Whitman-Hanson Express

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Heading into the homestretch

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The winter sports season is heading into the homestretch at Whitman-Hanson Regional High, with a few teams having already wrapped up play.

Here is how a Week 7 turned out:

Boys’ basketball (14-2) kept rolling along, handing Scituate its second loss of the season, 75-45, Tuesday, Jan. 28. Junior Nate Amado led the balanced offensive attack with 17 points. … On Friday, W-H torched Plymouth North, 75-57. Senior captain Stevie Kelly paced the offense with 20 points.

Girls’ basketball (10-5) topped Scituate, 58-45, Tuesday, Jan. 28, to punch its ticket to the tournament. Junior Reese Codero put up a team-high 14 points in the win. … On Friday, W-H was tripped up by Plymouth North, 47-42.

Boys’ hockey (12-4) was shut out by Plymouth North, 2-0, on Wednesday, Jan. 29. … On Saturday, senior captain Chris Stoddard scored with 19 seconds remaining to lift W-H past North Quincy, 4-3. … On Sunday, senior assistant captain Adam Solari netted a hat trick to pace the Panthers over Scituate, 4-1.

Girls’ hockey (6-8) toppled Marshfield, 8-3, on Thursday, Jan. 30. Senior captain Alyssa Murphy (Kingston) struck for four goals, while junior captain Emily McDonald (Whitman) also found the back of the net. … On Saturday, the co-op was clipped by Mansfield/Foxboro/Oliver Ames, 3-2. Murphy had both goals.

Gymnastics (0-10) fell to Plymouth, 129.6-117.7, on Tuesday, Jan. 28. Senior captain Sarah Bombardier scored an 8.6 on the vault, while junior Savannah Poirier posted an 8.4 score on the floor routine.

Girls’ swimming/diving (5-3) fell to Cohasset, 99-76, on Tuesday, Jan. 28.

Wrestling (8-7) opened the week with a 46-30 loss to Duxbury on Wednesday, Jan. 29. Sophomore Joe Boss (pin in 2:50 at 106 pounds), junior captain Damari Goldsmith-Greene (pin in 4:16 at 138 pounds), sophomore Pat Collett (pin in :55 at 152 pounds), senior Mike Gardner (pin at 182 pounds) and freshman Maddox Colclough (pin in 3:57 at 195 pounds) posted wins for W-H. … On Saturday, W-H came away with a clean sweep against Nauset (58-16), Rockland (52-27) and Hanover (53-23). Boss, senior captain Steve Brooks (160 pounds), Gardner and Goldsmith-Greene and junior Myles McInnis (126 pounds) all went 3-0 on the day.

*Express weekly roundups include scores from Sunday to Sunday. 

Keeping score in Week 5

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From the pool to the mat, Week 5 is in the books at Whitman-Hanson Regional High.

Here is a look back:

Boys’ basketball (9-2) routed Silver Lake, 66-36, Tuesday, Jan. 14. Juniors Cole LeVangie (15 points) and Nate Amado (12 points) combined for 27 points in the victory. … On Friday, W-H handed Marshfield just its second loss of the season, 82-68. Senior captain Stevie Kelly exploded for a triple-double, scoring 24 points, dishing out 11 assists and racking up 10 boards.

Girls’ basketball (8-3) topped Silver Lake, 54-29, Tuesday, Jan. 14. Senior Brittany Gacicia led the offense with 15 points, while junior Rylie Harlow anchored the defense. … On Friday, Harlow pumped in 11 second-half points to rally the Panthers past Marshfield, 49-41.

Gymnastics (0-7) fell to Hanover, 133.3-120.35, Friday, Jan. 17. Senior captain Sarah Bombardier tallied an 8.6 on the vault and freshman Riley Getchell led the way on the beam with a 7.85.

Boys’ hockey (7-3) skated past Southeastern/West Bridgewater, 2-1, Monday, Jan. 13. Senior assistant captain Adam Solari and his brother Matt, a freshman, provided the goals. … On Wednesday, the Solari brothers each had a goal as too did both senior captain Chris Stoddard and sophomore John Ward in a 4-1 win over Silver Lake. Junior Bobby Sidders registered 20 saves in the win.

Girls’ hockey (5-5) clobbered North/Quincy, 7-2, Wednesday, Jan. 15. Senior captain Alyssa Murphy (Kingston) had two goals and junior captain Emily McDonald (Whitman) also scored.

Boys’ swimming/diving (5-1) suffered its first loss of the season, falling to Bishop Stang, 88-73, Tuesday, Jan 14. Junior Brian Pham posted a victory in the 100-yard breaststroke (1:09.43). 

Girls’ swimming/diving (5-1) posted a win over Bishop Stang, 97-78, Tuesday, Jan 14.  Senior captain Maddie Navicky had victories in the 100 free (1:01.26), 100 back (1:12.78) and was part of the victorious 400 free relay.

Wrestling (5-3) bested Pembroke, 48-34, Wednesday, Jan. 15. Freshman Maddox Colclough led the way with a fall in 30 seconds at 220 pounds. … On Saturday, W-H picked up wins over Josiah Quincy, 42-33, and Northbridge, 64-12, but fell to Oliver Ames, 46-33. The Panthers were led by three pins apiece from senior captain Steve Brooks (160 pounds) and classmate Mike Gardner (182 pounds).

*Express weekly roundups include scores from Sunday to Sunday. 

Ben Rice carries on a family hoops legacy

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Ben Rice uncorks a 3-pointer. / Photo by: Sue Moss

Ben Rice is following in his brothers’ and father’s footsteps in taking the court for Whitman-Hanson Regional High boys’ basketball.

Then there was one.

After dumping in a team-high 13 points in two-plus quarters, helping the Whitman-Hanson Regional High boys’ basketball team build a 40-point lead over Pembroke, Ben Rice’s work was done for the night. His older brother Tyler was seated in the top row to watch him. 

“I definitely wanted to play good in front of him,” said Ben, a 6-foot-7 swingman and senior captain for the Panthers. 

Meanwhile, a few miles away in Quincy, their older brother Josh was on his way to a 17-point performance, while connecting on five 3-pointers, pushing Eastern Nazarene College past Becker College.

Basketball is a passion for the Rices, who have been penned on W-H’s varsity roster for parts of seven straight seasons. 

Ben has been in the starting lineup since last year. Josh, who scored his 1,000th career point at ENC in November, was also a two-year starter for W-H before graduating in 2016. Tyler, who graduated in 2018, started his senior season. All have contributed significantly. 

All-Star

Ben tossed in 11.6 points per game and was tabbed a league all-star last winter as the Panthers reached the Division 2 South semifinals. Josh played a major role (14.3 ppg) in the program claiming its first-ever Division 2 South Sectional title and trip to TD Garden his senior year. Tyler helped the program to a pair of Patriot League Kennan Division titles. 

“I’ve never had anything like that since I’ve been here,” said 20-year W-H boys’ basketball head coach Bob Rodgers. “I’ve never seen anything like that — in basketball — anyway. In basketball, I would say the Rice family stands apart.”

It began in the driveway. 

“I still remember how intense our two-on-two games would be,” Josh said. “Me and my brother Tyler would be on the same team and my dad (Jon) and my brother Ben would be on the same team. I think that made us all a lot better and grew us closer. 

“It was cool growing up with two brothers who really were interested in the same things you were interested in. That helped all of us get better.”

Their father Jon, a 1986 W-H graduate, also played basketball for the Panthers and then at ENC. 

“It’s been incredibly remarkable watching them play, especially at my alma mater,” Jon said. “It’s been an incredible investment, but everything we’ve put into it we’ve got back tenfold.” 

A prime example was when Josh and Tyler shared the Garden parquet in 2016. 

“That was really cool — something I’ll never forget,” Jon said. 

As Ben enters the last few months of his senior season, he has his eyes fixated on the prize, just like his brothers did.

“We obviously want to win every time out,” said Ben, who is coming off a 30-point outburst against Hanover on Tuesday, Jan. 21. “We’d love a league championship and to go far in the state tournament.”

As for Jon, it will be a little strange not writing in a full W-H basketball schedule on the calendar next winter.

“Who knows what I’ll be doing this time next year?” joked Jon. 

Leadership goes to the mat: Ralph a trailblazer for W-H wrestling

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Bethany Ralph (far left) finishes in second place at the Senators All-Girls Wrestling Tournament on Monday. / Courtesy photo

Bethany Ralph is the first girl to ever captain the W-H wrestling team.

When Bethany Ralph first stepped on the wrestling mat as a freshman at Whitman-Hanson Regional High, she knew she wanted to be a leader, not a follower. 

After all, she was a female in a predominantly male sport, but that was the last thing on her mind. 

“I realized right away, I wanted to be a captain,” Ralph said. 

Why?

“I knew that this was going to be something much more than a sport for me,” she said. “And to lead such an amazing group of young men would mean that I experienced that and earned my position.”

Ralph was one of two females on the roster in the 2016-17 season. Fellow female wrestler and friend Damari Brandao was the reason she decided to hit the mat. 

“She brought it up to me and I decided it was something different and I jumped right into it,” Ralph said.

Gary Rabinovitz, who was in his first season as W-H’s head wrestling coach at the time, was immediately drawn to Ralph‘s passion for the sport. 

“It all comes down to the heart and the work ethic,” Rabinovitz said. “She’s had it since Day One. She came in after the first week, two weeks of the season, black and blue everywhere. Her parents brought her to the doctors to make sure everything was good. It was just from working hard.” 

Now a senior, Ralph’s the first female to ever serve as a W-H wrestling captain.  

“She wanted to work as hard as everybody from Day One,” said Rabinovitz. “She doesn’t consider herself a girl, she considers herself a wrestler. From her work ethic and what she puts into this every day, she has respect from every one of these guys.”

Sophomore wrestler Rocco Ruffini echoed his head coach’s sentiments. 

“We don’t think of her as a girl,” Ruffini said. “She knows when to step up and push us harder. She’s a great leader.”

Ralph is no stranger to being a trailblazer. Last season, she was on the verge of making history, wrestling in the finals of the inaugural MIAA girls’ state wrestling tournament at 120 pounds. She finished second. 

“To be able to make it to the top of the girls’ bracket is also another big accomplishment because I’m just another girl they don’t think can get there,” Ralph said. 

Ralph has even bigger aspirations than a state title as she winds down her career on the mat. 

“Hopefully people will remember my name and I’ll be someone they can look up to someday,” Ralph said. 

Season Preview: Girls’ indoor track chasing ‘little victories’

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Despite a small team, head coach Steve George is expecting the girls’ indoor track team to be competitive.

Little victories are what the Whitman-Hanson Regional High girls’ indoor track team is striving for this winter.

“I will feel our season will be a success if our small team of 32 girls can win five to seven events each week,” said sixth-year head coach Steve George. “A small team by its nature has difficulty winning meets due to the sports scoring method of five, three and one point for first, second and third places in each event.”

Despite fielding a team of just 32 girls, George’s expectations aren’t any lower. 

“I expect our girls to rise to the occasion,” said George, whose club finished 0-5 last season. “We have a small team, but each of its members are very competitive.”

In the distance events, it will be sophomore Myah Kamperides and junior Anna Sullivan leading the way for W-H. In the mid-distance events, senior Tori Boss and junior Izzy Amado will each run the 1,000-meter run, 600-meter run and 4×400 relay. In the long sprints, seniors Ryley Hurley and senior captain Courtney Woodward could make an impact in the 300-meter dash and possibly the 600-meter run. Senior captain Samantha Perkins, junior Emma Rogers and sophomore April Keyes are expected to make an impact in the sprinting and hurdling events. 

As for departures, George knows he has his hands full with the graduations of Ally Bartlett and Dorothy DiMascio-Donohue. Bartlett scored nearly 40 percent of W-H’s points last winter, while DiMascio-Donohue competed in the indoor pentathlon. 

“I don’t know that I can replace [them],” George said. “They scored a lot of points for us last year in sprints, hurdles, jumps and relays.”

George said he believes this year’s strength will the 300-meter dash and 600-meter run, while he’d like to improve his team’s relay skills. 

“With a small squad, most of our kids are needed in two individual running events, so it leaves us a little lacking in the relays,” George said. “There is nothing more disappointing than being close in a meet going into the relays and knowing you can’t win those events.”

W-H returns to action Wednesday, Jan. 22 at 3:45 p.m. at the Reggie Lewis Track and Athletic Center against Hingham and Silver Lake. 

“What I’m really hoping for is that we can achieve a lot of little victories, and the success stories on our team result in those kids promoting this great sport and in increased participation in the coming years,” George said. 

Season Preview: High hopes for boys’ indoor track

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Boys’ indoor track is aiming to be competitive in a tough Patriot League.

There are some high hopes for the Whitman-Hanson Regional High boys’ indoor track team this winter. 

“Our primary goal every season is to recruit new athletes, and to provide a rewarding and challenging program that will keep our veterans building on their previous experience,” said first-year boys’ indoor track head coach Stephen Schlicting, who is also the head coach of the boys’ outdoor track team. 

“We hope to be competitive with the top teams in the Patriot League. I believe we have solid captains and veterans.”

Those captains are seniors Patrick Bui, Nick Hanley and Brandon Hager.

“[They’re] experienced leaders who know the are experienced leaders who know the sport and are committed to help this team get better,” Schlicting said. “They bring spirit and performances that will make us a better team. I believe we have a strong returning core of experienced track and field athletes. 

Hager was a league all-star after excelling in the 1-mile run last season for the Panthers, who finished 2-3. He’ll be pushed by reigning Patriot League cross country MVP, junior Theo Kamperides, and juniors Liam Cafferty and Chris MacDonald and Hanley. 

“We have solid depth from our distance group,” Schlicting said.

Bui is expected to score in the 300-meter dash, shot put and relays and will get a push in the 300 and relays by classmate Dyllan Burns. Sophomore Jake Caterer is the Panthers’ fastest 55-meter sprinter and will score in the high jump and long jump, according to Schilicting. Junior Graham Stewart will contribute in the hurdles, jumps and relays. 

Schlicting said he wants to see his club get stronger.

“This means using the fitness room regularly and to be committed to core strength program,” said the coach. “I want the members to work together and push each other to become better athletes and young men.”

The Panthers return to action Wednesday, Jan. 22 at 3:45 p.m. at the Reggie Lewis Track and Athletic Center against Hingham and Silver Lake. 

“I want the new members to get comfortable, learn and communicate,” Schlicting said. “I want us to stay healthy and avoid injury. I want us to figure out what events each is best at and give each member the motivation to excel.”

Season Preview: For wrestling team, ‘Our first goal is to win 8-plus matches.’

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Damari Goldsmith-Greene readies for his opponent as the bench looks on at the mat. / Courtesy photo

The wrestling team has been stuck on seven wins for the past four seasons.

In each of the past four seasons, the Whitman-Hanson Regional High wrestling team has won seven matches. So, it’s pretty obvious what it’s looking to accomplish this winter.

“Our first goal is to win eight-plus matches,” said fourth-year head coach Gary Rabinovitz.

The Panthers’ prowess on the mat should help them reach that goal.

“This year’s team strength is its past experience on the mat,” said Rabinovitz, whose club went 7-20 last season. “We may only have one or two first-year wrestlers in the starting lineup.”

Junior captain Damari Goldsmith-Greene (138 pounds) leads the way for the Panthers. One of three Panthers who wrestled in the Division 2 state tournament last winter, Goldsmith-Greene posted a team-high 29 wins and was tabbed a Patriot League All-Star.

“Damari has great deal of natural ability, speed and determination are his keys to success,” Rabinovitz said.

Senior captain Steve Brooks, who was hampered by an injury last season, was a state qualifier at 152 pounds. This season, he bumps up to the 160-pound weight class.

“Steve had a very good junior season and the key to his success is his legs,” Rabinovitz said. “Steve is a very good leg wrestler and can pin just about anyone with his favorite move. Steve worked very hard in the offseason.”

Senior Bethany Ralph also captains W-H and is looking to build off of a second-place finish at 120 pounds in the first-ever girls’ state tournament last season.

“Bethany has worked very hard in the offseason and it will be the key to her quest for a state championship,” Rabinovitz said.

Freshmen Braden Kain (132 pounds) and Maddox Colcough (195 pounds), juniors Myles McInnis (126 pounds) and Aiden O’Brien (132 pounds) and sophomore Pat Collett (152 pounds) will also be key to W-H’s success this season.

W-H will be back on the mat Saturday, Jan. 10 at 10 a.m. when it hosts the Whitman-Hanson Tournament.

“I think we are going to surprise a lot of teams this year and be very competitive all season long,” Rabinovitz said.

Season Preview: Gymnastics trending in the right direction

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The gymnastics team. / Courtesy photo

First-year head coach Alison Vance is looking to grow the gymnastics program.

For the Whitman-Hanson Regional High gymnastics team, there are a few things it wants to accomplish this winter.

“Our goal this season is to continue to grow our program, familiarize ourselves with the complex rules of high school gymnastics and have fun while doing it,” said first-year head coach Alison Vance, who inherits a club that finished 2-13 last season. “If we sprinkle in a few wins here or there, we will be thrilled.”

Vance has already begun chipping away at those goals. After Middleboro decided to split from it co-op with W-H, there was some fear that W-H wouldn’t be able to field a team after boasting just six girls last winter, only four of whom were set to return. However, after a grassroots push on social media and through word of mouth to spread knowledge about the program, 10 girls turned out for the team.

Senior captain Sarah Bombardier keys the Panthers this winter. She led the team with a 31.69 all-around meet average last season.

“We anticipate she will be [our high scorer again],” Vance said. “She is a former competitive gymnast who isn’t afraid to try new skills. She has a lot of natural gymnastics talent. 

Junior Madison Scaccia also captains the team.

“Madison will compete on floor, vault and beam again this year,” Vance said. “She has been working hard to make her routines more competitive.”

Freshman Riley Getchell and junior Savannah Poirier, who captained the cheerleading team
this fall, should also contribute on a nightly basis.

Vance said one of the tweaks she has made this year is rotating the all-around positions, which each team is allowed two at each meet.

“Generally, teams use the same two girls to fill those roles,” Vance said. “However, this year we have four girls that could potentially compete all-around. We are planning to switch it up from time to time to see if that helps improve our scores.”

Vance said regardless of how her team fares, her expectations won’t change.

“I expect the girls to always give 100 percent,” she said. “I expect them to be respectful of myself, their teammates and their competitors. I expect them to be positive and proud of their accomplishments, big or small.”

The Panthers are back in action Tuesday, Jan. 7 at 6:30 p.m. with a meet against Hingham and Marshfield at Massachusetts Gymnastics Center in Pembroke.

“I want to see these girls continue to work hard to upgrade their skills,” Vance said. “I want them to shake off the nerves of their first meet and come back from winter break ready to go.”

Winter teams hitting stride

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The boys’ hockey team with some hardware after winning the Cashman Tournament. / Photo by: Sue Moss

The second full week of the winter sports season is in the books at Whitman-Hanson Regional High.

Here’s how it played out:

Boys’ basketball (4-2) took two of three during its trip to Bradenton, Fla. for the Falcon Christmas Classic. On Thursday, Dec. 26, senior captain Stevie Kelly dropped 23 points, but W-H fell to Sycamore (Ohio), 72-65. … Bob Rodgers’ club bounced back on Friday, defeating Mount Dora (Florida), 67-39. Senior captain Ben Rice paced the offense with 17 points, while Kelly and junior Nate Amado added 14 points apiece. … The Panthers capped theirs with a 69-61 victory over East Bay (Florida) on Saturday. Rice poured in 21 points, Amado had 17 and junior Cole LeVangie (12 points, 12 rebounds) had a double-double.

Girls’ basketball (4-2) was also down in Bradenton and came out on top in the Falcon Holiday Classic. In first-round play on Thursday, Dec. 26, W-H cruised to a 54-23 victory over Lakewood Ranch (Florida). Senior Brittany Gacicia erupted for 23 points in the win. … On Thursday, it was an upward battle for the Panthers against St. Stephen’s (Florida) as they trailed the entire game until late in the fourth quarter when senior captain Olivia Martin (14 points) drilled a three-pointer to send W-H to the championship game. … And in the championship game on Saturday, Zephyrhills (Florida) proved no match for Mike Costa’s club, which handed it a 66-29 defeat. Junior Reese Codero scored 22 points in the victory. Codero and Gacicia were named to the all-tournament team.

Boys’ hockey (3-1) made it back-to-back Cashman Tournament titles. In the tourney opener Thursday, Dec. 26, senior assistant captain Adam Solari, classmate Eddie Collins and junior Jack Allen lit the lamp to lead W-H past Silver Lake, 3-1. Junior goaltender Bobby Siders starred in net. … Then, on Saturday, Solari erupted for a hat trick in a 4-1 win over Rockland in the final. Sophomore Erik Dean collected the victory in net.

Girls’ hockey (1-4) fell to Billerica/Chelmsford, 6-1, on Monday, Dec. 23. Junior Ellie Grady (Kingston) had the WHSL goal. … The co-op bounced back on Saturday, though, shutting out Plymouth North/South, 5-0. Junior captain Emily McDonald (Whitman) netted her first goal of the season, freshman Bridget Cardarelli (Kingston) struck for two goals, while senior captain Alyssa Murphy (Kingston) and junior Neve Corkery (Kingston) also found the back of the net. Junior Kat Gilbert (Halifax) recorded her first career shutout.

*Express weekly roundups include scores from Sunday to Sunday. 

Mike Buchanan finds a home on the gridiron

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Mike Buchanan makes a block vs. Hingham. / Photo by: Sue Moss

Mike Buchanan credits football with helping shape the person he is today.

Without football, Mike Buchanan isn’t sure where or what he’d be.

When he looks down on the scale, he sees 278 pounds, but he knows, that could easily be a lot more.

“I’m big now, but without that motivation from football, I’d be way bigger,” Buchanan said. “Football has made me a better person.”

A senior starting left tackle at Whitman-Hanson Regional High, Buchanan recently committed to play at the next level for Bridgewater State University.

Football’s always been Buchanan’s passion and his weight has always been his biggest challenge. The two have crossed paths often.

In third grade, he was 40 pounds over the weight limit to make the Hanson Youth Football mites team. So he took the field with players who were two to three years older than him as a member of the peewees, instead.

“It was tough,” Buchanan said. “I almost quit after the first practice because I was playing with fifth and sixth graders.”

But his coach took him aside after that first day.

“He talked me into keep playing,” Buchanan said. “He knew I loved the game, I always have.”

From that point on, Buchanan had a new outlook on his playing career — no matter how tough the road would get.

“I was like, ‘If I’m going to stick with it now, I’m going to stick with it forever,’” he recalled.

That would be challenged again a few years later, when in seventh grade, he found himself 40 pounds over the peewees’ weight limit. So, he ended up suiting up for Weymouth Youth Football, where the teams were decided by grade not weight.

“It made me kind of nervous playing there,” Buchanan said. “You’re 12, 13 years old, going to a totally different town with totally different people. You’ve never talked to these people in your life.”

Buchanan credits his youth career for helping him morph into the player he is today.

“The coaches taught me so much,” he said. “That team in Weymouth is when I realized that football is just awesome because there were so many guys and we were so good.”

This past season, Buchanan helped spearhead a Panthers’ rushing attack that averaged 141 yards per game.

“Every time we needed a play, we went behind Mike,” said W-H football head coach Mike Driscoll. “He was the leader of our offensive line.”

Buchanan had never started a varsity game coming into the fall but put together an “amazing” offseason, according to Driscoll.

“He earned that spot,” Driscoll said. “He went in at left tackle the first practice and never left. He came into this season, determined to be the leader, determined to work hard every practice, there was never a practice where Mike didn’t want to be there.”

Buchanan said he’s going to build up his speed and strength before he heads to the collegiate level next fall.

“I’m already one of the biggest guys on the team,” he said. “I can’t be one of the weakest or slowest. I plan on getting there this year.”