PHOTO BY BOB ROCHE
Nick Theophiles gets a leaping chest bump from Spencer Balian following his home run.
By KATIE MORRISON
At Lynnfield, the Pioneers baseball team advanced to today’s Division 3 North quarterfinal (4) with a 6-5 win at home against Pentucket thanks to a bases-loaded, seventh-inning single by Mike Stellato.
Lynnfield entered the seventh down 5-4. But Kyle Hawes and Nick Colucci were both hit by pitches leading off the inning. Freshman Jonathan Luders, in the game to bunt the runners along, instead drew a walk to load the bases. Another walk to Justin Juliano pushed across the tying run, and re-loaded the bases before Stellato’s base hit.
The Pioneers (17-4) led 1-0 in the fist on a safety squeeze by Colucci that scored Bryant Dana, who had singled. After falling behind 2-1 in the top of the fourth, Lynnfield regained the lead on RBI singles by Dana and Stellato. Nick Theophiles homered in the fifth to put the Pioneers up 4-2 before Pentucket scored three runs, two of them unearned, to grab a 5-4 lead in the sixth.
The game was delayed in the bottom of the seventh prior to Stellato’s at-bat for 15 minutes when the steady rain that had been falling through most of the game increased.
SOFTBALL
Revere 8, Westford 5
A year after Westford Academy knocked Revere out of the tournament with an extra-inning victory, the Patriots got their revenge in a thriller on Saturday.
Tied at two through five innings, Revere’s bats came alive late. Ally Hinojosa put the Patriots up, 4-2, in the sixth with a double. They’d get one more in the inning to grab a 5-2 lead, but Westford tied it up once again with a three-run sixth.
Hinojosa delivered the biggest blow of the game in the top of the seventh with a clutch three-run home run that put the Patriots on top for good.
Gia Santaniello got the start and kept the Patriots in the game, and Olivia McManus got the win, holding the Grey Ghosts scoreless in the seventh.
Lynnfield 9, O’Bryant 1
At O’Bryant Saturday, the Pioneers advanced to the Division 3 North quarterfinals Tuesday (4) at Austin Prep.
Sophomore Hayley O’Brien was the star in this one, going the distance and allowing one run, earned, on one hit. Kelly Dillon was the offensive star, with three runs batted in.
It was a tight game until the fifth, when the Pioneers scored five runs, with O’Brien helping her cause by leading off with a triple.
BOYS LACROSSE
Beverly 14, Burlington 9
Nick DiLuiso played his best game of the season, leading all scorers with six goals and an assist in Beverly’s quarterfinal win over No. 8 Burlington.
Defensively, the Panthers were led by John Jones who racked up three take-aways and grabbed four ground balls. Beverly scored six unanswered goals in the third period to seal the victory.
Hunter Spencer (3 goals, assist), Jordan Rawding (2 goals, 2 assists), Sam Abate (1 goal, 2 assists) and Kyle Chouinard (goal) did damage offensively for Beverly, and senior defenseman Ryan Garrity scored his first goal of the season on a full-field rush.
Beverly will take on No. 4 Melrose in the semifinals, Tuesday at 5 p.m. at Endicott College.
Manchester-Essex 4, Lynnfield 3
Defense was the name of the game as the No. 6 Hornets pulled off the upset over third-seeded Lynnfield. The Pioneers had beaten Manchester Essex, 10-3, just three weeks earlier, but they couldn’t get much past Hornets goalie Paul DiFluri Saturday.
GIRLS TENNIS
Marblehead 5, Danvers 0
The Magicians had no trouble taking down their Northeastern Conference opponent in the quarterfinal round of the D2 North tournament. The win improves the team to 15-0 in the NEC and 19-1 overall.
Michelle Shub swept Shannon Veilleux, 6-0, 6-0, in first singles, and Julia Channing topped Crony Patel, 6-0, 6-0, at third singles. Meg Ryan topped Rhianna Leslie, 6-1, 6-0 at second singles.
Meagan Hanratty and Lily Frontero beat Lauren McKinnon and Molly O’Donald at first doubles, 6-0, 6-0. The second doubles match was the best of the afternoon, with Sammi Gilberg and Simone Likterov beating Jenna Clemenzi and Maria Gigli, 7-5, 7-6.
The Magicians will take on the winner of No. 4 Concord-Carlisle and No. 5 Burlington on Tuesday at home.
Lynnfield 5, Lowell Catholic 0
Lowell Catholic was no match for the Pioneers. In fact, they couldn’t even produce enough players for a full match, with second doubles being defaulted.
Second singles Katie Nevils, third singles Amanda Stelman, and first doubles Olivia Skelley and Camie Foley all won their matches 6-0, 6-0. Sarah Mezini also dominated at first singles, winning 6-1, 6-0.
The Pioneers will take on the winner of Austin Prep-North Reading on Tuesday at home.
BOYS TENNIS
Winchester 5, Marblehead 0
The Magicians were swept by No. 2-seed Winchester in the D2 North semifinals, but coach Elisabeth Foukal acknowledged that the score “does not reflect the high caliber of tennis that was played.”
“I couldn’t be more proud of the way the team competed and showed what sportsmen they are,” added Foukal.
At first singles, Marblehead junior captain Justin Faia went up against Noah Criss, who is ranked as the 11th-best player in the state in his age group. Faia dropped the match, 6-1, 6-0, but Foukal said that just about every game was close.
“Justin played as well as I’ve seen him play all season,” she said.
Fellow junior captain Felix Litvak had what Foukal called “the match of his high school career,” taking the first set in a tiebreaker, 7-6 (8-6) after being down 2-5 in both the games and the tiebreak. Winchester’s Jasper Tahnk took the second set, and since the match was already decided by this point, Tahnk won 10-3 in a 10-point super tie-breaker.
Freshman Billy Ackerman fell, 6-1, 6-1, to Justin Krayer, who Foukal called “a human backboard.”
“(He) just did not miss,” she said.
Sam Orenstein and Garrett Tully fought, but fell 6-3, 6-1 in second doubles, and freshmen Dan Litvak and David Grenader were overmatched by two seniors, losing 6-0, 6-1.