Seven high school sports takeaways from Tuesday, when 10 teams punched their MIAA state final tickets
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While the D3 girls' lax final is still to be determined, Thursday's D4 title game (5 p.m.) will pit third-seeded Norwell and No. 1 Cohasset, both of whom won going away in the semifinals.
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Over in boys' volleyball, top-seeded Brookline rallied after dropping the first set to take down defending Division 1 champion Newton North and set up a showdown with third-seeded Needham, a Bay State Conference rival, in Friday's final at Xaverian (6:30 p.m.).
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Division 2 will pit No. 3 Wayland against top-seeded Agawam, which survived a five-set battle with neighboring West Springfield in the semifinals, in Thursday's championship match at Shrewsbury High (6:30 p.m.).
1. The reading list
2. Three stars
Kassidy Carmichael, Westford
— The Ohio State-bound senior scored nine of her team's 11 goals,
Girls' lax final: Westford Academy 11, Wellesley 10
Another day, another fourth-quarter comeback, another winner for Kassidy Carmichael — this one with 1 second left for her ninth goal.
Absolutely unbelievable. What a game
— Trevor Hass (@TrevorHass)
Finn Bell, Wayland —
The junior, who reached 1,000 career kills last week, dominated at the net with 27 kills, adding five digs to help the third-seeded Warriors reach the Division 2 final with a 3-1 win over Westfield in the semis.
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After 2: Wayland 2, Westfield 0.
25-23, 25-19 the set scores thus far.
After a back and forth opening frame, Wayland took control early in the second and never relented, with Finn Bell putting away the final point.
— Matty Wasserman (@Matty_Wasserman)
Scarlett Mirak, Concord-Carlisle
— The standout sophomore learned the game from her three older sisters, Gabrielle, Audrey, and Eliza, and will now be the first of her siblings to play for a Division 1 championship after she netted six goals in a 13-6 semifinal win over Chelmsford.
Half: Concord-Carlisle 10, Chelmsford 4
The Patriots won each quarter by a 5-2 score to seize command.
Sophomore Scarlett Mirak has 5 goals and Karleigh Mutch 3 for the Patriots. Four scorers for the Lions
— Trevor Hass (@TrevorHass)
3. Daily lacrosse leaderboard
Goals
Kassidy Carmichael
, Westford, 9
Scarlett Mirak
, Concord-Carlisle, 6
Charlie Cox
, Norwell, 5
Avery Regan
, Cohasset, 5
Elisabeth Stutzman
, Sandwich, 5
Abby Beggans
, Wellesley, 4
Reese Hansen
, Cohasset, 4
Karleigh Mutch
, Concord-Carlisle, 4
Caitlyn Naughton
, Walpole, 4
Molly Campbell
, Cohasset, 3
Olicia Comella
, Wellesley, 3
Sophia Fruci
, Walpole, 3
Emily Hagan
, Walpole, 3
Holly Panttila
, Norwell, 3
Emily Regan
, Cohasset, 3
Molly Trahan
, Reading, 3
4. Bedford's Rossi honored
With a spectacular senior season for Bedford,
Alyx Rossi
has been named Gatorade Massachusetts Softball Player of the Year.
'Rossi is such a talented pitcher and hitter as well,' said Westford Academy coach
Gina Mustoe
in a statement. 'She dominates on the mound and has such control over all of her pitches.'
The Boston College-bound Rossi has the Buccaneers in the Division 2 semifinals and has posted a 0.35 ERA with 276 strikeouts in 120 innings. She is hitting .543 with a .614 OBP, seven home runs, 26 RBIs, 31 runs, and six steals.
The 5-foot-9-inch lefthander, who was named the Globe's Division 2 Player of the Year as a junior, has 958 career strikeouts.
A member of the Spanish National Honor Society and Bedford's Academic Hall of Fame, Rossi volunteers with the town's club of social concern and was a member of Bedford's Model UN team.
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5. Commitment central
▪ St. Mary's sophomore
Bella Owumi
will be transferring to the Tilton School in New Hampshire.
Owumi, who has been a varsity starter since seventh grade, already has 1,224 career points and was named Catholic Central MVP after averaging 17.1 points per game while leading the Spartans to the Division 3 state title.
Owumi will be joined by her Spartans and MCW Starz teammate
Lily Norton
in Tilton's 2027 class, which also features
Kam Derba
, who grew up in Easton and played at Dexter Southfield.
Thank you to Coach
— Bella Owumi (@BellaOwumi24)
▪ Northfield Mt. Hermon junior
Olivia Fleming
has committed to play women's basketball at Lehigh. The 5-foot-7 guard from Wyndham, N.H., was named NEPSAC Class AA Player of the Year and also plays for Rivals.
Next 4! 🤎🤍
— Olivia Fleming (@_OliviaF_21)
▪ Quarterback
Dante Reno
(Sturbridge), who attended Loomis Chaffee and Cheshire Academy in Connecticut, will transfer from South Carolina to play for his father,
Tony
, at Yale. The 6-foot-2-inch, 214-pound redshirt freshman will have four years of eligibility remaining. He threw for 2,358 yards and 20 touchdowns as a senior for Cheshire. Tony Reno has coached Yale since 2012 and has won four Ivy League championships.
For god, for country, for Yale.
— Dante Reno (@dantereno10)
6. Coaching carousel
▪ North Andover announced
Ben Murphy
as its new boys' hockey coach.
Murphy, who played at Cushing before winning a Hockey East championship and reaching two national title games at Maine, brings 19 years of collegiate coaching experience.
Most recently, Murphy was an associate head coach on the women's staff at Providence. Prior to that he had stints with RPI, Bentley, St. Lawrence, and Castleton State. He began his coaching career with the Wichita Thunder of the CHL.
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Murphy replaces
Scott Greene
, who led the Scarlet Knights since 2021.
🚨NEW BOYS HOCKEY COACH🚨
North Andover High School is excited to announce Ben Murphy as our new Boys Varsity Hockey Coach.
— Scarlet Knights (@NA_Athletics)
▪ North Andover didn't stop with its boys' hockey program, also announcing the hiring of
Don Viselli
as girls' basketball coach.
Viselli most recently served as an assistant at Derryfield School in Manchester, N.H., and he has 25 years coaching experience, from fifth grade to high school. He started and coached the Merrimack Valley Roadrunners AAU program and has also coached with MassRivals.
🚨NEW GIRLS BASKETBALL COACH🚨
North Andover High School is excited to announce Don Viselli as our new Girls Varsity Basketball Coach.
— Scarlet Knights (@NA_Athletics)
▪ Essex Tech announced the hiring of
Liv Robles
as its girls' basketball coach.
Robles spent last season as an assistant at Emmanuel after graduating from Saint Anselm in 2024 after a four-year career for the Hawks. From Connecticut, she was a three-time All-Southern Connecticut Conference selection at Mark T. Sheehan School.
We are excited to welcome Liv Robles as our Head Girls Basketball Coach. Most recently, Liv was an assistant at Emmanuel College. She was also a 4 year player at St. Anselm College.
— Essex Tech Athletics (@ETAthletics)
▪ After coaching Somerset-Berkley boys' basketball to
Bob Slater
is hanging up his whistle.
The 1987 Attleboro graduate volunteered at his alma mater and was on staff for a state championship run in 1998. He joined Somerset-Berkley's staff in 2002, becoming JV coach in 2005, and varsity head coach in 2009. Slater led the Blue Raiders to the D2 state semifinals in 2023 and was given Globe Coach of the Year honors.
This winter he led the Blue Raiders to a 24-1 record capped with a stunning 65-44 win over three-time defending champion Malden Catholic in the state championship.
'It's a good way to go out,' Slater said. 'It's special to go out with this group after the successes we've had the past few years.'
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7. College corner
▪
Will Jones
,
Jordan Gottesman
, and
Charlie Walker
were among five Northeastern baseball players named to the Northeast All-Region First Team, while
Aiven Cabral
earned second team recognition.
Jones, a graduate student and Hamilton-Wenham graduate, went 11-1 with a 2.62 ERA over 15 starts, striking out 75 in 72 innings and setting a program record for wins in a season.
Gottesman, a graduate student and Acton-Boxborough graduate, was 9-2 with a 2.27 ERA over 16 appearances, striking out 97 in 83 1/3 innings.
Walker, a junior and Milton graduate, was 4-0 with seven saves and a 1.29 ERA in 16 appearances, striking out56 in 48 2/3 innings.
Cabral, a junior and St. Mary's graduate, went 10-3 with a 2.92 ERA over 16 starts, striking out 74 in 89 1/3 innings.
Three pitchers were named to the First Team with one on the Second Team.
The whole rotation plus Charlie Walker 😎
🧵 (2/2)
— Northeastern Baseball (@GoNUbaseball)
▪ Dartmouth senior rower
Jenna Martin
, a Wayland graduate, was named an honorable mention CRCA All-American. Martin was a member of the Big Green's varsity eight that finished fourth at the Princeton Chase, beating Virginia and Harvard. Dartmouth teammate and fellow Wayland resident
Aine Ley
, who attended the Groton School, was also a CRCA honorable mention All-American following her junior season.
Congratulations to Jenna and Áine, who have been named CRCA All-Americans!
📰 |
— Dartmouth Women's Rowing (@DartmouthWRow)
Brendan Kurie can be reached at
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