Sports Roundup: Field Hockey, Boys Soccer Win "Golden Anchors" Against Martha's Vineyard
David Creed •
Three Nantucket varsity sports teams made the early morning boat ride to Martha’s Vineyard (with a huge thanks to the Nantucket Booster Club for chartering the Steamship vessel!) to face off against their island foe and for a second year, the stakes were heightened with Golden Anchors on the line, which are trophies awarded annually to the winner of the Whaler/Vineyarder field hockey, girls soccer, and boys soccer games on the island where the Island Cup is scheduled to be played that year.
The Island Cup will be played at Fenway Park this year on November 26th, so the football team traveled to Newton North to face their Div. 1 program on Saturday.
Field Hockey Shuts Out Martha’s Vineyard
The field hockey team was able to beat the Vineyard 5-0 and capped off their fabulous regular season with their second straight Golden Anchor. They finished their season 13-3-2 and now await the revealing of the Div. 4 state tournament bracket – which they are expected to be a top 10 seed in.
"I thought (Martha's Vineyard) really came out hard against us today," head coach Dan Weber said. "We actually started off in the first five minutes or so, I thought we were a little sluggish. But we figured it out and you know, you can throw the records out when we play (the Vineyard). It doesn't really matter because the two teams want to beat each other really badly. So no matter the talent level, you always got to be ready to play. So 5-0 is a good win for us.”
The goal scorers in Saturday morning’s game against the Vineyarders were tallied by senior captain Maddie Lombardi (her first goal of the season), sophomore Evie Phelps (two goals), senior Sam Zadroga, and junior Sadie Paterson.
Lombardi has regularly been touted by Weber and assistant head coach Elizabeth Weber as one of the Whaler’s top players while anchoring the midfield. They, as well as her teammates, enjoyed seeing her be rewarded while in a rare position to be offensive minded.
"We had an opportunity to slip her up at forward to start the game today, and then moved her back to midfield," Dan Weber said. "She does a lot of work on the field that doesn't show up on the scoreboard. Her and Mayson Lower are two leaders and two girls that have been some of our top players and leaders for years. I think they both play positions where it doesn't show up on the scoreboard a lot, but they're two fantastic players. It's good to see Maddie get on the board. I know Mayson would love to, but Mayson also loves playing defense. So if we keep winning games, even if she's not on the scoreboard, I think we'll be alright.”
Lombardi's goal came midway through the first and was the game's first goal. It helped the Whalers shake off their sluggish start that Weber referenced. Phelps also continues to emerge as a valuable contributor offensively.
"Evie knows how to put the ball in the back of the net and she's going to be a good player for us going forward," Dan Weber said. "She's super athletic and she knows how to score, and she's got time, which is great."
The Whalers now await the unveiling of this year’s state tournament bracket on Tuesday, October 29th at 11 a.m., which they are expected to be inside of the top 10 once it is finalized.
"We were talking to the girls about how the games are only going to get harder now," Dan Weber said. "So just holding ourselves to a high standard and trying to have a good next four or five days, whatever it is, before we play, and we will see where we shake out in the rankings. But I'm not too concerned about the number. I think if we play well, we can beat whoever. So that's the plan.”
Boys Soccer Wins First Golden Anchor In Penalty Kick Shootout
The boys soccer team lost to Martha’s Vineyard on Nantucket 2-0 last fall, but got their revenge against the Vineyarders with a 1-0 win in penalty kicks after the game’s 80 minutes weren’t enough and neither team was able to find the back of the net.
"A full team effort," Whaler head coach Rich Brannigan II said. "We talked about it before the game that the game was going to be won in your heads with a positive mentality. With an I can get up and go mentality. If I get knocked down, I can get going. The next play mentality. It all starts up here (in their heads), you know what I mean? Games present ups and downs and ebbs and flows. I always impress upon the guys you got to play through that. You can't go high, and you can't go low. You got to be even. But in order to stay even, you have to be prepared mentally for that task. We talked about the focus for 80 minutes or as long as it takes, and they were so hungry at the end of that game.”
Junior captain and keeper Alex Ivilov was sensational in net. He made several key stops and plays in regulation, followed by a pair of stops in the penalty kick session – including two straight denials to clinch the win for the Whalers after the first stop was waived off for a violation. Nantucket won the penalty kick shootout 4-2.
"Alex rose to the occasion," Brannigan said. "I mean, just a huge game. He had some huge saves in regulation and then a massive save on the second kicker of theirs. That was a great save. Just a great save. And then having to step in there a second time after making a save (on their last shooter), so psychologically you were like, "We won the game' and then, 'Shoot, we didn't win the game' and you got to refocus. That's tough because the referees need to be very assertive in that situation either blowing whistles saying game's over or blowing whistles and pointing back at the spot. But the refs did a good job I mean, it was a chippy game. It was physical.”
The four PK shootout scorers were sophomores Edvin Valentukevicius, Calvin Guevarra, junior Alexis Pena, and senior Bryan Mejia. With Saturday's win, Nantucket completed the season sweep of Martha's Vineyard.
Nantucket still has one game remaining on their schedule before they can look ahead to the state tournament. They will be traveling to the Cape on Tuesday, October 29th to play the St. John Paul II Lions at 3:30 p.m.
Girls Soccer Shutout By The Vineyard
Despite controlling the pace of play for the games first 40-50 minutes, the girls soccer team was unable to beat the Vineyard and lost 2-0. Sophomore captain and keeper Madden Myers had an excellent day in net – making several key stops to keep her team in the game until the Vineyard's second goal in the final minute.
"I thought we controlled the game in that first half and a good 10 minutes into the second half," Whaler head coach Doug LeBrecht said. "We lost the defender (on the first goal). But the girls kept their composure and kept after them all game. There were some little mistakes we had but overall, I was really impressed. They stayed in the game the entire time. They didn't throw their hands down. The referees were good. It was a really good battle.”
LeBrecht said he continues to be impressed with the development and play of junior Allyson Escobar in Nantucket’s back end.
“Allyson really did great, and we gave her MVP of the game," LeBrecht said. "There were a couple of times she had to battle against players, and she did well. She has really come a long way. She's always been solid and grateful, but the commitment wasn't there in practice. Now she's there every single practice. She's really committed to it, and it has been great to see.”
The Whalers will finish their regular season on the road Wednesday, October 30th when they face the Dennis-Yarmouth Dolphins at 3 p.m.
Football Loses Road Matchup To Newton North
The Whaler football team went on the road to face the Newton North Tigers Saturday afternoon and lost 34-20 to the Div. 1 program.
Nantucket was led by junior wide receiver Arann Hanlon, who exploded for a two-touchdown day – including a 48-yard touchdown reception from junior quarterback Brock Beamish to give the Whalers an early 6-0 lead after the point after attempt was blocked.
The second score was a 13-yard touchdown run in the first half to answer two unanswered scoring drives by the Tigers and trim the Whaler deficit to 13-12 in the second quarter. The Whalers trailed 20-12 going into halftime after a third Tiger’s touchdown with nine seconds remaining in the first half.
The third touchdown of the day for the Whalers was a one-yard quarterback scramble from under center by freshman quarterback Burke Lombardi to make it a 20-20 game midway through the third quarter after a successful two-point conversion off a run by sophomore running back David Guillen-Taveras.
Nantucket would go on to allow 14 unanswered points after tying the game, and their record now stands at 2-6 with their final regular season game scheduled for Friday, November 1st on the road against the Monomoy Sharks at 4:15 p.m.
Below are when each sport’s tournament bracket will be revealed and where each team stood in the latest power rankings released on Friday.
Field Hockey brackets will be released on Tuesday, October 29th at 11 a.m. They were #9 in the latest power rankings (top 32 qualify).
Volleyball brackets will be released on Tuesday, October 29th at 1 p.m. They were #19 in the latest power rankings (top 32 qualify).
Boys & Girls Soccer brackets will be released on Friday, November 1st at 1 p.m. The boys were ranked #17 and the girls were ranked #18 in their latest brackets (top 32 advance in each bracket).
Football brackets will be released on Sunday, November 3rd at 1 p.m. The Whalers were #15 in the latest Div. 4 power rankings. The top 16 teams make the state tournament, but qualifying teams must have at least three wins – so the Whalers, at 2-6, will need to earn a win at Monomoy on Friday in order to give themselves a shot at making the state tournament for the first time since 2021.
Below are more photos taken throughout the Whaler’s day on Martha’s Vineyard.
