

At the 15-minute mark of the first half in the W-H girls’ lacrosse team’s game last Friday, May 25, against Silver Lake, sophomore Riley Bina lofted a pass from behind the goal that Bonavita hauled in and drilled past the goalie at the top-left corner.

The tally: the 100th of her career as she became the first W-H athlete ever to reach the century mark in goals scored in two different sports.

“It feels pretty good,” Bonavita said of the record. “I knew I was close but I didn’t know how many, but it was good to have the team behind me and be able to support me and I wouldn’t have been able to have done it without their help.”

W-H girls’ lacrosse coach Dave Rowell said Bonavita’s ability to find the net is propelled by her uncanny knack for the ball.

“She will go after it no matter what,” Rowell said.

Rowell also lauded Bonavita’s preparedness as one of her key intangibles that makes her excel.

“She relentlessly prepares for every game,” he said. “She’s physically ready, she’s mentally ready and she’s never afraid of any situation.”

For Bonavita, the 100th goal came after missing all last season to play club soccer.

“Over the summer, I played a little pass with one of my good friends, Riley Bina, and we played a lot and we would train over the summer, but other than that I didn’t really touch a stick,” Bonavita said.

As a sophomore, Bonavita found the back of the net 47 times in her first year on varsity.

“She didn’t even start for me sophomore year, she had to work her way into the starting lineup,” Rowell said. “So, to get that many goals off the bench — and she only started about half the season — that just shows she’s a remarkable athlete.”

Bonavita, who is heading to UMass Amherst to play soccer next season, said she feels her competitive edge stems from her training regimen.

“Whether it’s shooting soccer balls or coming up and playing wall ball with lacrosse or just running, I feel like my fitness level is always up to date and I’m able to make that one extra sprint that one of the other players on the other team won’t be able to do and beat them to a ground ball first,” she said.

Rowell agreed that Bonavita’s worth ethic is what makes her stand out.

“She goes from games with me where she’s playing 48 out of 50 minutes and then she goes to practice for club and she’s running sprints and she’s doing everything,” Rowell explained.

“When we do sprints, she’s right in the front of the line leading by example. Anything we do, in her mind, makes her better. I’m going to be first, I’m going to do it the best I can.”

When asked where this dual 100-goal feat ranks, Bonavita replied, “Definitely towards the top. I love playing lacrosse. I have a lot of fun doing it and with the team … It makes me happy.”

On quiet leadership: Taking a Jason Varitek approach, Sawtelle provides a dependable presence

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Sawtelle’s leadership has been felt both at bat and behind the plate for W-H baseball. / Photo by: Sue Moss

Whitman-Hanson Regional High baseball senior Ryan Sawtelle is making his presence felt this season.

When asked of senior catcher Ryan Sawtelle’s impact on his team this season, Whitman-Hanson Regional High baseball skipper Pat Cronin didn’t hesitate one bit. 

“I can’t say enough about Ryan Sawtelle,” Cronin said. “He’s an assistant coach on the field. He knows what I’m trying to do. He understands the signals. He’s a Steady Eddie.” 

Cronin even compared Sawtelle, who is in his first year starting, to a former Boston Red Sox legend. 

“He leads quietly,” Cronin said. “He’s kind of like a Jason Varitek kind of guy honestly. He’s that kind of a guy.

“I kid him sometimes when I see his teeth and I can actually make him smile. He’s just a very low-grade, easy-going guy who doesn’t speak very much, but he’s very dependable.” 

While Sawtelle may be a quiet leader, he’s quietly putting together an all-star season. Sawtelle entered the week leading the Panthers, who are in second place in the Patriot League Keenan Division, with a .407 average and .514 on-base percentage. 

“I wasn’t aware of that, but I feel pretty confident up there,” Sawtelle said when told his stat line. “I’m not really thinking about the numbers or anything. I’m just trying to do it for the team and drive some runs in.”

Last week, Sawtelle, who is committed to play baseball at Vermont’s Castleton University, tallied four hits and recorded three RBIs. He notched three hits and knocked in two runs in an 11-2 victory over Silver Lake Wednesday, May 9. 

“We just took them like any other team — take them serious and see what they bring us and we’ll bring our hardest out there,” Sawtelle said of Silver Lake. 

Sawtelle’s numbers at the dish may be impressive, but so is his work behind it as he directs a staff with one of the lowest ERAs in the Patriot League. 

“Ryan is a great catcher, I love him back there,” senior captain James Dolan, who has been playing with Sawtelle since the two were 7 years old, said. “Coach lets him take the reins sometimes [and] call the pitches because he’s just very smart back there. He’s just a great catcher, I love it.”

Cronin described Sawtelle, who threw out a runner in the fourth inning of a 3-0 win against Hingham last Thursday, as another piece of the puzzle that’s waited its turn to fill in. 

“He’s another guy that’s been there for three years with us and he’s worked his way through,” Cronin said. “We knew he had a good arm [and] he had a swing that was bigger than it should have been, so he just needed reps and he needed to play.”

Dolan said Sawtelle has been immense to the success of the Panthers, who entered the week with a seven-game winning streak and 9-1 record before a 4-2 league loss to Plymouth North on Monday, a game in which Sawtelle had an RBI double. 

“He really took control of this team,” Dolan said. “You can see him back there, he’s always calling the outs [and] keeping everybody motivated. [He’s a] great teammate [and] great hitter. He’s going off this year.”

Although Sawtelle may not be outspoken, he does have the utmost respect from his coaches and teammates. 

“You don’t hear a lot of out him, but when you do – you listen,” Cronin said. 

Rejoining a W-H teammate at Curry: Anderson commits to play volleyball

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Amanda Anderson, a senior at Whitman-Hanson Regional High, will continue her volleyball career at Curry College next season.

Whitman-Hanson Regional High senior Amanda Anderson has committed to play volleyball at Curry College.

A key factor in Anderson’s decision was the ability to reunite with former W-H girls’ volleyball teammate and good friend Jordyn Keith, a rising sophomore on the Curry women’s volleyball team.

Amanda Anderson, front, sets for a return during action at W-H this fall. She has signed on to join former teammate Jordyn Keith at Curry College in the fall. / Photo by: Sue Moss

“I went to one of her games in September and October and then in between that time I also visited their school and talked to the coach there,” Anderson explained. “And then he saw me playing for my club team. Once I saw their team play, I really wanted to join the team. Jordyn was always talking about how great her new coach is and stuff and it made me excited to talk to him and stuff, too.”

Anderson was a two-year starter at outside hitter for the Panthers and co-captained the club this past season. She ended her career with 104 digs, 94 kills and 76 aces.

“Amanda had been preparing to be a senior varsity captain her whole volleyball career and fit in naturally to the role working along with Halle (Julian),” first-year W-H girls’ volleyball head coach Ashley Balbian, who coached Anderson at the junior varsity level her sophomore season, said. “In my opinion, what made her excel was her positive outlook and attitude.”

Anderson dealt with her fair share of adversity on the court. After an injury cut short her junior campaign, she fractured her foot in the first practice of this past season. While the injury kept her out of game action for the opening month, it didn’t hinder her from making a making a positive impression. 

“Of course, she was upset but bounced back and showed up the next day on crutches asking what she could do to help,” Balbian said. “During the season when our record wasn’t great and Amanda was stuck on the bench she set such a great example for her teammates and younger girls in the program. Her positive encouragement while injured became an inspiration for us. I really respect how she handled that whole situation.”

While Anderson provided the younger girls an example on the bench, she did in practice as well, leading the junior varsity and freshman teams in a variety of drills during the course of the season.  

“Helping the younger girls is very good for our program for getting them stronger to be good players and be leaders and take over Halle and my spot,” Anderson said. “I love helping them because I want them to fill in my shoes when all the seniors are gone to keep the program going and winning games.”

Anderson’s work with the younger players shined at its brightest in the Panthers’ final contest of the fall, a 3-1 win over Bridgewater-Raynham. After starting her regulars, Balbian lifted them in the second set and inserted a bevy of girls who had come up from junior varsity, many that Anderson mentored.

“It made me feel proud of being their captain and looking back and knowing that it was because of all us seniors who helped get them this far,” Anderson said. “And definitely keeping the attitude going because that’s how people win games, you have to keep your attitude very positive at all times.”

Anderson said her fondest memory on the court at W-H came during her junior season in a 3-2 victory over Pembroke.

“We were in the fifth set and it was 13-13 and there was a play where the ball went up and I had to kill it and I broke the tie and then it was 14-13,” she explained. “The moment was so intense and it was so awesome because all I saw was Halle looking at me and she’s like, ‘Don’t mess up.’

“And I got it and she got the winning point right after me and that was the best feeling in the whole world getting those two points because it felt like the most intense game we’d ever played as a team.”

Balbian said Curry is receiving a natural leader on and off the court in Anderson.

“Curry College is getting a dedicated student athlete who is excited about her major in psychology but also passionate about playing volleyball and being part of a team,” Balbian explained. 

Curry, which competes in the Commonwealth Coast Conference of NCAA Division III, finished 11-18 last season.

“I definitely want to improve on my back row playing time and my hitting on certain spots and stuff like that,” Anderson said. “Just like little detail things to help me improve and get better. The goal of all of it is to be a starter on their team, but it’s going to be a lot of work.”

Whitman-Hanson baseball streaking as it enters key matchup

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Photo by: Sue Moss

First place in the Patriot League Keenan Division is up for grabs tomorrow as the Whitman-Hanson Regional High baseball team kicks off a four-game week with a home contest against Plymouth North.

Three weeks ago, the Whitman-Hanson Regional High baseball team took a 3-0 lead into the bottom of the fifth inning against Plymouth North, only to have the Blue Eagles put up five runs — three of which were unearned — as they handed the Panthers their first loss of the season, 8-3.

“We kicked a couple of balls on the turf that we haven’t kicked since,” W-H head coach Pat Cronin said. 

The setback occurred after an 11-day layoff due to the weather, which came off the heels of W-H opening the season 2-0. Since then, the Panthers have not lost and sit with a record of 9-1 overall and in the Patriot League as they prepare for a rematch with Keenan Division foe Plymouth North (11-2, 9-1) tomorrow. 

Set to toe the rubber for the Panthers tomorrow is junior captain Rian Schwede, who sports a 3-1 record and 1.84 ERA. Schwede excited the earlier game against Plymouth North with a 3-2 lead in the bottom of the fifth. 

“He’s clearly established himself as the ace, and that game got away from us down there in Plymouth,” Cronin said. 

Schwede’s emergence as the ace came after 2017 Patriot League Keenan Division MVP James Dolan exited W-H’s second game of the season — against Plymouth South — with tendentious. Dolan, who boasted a 6-1 mark and 0.35 ERA over 40 1-3 innings last spring, hasn’t thrown since, which makes the Panthers’ 9-1 start even more of a surprise to Cronin. 

“Given that we lose the MVP, one of the best pitchers in the league to start, anyone who evaluates it and access it has to say this is really remarkable,” Cronin said of his team’s record. “So, I am thrilled but also I live with these guys now.” 

Also logging some significant innings for the Panthers have been seniors Korey Howard (1-0, 1.97 ERA, 10 2-3 IP), Jason Green (2-0, 1.50, 14), and junior Ethan Phelps (2-0, 0.44, 16). 

“I know what they’re capable of and having coached a long time you can project into the future what is their possibilities — what is possible if they work hard, so on the other side they never really surprise me either,” Cronin said. 

At the plate, senior Ryan Sawtelle is hitting at a .407 clip to pace the Panthers. 

“He’s another guy that’s been there for three years with us and he’s worked his way through” Cronin said. 

The Panthers’ most recent victory (3-0 over Hingham last Thursday) marked their seventh victory in an eight-day span. Other victories came over Quincy (13-1 on May 2), Pembroke (6-0 on May 3), Hanover (3-2 on May 4), Duxbury (5-2 on May 5), North Quincy (7-5 on May 7) and Silver Lake (11-2 on May 9).

“What I did this week is when I got to Friday and I got up in the morning and I was tired Friday morning,” Cronin explained. “Seven games in nine days and I was tired and I’m saying — If I’m tired and I’m coaching, these kids are taking AP exams last week, they have National Honor Society, I said, ’It’s a beautiful day, give them Friday off, give them Saturday off, let all the arms recover.’”

Cronin said keeping his players fresh and not overworked is a constant battle for him. 

“You have to find ways and I get torn because old school says work ‘em, work ‘em, work ‘em,” Cronin said. “These kids are so busy that if they’re playing well — I learned that from my old football coach here at Whitman-Hanson, Bob Tan — I mean we hardly ran any conditioning because we were undefeated, and if you’re successful, keep them fresh and keep them enjoying the game so I don’t know if I’m always right, but I’m always trying anyway.”

Cronin said he tries to keep his practices in the range of an hour and a half to at most two hours during the heart of the season.

“One day I could see we were a little tense, I brought in 20 pizzas into the dugout and I called them in and I had them go to my car and get the pizzas and they go crazy for food,” Cronin said. “You have to do things like that. We bring them in and had some pizza and then they did a little 10 minutes of work and I sent them home. We’ll play a little bunting game out here, we try to compete and have fun in games when we can.”

After tomorrow’s tilt with Plymouth North (4 p.m.), W-H will travel to Brockton to play the Boxers (9-3) on Tuesday, before returning to league play as it visits Duxbury (5-4, 4-4) on Wednesday and hosts Quincy (2-9, 0-8) on Thursday.

“It’s four games and we’ve set up the pitching pretty much the same way that we did it the first time, fortunately we’ve been through a four-game week,” Cronin said. “As I told the kids, ‘We’re going out there and just do it the same way.’” 

Life’s ‘a little crazy,’ but Ethan Phelps thrives on it

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Ethan Phelps delivers to the plate in a May 4 3-2 win over Hanover. / Photo by: Sue Moss

It’s been a hectic few months for Ethan Phelps, a junior two-sport athlete at Whitman-Hanson Regional High.

It was directly after the conclusion of the Whitman-Hanson Regional High baseball team’s 7-5 victory over North Quincy on Monday, Ethan Phelps — still in uniform after knocking in the game-winning run — hurried up to the high school to write teacher appreciation notes as part of his National Honor Society duties. That is just a glimpse into what has been a jam-packed few months for the junior.

On Saturday, it was much of the same for Phelps, who roams center field for the Panthers. After taking the SATs in the morning, it was straight to the baseball field for an afternoon tilt against Duxbury.

“It’s been hectic,” Phelps said. “I mean, I’m absorbing all of it and taking all of it in, I’m really enjoying it, but yeah it’s been a little crazy.”

For Phelps, it’s a good busy that stems from his dedication on and off the field as a multi-sport athlete.

It was at the outset of his sophomore year when Phelps was in a quarterback battle to assume the reins under center for the W-H football team. Since then, he has accounted for 56 touchdowns and helped guide the Panthers to back-to-back playoff berths.

“Ethan is an incredible dedicated student-athlete,” W-H football head coach Mike Driscoll said. “What everyone sees on the field is also what you get in the classroom, a student who gives it his all and is not satisfied with anything but the best possible result.”

His talent on the gridiron — which has been assisted by hours of work in the weight room — along with his 4.2 GPA, are two traits that landed Phelps the MIAA Student-Athlete of the Month Award in November. They’ve also earned him some high-level college football visits.

All within a two-month span, Phelps toured Williams College and Bryant University, along with Ivy League schools Dartmouth and Harvard.

“I’m leaning towards academics,” Phelps said of what he’s looking for in a school. “I’d rather use football to get into an even better academic school.”

On the diamond, Phelps and the Panthers are in the midst of the heart of their season, fresh off a five-game week that began April 30.

Phelps took the ball last Friday for his first career start and hurled eight innings of two-run ball as W-H knocked off Hanover, 3-2. Phelps tossed 83 pitches — 67 for strikes — in the extra-innings win.

“He throws gas,” W-H baseball head coach Pat Cronin said. “He’s got untapped speed and easy power. He’s such a gamer, he wants it badly. I’m glad he’s on our side.”

The next week doesn’t get any less chaotic for Phelps, with three advanced placement exams, a college visit to Middlebury and four baseball game on his docket.

“In the classroom, I obviously want to maintain my grades,” Phelps said. “Then, on the baseball field I think all of us will come together and maybe make a state championship run.”

A career to cheer about: W-H alum McCormack takes reins of Marshfield High cheerleading

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Kayla McCormack, right, is seen with a former coach Kailyn Getchell of Whitman. / Courtesy photo

Whitman-Hanson Regional High alum Kayla McCormack (’12) has been named the head coach of Marshfield High’s cheerleading team.

Kayla McCormack has spent much of her life in the sport of cheerleading, learning every step of the way, thus priming her for her newest position.

McCormack, a 2012 Whitman-Hanson Regional High graduate, was recently named head cheerleading coach at Marshfield High.

“I’m really excited, I can’t wait to get started,” she said.

McCormack began cheerleading in third grade and quickly came to the decision it was the right sport for her as it mixed two of her favorite activities.

“I did gymnastics growing up and my mom was a gymnastics coach,” McCormack explained. “I liked the tumbling aspect and I also liked doing dance, so it was like the perfect combination.”

While at W-H, McCormack was a four-year varsity cheerleader and helped the Panthers to three state titles (fall of 2008 and 2011, winter of 2011) and a national crown (2010). She captained the team her senior season.

McCormack also served as an assistant coach at the youth level during her time at W-H. It was in the capacity that she developed even more of a fire for the sport.

“I kind of learned my passion for it a little more,” she said. “It helped me realize that I like helping other people who share the same passion.”

McCormack then went on to Quinnipiac University, where she captained its acrobatics and tumbling team, earning NCATA All-America honors. McCormack’s time there was a major stepping-stone for her.

“I think Quinnipiac helped me a lot, growing up a lot being away at college and learning to be on my own,” McCormack said. “As I got older there, I helped the incoming freshman and the underclassman kind of adjust – adjust to college and adjust to being on a Division I sports team.”

After graduating from Quinnipiac in the spring of 2016, McCormack’s next stop was a return to her high school alma mater. McCormack served as an assistant coach on the W-H cheerleading team for the 2016-17 school year, putting the skill set she had been developing over the years to use.

“I helped them out a lot with their tumbling and I was kind of just there to assist the head coach,” she explained. “[I] helped them with their technique and all of the things that I’d learned from Quinnipiac.”

The Panthers claimed their first national title in four years during McCormack’s 10-month stint.

Her ties to the Marshfield cheerleading program stem from her time working as a tumbling instructor at a nearby gym, Cheer Essentials, a post she began in 2010.

“I believe I’ve learned a lot from coaching in the past,” McCormack explained. “I worked with Marshfield because they would come into my gym sometimes and have practices there. So, I know a lot of girls. I know what the program has kind of done in the past and I just think I have a lot of knowledge about cheerleading that I can help them be really successful because they have a lot of talent.”

As for what McCormack learned at W-H that she will try to implement at Marshfield, she replied, “How to work really hard and efficiently.”

A visit with W-H’s new cheer coach Alyssa Hayes

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Alyssa Hayes, a Whitman-Hanson Regional High alum, has been named the school’s head cheerleading coach.

Alyssa Hayes, recently appointed head coach of Whitman-Hanson Regional High’s cheerleading team, shared her opinion on what makes the program so special and how she aims to continue its legacy.

After the resignation of the previous head coach in February, Hayes was one of three coaches who stepped in and helped guide the program to its 13th state title.

Hayes, a 2012 graduate of W-H, is in her first year as an English teacher and head coach of the boys’ tennis team at the school.

Q: When did you first get involved in cheerleading?

A: “I’ve been in the world of cheerleading probably since I was about 4 years old as a mascot cheering on my little sister, they actually made me my own uniform. This was right in Hanson Youth Cheer.”

Q: What do you find most fascinating about cheerleading?

A: “The ability to have so much skill within one sport. All sports are difficult and I think cheerleading is such an individual sport and such a team sport all at once, which I think is really impressive. You need every single person on that team in order to make that routine successful.”

Q: When somebody says “cheerleading”, what are the first three words that come into your mind?

A: “Perseverance, team- work and motivation.”

Q: When did you begin coaching cheerleading?

A: “I’ve cheered my whole life, and then when I moved up to the high school I started coaching at the youth level, along with cheering at Whitman-Hanson. Then my senior year of high school I added the role of choreographer to my coaching and started actually helping to create the routines for Hanson Youth, and then I never stopped coaching all through college.”

Q: Being an English teacher, do you see any parallels between that role and coaching?

A: “Absolutely, there are so many. I think coaching is actually what got me into teaching because you have to show up for the kids and you have to be consistent and give them a sense of a routine. Otherwise, they don’t know what to expect. Kids need consistency. If you don’t have that you’re not going to have a successful classroom, you’re not going to have a successful sports team.”

Q: What, if anything, did you change with the program when you came on board?

A: “I think last year my biggest thing was teamwork and positivity. Looking at the future, I’d love to build the numbers back up, I’d love to have another JV team and maybe even a freshman team if we can get the numbers that high. When I was here, we had upwards of 40 kids, so I think building numbers is always a great thing.”

Q: What was so special about that roughly month-and-a-half experience you had coaching this team in the winter?

A: “Coming back to Whitman-Hanson was a blessing in itself. But, then just all the adversity I saw those girls face first hand, and just handle with grace and motivation and never take a step backwards. They just continued to push forward and continued to get better and work together and I think that’s really special.”

Q: Is there anything specific you learned from your cheerleaders last winter that helped you develop as a coach?

A: “I think you learn from every team you coach, every team is different. One thing that was special about last season was some of the flexibilitythat I gave the girls because I was coming in mid-season so a lot of it was learning through them, learning what their typical day was like. I think that was the first time in my coaching that I had to step back a little bit and see what they already had at hand, what they were already used to. Then, we kind of made a new consistency together, which for me was a really unique experience as a coach.”

Q: What is it that makes this Whitman-Hanson cheerleading program so special?

A: “A lot of people ask me that and I often ask myself that. It’s been such a strong and successful and special program for so long and I think it’s just the heart. We’ve got a great program and we’ve got kids that just consistently care about the program.”

Q: What are your goals for the program?

A: “I absolutely want to build numbers. Like I said, I’d love to have a JV and a varsity team. Not only two teams, but two decent size teams where we can get as many girls on there as we can and maybe even the potential for co-ed, you never know. And I also want to continue to build that legacy, continue to build the Whitman-Hanson cheerleading name while also giving these kids a special experience. There’s absolutely nothing like your four years of high school sports.”

Q: Finally, is it safe to say this is your dream job?

A: “Without a doubt.”

Julian Eastern Nazarene’s net gain: Halle Julian commits to play volleyball

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Whitman-Hanson Regional High School senior Halle Julian has committed to play volleyball at Eastern Nazarene College.

“For a while I was down to the top four and within the past two months I made it down to the top two decisions and it was very difficult for me to finally choose one,” Julian said. “But, over April break I went back to both of them and at Eastern Nazarene I met most of the girls on the team and just the way everyone interacted with each other, it felt like such a close community that I really wanted to be a part of. Just being there, it felt like the right fit for me.”

Julian was a three-year starter at middle hitter for the Panthers. Julian, who first began playing competitive volleyball her freshman season, is the school’s all-time leader in blocks (316) on record. During her junior campaign, she led the state in blocks with 124, helping to lead W-H to its second straight tournament appearance.

“[Eastern Nazarene] is getting the whole package,” first-year W-H girls’ volleyball head coach Ashley Balbian said. “They’re getting an energetic player, someone who’s really passionate about sports. It seems like she lives, breathes and eats volleyball.”

This past season, in what was her third on varsity, Julian assumed the role of co-captain, leading her team in a variety of community service projects.

“She puts it all into everything she does, as far as academics and school,” Balbian explained. “She’s the one going the extra mile, organizing the T-shirts, bringing the snacks or whatever it might be. She’s the full package.”

In her role as co-captain, Julian served as a mentor to the younger players in the program and would often take the time during practice to lead the junior varsity and freshman teams in a specific drill.

“I love working with the younger girls, it’s so interesting to see how willing they are to learn and open to trying new things,” Julian said. “I really think that helped me develop as a leader, especially seeing the girls before me do it, and I want to be like them, and it’s always been great.”

Julian’s work with the younger players shined during the Panthers’ final contest of the season, a 3-1 win over Bridgewater-Raynham.

“In that game specifically, I remember the first set I played mostly seniors and starters,” Balbian explained. “And then the second set, I put in a lot of those girls that she had been working with, a lot of the girls who had come up from JV. So, to be able to see the seniors and the really experienced varsity players start off the game and then to have those other girls kind of step into their shoes, and still win, was great to see. It was like seeing them kind of pass the torch on.”

Julian said her fondest memory on the court at W-H came during her sophomore campaign, when the program qualified for the postseason for the first time in recent memory.

“[Making the tournament] was the first time I realized how important [volleyball] is to everybody else and how important this is to me,” she said. “It was just incredible to see how everyone else reacted. It just helped me learn how to make a difference.”

Eastern Nazarene, which competes in the Commonwealth Coast Conference of NCAA Division III, finished 11-19 last season.

“Right now, I’m on an elite team and we have the championships coming up for the whole thing and I think it would be really great if we can finish really well in that,” Julian said.