Sports Roundup: Boys Soccer Beats St. John Paul II
David Creed •
This Whaler sports roundup includes updates on the boys soccer team, field hockey team, and cross-country team after each of them earned victories, as well as the volleyball team and the golf team.
Johnson, Alonzo Lead Boys Soccer Past Lions To Remain Unbeaten
The boys soccer team earned a 2-1 victory over the St. John Paul II Lions Monday afternoon thanks to a pair of second half goals by senior captain Jake Johnson and senior Elvis Alonzo.
"It was an ugly game,” Nantucket head coach Rich Brannigan II said. “The guys were frustrated from the first whistle partly because it was chippy, partly because there are three Nantucket boys on the (SJP) team and then there's two or three others they all play club soccer with, so there's just a lot of small little rivalries and big rivalries throughout.
“It was frustrating because things weren't going our way. We weren't connecting,” Brannigan added. “There was just no cohesion on our behalf. They just needed to hear that. It's all about patience. It's going to come. We're going to get chances. You got to be patient. If you keep pointing fingers at your teammate, or you put your head down because you made a mistake as a player, you're not going to be there for that moment that we need you to be there, or your teammates not going to be there to help you if you're not doing what you need to do.”
Johnson missed on a high-quality scoring opportunity right in front of the net off a beautiful cross pass with about 20 minutes remaining in the game - kicking the ball just wide of the right post. But Johnson shook it off and made up for it with a rocket of a shot shortly after to make it 1-0 Whalers with just over 10 minutes to go in the game.
About seven minutes later, Alonzo was able to find the back of the net to make it a 2-0 game. SJP scored a quick one in response, but the Whalers were able to hang on for the victory.
"It took 80 minutes. It took all that time,” Brannigan said. “We scored with (10 minutes left) and got a little cushion a couple minutes later. We needed that. We gave up that soft goal and we kind of started ball watching and got sucked into kind of not having the right marking on the back post, but it was great to get a win. It was a good way to start the week. Busy week with tough competition every game. These guys (SJP) are good. They tied Nauset. They're an organized team who have good coaching and skilled players. It was good that we were patient enough to get the job done.”
The Whalers have yet to lose a game and are now 2-0-3 through their first five games. Their next game is scheduled for Wednesday, September 25 on the road against a strong Nauset Warriors team at 4 p.m. You can view more photos from Monday's game here.
Field Hockey Shuts Out SJP
The field hockey team continued their strong start to the season on Tuesday by defeating the St. John Paul II Lions 2-0 on the road to improve their record to 5-1-1 on the year.
The goals were scored by junior Sadie Paterson and senior Caroline Collette. Senior captain Suz Peraner had two assists on the game while fellow senior captain Maddie Lombardi had the initial shot on both the goals scored, which came on corners.
Nantucket will attempt to improve their record to 6-1-1 on Thursday, September 26 when they travel to the Cape to face the Sturgis East Storm at 3 p.m.
Cross Country Improves To 3-0
The cross-country team remains unbeaten this season after improving their record to 3-0 following a 26-29 defeat against the Rising Tide Herons on the road Tuesday afternoon in Plymouth.
Below are the times for each Nantucket runner:
Rory Murray – 19:04
Dorian Manov – 19:59
Mike Sullivan – 20:43
Jimmy Fuller – 22:17
Hayden Roberts – 22:44
Numa Solano – 23:12
Dom Pasys – 24:43
Nick Ferrantella – 25:15
Boris Boychev – 25:17
Finn Seip – 25:26
Will Manning – 30:59
Iain MacIver – 33:51.
The Whaler’s next meet is scheduled for Tuesday, October 1 on the road against the Falmouth Clippers at 3:15 p.m.
Volleyball Loses To Nauset
The volleyball team lost to Nauset in five sets Monday afternoon. The sets were as followed.
Set 1: 25-14 Nantucket
Set 2: 23-25 Nauset
Set 3: 25-21 Nantucket
Set 4: 22-25 Nauset
Set 5: 11-15 Nauset
Senior outside hitter Rihanna Cranston led the team with 15 kills. Senior middle Leah Crowley had 10 kills and led the team with five aces. Senior setter Bianca Santos led the team with 17 assists.
The Whalers next match is scheduled for Wednesday, September 25 at home against the Dennis-Yarmouth Dolphins at 4 p.m.
Golf Drops Pair Of Matches On The Island
The golf team welcomed Cape Cod Academy to the island Monday afternoon and had the opportunity to play at the Nantucket Golf Club once again, but lost to CCA 267-275 in very windy conditions.
Then on Tuesday, the Whalers returned to Miacomet where they faced St. John Paul II. They lost that match as well by a score of 227-253. You can view more photos from Tuesday's match here.
The Whalers are now 4-5 midway through their season. Their next match is scheduled for Thursday, September 26 when they travel to the Cape to face the Sturgis West Navigators at 3:30 p.m.
SCHEDULE AHEAD:
Wednesday, September 25:
The volleyball team will host Dennis-Yarmouth at 4 p.m.
The girls soccer team will host Nauset at 4 p.m.
The boys soccer team will be on the road facing Nauset at 4 p.m.
Thursday, September 26:
The field hockey team will be on the road facing Sturgis East at 3 p.m.
The golf team will be on the road facing Sturgis West at 3:30 p.m.
For more updates on Whaler sports throughout the year, you can:
Follow Nantucket Current Sports on Instagram here.
Follow Sports Editor David Creed on X here.
Follow Sports Photographer Chris Tran on Instagram here.