Whaler Sports Roundup - Nantucket Goes Winless In Packed Weekend Sports Slate
David Creed •
All five Nantucket varsity sports teams were in action this weekend, however no team was able to pick up a win. The weekend's closest game was the boys hockey team against Martha's Vineyard Saturday afternoon.
Boys Puck Drops Heartbreaker To Martha's Vineyard In Overtime
Anytime the Whaler boys hockey team meets up with Martha's Vineyard, anyone in attendance can expect the game to be physical and one whose outcome will come down to the wire. That was once again the case on Saturday with the Vineyarders winning in overtime 3-2.
"They weren't here today. I don't know what happened," head coach Jack Moran Sr. said. "We did not perform. It was probably one of the worst performances we have seen out of them this year. I don't know if it was a psychological thing because this is a big rivalry for these guys and all they want to do is win."
"We just could not move the puck. No shots and our power plays I mean, we just let them crumble. We didn't take advantage when we should have."
The two teams split their two-game regular season matchups last year before Nantucket knocked out the Vineyard in the MIAA Div. 4 State Tournament 2-1 in overtime over on the Vineyard. The Vineyarders came to Nantucket on Saturday seeking revenge and peppered Whaler goalie Griffin Starr early with six power play shots in the first period alone. But Starr was up to the task and kept the game scoreless as it went into the first intermission.
The second period was much of the same. Neither team was able to capitalize on their power play opportunities through the first 30 minutes of hockey with the Vineyard going 0 for 4 while the Whalers went 0 for 2.
But Nantucket drew a penalty with 30 seconds remaining in the second period, which gave them 1:30 of time on the man advantage to begin the third period with a clean sheet of ice. For senior Jack Billings, he knew this would be the final time playing the Vineyard on his home ice (barring an MIAA matchup). Just 38 seconds into the period, Billings took a pass from the left face-off dot from junior center Ryan Davis and let a shot rip from the point to give Nantucket a 1-0 lead.
But the Vineyard answered right away. Chase Grant scored two minutes later for the Vineyard to tie it 1-1 and then they got a power play opportunity right after. The Whalers allowed a goal but it was waved off, however the Vineyard was able to score again with 10 minutes to go put Nantucket in a 2-1 hole.
"Our shots were minimal," Moran said. "I don't know that we even had 20 shots today. It was just bad and they know it. They can feel it right now and they are all looking at each other saying what happened?"
Curren Hatch is the only other senior on Nantucket's roster aside from Billings, and he similarly wanted to do whatever he could to help lead his team to a victory. He was in front of the Vineyard net with just under four minutes to go when freshman forward Jeremy Jenkinson let a shot go that led to a loose puck in front of the Vineyard net. Hatch was able to gain possession of the puck and score his first goal of the season to make it 2-2, a score that would stand as the clock hit zero.
It sent the game into a five minute, four-on-four overtime period. The Whalers had the home crowd behind them, but it was the Vineyard's Nate Averill scoring the overtime winner to cap off a three-point night for him that helped send Nantucket home with the loss.
"You just got to pick up and learn," Moran said. "It is in the book. We have (Dennis-Yarmouth) on Monday and that isn't going to be an easy game. When they stick to our gameplan like we have in every single game of standing (opponents) up at the blue line, playing the body, keeping them to the sides, creating space, working it well in our attacking zone, those are the things they need to stick to and if they do, we come out in a good spot. We just couldn't find it tonight."
The Whalers are now 2-4-0 this season and will play the 7-0-1 Dennis-Yarmouth Dolphins on the road at Tony Kent Arena on Monday, January 9 at 4 p.m.
Boys Basketball Struggles Offensively In Home Loss To Millbury
The Nantucket boys basketball team was feeling good about where their game was at entering Saturday afternoon's matchup against the Millbury Woolies after outscoring their last two opponents 139-93 amidst their two game winning streak. But the Woolies caused problems for Nantucket's offense all game long, holding the Whalers to just 38 points while beating them 53-38 and sinking Nantucket's record to 2-3 this season.
It was a 14-10 game after one quarter. The Whalers have had some slow starts to begin the season, but normally find a way to pick up the offense as the game goes on. The second quarter sunk Nantucket into a deeper hole however as their offensive struggles continued while the Woolies managed to generate 16 more points. It gave Millbury a 30-17 lead going into halftime.
Both teams scored just 11 points in the third quarter and Millbury outscored Nantucket 23-21 in the second half. Junior forward Jayquan Francis had a team-high 10 points for the Whalers while junior point guard Carlos Aguilar had nine points. Junior center Jack Halik finished the game with six points and 13 rebounds.
The Whalers will look to bring their record back to .500 when they travel to Sturgis East to take on the Storm on Monday, January 9 at 5:30 p.m.
Girls Swimming Places Second, Boys Fourth In Cape Cod Classic
Photo by Archie Ferguson
The Whaler boys and girls swim teams traveled to Sandwich for the Cape Cod Classic, which featured six teams: Nantucket, Sandwich, Nauset, Martha's Vineyard, Barnstable, and St. John Paul II. The teams placed as followed:
Women Results:
1) Nauset - 198 points
2) Nantucket - 174 points
3) Sandwich - 128 points
4) Barnstable - 83 points
5) St. John Paul II - 70 points
6) Martha's Vineyard - 14 points
State times swam by members of the Nantucket girls team included:
Freshman Myah Johnson in the 50 yard freestyle (26.02) and 100 yard freestyle (57.63). Johnson placed second in the 100 free by just .07 seconds to Leila Evans of SJP.
Senior Hannah Gerardi earned a state time in the 100 yard breaststroke with a time of 1:14.87.
The grouping of Johnson, Gerardi, senior Eliza Brown, and junior Hannah Harrington earned a south sectional time in the 400 yard freestyle relay with a time of (4:12.05).
Men's Results:
1) Nauset - 147 points
2) Sandwich - 136 points
3) Martha's Vineyard - 128 points
4) Nantucket - 91 points
5) St. John Paul II - 64 points
6) Barnstable - 62 points
State times swam by members of the Nantucket boys team included:
Senior captain Justin Roethke in the 200 yard freestyle (1:54.21) and 100 yard butterfly (58.34).
Sophomore Jake Johnson in the 50 yard freestyle (23.22) and 100 yard freestyle (51.37).
The grouping of Roethke, Johnson, seventh grader Eli MacIver, and senior Hunter Gross earned a south sectional time in the 200 yard freestyle relay with a time of 1:39.38.
The Whalers next meet will be on Wednesday, January 11 at 5 p.m. when they host the Sandwich Blue Knights.
Girls Hockey Still Searching For Their First Win After Two More Losses
The Whaler girls hockey team finds itself at 0-6 to begin the season after a pair of losses over the weekend where they were outscored 15-2. The weekend began with a loss to the Sandwich Blue Knights 11-1 on Saturday and on Sunday the Whalers welcomed Martha's Vineyard to the island, but lost 4-1.
Junior forward Bailey Lower scored both goals for Nantucket over the weekend. The Martha's Vineyard girls hockey team showed their respect for Nantucket with helmet decals featuring the number 81 to honor the late Baxter Waldman, who tragically lost his life in a motor cycle accident last month.
The Whalers will be in action again on Wednesday when they travel to Falmouth to take on the 4-1-2 Clippers at 4 p.m.
Girls Basketball Loses Two Games Over Weekend
The Whaler girls basketball team lost two games over the weekend. The first was 50-35 to the St. John Paul II Lions on Friday and the other was to the Sandwich Blue Knights 46-17 on Saturday.
Sophomore guard/forward Maddie Lombardi scored a team-high 15 points on Friday and six points on Saturday. The Whalers have now lost four in a row, but they will have a chance to get back on track when they host the Falmouth Clippers on Tuesday, January 10 at 5 p.m.