Hoops: Belmont Girls’ Herlihy Adding A Scoring Punch To Marauders’ Offense

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Photo: Belmont High Senior Center Julia Herlihy taking a shot from distance

Julia Herlihy is known for her skills as a goaltender for the field hockey team – a goals-against average of 1.1 and nine shutouts this past season – and in the net for the lacrosse team.

But in recent weeks, Herlihy has proved herself to be an offensive force for Belmont High Girls’ Basketball. In the last two games, the senior center has averaged 13 points, including 11 points, with three buckets from beyond the 3-point line against Arlington. Add four blocks and a slew of rebounds in the first half to help Belmont to a 45-34 victory at the Wenner Field House.

This season, Herlihy has been partnering with sophomore forward Sophia McClendon and fellow senior guard co-captain Mia Ferrari to power Belmont to a 6-2 record (2-2 in the Middlesex League), including winning the Cambridge Legions Classic tourney during the winter break. Against the 11th-ranked (in the Boston Globe top 20 poll) Wakefield High, Herlihy joined McClendon with 15 points to force the game into overtime, where Ferrari hit a critical 3 in the final minute to take down the Warriors, 60-56.

Belmont High’s Sophia McClendon (35) has averaged 15 points in the past two games.

Herlihy said she’s not concentrating on being a scoring threat, “but if the shots there, I’m gonna take it. But I’m also looking to pass to other players.”

Against Arlington, the Marauders punished the SpyPonders for grouping under their basket as four Belmont starters threw up three-pointers. The team’s aggressive defense allowed the Marauders to run off to a 16-5 first-quarter lead. Herlihy continued her long-range scoring with two threes, leading Belmont to a 32-18 advantage at the half. McClendon used her speed to score on a pair of breakaways and an in-close jumper to keep the SpyPonder’s arms distance at 40-27 entering the final eight minutes. The fourth quarter was a pondering affair for both teams, each appearing ready to start the weekend.

Second-year Head Coach Shantell Jeter said the team has come far from last year. “Each game we go out there, we play better. We’re working on communication and pace, and I’m trying to teach them not to allow the other team to dictate their pace. We need to be calm and patient and trust each other.”

“So far this season, it’s been a team effort. We just all been working really hard. And it’s going well so far,” said Herlihy.

Belmont Police Issues Snow Emergency Parking Ban Beginning Late Saturday As Winter Storm Watch Is Declared

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Photo: Parking ban begins 11:45 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 6.

In an attempt to get ahead of the first nor’easter of the winter, the Belmont Police Department has announced a Snow Emergency Parking Ban on all town roadways, as well as in municipal parking lots and Belmont Public School parking lots, effective Saturday Jan. 6, at 11:45 p.m. and continuing until further notice. Any vehicle parked in violation of the ban will be towed at the owner’s expense.

The ban comes as the Boston office of the National Weather Service issued a Winter Storm Watch from Saturday afternoon through late Sunday night for eastern Massachusetts including Belmont.

“Heavy snow possible. Total snow accumulations of 3 to 8 inches possible. Winds could gust as high as 35 mph,” according to the NWS which released the warning at 4:34 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 5.

Town officials are reminding residents the town’s residential snow removal bylaw requires sidewalks along residential property to be cleared of snow and ice by 8 p.m. the day after a storm ends. Snow and ice should be cleared or treated from sidewalks to a width of at least 36 inches.

Residents should go to the town’s web site for further information regarding winter weather and the town’s snow removal bylaw .

Belmont Woman’s Club Free To Manage Its 11 Parking Spaces As It Deems Fit

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Photo: The Homer House’s parking spaces.

In a split decision, the Belmont Planning Board voted to allow the Belmont Woman’s Club to manage “on their own” the 10 parking spaces and single handicapped space located at the historic Homer House across from Belmont Town Hall at 661 Pleasant St.

“I believe it’s the Woman’s Club property [and] they should be able to manage that parking spaces as they wish,” said Planning Board Chair Jeffrey Birenbaum. He called the decision a “minor modification” to the former parking lot use plan approved by the Planning Board in July 2021 which restricted the lot’s use “to Women’s Club activities and functions.”

The new language states that parking “to allowed the Belmont Women’s Club to utilize their on-site 10 parking spaces plus one handicapped for them to handle.” If any problems arise with the change in status, the Club would be required to meet with the Building Department and later with the Planning Board.

Daytime parking at the Town Hall lot – which includes the School Administrative building and several town departments in the Homer Building and Town Hall – is currently a tight fit. When the lot is full, visitors and staff are required to use on-street parking – which has time restrictions – or travel to the municipal parking lot on Claflin Street.

And it appears the Woman’s Club spaces may have an interested party to claim the lot. Town Planner Chris Ryan said he had conversations with Town Administrator Patrice Garvin expressing that “it would be fine to have town staff parking there,” albeit a memorandum of understanding would need to be negotiated to identify any possible issues, a stipulation the Club’s President Wendy Murphy said would be “very easily” completed.

“I think one of the concerns that [residents] had was some of the town staff were parking on the sides of the driveway,” said Ara Yogurtian, the Planning Board’s staff member, who advised writing in the decision and MOU that parking can only occur in the designated spaces.

Yet the decision was not unanimous. Planning Board Member Thayer Donham reminded the board that “we had a lot of meetings on this case and … a lot of history to get to the original decision.” Donham believes that a new shared parking use should not be granted unless the club returned to the Planning Board with a new application.

“I just don’t feel comfortable overturning it,” said Donham, who was the sole “no” vote in the 3-1 decision.

But Birenbaum, noting the town bylaws does speak on accessory use of shared parking spaces including a lot used by town departments.

“I don’t think what I’ve read … that we need to come down with a hard hammer and say they need special permits or they can’t use their lot.”