Gloucester field hockey’s Tracy Wood and Bishop Fenwick football’s Cory Bright have proven to be elite on the athletic fields and in the classroom. That excellence in both realms saw the two standouts named the Moynihan Lumber Student-Athletes of the Month for October.
Wood was at the forefront of an incredible Gloucester field hockey season. The senior captain helped lead her squad to a 16-2-3 record, setting the program’s single-season wins record and reaching the sectional semifinals for the second time in the last three years.
Wood’s impact on her team was enormous. On the left wing, she scored a whopping 23 goals, the second-highest single-season total in program history, in helping the Fishermen score nearly five goals per contest.
A well-rounded skill set, which features speed to bring the ball up the field, intelligence to find the open player, and the instincts to finish off plays, led to a spot for her on the NEC All-Conference team.
“My role is to take the ball up the field and get us started in the circle, usually passing to Mia Salah in the middle,” she said. “Having so many strong teammates up front with me makes it a great playing experience, and we’re always confident going into games. I try to help in any way I can, whether it’s scoring, handling the ball or passing off.”
Wood’s athletic prowess doesn’t stop on the field hockey field, either. She’s also a standout swimmer and a Northeastern Conference all-star softball player in the spring, where she was the starting center fielder and No. 3 hitter for the NEC champion Fishermen last spring.
In the classroom, Wood is just as impressive as she sports a 4.0 grade point average while taking a difficult course schedule, featuring multiple AP classes. She is the Vice President of the Senior class and received a Medtronic Biomedical Engineering Internship, the field which she hopes to study in college.
“I try to focus on those type of subjects in school,” Wood said. “Sports has helped me with time management and work ethic to perform well in the classroom and on the field.”
Cory Bright’s 2018 football season got off to a bit of a late start, as the four-year starter missed significant time after getting injured seven plays into the season. But he essentially put together a season’s worth of statistics in half the time.
In just five-plus games, the senior quarterback threw for 1,167 yards with 16 touchdowns and only two interceptions in helping lead the Crusaders to a 9-2 record, winning the Catholic Central League Large championship.
Not only is Bright one of the most productive players on the field, he also takes pride in being a leader on and off the field.
“My role is to be a leader,” he said. “Being a quarterback and captain, all eyes are on me and I try day in and day out to lead by example.”
Cory led the Crusaders’ to a 13-7 victory over Malden Catholic in his first game back. His best game statistically came against Cardinal Spellman, where he tossed five touchdown passes and threw for 386 yards in a victory.
“I tore my ACL against (Spellman) last year,” Cory said. “So having success against them and getting the win made the entire process worth it, even if it was a tough one.”
In the classroom, he sports an ‘A’ average while taking AP US History and AP Government. The senior’s favorite classes are math and history, and he’s looking to major in one of those subjects when he gets to college.
Overall, Cory contributes his success to his work ethic.
“It’s challenging at times trying to balance sports with schoolwork,” he said. “I’ve been able to find success in both areas through time management, keeping an eye on schedules and placing as much time as I can on schoolwork. There are some late nights and schoolwork on the weekends, but having success and the satisfaction of putting in the work and seeing good results makes it all worth it.”