Sunday, August 30, 2009


Globe South Sports

In Mansfield, runners

are racing to the track

Practice started last week for Mansfield’s Division 1 championship team, which drew 80 boys to tryouts.
Practice started last week for Mansfield’s Division 1 championship team, which drew 80 boys to tryouts. (Photos By Rose Lincoln for The Boston Globe)

By Justin A. Rice
Globe Correspondent / August 30, 2009

The numbers, Julie Collins admits, are a bit overwhelming.

Just how popular is the Mansfield High boys’ cross-country team? Eighty runners have come out for the squad this season, the defending Division 1 state champions. So Collins, starting her fourth season as coach, was a bit relieved when 11 of her team’s top runners missed the first few days of practice last week to attend a prestigious running camp in New Hampshire.

“That helps for the first two days, it helps me at least learn the names of the freshmen and newcomers and put names with faces and hopefully have it by the weekend,’’ said Collins. “I won’t be calling the kids ‘Hey you.’ ’’

“It allows me to pay a little more attention to the second-tier kids. We have 11 freshmen signed up and a bunch of new sophomores doing cross-country for the first time. I get a better look at those kids.’’

Senior captains Patrick McGowan, Brendan Boyle, and Matt Hernon were among the 11 who attended the two-week Foss Running Camp in Strafford, N.H. Their absence gave junior Shayne Collins, the coach’s son, and others the opportunity to step into a leadership role for a few days.

“It kind of teaches us how to be leaders for next year when we are going to be the captains,’’ said Shayne Collins, who registered a team-best seventh-place finish at the all-state meet last fall.

And while the underclassmen had a chance to settle in before the arrival of the top runners, the return of the captains provides a needed jolt.

“When the guys from camp come back everyone is excited about it and everyone is like ‘alright, the season has officially begun,’ ’’ said McGowan, who finished 13th at the all-states.

His finish (16 minutes, 36 seconds) remarkably followed an injury that sidelined him for nearly a month. After finishing 10th at the Brown Invitational, McGowan suffered tendonitis that caused his knee to balloon. Unable to run for three weeks, he could only jog in a pool and hop on an elliptical machine.

“I still had my base,’’ McGowan said, citing his fitness level upon his return, and credited aqua jogging, though grudgingly. “During the race I told myself ‘I didn’t do all this work just to give up.’

“Running is a love-hate relationship; I say aqua jogging is a hate-hate relationship.’’

With McGowan not at full strength, Shayne Collins recorded the team’s top time (16:27) at the all-state meet, pacing Mansfield’s average time (16:51.18) for the afternoon.

“You have to run with the upperclassmen every day and it hurts because you’re not in shape with them and you don’t have the experience,’’ Shayne Collins said. “You just have to run with them every day and make it hurt every day.’’

One likely, yet unlikely, candidate for the team’s fifth slot is senior Jeff Boyle, twin of Brendan Boyle.

Brendan persuaded his brother, who played two seasons of football and is on the varsity basketball team, to run spring track last year. Jeff’s 4:50 mile made him want to test his legs at longer distances.

“He has natural talent,’’ said Brendan.

Jeff Boyle has held his own this summer during captain’s workouts, which averaged 25 runners per session Monday through Friday.

Mansfield graduated just three of its top seven runners, each of whom will compete collegiately this fall: Kevin Meagher (Nova Southeastern University); Patrick Grimes (Amherst); and Josh Brodin (Worcester Poly Tech).

Mansfield will no longer be the underdog.

“We knew we couldn’t continue sort of being the chasers and hunters,’’ Julie Collins said. “This year we’re definitely prey. So it’s a different pressure. I actually think it’s a tougher position. We’ll see how they can do. We have lots of leadership.’’

Luckily for the coach, that leadership started chasing this year’s state championship the moment after they won last year’s.

“As soon as he finished the race last year Brendan Boyle immediately started talking about the state meet this year,’’ she said. “They are a very bright and smart, focused group of kids.’’

In the meantime, the coach is just trying to figure out how to handle 80 runners. Last season, after her numbers grew from 30 to 50, she hired retired Boston University cross-country coach Peter Schuder, a Mansfield resident, as an assistant.

“Peter enjoys giving the kids nicknames because he can’t remember names,’’ Julie Collins said. “Everyone gets a nickname after the first week of practice.’’

Thursday, August 27, 2009


Globe South Sports

Soccer players

keeping it all together


Duxbury High senior Caitlin Burke will be headed for Dartmouth College next fall. Duxbury High senior Caitlin Burke will be headed for Dartmouth College next fall. (Peter Hrycenko/Sportspix)


By Justin A. Rice
Globe Correspondent / August 27, 2009

Caitlin Burke is a returning Globe All-Scholastic on the defending Division 2 state champion Duxbury High girls’ soccer team. And the stress of the college recruiting process is now in her rear-view mirror.

She is headed to Dartmouth College next fall.

Her teammate Melissa Gavin, though, is just entering the gantlet.

“You’re so busy during [junior year] soccer season; you have to keep your grades up and keep in contact with all the coaches,’’ said the talented forward, who netted both goals in Duxbury’s 2-1 overtime win over Wahconah in the state final last November.

“So it is really stressful. But high school [soccer] is obviously the priority when you’re in the season so you just have to keep it balanced between club and high school.’’

Burke, the team’s captain, said she’ll try to lighten the load for Gavin, a returning Patriot League All-Star who is being heavily recruited by Atlantic Coast and Ivy League schools.

“Hopefully, we can go far in the tournament; I know that helped me,’’ Burke said. “Hopefully we can help her out and go as far as we can.’’

Gavin, who assisted on both of Burke’s goals in the title game, is building an impressive résumé, too. Earlier this summer, she earned a spot on the Under-17 US Soccer Federation Region I team. But Gavin, also a standout on her club team, the Scorpions Soccer Club, is still anxious about juggling everything this fall.

“It’s sort of an ongoing process that’s pretty stressful at times,’’ Gavin said of being recruited by colleges. “It’s an exciting time at the same time. It’s good that [Burke] doesn’t have to worry about applying to all these colleges and she knows she’s going to a great school.’’

The Dragons, who will kick off their title defense with their first official practice today, return 14 players from last year’s squad that graduated five starters.

Junior goalie Emily Brook is back in net, and juniors Emily Gallagher (forward), Jess Williams (midfield), Hanna Dwinnell (midfield), and Meghan Woomer (defender) will also start this year. Sophomore Lily Peterson (midfield) also highlights the projected starting lineup.

Junior defender Lauren Grady suffered a season-ending knee injury during the offseason.

As long as Burke and Gavin are playing up front for Duxbury, the Dragons will have a target on their backs. The forwards, who first played club soccer together a decade ago, combined to score 77 points for Duxbury last season, including 23 goals by Burke and 21 assists by Gavin.

“Caitlin is very fast, good at taking on people physically,’’ said Gavin, who is often recognized for her deft technical skill. “She likes when the ball is over her head and she can run onto it. I would rather have the ball at my feet and make stuff happen with it.’’

Duxbury second-year coach Emerson Coleman said that Burke and Gavin are both difficult to defend. “So we have very good balance and it’s just a total team effort.’’

And the Dragons now have the benefit of having Coleman back for year two.

A 20-year boys’ coach in Plymouth, Coleman landed in Duxbury shortly before the start of last season.

“We all loved him; we loved the new style of coaching,’’ Burke said. “I think it helped that he was new. No one was comfortable with him so everyone had to win his respect. With a new person, everyone had to work that much harder to show him what they had. The whole season, everyone was playing their hardest.’’

By the time the tournament rolled around, Coleman seemed like an old hand.

After slipping by both Wellesley and Oliver Ames in the South semis and final, Duxbury edged Belmont, 3-2, in the state semifinals.

In the state championship game, they trailed 1-0 before Burke and Gavin teamed up for the team’s first goal with nine minutes left in the game. Burke’s game-winner (assisted by Gavin) came five minutes into overtime.

“We couldn’t even believe it, we were just so excited,’’ Gavin said. “We came into the year and we weren’t sure about how the season was going to work out. Mr. Coleman told us we had a championship-caliber team and if we work hard we could achieve everything we wanted to. We bought in, and ended up winning.

“It was awesome. During those games you don’t really think that what you’re doing is going to change the game entirely. But it was awesome how we were able to put that stuff together and win the [championship] game.’’

Gavin captured another state title this summer with her club team, which advanced to the regionals in West Virginia. She has also been working at soccer camps this summer.

“So I’ve been pretty busy with soccer,’’ Gavin said.

Burke, on the other hand, took some time off after making her commitment to Dartmouth. She has also considered playing both lacrosse and soccer at Amherst.

“It was definitely a relief,’’ said Burke, who plays club soccer for Crusaders United. “I was just really excited. I didn’t have that much soccer with my club so it was a nice break for me. It’s just really exciting to know [where I’m going] finally.’’

Tuesday, August 25, 2009

Content and on target

as an amateur with standing


Family concerns prompted golfer Mike Calef to start playing as an amateur again.

Family concerns prompted golfer Mike Calef to start playing as an amateur again. (Photos By David Colt)

By Justin A. Rice
Globe Corresondent / August 23, 2009

Mike Calef played in college at Kentucky’s Murray State University, a school better known for its NCAA-tournament-quality men’s basketball program than its golf program.

He gave the professional minitours a shot for a few years, but is back playing as an amateur, content, and making tracks.

This week, the 30-year-old West Bridgewater native will tee off in the US Amateur for the second time, but the first time in nearly a decade since he was a wide-eyed college sophomore, tackling famed Baltusrol Golf Club (Springfield, N.J.) in 2000.

He was in awe of the players he was paired with, including Luke Donald and Hunter Mahan, who are now on the PGA Tour.

“I met all these people who are now celebrities, and I was a little intimidated to say the least, I was just a kid in college,’’ said Calef, who failed to make match play at Baltusrol.

“I was a little overmatched. At the time I was like ‘Wow these guys are good.’ Looking back I can understand why he’s on TV making a million bucks.’’

Playing out of Brockton Country Club for the past 15 years, Calef carded a 6-under-par 138 at Maplegate Country Club in Bellingham last month to qualify for this year’s Amateur, which will be contested tomorrow through Saturday at Southern Hills Country Club in Tulsa, Okla.

After playing five years professionally, including on the Hooters Tour, Calef sees this week’s tournament as an affirmation that he can balance golf with the rest of life. “It is definitely a grind,’’ said Calef, who carded the low amateur score at the 2008 Mass Open. “I had a couple good years and a couple OK years but five years of living on the road, cut-to-cut, paycheck to paycheck, gets to be a little much.

“I certainly don’t have any regrets. I went out there and played my heart out and definitely gave it everything I had. I am really happy doing what I do now.’’

Now living in South Boston, Calef works for Four Points Realty in West Bridgewater in an office full of golfers.

“Mike’s decision to come back to amateur status, I’m sure it was tough because he’s definitely got the skill to make it’’ as a pro, said Sherry Palmer, Calef’s boss and a member of Norton Country Club who has known Calef since he was a junior player.

“But his family has always been important to him and he made that decision; being one of the top golfers in the state is nothing to sneeze at. He definitely has not lost his drive to be on the top. Just because he doesn’t make money doesn’t make it less important. And to us, we’re definitely proud of him.’’

An 8-handicap herself, Palmer and her partner at Four Points, Sherman Cox (a 5-handicap), don’t mind letting Calef take most of the summer off to play golf.

“We all know he’s pretty much nonexistent in the summer here, but he works hard when the season’s over to support himself and his wife,’’ Palmer said. “We definitely encourage him. We all are going to get on a plane and see him if he makes it to the final. If push comes to shove, we’ll get into a camper.’’

Members at Brockton Country Club raised $1,700 to pay for Calef, his wife, Alicia, and his caddie, Tim Centrella, to travel to Tulsa. Centrella’s brother, Mike, caddied for Calef at the US Amateur almost a decade ago.

“It seems like yesterday he was at Baltusrol playing in the Am - I can’t believe it’s been that long,’’ said Tim Centrella, the vice president at Brockton Country Club.

This time around Calef just wants to do better than he did with Mike Centrella on his bag.

“If I play like I normally can, I can make it to match play,’’ he said. “Once I make it to match play, anything can happen. I know that’s not going to be a walk in park.’’

Whatever happens, Calef will not be shaken by his competition this time.

“Certainly there are great people in the field,’’ he said, “but nobody I would be intimidated by.’’


Globe North Sports

A step ahead

of the pack

Brighton runner

grabs online following



By Justin A. Rice
Globe Correspondent / August 20, 2009

In the running world and a bit beyond, Nate Jenkins is recognizable for his scruffy orange beard. Clean-shaven this summer, though, he passed as just another miler pounding the streets around his Brighton home, training for Saturday’s marathon at the World Track & Field Championships in Berlin.

“Sometimes I get honks from a woman who tells me she likes my short shorts,’’ said the 28-year-old Jenkins.

“That’s about it. You hear stories about Bill Rogers training in Boston in the ’70s and ’80s and a city worker’s head would pop out of a manhole and he’d say ‘Hey Boston Billy!’ I think it’s been a long time since US marathoning was on the forefront.’’

One of the greatest distance runners ever at the University of Massachusetts at Lowell, Jenkins might not stop traffic in Boston, but he has created a cult following in cyberspace.

After he delivered a shocking seventh-place finish at the 2007 US Olympic Marathon Trials in New York City with a World qualifying time of 2:14.56, Running Times Magazine posted his training blog (http://runningtimes.com/blogs/?cat=32) on its website. The graduate of Narragansett Regional High School in Templeton recaps his workouts on a weekly basis and receives 20 to 30 comments and questions per post, all of which he answers.

“No other top runners really talk in detail about their training on a regular basis,’’ he said. “They’ll give you a sample week or a great workout they did, but I lay out exactly what I did and why.’’

“I think that my crazy training sessions are also part of it; people love to see someone who is willing to go a little berserk to get what they want. Lastly, I’m more of an average guy. I didn’t win state titles or set records [in high school], I didn’t go to a D1 [school], I wasn’t an all-American, I don’t have the famous coach or the entourage. It’s old school, it’s blue-collar, it’s an underdog story and people love that.’’

He is also the only runner on the US five-man marathon team who doesn’t train fulltime with a coach. Currently living near the Chestnut Hill Reservoir, he plans and executes his own workouts before sharing his trials and triumphs.

He consults with Gary Gardner, his former coach and colleague at UMass-Lowell, at least twice per week, making sure he doesn’t overextend himself.

“He’s the only national/world class athlete I know who does 99 percent on his own [coaching]. I’ll take credit for 1 percent.’’

Jenkins has coached runners at the Greater Lowell Running Club. He worked as an assistant under Gardner at UMass-Lowell. And he has trained marathoners for the run from Hopkinton to Boston. But he has never run on Patriots Day.

“I want in next year. I’m pumped,’’ said Jenkins, whose sights are also set on the Olympics.

Depending on his finish in either of those marquee events, Jenkins might just draw a utility worker out of the manhole just like Boston Billy one day.

“If I go out and win I will not be noticed in the US,’’ Jenkins said of Saturday’s race. “I will get noticed in my sport and it will change my career. But I won’t be noticed in the US. The top five Boston finishers resonate for people in the non-running community, even though it’s not as competitive’’ as the World Championships.

“In order get noticed I will have to have my big day running down Comm. Ave.’’

Globe South Sports

Eagles’ Smith

puts injuries behind

Jeff Smith of Boston College finished the 2008 football campaign second on the team with 727 all-purpose yards.


Jeff Smith of Boston College finished the 2008 football campaign second on the team with 727 all-purpose yards. (Winslow Townson for The Boston Globe)


By Justin A. Rice
Globe Correspondent / August 20, 2009

NEWTON - Hanging out with Jeff Smith at Duxbury Beach earlier this month, Silver Lake Regional football coach Danna Battista wasn’t at all surprised to see local youngsters approach his former star quarterback.

Now a senior kickoff-return specialist at Boston College, Smith is practically football royalty on the South Shore. And that is pretty remarkable, considering he has spent as much time sidelined by injuries as he has knifing through defenders.

“They all know who he is,’’ Battista said of the 22-year-old Plympton native, who hopes to play his first full season this fall since he was a true freshman at BC in 2006.

“They absolutely know. They see him on TV and they remember his three years at Silver Lake, his superhuman speed.’’

Smith’s star was never brighter than during his freshman year, against Clemson, when he returned five kicks for 213 yards, including a 96-yard touchdown in a 34-33 double-overtime victory.

After his breakout performance, Smith called Battista from a pizzeria in Allston. The coach asked the big man on campus why he wasn’t partying; he was delighted to hear Smith say, “You know me, Coach; that’s not what I want to do.’’

“I kind of was taking it all in,’’ Smith recalled at BC’s football media day last week. “It was like the first thing I did here. I was really nervous or something; I didn’t know what to do.’’

The 5-foot-9, 198-pound Smith averaged 28 yards per kick return as a freshman, earning second-team All-American honors from the Sporting News.

But he suffered a concussion in training camp his sophomore year and was sidelined the first six games.

He returned for one game, against Bowling Green, before suffering another the week of the Clemson game. Doctors advised him to quit football forever.

Smith confided in Battista during those dark days, especially when he ran into his former coach on visits to Duxbury Beach, where Battista often runs during the offseason.

“He would just tell me to keep my head up, it’s not just me; other people go through this, too, and I can overcome it,’’ said Smith. “He gave me a lot of confidence and helped me get through it.’’

The state record holder in the 200 meters (21.01) while at Silver Lake, Smith decided to pour his energy into the Boston College track team. He not only ran fast for the Eagles, breaking a 20-plus-year-old record in the 100 (10.56 seconds) but was glad to have an outlet for his frustration and to be a part of a team again. But it wasn’t the football team. Smith checked if his scholarship was still available (it was) and if he was healthy enough to rejoin the team (he was) before attending training camp last August.

He finished the 2008 football campaign second on the team with 727 all-purpose yards despite playing only 10 games. A hamstring injury kept him out of the other four games.

“It’s been a tough road for him,’’ Battista said. “He’s got his shot right now to succeed and have some success.’’

Battista is excited that Smith has an opportunity, although it’s unclear how much playing time he will receive beyond special teams.

He is third on the depth chart at tailback behind Montel Harris (5-foot-10, 192 pounds) and Josh Haden (5-8, 182 pounds).

Gary Tranquill, Eagles first-year offensive coordinator, has said all three backs will play.

“They’re not big guys; you can’t give them the ball 25 times a game, I don’t think,’’ he said. “[Smith] gives us something we probably don’t have as a team: speed. He’s got long-play capability.

“Another thing Jeff brings to the table is he can throw the football. He was a quarterback, so we might mess around a little bit.’’

Smith is not focusing on where he’ll play; he’s just focused on playing a full season.

And considering how little he’s played the last few years, Smith isn’t looking past this season.

When he was informed that Battista recently received a letter from the Oakland Raiders asking about his character, Smith said, “That’s fine; that’s cool. They probably send letters to a lot of people.’’

A few people have told Smith to give the NFL a shot; others tell him to find a realistic career.

“I don’t know what to do, to tell you the truth,’’ said Smith, who didn’t rule out coaching. “I just want to get through the season first, then worry about it afterwards.’’

Either way, Smith has options he didn’t have a short time ago.

“That’s the thing,’’ Smith said, “that’s a good thing.’’

Friday, August 14, 2009

Brace looks to learn

defensive line jobs quickly

By Justin A. Rice
Wednesday August 12, 2009, 5:43 PM

New England Patriots rookie defensive lineman Ron Brace takes on the blocking sled during training camp at Foxborough.

By JUSTIN A. RICE

FOXBOROUGH - One is an NFL rookie, and the other is embarking on his college career. But both Brace brothers are in the same position on their respective depth charts.

As former Boston College defensive tackle Ron Brace learns both the nosetackle and defensive end position in New England Patriots training camp, his younger brother, Marquis Brace, is also learning a new position.

The former Springfield Central High School standout linebacker is a redshirt freshman free safety at American International College.

Ron Brace, left, confers with Vince Wilfork during New England Patriots training camp at Foxborough..

"The boy gets moved around a lot, wherever they need him that's where he'll play," said the Patriots rookie, who grew up in Springfield before attending Burncoat High in Worcester. "That's the same thing I'm trying to do right now."

Before Marquis started his own camp on Aug. 5, he watched Patriots training camp for a day. His mother, Sheila Henry, was amazed how calm he was about the whole experience.

"At the end of the day he's my brother," the 18-year-old said. "It's just regular for me, it's normal."

That will change, Marquis said, when he sees Ron on the game field for the first time, which could be during New England's first preseason contest in Philadelphia Thursday night.

"I can't wait, but I got camp too, so I don't know if I'm going to be able to watch the game," Marquis said.

Still, watching Ron on the practice field proved to be motivational enough for Marquis.

"Coming into college you have to be open to learning a new position, so it was definitely (helpful)," he said. "He pushes me, and I look up to him."

Beyond telling his brother to listen to the coaches and do what it takes to get on the field, Ron has a difficult time dispatching advice.

"I've never played safety before, (I haven't played) anywhere in the backfield," Ron said. "The only way I can help (him) is to say, 'Keep doing your best.' Tell him that every time, do your best, learn your book. The quicker you learn your book the quicker you see yourself start getting better on that field."

It might be a little easier for the 40th overall pick in the draft to give that advice than to follow it. His Patriots playbook is larger and more complicated than most of his textbooks were in Chestnut Hill.

And he hardly had time to master nosetackle before the Patriots asked him to play defensive end recently, a position he's never played.

"I think when you look at Ron, he's got that frame, he's got good height and a good long frame to play end, as opposed to some players who might be big players, 300-pounders that don't have the length to play out there," Pats coach Bill Belichick said of the 6-foot-3, 330-pounder. "I think Ron has that combination of size and power and length."

Playing on the end might still feel like he's on an island, but Brace has taken to nosetackle by playing behind one of the most heralded nosetackles in the league, Vince Wilfork. But Belichick said Brace has a long way to go to catch Wilfork.

"Vince is way, way, way ahead of him," Belichick said of Wilfork, who is in camp even though he still hasn't settled his contract extension. "(He's) been playing a long time. I mean, Vince is as good a player at his position as there is in the league, a very experienced, versatile guy. Ron has never played a down in the National Football League; he's been out practicing for a week.

"He's not going to be able to make up that kind of ground against Vince Wilfork in one week of practice. There's just no way. So there's a pretty big gap there," Belichick said.

Besides playing two new positions, another big change for the jovial defensive lineman who fried homemade donuts for his BC teammates is that he has to damp down his personality.

"I'm a rookie, pretty much my role right now is speak when spoken to," Ron said. "I don't have time to joke around, I still have to look at that thick book and get ready for Philly. I can't really joke around right now. I can joke around once I learn my role and the season is over, once we all get to know each other."

He has, however, had some laughs with fellow rookie and former Michigan State quarterback Brian Hoyer.

"I thought he was the one who completely crushed me on one play, but I wasn't sure and he wasn't sure," Hoyer said of BC and MSU's meeting in the 2007 Champs Sports Bowl. "We might have to go back and check the tape.

"He's funny. He's kind of a quiet giant. He doesn't say much, but when he does it's pretty funny."
Globe South Sports Notebook

Pembroke's Connelly

finds winning stroke

Chris Sweet will be giving instructions to Duxbury High’s boys’ lacrosse players next year after all.

Chris Sweet will be giving instructions to Duxbury High’s boys’ lacrosse players next year after all. (Robert E. Klein for The Boston Globe/File 2008)

By Justin Rice
August 13, 2009

Once she pocketed a win in the only major golf tournament in Massachusetts that has eluded her, Tara Joy Connelly focused on her next task: defending her title in this week’s WGAM Grace Keyes Cup.

The Duxbury native prevailed last week for the first time in the Massachusetts Women’s Open, recording a one-stroke win at LeBaron Hills Country Club in Lakeville. Next up was the Keyes Cup, the state stroke play tournament held at Renaissance Golf Club in Haverhill.

“You definitely feel good about yourself, that’s for sure,’’ Connelly said on Monday morning.

The confidence boost was fueled by her sterling finish at the state open: She was six shots off the lead before the final round but closed with a one-under par 71 for the victory.

“It was the one tournament up here I never won, so that’s pretty neat,’’ said Connelly, a Pembroke resident. “It’s cool to get all the big ones. The course just set up well for me. It’s a great golf course. I’m hitting it well and putting well.’’

She is also eyeing the upcoming women’s state team matches, sponsored by the United States Golf Association, which will be held Sept. 1 through 3 at the Sycamore Hills Golf Club in Fort Wayne, Ind.

“It’s a humbling experience,’’ she said of playing against the country’s top amateurs. “It’s kind of cool, you are playing with the best players from other states, and everyone there is obviously accomplished at their own level.’’

In her fifth appearance in the tournament, Connelly will be paired with Chelsea Curtis (New Seabury Country Club) and Pam Kuong (Charles River Country Club).

Between all the rain this summer and a busy personal schedule, the 36-year-old is amazed at how fast the season has gone.

“Summer has kind of gotten away from all of us with this bad weather,’’ said Connelly, who is married to J. P. Connelly, the head pro at Cohasset Golf Club. “This year it seems like I’ve been fresh when I needed to be. I feel like I haven’t played much golf other than at tournaments. Maybe that helped this year. You never know.’’

There could be another prestigious tournament on the slate this fall. Connelly will try to qualify for the US Women’s Mid-Amateur at The Kittansett Club on Aug. 25. The Mid-Am is scheduled for Oct. 3 through 8 at Golden Hills Golf and Turf Club in Ocala, Fla.

Parziale takes pro plunge

After scorching the soggy links this summer in New England, Matt Parziale of Thorny Lea Golf Club is turning professional, making his debut on the eGolf Tarheel Tour with a pair of events, the South Charlotte (S.C.) Classic next week, followed by The Championship at Savannah Harbor in Georgia.

Then the 22-year-old Brockton resident will set up a home base in West Palm Beach, Fla., and play mini-tour events.

This has been quite a summer for Parziale, currently the front-runner for player of the year honors in the Massachusetts Golf Association.

He was the low amateur in monsoon-like conditions at the Massachusetts Open, advanced to the quarterfinals of the prestigious North and South Amateur at Pinehurst No. 2, won the Brockton Fourball, the New England Amateur, and the Ouimet Memorial. . . .

Matt Sebet of Westwood will shoot for his second straight men’s club championship, and third title in four years, at Norfolk Golf Club this weekend. Sebet and Joe Young, his teammate on the golf team at Saint Anselm College, headline an impressive group of young players who should be in the hunt in Sunday’s final round.

For coach, a Sweet return

Chris Sweet will now be back on the coaching sideline next spring when his Duxbury boys’ lacrosse team attempts to defend its Division 1 East title for the seventh straight year.

After the Green Dragons captured their sixth straight crown in June, Sweet’s contract, stunningly, was not renewed late last month.

The 11-year coach met with Duxbury School Superintendent Susan Skeiber early last week to defend himself and ultimately was reinstated. His brief non-renewal was set in motion when a faction of parents complained after several upperclassmen were cut, their spots taken by freshmen, including Sweet’s son.

“When people involved aren’t necessarily dealing with a situation on a day-to-day basis, things can get skewed,’’ Duxbury High athletic director Thomas Holdgate said. “That’s what we’re dealing with here. People involved may not be involved every day.

“It was good for Chris to finally talk to somebody. Obviously, Chris was able to present himself in such a manner that she had no problem bringing him back, which is good for Chris.’’

Holdgate has worked with Sweet for the last eight years and called the last few weeks “extremely awkward.’’

“Obviously, I felt awful,’’ Holdgate said. “That’s why I was at least happy he was able to state his case.’’

Monday, August 10, 2009

Globe South Sports

Back in the game

After taking a year off to work in private business, Michael Daly will be the new women’s lacrosse coach at the University of New Hampshire.

After taking a year off to work in private business, Michael Daly will be the new women’s lacrosse coach at the University of New Hampshire. (Michael Silverwood/Unh)

By Justin A. Rice
Globe Correspondent / August 9, 2009

Working as the public address announcer at Bentley College basketball games in the mid ’90s, Michael Daly struck up a friendship with a legendary rival, former Stonehill College women’s coach Paula Sullivan. As the college’s athletic director, Sullivan eventually hired Daly to coach the women’s lacrosse program.

A decade later, after guiding the Skyhawks to a pair of Division 2 national championships, and taking a year off to work in private business, Daly is back coaching.

Early last week, he was named the new women’s coach at the University of New Hampshire, his alma mater. And once again, he can give a tip of the cap to college basketball.

“I had a chance to go to the [NCAA tournament] men’s basketball regional at the Garden and saw the Villanova-Pittsburgh game,’’ said the 41-year-old, who this past year worked for a small marketing and Web design firm in Franklin.

“I was sitting next to some fans from Villanova and talking about college athletics. Just being there for that moment, that was really an epiphany for me this year. I was like, ‘Oh, my God.’ [The Villanova fans] were like, ‘What are you doing? Why wouldn’t you want to be part of this?’ I love college basketball. I love college sports. This kind of seemed right. This year gave me good perspective on how much I love college athletics.’’

Daly spent the 2008 season as an assistant under former University of New Hampshire coach Sandy Bridgeman, who relocated to Florida with her family.

“I took a number of calls from alumni, they all said, ‘You need to apply,’ ’’ Daly said. “Sandy told me she wanted me to take over the program. I was of course flattered and honored.’’

A Brighton native who resides in Natick, Daly plans to relocate to Portsmouth, N.H., and starts his new post in a week.

While he is heading north, he will always have his eye on the South Shore. While he was coaching at Stonehill, he recruited heavily from perennially strong programs such as Duxbury and Hingham. And he has no plans to stop.

“All over the South Shore, to be honest, [lacrosse] programs are very strong and up and coming,’’ he said. “So we’ll continue to do that, but we’ll spread out our wings a bit, look all over the place. But some of the top girls in high school lacrosse are from Massachusetts and they are on the teams winning national championships.’’

In his one year as a University of New Hampshire assistant, he recruited current Wildcat sophomore Erin Levesque out of Duxbury High.

“We’ll see if Erin can help us get Duxbury kids,’’ he said. “My cousins live in Duxbury and I definitely have a soft spot for the area. Sue Paul does a great job with the [Duxbury] program. We’ll definitely look for kids there and all over the South Shore.’’

Daly is taking over at a University of New Hampshire program steeped in history, unlike the situation when he arrived at Stonehill. One year after his arrival in North Easton, 1999, the program went varsity, and the Skyhawks won NCAA Division 2 titles in 2003 and 2005. One of his former players, Milton native Katie Lambert-Conover, is guiding the Stonehill program.

In her 13 years as New Hampshire head coach, Bridgeman compiled a 123-105 record and was a three-time America East Coach of the Year.

“I’m honored and thrilled, at the same time, to be taking over for her,’’ said Daly. “And I’m excited to write the next chapter in the program’s history. The only way to do that is to build on what Sandy established, the tradition of excellence on the field and off. My job is to carry on the legacy she built.’’

But he is reminded that it was love for college basketball that led him back to the lacrosse field.

“People still want me to announce games,’’ Daly said. “I’m like, ‘I don’t know.’ I do miss it. It’s fun. I love college hoops.’’

Thursday, August 6, 2009


Globe South Sports

Chasing the

wind together

Sailors Patrick Kearney of Dedham and Rachel Guard of Scituate prepare for their first race Tuesday in Scituate.

Sailors Patrick Kearney of Dedham and Rachel Guard of Scituate prepare for their first race Tuesday in Scituate. (Photos By Pat Greenhouse/Globe Staff)

By Justin A. Rice
Globe Correspondent / August 6, 2009

There’s a fine line between taking a leisurely sail and racing in a regatta.

Yet, Brittney Cangemi and her skipper, Christina McCourt, are able to enjoy both disciplines. Coming off a ninth-place finish in the recent Duxbury Yacht Club Junior Regatta, their best result since teaming up three years ago, the former Scituate High School tennis teammates competed in the USA Junior Olympic Sailing Festival and 23d annual Scituate Junior Regatta on Monday and Tuesday.

“It’s always something I just did for fun all my summers,’’ said McCourt, whose grandmother, Mary, is a longtime member of the Scituate Harbor Yacht Club. “Being around all these kids that are wicked competitive, you start to get that mentality that it’s not for fun anymore.’’

In the next breath, however, McCourt said sailing with Cangemi is a breeze.

“Of course we want to win, but we just go out and make friends, sing songs, and have fun,’’ said the 17-year-old McCourt, who will be a Scituate High senior this fall while Cangemi, 18, heads to Connecticut College and a berth on its sailing team.

“She’s someone I enjoy sailing with, not someone I have to sail with. She’s someone I want to sail with.’’

Hosting the USA Junior Olympic Sailing Festival for what organizers believe is the first time, the Scituate Harbor club fielded six teams, and was joined by several other South Shore squads competing in the event, which drew 300-plus sailors ages 7 to 18 racing more than 200 boats in four classes. One team traveled from Chicago.

Steve Guard, chairman of the Scituate Junior Regatta committee, said the USA festival is paired with a different local race each summer.

“It’s a huge feather in our cap in that the USA Junior Olympic committee thought enough of our club and the history of our club,’’ he said.

Guard said Scituate’s regatta is renowned for its tradition of serving tacos on the second day of racing, instead of the more common fare of hot dogs and hamburgers.

“It’s funny how the little things matter to these kids,’’ Guard said.

“Many of them are not hardcore, they do regattas for fun. Ninety-five percent of the kids are sailing for fun and five percent are truly competitive at the Olympic level. Most of them are out here to have fun and hone skills in teamwork and problem solving.

“To take on Mother Nature in a small boat and use wind as a propellent is really an awesome feat for these kids at this age.’’

No one in the Scituate junior sailing program, according to Guard, does it much better than Cangemi and McCourt.

“The two of them make a good team,’’ he said. “They’ve been friends for such a long time and they are the leaders for our program. A lot of kids look up to them for the hard work they’ve put into becoming the sailors they are.’

They were also teammates on the Scituate High School girls’ tennis team that advanced to the Division 2 South sectional semifinals this spring, Cangemi playing No. 1 doubles with Shelagh Joyce while McCourt was paired with Shalyn O’Malley on No. 2 tandem.

“The consistency thing carried over’’ from tennis, Cangemi said. “In tennis you want to make every shot and keep consistent. In sailing, you want the finish to be consistent.’’

She said it will be difficult to sail without McCourt after this summer, because they are so in synch on the boat.

“They do much more team racing in college than we do in the summer,’’ Cangemi said. “That’s going to be exciting. It’s going to take a while to get used to the intensity of sailing every single day. It will be very different because we have our timing on our tacks down.’’

They might be reunited soon enough, however; McCourt hopes to play field hockey at the school in New London, Conn.

“I was telling her I was looking at’’ Connecticut College, McCourt recalled, “and she said, ‘Oh, I just applied there.’ We said maybe we could go to school together if it works out.’’

Cangemi started sailing seven years ago, but McCourt first hit the water with her family when she was 2 and started racing three years later.

“I definitely think it’s an advantage,’’ McCourt said. “I don’t think most people would start that young.’’

The two junior sailors first raced together three years ago when Hingham hosted the USA Junior Olympic festival. They don’t remember how they finished, but they’ll never forget how much fun they had, they said. Still, switching from casual sailing to racing was not easy.

“You have to think more aggressively, which is hard, but we’re getting better as a team,’’ Cangemi said.

With their own club hosting this summer’s USA festival, there was more pressure on Cangemi and McCourt to perform well.

“We know the waters, we practice in them every day and we know the currents, so that’s going to be better,’’ Cangemi said prior to the competition. “Everyone is looking out for us; everyone is looking for the Scituate boats.’’

The regatta was also one of their last together before Cangemi heads off to college.

“We learned a lot this summer,’’ McCourt said. “We also realized Britt can’t do any more regattas, so we’ll try to make the best of what we have left.’’

Sunday, August 2, 2009

Globe South Sports Notebook

Golfer's lofty goal

Matt Parziale was the runner-up for low amateur honors at the Massachusetts Open in late June. Matt Parziale was the runner-up for low amateur honors at the Massachusetts Open in late June. (Barry Chin/Globe Staff/File 2008)

By Justin A. Rice
August 2, 2009

Vic Parziale, a captain in the Brockton Fire Department, joined Thorny Lea Golf Club last year so that he could play more rounds with his son, Matt.

This summer, the elder Parziale has picked up his son’s clubs more than his own, caddying for the recent Southeastern University grad who, at the moment, is playing the best golf of his life.

In late June, the younger Parziale was the runner-up for low amateur honors at the Massachusetts Open, and then advanced to match play at the state amateur. Then he teamed up with Steve Tasho to capture the Brockton City Fourball before capturing the title at the New England Amateur on July 23 in Portsmouth, N.H.

“I kind of expected it because he always had potential and it just seems to all be coming together now,’’ Vic Parziale said of his son, who is expected to turn pro in the near future.

“I’m behind him 100 percent because he’s young and has no responsibilities. He might as well go for it. He won’t regret that he didn’t try if it doesn’t work out.’’

Parziale surged into the final day with a five-stroke lead, thanks to his 4-under-par 68 in the third round, and then held on for a three-shot victory over Garrett Medeiros.

The 22-year-old said he will work out the details of turning pro once the summer tournament schedule is finished. He is planning a move to Florida, but has not put a timetable on earning his PGA Tour card.

“If you limit yourself to three years, what if next week you break through?’’ he said. “That’s the mistake a lot of people make and I won’t do that. I’m just going to go with no timetable and no limit. If you limit yourself you are setting yourself up to fail, I think.’’

Thorny Lea pro Peter Norton has offered his recommendation: join a mini-tour, rather than trying Q School this fall.

“He [should] play against kids like him, play the mini tours and learn from it, because I think he can do it,’’ Norton said. “I think he has all the potential in the world to do it. He has a great attitude and is not afraid to shoot low scores like a lot of people are.’’

Before heading south, however, Parziale will save a few rounds for his dad.

“We like to play once a week if we can; when there’s not tournaments, we play,’’ he said. “We have not been playing that much this past month.’’

Coach not renewed

Chris Sweet guided the Duxbury High boys’ lacrosse program to six consecutive Division 1 state championships, and seven overall, including a 13-12 win over St. John’s Prep this past June. But his contract has not been renewed, in a move that has surprised many inside and outside of the lacrosse community.


“I cannot make any comment on any personnel issues,’’ Duxbury athletic director Thomas Holdgate said of the 11-year coach, before adding that the position will be posted in September.

“Hopefully we’ll have someone in place by mid-October. There’s a coaches association meeting in late October and I would want somebody in place by then because a lot of scheduling gets done at that meeting.’’

Sweet could not be reached for comment.

Coaches’ summit
Brockton High varsity football coach Peter Colombo attended the NFL-USA Football Youth Football Summit in Canton, Ohio, last week, joining coaches from every state and Washington, D.C.

Super Bowl XXXIV-winning head coach Dick Vermeil headlined a group of NFL vets that led breakout sessions and forums.

“It’s great for Brockton, absolutely,’’ said Brockton AD Thomas Kenney. “I think that just for him to be able to talk to other coaches at the same level as him, from other communities, other states, that’s rare. That doesn’t happen too often. I just think it’s a great experience for Peter.’’

The five-year coach was nominated to attend the summit by New Bedford head coach Dennis Golden, who attended last year’s summit.

“The types of students that we deal with are very similar; our kids face a lot of life challenges,’’ Golden said. “[The summit] benefited me and gave me a real positive outlook on things.

“I respect the job he does. I thought he’d be a good person to go out there.’’

Odds and ends
Hingham native Tony Amonte was inducted into the US Hockey Hall of Fame earlier this week, along with fellow Bay Stater Tom Barrasso, Vermont native John LeClair, the 1998 US Olympic Women’s team, and the late Frank Zamboni. Amonte, who scored 416 goals in his 17-year National Hockey League career, most prominently with the Chicago Blackhawks, retired in 2007. He scored the winning goal against Canada in the deciding game of the first World Cup of Hockey in 1996. . . . Xaverian Brothers graduate Zack Abrams, a senior long snapper on the Northeastern University football team, is one of 106 nominees for the Allstate American Football Coaches Association Good Works Team, for outstanding community service. The Sharon native has donated time to organizations and events in Greater Boston.