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Boys’ cross country races to Patriot League Keenan title

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The Whitman-Hanson Regional high boys’ cross county team clinched its first league title in seven years with a win over Marshfield on Wednesday, Oct. 28.

Whitman-Hanson Regional High boys’ cross country head coach Steve George wasn’t sure what to expect going into last week’s meet against Marshfield with the Patriot League Keenan Division title on the line.

Junior Nathan Tassey, one of the Panthers’ top runners, felt under the weather earlier in the day. George knew they weren’t going to win without him. Marshfield, which is in its first year in the Patriot League, dominated the Atlantic Coast League before it folded, winning the league six times in a row from 2013-18. Then last fall, the Rams went 5-0 playing a Patriot League schedule.

“I was concerned when Marshfield was added to the Patriot League this year, something I advocated for actually,” George said. “Even over the past couple of weeks, each time athletic director Bob Rodgers asked if we were going to win this thing, I never expressed certainty. He however, insisted we would.”

Rodgers was right. 

W-H (5-0) placed four of the top six runners and squeaked by Marshfield (4-1), 26-29, to capture the program’s first league championship since 2013. 

Senior captain Theo Kamperides took first overall with a time of 16:34, finishing the regular season unbeaten. 

“I was really nervous, but that’s normal,” Kamperides said. “I thought we had a chance, and our coaches were very motivational and positive. I’m so proud of my team for winning the league title.”

Said George: “[Theo] is a workhorse. He simply loves running and puts in the time and miles necessary to excel. The adage is it takes 10,000 hours to master a skill. Theo is putting that to the test.” 

The Panthers seniors. / Courtesy photo

The Rams placed the next two runners before Panthers senior captain Liam Cafferty (4th, 17:04) and Tassey (5th, 17:09) crossed the finish line neck-and-neck. 

“I really was concerned when Nathan (Tassey) couldn’t practice on Tuesday, the day before the meet,” George said. “He had some doubts about his ability when he arrived prior to the meet, but that ended when the gun went off.”

Senior captain Chris MacDonald (6th, 17:37) and junior Gordon Johnson (10th, 18:18) rounded out the scoring for W-H. 

“Until this season, I was never certain every athlete bought into what we were trying to accomplish and how to get there,” said George, who took over the program in 2014. “With so many fourth-year runners and dedicated captains, it wasn’t just the coaching staff trying to impress the team, it was their peers also. We had three adult coaches and a couple dozen student-athletes coaching as well. I’ve looked forward to this year as the season when we could go wire-to-wire.”

George said he hopes this season’s success will help shine a light on the cross country program moving forward. 

“Seeing our athletes, who are a very happy and cohesive group has to have an impact on some of them who may think cross country is worth a try,” George said. “We’ve got room on our teams for anybody interested. I’ve never met a cross country athlete who regretted the decision to run.”  

And you don’t have to look any further than Kamperides.

“Joining the cross country team was the best decision of my life,” he said. “The chemistry on this team is like no other. Everyone worked so hard in order to win and they all truly deserve it.”

Defense dominant, offense outstanding in Whitman-Hanson football’s 41-13 victory over Marshfield

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Panthers football dominates Marshfield for season-opening victory.

Coming into Friday evening’s season opener, head coach Mike Driscoll was wary of his Panthers’ opponent — Marshfield. 

The Rams have been a perennial high school football powerhouse, boasting a pair of Super Bowls (‘09 and ‘14) since Whitman-Hanson’s last (‘01). Also, a change at the helm over the offseason led to former Hingham head coach Chris Arouca, who’s had his success against Driscoll (2-1, including a two-game winning streak dating back to ’16), taking over the Rams. 

However, it only took 11 minutes for that wariness to wear off as W-H jumped out to a two-touchdown lead after the first quarter and cruised to a 41-13 home triumph over Marshfield in a non-league tilt. 

“It feels pretty good now that it’s over,” Driscoll said. “I knew that they were going to be ready to play and they really came to play tonight.”

Senior Panthers dual-threat quarterback Ethan Phelps led the offense, garnering 187 total yards and four touchdowns. 

“It’s great to get a win under our belt,” Phelps said. “Everyone contributed.”

Phelps found pay dirt twice in a 5:34 span in the opening frame to put the hosts up 14-0 after one. 

The grounding and pounding carried over into the second quarter when rushing scores from seniors Billy Martell and Nate Beath, of 10 yards and one yard, respectively, gave the Panthers a 27-0 cushion. 

Phelps finished the quarter by flashing his arm, connecting with classmate Brandon Frawley for a 10-yard TD, to make it 34-0 at the half.

A 21-yard TD catch by CJ Guiliani from Phelps with 2:09 left in the third, coupled with a Jake O’Brien extra point, capped the Panthers’ offensive onslaught at 41.

“We try to spread it around,” Driscoll said. “We have so many weapons that we wanted to use them.”

Marshfield struck for two scores in the final frame. 

Senior captain Quinn Sweeney sparked the Panthers on defense with 10 tackles, while classmate and fellow captain Rian Schwede recorded an interception and had three catches for 48 yards. 

W-H will host New Bedford next Friday at 7 p.m. in another non-league contest. 

“We’ll enjoy this tonight and come tomorrow, we’ll be on to New Bedford so it’s gonna be a challenge there itself — a big, strong team coming into town.”

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.”