Boys Lax Gets Back at Longmeadow

Everyone knew going into Saturday's game with Longmeadow that it was going to be a battle. LM beat Medfield twice last year, once 16-0 at home and the other in the state championship game. This year it was time to get even.

Longmeadow struck first, only to see Medfield get it right back. That was the story of the game and no team had more than a two-goal lead at any point in the game. LM held a 6-4 at the half and looked to be somewhat in control of the game.

A well placed shot off a nifty move by Nigel Reiff helped stem the tide in favor of the Warriors late in the third quarter.

After three quarters, the game was tied 8-8. The teams traded goals in the fourth before Jack Isaf scored the eventual game winner on a bounce shot right in front of the crease with not much time left. That put Medfield up 10-9 on Isaf's third of the game. This was the one and only time Medfield led all game.

Goalie Robert Treiber was a big factor in the comeback effort. He made 15 saves, most of which came down the stretch and in the clutch.

With the win, Medfield improved to 13-1-0 and more impressively ended Longmeadow's 37 game win streak in the process

Looking Back, Looking Ahead

Monday saw baseball and softball both host Westwood. Despite a late comeback in the 7th inning, baseball dropped their game 5-4 to the Wolverines. Softball also lost a closely contested game by the score of 9-8.

Tennis also faced Westwood on Monday. The girls traveled, while the boys were home, but the location didn't seem to mater. Both teams won by identical 4-1 scores.

Tuesday was another tough day for baseball. They hung with undoubtably the best team in the Tri-Valley League in Bellingham and came up just short, losing by a score of 3-1. Softball had the same fate against the same opponent, falling 5-0.

Also at Bellingham yesterday was girls lacrosse. They handled the Blackhawks with ease, cruising to a 16-3 win. Boys lax also thumped Bellingham 16-1 at home.

Today, track will head over to Holliston. The only other match of the day is boys volleyball traveling to St. John's Prep.

Tomorrow, girls tennis will be at Walpole and volleyball will be home vs. Barnstable.

Friday is probably the busiest day on the card this week. Baseball and softball are both at Ashland along with boys tennis. Girls lacrosse is home against Holliston, while the boys are on the road. Volleyball has the night cap as they will head to Millis.

Looking at Break

It's hard to think that it's already April break. It feels like yesterday we were all out watching football games and golf matches. Anyway, there will be a five day break from games starting at the conclusion of today's contests. Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Easter Sunday and Monday are all off for all sports from games.

The action picks up again Tuesday afternoon as girls lacrosse hosts Algonquin Regional at home starting at 3:00. Boys lax will have the night cap, as they face Billerica at 7:00.

Wednesday sees only one game, a girls lax contest vs Foxboro at the turf.

Thursday, baseball and softball get back at it. Baseball (as always over break) will face Wellesley at home. Also at home, Softball will  square off with Needham. That night, boys lacrosse will travel over to Xaverian and take on the Xmen.

Friday is another one game day. Girls lax will trip to King Philip, game time 12 noon.

Saturday night is a huge game for boys lax, as they bus to Catholic Memorial. CM bounced Medfield from the playoffs in 2012, and the Warriors did the same to the Knights a year later. This has become a pretty good rivalry over the past few years and it will be interesting to see how these two match up this year.

Tough Day On the Diamond

A home-run for Hopkinton in the second inning of yesterday's baseball game between the Warriors and Hilliers set the tone for the game. Medfield never led in the game and after coming back to make it 4-2, Hopkinton again added two more runs. The Hillers again tacked on a run in the fourth inning on another home-run, before Medfield got it back to a three run deficit in the bottom of the inning. Hopkinton blew it open in the last two innings, scoring eight runs to make it no contest. FINAL SCORE: Hopkinton 14, Medfield 4.

Softball didn't fare well either against the Hilliers. They fell 6-0, their first loss of the year. Up next for both baseball and softball is Dover-Sherborn at home on Friday. More on the softball game/team here: Link

Some teams actually did win yesterday... Boys tennis blanked the Hillers 5 games to none... Volleyball came back from an 0-2 hole to win three games to two at home vs Douglas... Both girls and boys track drubbed Millis. The girls won 98-38, while the boys took it 98-37. In addition to those wins, girls tennis lost 4 games to 1 vs Hopkinton.    

Looking at Yesterday

Yesterday was the season opener for both baseball and softball, as they both hosted Ashland. Softball cruised to a 5-1 win, behind a strong pitching performance by Jackie Flint. Baseball also topped the Clockers. After a slow start and Medfield clinging to a 1-0 lead, the Warriors broke open the game in the 6th inning, scoring four runs to give us a 5-0 final. (More on the baseball game here)

Handshake after the baseball game.
(Photo by Brett Thomas)

Track also had its season debut race yesterday afternoon. The boys edged Westwood by the narrowest of margins, 68-67. The girls, though, did not fare so well, as they fell 83-53 to the Wolverines.

Volleyball had a rough go of things, as Millis upended the Warriors three games to none at home.

Girls and boys tennis both also faced Ashland yesterday and both picked up wins. This girls rolled to a 4-1 win at Ashland and the boys (by the same score) knocked off the Clockers at home.

Strong Start For Lax

Yesterday afternoon the boys lacrosse team kicked off their schedule with a solid 16-7 win over Holliston.

Jack Isaf led the charge offensively with four goals. John MacLean and Tyler Hagan both notched three, Matt Cahill added two more, as did Matt Treiber, and Jack Kelleher and Pat Connors both found the back of the net once.

In the faceoff circle, Brian Bissell won 19 of the 22 draws he took, while Robert Treiber made 9 saves on 14 shots.  

The next game for the squad is Friday at Westwood starting at 5:30.

Girls lacrosse also played their first game of the season yesterday, drubbing Holliston 14-2 on the Panthers’ home field. Unfortunately we do not have stats from this game so we can’t mention the goal scorers. 

Looking Ahead

The long wait is over and finally this week is the first week of games on the spring sports schedule. Granted the weather outside would suggest differently, but it is indeed spring time. With that comes the return of games out on the turf, diamond, track and tennis courts. Also, boys volleyball takes over the gym with a much anticipated squad. They lost their first match of the year three games to none on Friday night at home vs arguably the best team in the state in St. John's Prep.

Volleyball will look to rebound today as they host Algonquin Regional at 6:00 in the gym. Tennis kicks off their season this afternoon as well, facing Xaverian at the Metacomet courts. That match has a high probability of getting rescheduled due to the rain.

Tuesday sees both boys and girls lacrosse face Holliston in both teams' first games of the season. The boys team will be home on the turf at 5:30, while the girls will be in Holliston, playing at 3:30.

Wednesday is easily the busiest day on the card this week. Baseball and softball both host Ashland starting at 3:45. At the same time over at Metacomet, boys tennis will also host the Clockers and that means that the girls Tennis team will be in Ashland. Boys volleyball rounds out the day of competition against a school other than Ashland, as they face Millis at home.  

Thursday only sees one game; girl tennis will face Walpole at Metacomet at 3:30.

Friday is another hectic day... Baseball and softball both trip to Millis and play at 3:45. Boys lacrosse will travel to Weswood at 5:30, while the girls team will play at home vs the Wolverines. At 6:00 the volleyball team will head over to Xaverian.

UPDATED: Tennis matches for Monday have been postponed.

State Championship Preview

Boys hockey is the first team at Medfield this year to make it to the the State Title Game in their respective sport. It also the first time hockey has every made the final game. Twenty years ago in 1994 the team lost to Westwood 6-3 in the Eastern Mass Final, one game away from the championship game. That was the previous gold standard until this year.

Medfield will face Beverly, who are also making their first appearance in the championship game. For the Panthers the road to the Garden has been a pretty smooth one. Bevrely went 18-1-1 in the regular season, losing their final regular season game to Division I Weymouth. The tie came back in December to none other than Canton.

In the opening round of the playoffs, Beverly faced Danvers and really struggled, but battled to a 2-1 win in a shootout. From there, they met a tough Lincoln-Sudbury team and made quick work of them, winning 5-1. In the North Regional Final Beverly dismantled Tewksbury 9-1 at Tsongas Center in Lowell.

Go Figure 
Last year both teams finished with an 18-1-1 record and the one seed in their respected regional... both lost 4-3 in the first round of the playoffs. Granted Medfield was in Division III at the time and the loss was in a shootout, but it is an interesting thing to look at.

In 2012 (as if it matters what happened two years ago) Beverly again lost in the first round, but were not the one seed.

Scouting the Panthers
Beverly is led offensively by senior Conner Irving, who had 47 points in the regular season and, oh by the way, added four goals in the North Final against Tewksbury. Junior Nick Albano posted 36 points in the regular season with a 7-29-36 line.

In goal Tim Biraelli will get the start. Biraelli has a .917 save percentage in 14 appearances. In his time in goal, he posted a 1.51 goals against and has five shutouts.

The game is Sunday night, 7:45 at the Boston Garden.

And Then There Was One

As if anyone didn't know (or just wanted a reminder) the boys hockey team advanced to the state championship game for the first time in program history with a 3-2 win over Canton, Sunday afternoon. What has been slightly overlooked was the girls basketball Central Final that took place on Saturday afternoon in Worcester.

The girls unfortunately lost to the undefeated and tournament number one overall seed Nashoba 57-55 in overtime. The game was an all-out battle for both squads, clearly, as the game went to an extra session, but it was more than just the overtime. Medfield trailed by as much as 11 in the first half as the Chieftains made all their shots and showed why they have a perfect record.

The Warriors whittled the Nashoba lead down by the fourth quarter and tied the game in the dying seconds sending it to overtime. In OT Medfield took their first lead of the game, only to see Nashoba regain the lead and eventually hold on for the win.

The girls basketball team ended their season in the Central Regional Final with a 22-3-0 record.

Video Highlights: Hockey vs Canton

Video Highlights: Hockey vs OA

Hockey Blanks OA, Advances to South Final

For the third time in four years, the current senior class on the boys hockey team had reached the South Regional Semifinals. They had never won and and advanced to the Regional final, until last night.

Medfield celebrates a 3-0 win after the final buzzer.
(Photo by Josh Perry) 

The team struggled out of the gate, and Oliver Ames carried the play in the early few minutes. Goalie Dan Graham came up big to keep the Tigers off the board. In fact, he would not yield a goal all night including in the final two minutes when OA threw everything but the kitchen sink on goal. It was the first playoff shutout for Medfield since 2011 when Conner Roddy blanked Abington/East Bridgewater 3-0.

Despite the slow start, a goal midway through the first helped stem the tide in favor of Medfield. After the puck was dumped in deep, Louis Cappucci made a strong play to get it up top, where a well placed shot created a rebound chance for Brett Thomas. Thomas got just enough wood on the puck and it trickled past OA goalie Jimmy Tierney and just over the goal line. It was Thomas' second goal of the playoffs from Cappucci and Matt Dresens with less than five minutes to play in the first period.

Medfield dominated the play in the second period. The announced shots were 9-6 Medfield, but that does not accurately tell the story. The Warriors' best chance to add a goal actually didn't even count as a shot on goal. John McLean rang the post on the power play, which technically isn't a shot on goal.

Again, Medfied carried the play in the third, but but just couldn't beat Tierney. Justin Hirschfield had the best chance on back door play, but Tierney made a nifty glove save to keep it a one goal game.

Jack Scannell celebrates after his
empty net goal in the final minute
last night.
(Photo by Rich Images)

Like mentioned before, OA threw everything they had on net in the final minutes, but Jack Scannell erased any doubt of a comeback with an empty net goal with less than a minute left. Hirschfield added and other ENG to seal the deal.

With the 3-0, Medfiled advanced to the South Regional Final, where they will face Canton, who topped an over-rated number one seed in Plymouth South 7-1. The game will be Sunday starting at 4:45 in Bourne.

Girls Hoops Cruises Past Hopkinton

Yesterday afternoon's girls basketball game was all about revenge for the Warriors. In 2012, Hopkinton ended Medfield's season on their home floor in the first round of the playoffs. Yesterday, there was no doubt who was the better team.

From tip off it was never close. Medfield led 20-9 after one and 27-11 at the half. The Warriors really pulled away in the second half, extending their lead (at one point) to 31 points. In the end, Medfield walked out of Fitchburg State with a 60-33 win over Hopkinton.

The Warriors will face Nashoba Regional in the Central Regional Final at 12:45 Saturday afternoon at "a location to be determined." Last season, Medfield and Nashoba squared off in the Division II State Championship game at the DCU Center in Worcester.

Video Highlights vs Martha's Vineyard

Monkey off Their Back

Boys Hockey Drops Quincy 6-2 In Round One

The theme going into last night's game, round one of the South Regional vs Quincy, was to get past the Presidents and live to play another day. Yes that sounds incredibly obvious, but one year ago Medfield took their best record in program history into the playoffs and were bounced in the first round by Pembroke. All it comes down to at this time of year is survive and advance. 

Quincy controlled the play early, but it was a Medfield power play that swung the momentum and more importantly the lead to the Warriors. A shot from up top by Jack Scannell pin-balled around off several players before hitting Ben Ruzzo in the head, deflecting off the post and past Quincy goalie Chris Doyle to give Medfield a 1-0.

The Warriors took the 1-0 lead into the dressing room after period one.

Minutes into the second frame, Justin Hirschfield scored the highlight-reel goal of the night. From the far side off the ice, he stick handled and inside-outed a Quincy defender before beating Doyle glove side to double the Medfield lead. 

It didn't take long for Quincy to respond, as Brian O'Callaghan beat Medfield goalie Dan Graham over his glove with a well placed wrist shot that got the Presidents back in the game. 

Scannell regained the two goal lead later in the frame on a shot from the mid slot. Not long after, Brett Thomas banged home a rebound off a shot from outside. It was only Thomas' second goal of the year.

Quincy made it a two goal game just over 30 seconds into the third on O'Callahan's second of the game, but not long after, Matt Treiber broke in and completely deked Doyle out and fired it into the back of a wide open net to make it 5-2.

Ben Ruzzo would add his second of the game on an empty net goal with around 2 minutes left.

Dan Graham was easily the player of the game for the Warriors. Time and time again he made key saves when the game was still very close. It was his first ever playoff appearance and win.

With the win, Medfield will advance to play Martha's Vineyard in the South Quarterfinals. The game will be Saturday night (6:00pm) at Asiaf Arena in Brockton.   

Big Blues

Last night's boys basketball game had everything a great playoff game needs: a strong, enthusiastic crowd and even better play on the court. Hopkinton was the better team all night, as they kept Medfield's offense stuck in neutral for most parts of the game.

The Hillers had a 16-12 lead after the first quarter and extended that margin to 35-25 at the half. Matt Cahill looked to be Medfield's best weapon when he drove to the hoop. He drew several fouls and his free throws were a large majority of the team's points in the first half.

Hopkinton ended both the second and third quarters with half-court buzzer beater shots that took any momentum the Warriors had gained and swung it right back in their favor.

Gaining off that momentum, Hopkinton came out and practically hit every shot they took in the season half. At one point they led by 23, before Medfield made a run of their own, cutting the Hiller lead to six. That would be the closest Medfield would get it, as Hopkinton hit all their free throws down the stretch and came away with a 78-69 win on Medfield's home floor.

Hopkinton's Andrew McMillan and Mathew Locke were far and away the game's best players. Both seemed to hit every shot they contested. Not only were they making shots, but they were doing it a critical times.

For the third straight year, the Big Blue see their season end in the first round of the state playoffs. As for Hopkinton, they advance to the Central Regional Semifinal at WPI and will face Westboro.

One Advances, One Falls

Last night saw the MIAA state tournament kick off for both girls hockey and girls basketball.

Girls hockey, the 27 seed facing sixth seeded Burlington wasn't given much of a chance in this game. The girls played a strong first period, holing the Red Devils scoreless going into the second. Burlington scored three times in the second frame before Medfield's Lindsey Brown found the back of the net with around 7:00 left in the game. Burlington all but sealed the game with a short-handed tally late in the third, rounding out the score and giving us a 4-1 final. Unfortunately the streak continues for the team, as they still have yet to win a playoff game in six attempts.

Girls basketball on the other hand was supposed to roll through their first round game with Westboro. They did not disappoint. Medfield cruised to a 71-41 win on their home court. The game was never close, as Medfield went up 27-7 after one and never looked back. They will face TVL rival Hopkinton in the Central Semifinals Sunday at noon at Fitchburg State. Hopkinton knocked off Medfield in the 2012 state tournament.

Tonight boys basketball will host Hopkinton in the gym at 7:00. The winner will advance to the Central Semifinals to be played at WPI.

Boys Hockey will play Quincy Thursday night in Franklin at 8:30. The winner of that game will play Martha's Vineyard (most likely this weekend in Bourne), who beat Sandwich 2-1 in overtime last night.

Playoff Preview

Boys Hockey

For the 14^th time in the last 16 years, boys hockey again finds themselves in the state playoffs. This year, they will be the third overall seed in the Division II South Regional and will face off with 14 seeded Quincy. The game will be Thursday night at 8:30 in Franklin.

Medfield is 14-3-3 on the year, while Quincy is 11-9-2, but they do play a pretty tough schedule. Quincy is making their first tournament appearance since 2010, so that means no one on their current roster has ever had a taste of playoff hockey. In 2010 Quincy lost 7-1 to Coyle Cassidy in the first round. Medfield on the other hand has only a handful of players who have not seen time in a playoff game. The last time the Warriors missed out on the post season was 2008. The last two years Medfield was the number one overall seed in the Division III South Regional and it should be noted that this is the first time hockey has competed in the DII tournament.

Medfield’s best finish in the state tournament came in 1995, when the first squad to ever win the TVL, made it all the way to the Eastern Mass final before falling  to Lynnfield (?). The current senior class has advanced to the South Semifinals twice: 2011 (L 5-1 vs Pembroke) and 2012 (L 6-2 Rockland).

Common opponents with Quincy: Pembroke (L 3-2) Oliver Ames (W 5-1). Medfield beat Pembroke 3-1 and topped OA 3-1.  

South Regional Bracket 

Girls Hockey

Unlike the boys, the girls just snuck into the tournament on the last day of the season. They faced Urusline needing a win to reach the .500 mark to get into the dance. After going up 1-0, UA tied it late in the second before Medfield struck twice to make it 3-1 in the third. A late UA goal brought back memories of the Women’s Olympic final between USA and Canada. In that game, the US was up 2-0 before Canada tied with less than a minute to play. UA had a chance to do the same, but in the end Medfield came away with a 3-2.

The win gave them the 27 seed (out of 28) in the South Regional and they will face sixth seeded Burlington tomorrow night at 7:10 at the Burlington Ice Palace. Burlington is 13-4-1 on the year and last year lost in the second round to Gardner 2-1 in a shootout. Speaking of shootouts… Medfield was bounced from last year’s tournament by the same score in a shootout vs Walpole.

The Warriors have made the tournament every year but two since the program's conception in 2006. They failed to qualify in ’06 and ’08. The highest seed the program has ever earned was the three in 2011, but they fell in the first round to Ursuline 3-2 in overtime. I guess you could say this year was a little bit of revenge for that loss. Medfield girls hockey has never won a playoff game.

Common Opponents with Burlington: None

Division II Girls Hockey Bracket

Boys Basketball

The boys hoop team had a strong start to their year and regained that early season momentum towards the end of the regular year, enough so to finish with a 12-8-0 record. That nabbed them the second seed in the 10 team Central Region. This is the first year the Big Blue has competed as a member of the Central and not part of the South. 

In the first round, Medfield will host seventh seeded Hopkinton in the gym at 6:00 on Wednesday night.

Medfield and Hopkinton have met twice already this year in Tri-Valley League play. Hop-town won the first game (in Hopkinton) 71-50, but Medfield rebounded on their home floor with a  65-56 win the next time around.

Common Opponents with Hopkinton: All TVL Teams

Central Regional Bracket

Girls Basketball

We may have saved the best for last... The 20-2-0 girls basketball team will start their Division II state championship title defense Tuesday night at home vs Westboro. Despite the impressive record, the Warriors are actually the second overall seed in the Central. The number one seed went to 20-0-0 Nashoba, who Medfield dismantled in last year's State Championship Game at the DCU Center in Worcester. 

Much like the boys hoop team, the girls are competing in the Central for the first time and were a member of the South a season ago. The title defense is a little easier from the Central root. There are only seven teams in the Central Regional, compared to the South's 16 team field. Also the quality of teams in Central is traditionally weaker than in the East (North/South combined).

Of course the winner of the West (Central vs West) will play the winner of the East in the State Final.

Central Regional Bracket  

Another TVL For Boys Hockey

Saturday night was yet another banner night for MHS. The boys hockey team locked up their third straight Tri-Valley league title with an 8-3 win over Hopkinton. It was a game that, despite the score, was a lot closer than expected. Medfield found themselves down 3-1 in the second period and 3-2 going into the third, only to score the game's last seven goals. Jack Scannell posted a hat-trick including the game tying goal minutes into the third period.

As mentioned before, this is the third straight outright TVL title for the team, a feat that has never been accomplished before in program history. The team won the league in 2000, '01 '02 but 2000 was a shared title.

Around the School
This weekend boys and girls basketball as well as girls hockey were all in action. The boys hoop team ran over Bellingham 68-45 at home on senior night. earlier in the year, Bellingham upended the Big Blue 73-72 in overtime. Girls basketball dropped Westwood 64-31 to improve to 17-0-0 on the year and are now the number one ranked team on ESPN HS Boston's page. Girls hockey skated to a scoreless tie with Medway/Ashland on Saturday night. The team still needs to pick up five points in their remaining five games to make the playoffs.

Rivalry Night and A Title

Due to the snow yesterday, rivalry night was shifted over to tonight. Boys basketball will host Westwood at the gym at 6:30, while boys hockey will serve as the home team in Franklin against Medway.

Both Medfield teams lost their first games with each respected opponent. Hockey fell 3-2 back on January 11 in a hard fought game that saw a Warrior comeback come up just short. Basketball was handled a little easier by Westwood, as the Wolverines won 72-47.

For hockey this game will go a long way in deciding the Tri-Valley League. A win tonight puts the team in the driver's seat for the league title with just one league game remaining. That game is Saturday against Hopkinton, who has been surprisingly more competitive this winter. Two wins for the Warriors gives them their third straight TVL title, something the program has never accomplished before. A loss to Medway would result in a tie with Westwood. Westwood has beaten Medway twice, Medfield has beaten Westwood twice and Medway would have beaten Medfield twice. Medway would fall out of the tie because they tied Ashland earlier in the season.

The hoop team on the other hand is eight points behind league-leading Ashland with just four league games left. Two of those four games are against the top two teams: Westwood and Ashland.

Needless to say tonight's games have some large implications for league play. Basketball starts at 6:30 and Hockey at 8:30

TVL League Meet for Boys Track
Last weekend the boys indoor track team took home the TVL League Meet at the Reggie Louis Center in Dorchester. Similar to the boys cross country team, the indoor track team lost out on the regular season title to Norton but then took the crown at the league meet.

Weekly Round Up: Welcome To The Club

The 1,000 point club has been the topic of discussion a lot the past two weeks and for good reason. On January 6th against Holliston, senior Drew Shea became the first player since 2007 to reach the 1,000 point milestone. The last player to have his name stitched into the Big Blue Millennium Club banner was Jeff Altimar.

Having one player reach the 1,000 point marker is impressive in its own right. Having two in the same year, in the same graduating class, is something else.

That came true last night as senior Lauren Petit accomplished the feat in Medfield's 65-26 win at Ashland. The one and only other time Medfield has seen two players reach 1,000 points in the same year was 2005. That year, both Evan Moon and Jill Anelauskas became members. Anelauskas is the program's all-time leading scorer with 1604 points.

Roundup:
Girls hoops continued to roll as they knocked off both Bellingham (63-38) and Ashland (65-26) in the past week. With the success, the team has moved up to number two on ESPN Boston's High School rankings page.

Boys hoops, on the other hand, did not fare so well. They dropped a tight 73-72 thriller in overtime at Bellingham last Friday and yesterday fell to the league leading and undefeated Ashland Clockers 61-47 at home.

Boys hockey came out flat and surrendered their first loss of the year against TVL rival Medway 3-2. Tonight the team looks to avenge last year's playoff loss to Pembroke, as they take on the Titans at Veterans Arena.

Girls hockey also suffered a tough loss to a rival, falling to Westwood 3-2 on Wednesday. The team bounced back with an impressive 7-1 win over Mansfield on Saturday. This afternoon, the girls will travel to Randolph and face a traditionally strong Archbishop Williams team.

Boys and girls indoor track were much the better team against Millis last week. The boys won 70-12, while the girls topped the Mohawks 65-21.

Both boys and girls swimming struggled against King Philip on Friday afternoon. The boys lost 106-66 and the girls fell 96-76.

The gymnastics team won their first contest of the year, a 140-130 decision over Natick High on Friday.