Football: Belmont Stands Up To Reading In Friday Night Battle

October 9, 2016 By Franklin B. Tucker Leave a Comment

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There was no “moral” victory Friday night in Reading, said Belmont Head Coach Yann Kumin after Marauders’ hard-fought, defeat at the hands of last year’s Super Bowl finalist, 47-21,

“We played a hard-fought game, and we’re excited about it. But we live in the real world, and there are no moral victories, we believe in victories, and this was a loss. We stood tall tonight, and that was great,” said Kumin.

The game under the lights was a sea change from the games played between the two rivals in the past decade.

In the first two years of Kumin’s tenure, Reading outscored Belmont 98-0. With a minute to go in the half on Friday, Oct. 7, Belmont trailed the hometown Rockets, 24-21, each team scoring three touchdowns. A late Reading score gave the home team a 32-21 half-time lead.

“We got a great football team and to have a 10 point game at the half against this team at their home, it proves that we are not going back to the days when we lost the first half by 42 points,” said Kumin.

This match-up between the long-time Super Bowl contender against the new team was not going to follow the normal script when on Belmont’s first play from scrimmage as senior RB Ben Jones found a gap in the defense and scooted 70 yards for a Belmont touchdown and a shock 7-0.

But Reading would take the lead on two plays – its long run of 67 yards by Corey DiLoreto and a 75-yard punt return from Jack Geiger – going up 16-7 after only three minutes.

But it was Belmont that showed it could not only halt Reading’s offense but on its next possession, use a combination of runs – using junior fullback Adam Deese on quick handoffs – and passes to march down the field where senior quarterback Cal Christofori found junior wide receiver Jake Pollock for a 17-yard touchdown with 20 seconds in the quarter, cutting the lead to 16-14.

The Marauders continued the momentum it had in the first by closing down the Rockets on the first drive and with runs by Jones and a 10-yard catch to sophomore Jared Edwards the Marauder offense took the ball to the Reading 40. But the drive ended when a Christofori pass went off the hands of the receiver and was picked off by senior Nick DiNapoli who returned the ball deep into Marauder territory with the Rockets scoring a short time after to retain a 24-14 lead.

But the drive ended when a Christofori pass went off the hands of the receiver and was picked off by senior Nick DiNapoli who returned the ball deep into Marauder territory with the Rockets scoring a short time after to retain a 24-14 lead.

But the setback was pushed aside as a long run by Jones, a pass interference call against Reading and a 33-yard pass from Christofori to senior wideout Dylan Ferdinand put the ball on the Rockets three-yard line. Jones then swept around the right end to bring Belmont to within three points, 24-21 with 80 seconds left in half. But it took the Rockets only 45 seconds to score its fourth touchdown in the half on a 35-yard pass from senior QB Corey DiLoreto to DiNapoli.

After the half, the Belmont offense could not find the momentum it had earlier in the game and two long Reading drives, mostly runs based on the quarterback option, allowed the Rockets to score two additional touchdowns to secure a victory in front of a small home crowd.

“But I am proud of our guys. They fought to the last whistle. They played a great football game, and we are excited to take on Winchester at Harris,” said Kumin.

Sports: Field Hockey Sideswiped by Winchester (Again!), Rebound at Reading

October 3, 2016 By Franklin B. Tucker Leave a Comment

Photo: AnnMarie Habelow (left) and Meri Power during the Winchester match.

On Monday afternoon, Sept. 26, Belmont High School Field Hockey began to reap the achievements of being undefeated (6-0-0) and having come off a stellar performance away at one-loss Lexington as the Boston Globe ranked the team 8th in Eastern Massachusetts, one of the highest rankings a Belmont hockey team had ever achieved.

By 7:15 p.m. that evening, the team came off Harris Field having laid an egg and along with it, flying in the rarified air of the top 10.

Gone was the undefeated season and the sense of invincibility after the Marauders were defeated by Winchester, 3-1. Last season, it was this same game where Belmont fall from the unbeaten, a 5-4 gut wrenching loss that spurred the team for the remainder of the year.

But where last year’s team collapsed in the final 10 minutes to give up four goals, Monday’s match with their new nemesis was a game full of just misses and head shaking moments.

“I don’t see how we lost to them,” said Belmont co-Capt. AnnMarie Hebalow the day after the shocker.

For Head Coach Jessie Smith, the loss was an object lesson for a team that had not been behind or even tied during a game this season.

“I told them, every great team needs to lose. You need to know what it feels like to be beaten and now they know. We’re done with that,” she said.

“Does it hurt? Yes. Can we move on from this and be better for it. You bet,” said Smith.

Not that Winchester is a surprise team in the Middlesex League Liberty Division, arriving Monday with a 5-1-1 record with the expected loss to Watertown and the unanticipated tie to Stoneham. While showing skills with the stick, the Sachems thrive on physically dominating other

While showing skills with the stick, the Sachems thrive on physically dominating other teams especially on counter attacks, turning from defense to offense on a dime and punishing an opponent for not protecting their goal.

And Winchester would score twice within four minutes in the final 15 minutes of the first half off plays which began off the counter.

It was hardly a game in which Belmont was on the back heel. The majority of the game was fought in Winchester’s midfield with Habelow directing Belmont’s offense which had balls sent on the Winchester goalie.

But what became a common occurrence throughout the game, passes would bounce off a foot or jump over a stick that was at the ready. Case in point, penalty corners. Eagerly sought by attacking players as they provide an excellent opportunity to score, on three occasions the ball sent from the end line to Belmont’s top scorers skipped by the offense into the midfield.cvc

After going down 3-0 midway through the second half, the one bright spot in the game for the Marauders happened when freshman phenom Katie Guden scored from the middle of a scrum with nine minutes, marking Guden’s 14th goal as the 9th grader has tallied at least once in each game of the season.

On Wednesday, Sept. 28, Belmont traveled to Reading where they met a goalie that would end up with more than 20 saves, allowing the Rockets – which are still rebuilding its team – to tie the Marauders at the half, 1-1. But Belmont’s Habelow, who scored early in the game, put in her second, allowing Belmont to head back to the bus a winner.

At 7-1-0, Belmont heads into the week in second in the Middlesex League Liberty, ready to face Burlington away on Wednesday, Oct. 5 and at home against Wakefield on Thursday, Oct. 6.

Sports: Mistakes Rain on Belmont Football In Loss to Winless Woburn

October 2, 2016 By Franklin B. Tucker Leave a Comment

Photo: The Belmont High defense in pursuit.

Belmont gifted Woburn its first victory of the year with a big bow on top.

On a wet, misty night, the Marauders left a season’s worth of mistakes and miscues on the field, allowing the hometown Tanners to walk off the field with the win, 10-7, under the lights, Friday, Sept. 30.

From penalties to dropped passes, unfortunate plays, and missed opportunities, Belmont lets a good chance to carry away a victory fall flat when it could not gain two yards on three plays with a minute remaining in the game, the same scenario against the same team one year ago.

After the game, Belmont Head Coach Yann Kumin lamented the team’s inconsistent play over the 44 minutes.

“We played a great football game at times and a very poor football game at times. And in order to beat a Woburn at 0-3, we have to play a good football game all the time. And we did not do that tonight, period.”

But it was the miscues – something Belmont been avoiding this season – which did in the Marauders.

“We had at least 70 yards in penalties if not more. I’m afraid to look. We turned the ball over on downs; we fumbled the ball on a great drive where we had some good things going, then had great opportunities to move the ball down the field and win it at the end of the game we weren’t able to do it,” said Kumin

“And that is on me. It’s not on my [coaches], not on my players; it’s not on anyone but me,” said Kumin.

The first quarter saw Belmont at its best, with the defense halting Woburn twice inside (the first on downs, the second on a fumble recovery) the Marauders’ 20 yard line after Belmont fumbled consecutive punt returns in the first five minutes.

And it didn’t take long for Belmont to strike when on the offense’s second play senior QB Cal Christofori threw a strike to wide receiver Jared Edwards catching the sophomore in stride for a 67 yard TD at the 6 minute mark.

But the misty rain effected both offenses as the defenses of both teams took control. While Belmont’s defense was stellar all night, they allowed Woburn one-to-many long runs, including Tyler Hayden’s 48-yard touchdown midway through the second quarter.

Belmont was also caught by a fake punt late in the second quarter that gave Woburn the ball on the Belmont 32. But the defense, behind Ryan Noone, Dennis Crowley and Adam Deese, forced the Tanners to turn the ball over on downs.

The Marauders came out throwing at the start of the second which Christofori hitting Dylan Ferdinand for 27 yards to Woburn’s 15 but a fumble by the usually reliable Ben Jones end the drive.

Woburn began its second half going into a no-huddle, running effectively over the right side of the line.

When Belmont got the ball back at the 30 yard line, the Marauders steadly moved the ball … backwards on two penalities and an ineffective pass, to the 13. And only the quick thinking of kicker Aidan Cadogan who calmly recovered a high snap and sent the ball to the 40, prevented a truely disastereous outcome.

With momentum on its side, Woburn moved the ball to the Belmont 8, but once again the defense held behind the big rush by Deese, forcing Woburn’s Brazilian transfer student Victor Scobel to hit the 23 yard field goal with nine second remaining in the third quarter.

Once again, Belmont’s offense got close – taking the ball from the Belmont 41 to Woburn’s 30 – but a dropped pass with daylight to the goal line, a penalty and another incomplete pass gave Woburn the ball back with 6 minutes remaining. Belmont nearly stopped the Tanners on three downs but a questionable pass interference call against the Marauders allowed Woburns to run more than two minutes off the clock.

With the defense giving the offense the ball back with 1:42 remaining, Belmont started in fine form, with a Jones four yard run and then a 15 yard personal foul put the ball on Belmont’s 47. After an eight yard run, the Marauders faced a second and 2 from the 46 with 61 second left in the game. But Belmont could not pick up six feet on three plays and a win was washed away.

“It’s going to hurt right now but [the players] live in the moment, they live in the reap,” said Kumin.

“The moment not isn’t great and live in it for a second because they are competitive guys and we are competitive coaches. And while we live in this moment and it will hurt, tomorrow we will break down video of the game and get ready for Reading, so it’s not getting any easier for us,” he said.

“I hope this is a wake-up call. We are a really good football team but in order to be great, we have to continue to not kicking ourselves in the butt and chopping our foot off. And that’s on me,” said Kumin.

Run For Innovation Education at the Scharfman 5K Sunday, Oct. 3

September 29, 2016 By Franklin B. Tucker Leave a Comment

Photo: This year’s poster.

The Foundation for Belmont Education, a non-profit group that supports educational excellence and enrichment in the Belmont Public Schools, is pleased to host the fourth annual Dan Scharfman Memorial Run on Sunday, Oct. 2 at 9:30 a.m.

The Scharfman Run takes place from 9:30 a.m. to noon, beginning at the Belmont High School Harris Field track and takes a scenic route past the town’s schools, Payson Park Reservoir and Clay Pit Pond.

Runners and walkers can register the day of the race at the Belmont High School track.

Proceeds from the run enable the FBE to fund new programs in the Belmont Public School system and give educators and students the best tools, technology, and training to foster innovation and love of learning.

The following road closings will occur on October 2nd to ensure the safety of participants:

6 a.m. – 12 p.m.: No Parking on East/West side of Concord Ave between Cottage Ave and Underwood;
6 a.m. – 10:30 a.m.: No Parking on Goden Street between School Street and Concord Ave;
9:30 a.m. – 10:30 a.m.: School Street closed between Myrtle and Philip Road;
9:30 a.m. – 10:30 a.m.: No exit onto Oakley from Selwyn and Hurd;
Between 9:30 a.m. and 10:30 a.m.: Drivers should be aware of runners on the 5K course (Concord Ave / Orchard Road / Stone Road / School Street / Philip / Elizabeth Road / Jacob / Payson / Oakley / Goden / Concord / Underwood); and
Between 10:45 a.m. and 11 a.m.: Concord Ave Westbound will have young runners in the bike lane running against traffic between Underwood and Goden. Cones will separate runners from traffic.

The Foundation thanks the residents of Belmont and the Belmont Police Department for their support of the Dan Scharfman Memorial Run and appreciates the community’s understanding of the disruption in normal traffic patterns.

The Foundation for Belmont Education is a community-sponsored, non-profit, charitable organization run by volunteers. The FBE was founded in 1993 to support educational excellence and enrichment in the Belmont Public Schools and is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization dedicated to making a difference in the Belmont Public Schools.

Sports: Birch Hill Road’s Molly Hahn Takes Third in International Senior Tennis Team Tourney

September 29, 2016 By Franklin B. Tucker Leave a Comment

Photo: Molly Hahn (Credit: Carolyn Nichols)

Not all the big sports stars in Belmont are high schoolers, the slew of marathoners in town or the occasional Olympian.

Last week, Birch Hill Road’s Marjorie “Molly” Hahn, 67, placed third in the Kitty Godfree Cup (for women 65 and over) at the ITF Super Senior World Team Championships held Sept. 12-17, in Umag, Croatia.

The former Tufts University mathematics professor joined Kathy Barnes of San Jose, Calif., Susan Bramlette of Houston and Captain Toni Novak of Charlotte, N.C. on the team that defeated Great Britain, 3-0, to secure third place.

The tournament is the senior tennis equivalent of the Davis Cup and Fed Cup competitions, with top American tennis players representing their countries in the 65-, 70-, 75-, and 80-and-older age groups. The event is the most prestigious team competition on the ITF Seniors circuit.

(from left) Kathy Barnes of San Jose, Calif., Susan Bramlette of Houston, Molly Hahn of Belmont, and Captain Toni Novak of Charlotte, N.C. (credit: Carolyn Nichols)

Soccer Night in Belmont Kicks Off Under the Lights Saturday, Oct. 1

September 28, 2016 By Franklin B. Tucker 1 Comment

Photo: Belmont High Girls’ Soccer getting the word out on the first “Soccer Night in Belmont.”

The Belmont High School Boys’ and Girls’ Varsity Soccer teams will headline the inaugural “Soccer Night in Belmont” on Saturday, October 1, joined at the event by hundreds of younger players from Belmont 2nd Soccer and the Belmont Soccer Association, coaches, and other members of the Belmont soccer community.

Soccer Night in Belmont will feature a doubleheader under the lights at Harris Field with the Boys’ taking on Wayland High at 5:30 p.m. followed the BHS Girls’ vs. Middlesex League rival Reading High at 7:30 p.m.

Preceding each game, 2^nd Soccer and BSA players will parading out with players during the pre-game ceremonies, acting as ball boys and girls, and competing in mini-games on Harris Field during halftime of the games.

“This event will not only showcase our successful varsity teams, but will recognize the role of Belmont 2^nd Soccer and BSA in nurturing the talent that makes up these teams year in and year out,” said event organizer John Carson.

“We hope to have a big crowd, and it will be a really fun night that builds bonds between our ‘little kid’ players and ‘big kid’ high school players, virtually all of whom came up through the Belmont youth program.”

Admission to Soccer Night in Belmont is free, and the first 100 elementary grade kids wearing their team uniform will receive a commemorative soccer ball donated by Belmont Savings Bank. Concessions, organized by Parents of Music Students (POMS) including pizza, hot dogs, snacks and drinks will be available so families can come for the games and feed the kids at the same time.

Soccer Night in Belmont is sponsored by Belmont 2^nd Soccer, Belmont Soccer Association, Belmont Savings Bank, The Rising, Phoenix Landing, with special thanks to Friends of Belmont Soccer (FOBS), and Belmont High School Athletic Director Jim Davis.

Further information for soccer players who wish to participate on the field will be distributed through their 2nd Soccer and BSA coaches in the coming weeks. Those wishing to volunteer at the event should contact johncarson@yahoo.com

Top 10 Belmont Field Hockey Unarm Minutemen with (Another) Guden’s Hat Trick

September 26, 2016 By Franklin B. Tucker Leave a Comment

Photo: Seniors Molly Goldberg (left) and Julia Chase defend behind junior goalie Christine MacLeod with senior AnnMarie Habelow in the scrum during Belmont’s 3-0 shutout of Lexington.

So what did Katie Guden do after the freshman forward for the undefeated Belmont High School Field Hockey team was named the New England Player of the Week last Monday by a national field hockey website?

She just went out and scored hat tricks in consecutive games (and three this season) including one against a one-loss Lexington High School Minutemen on its home turf in Belmont’s 3-0 victory, Thursday, Sept. 22.

That’s what.

As the 14-year-old 9th grader goal total now reaches 13 and makes her one of the leading scorers in the state, Guden has become an integral piece of Head Coach Jessica Smith’s unbeaten (6-0-0) squad which is ranked 10th by the Boston Globe as it moves forward to retaining the Middlesex League Liberty Division title.

Monday brings another strong challenger as Winchester High School comes to Harris Field, the only non-state championship side to beat the Marauders last season. That defeat – Belmont gave up a three-goal lead in the final 11 minutes to lose 5-4 at Winchester – still haunts both coach and players who were there.

“This year’s motto is ‘Never Settle’ because we settled for a 4-1 lead against Winchester and lost the game. We’ll always remember that,” said senior co-captain AnnMarie Habelow.

Winchester comes into the match with a record of 5-1-1 and is on a five-game winning streak. The game starts at 6 p.m.

After a hard fought 2-0 win at Wilmington a week earlier, Belmont’s match with Lexington was the most challenging of the season as the Minutemen change tactics after falling behind 1-0 midway through the first half – via a Guden tip of a Habelow drive – by putting eight of its ten field players into the Marauders defensive zone.

“It took us a while to get used to having so many girls together in one place,” said Smith.

While the offense has been Belmont’s bread and butter this season – with 35, the Marauders are one of the most prolific teams in the state – it was Belmont’s defense that stifled the Minutemen onslaught. Led by senior co-captain Julia Chase with senior Molly Goldberg on the right and Meri Power on the left, Belmont absorbed the multiple attacks from Lexington’s forwards.

Junior goalie Christine MacLeod made three saves in the first half, but she stood out on a play that would not be recorded in the scorebook. With about eight minutes before the half, Lexington drove deep into Belmont’s end when the ball squirted to MacLeod. The second-year varsity starter trapped the ball in her feet and wouldn’t allow anyone to either squeeze the ball between her pads or dislodge it. For 10 seconds, with Goldberg and Chase positioned defensively behind her and Habelow joining the scrum for the ball, MacLeod kept possession. Finally, Habelow popped the ball out towards midfield to relieve the pressure.

Slowly, Belmont began to take control in the second half as midfielders sophomores Morgan Chase and Bridget Gardiner, along with forwards Lilly Devitt, Jordan Lattiere, and Alexa Sabatino started using long passes and dribbling to beat the Lexington press. Morgan Chase assisted on Guden’s second goal – a shot past the goalie’s far post pad – and Habelow got her second helper on the freshman’s hat trick goal.

“I like our team now. They do have to work on some things, but they are getting better each game,” said Smith. “We just need to be consistent each game and not let down because many of our games have been pretty easy. That’s why Winchester is going to be a challenge.”

Football: Belmont Drains SpyPonders, 17-14, on Final Play Field Goal

September 25, 2016 By Franklin B. Tucker Leave a Comment

Photo: It’s good as Aidan Cadogan (#3) is congratulated after hitting the winning points vs. Arlington.

After the final whistle blew, a person on the sidelines said, “Belmont doesn’t win games like this.”

It does now.

A 31-yard field goal by junior kicker Aidan Cadogan splitting the uprights on the final play of the game gave the Belmont High Marauders a thrilling 17-14 victory over Arlington High in a Middlesex League football matchup before a large, boisterous crowd at Belmont’s Harris Field under the Friday night lights, Sept. 23.

“I’m just so proud of our guys. They live what we preach; ‘Big Play, Next Play’, ‘Livin’ in the Reap.’ All credit is due to them. I just call the play, and they go out and execute it,” said Belmont third year head coach Yann Kumin.

“It’s a new era,” said Ben Jones, the team’s workhorse who smashed 200 rushing yards for the game.

“Coach Q started it, my brother [Max Jones] started it, everyone started it who was before us. We couldn’t have done this without them. This is a new Belmont,” he said.

Belmont is currently 2-1 and 1-1 in the Middlesex League with a two-game winning streak.

On the final drive of the game as the Marauders’ was driving down the field in the closing three minutes, kicker Cadogan said he was thinking “just get it in field goal position and the team did and I’m just excited to hit the field goal.”

As he was preparing for the kick, Arlington called a timeout in an attempt to “freeze” the junior. “Normally I don’t really get iced, that’s just me. When they tried it, I said, ‘I’m going to hit this!'”

For the second consecutive week, the night’s star was senior back Jones who carried the ball 40 times for 242 yards and running in both of Belmont’s touchdowns.

“I was able to do this is because of the [offensive] line. They’ve given me holes, given me places to run,” Jones the Belmontonian outside the White Field House after the game.

“We just kept pounding it down their throats and they couldn’t stop us,” Jones said, who has scored seven touchdowns and gained 576 yards in the past two games.

“It’s just keeping up with the Jones’. That’s all we’re trying to do,” said Kumin.

The game did not start out as planned as Arlington’s junior running back Alijah Woods took the ball on the game’s third play 54 yards down the sideline to Belmont’s 6.

But on the next four plays, Belmont’s defense stood firm – led by Adam Deese, Dennis Crowley and Ryan Noone – halting the SpyPonders on Belmont’s two-yard line.

For most of the night, the preferred option was only given Jones the ball and let him pick up four, five or six yards a carry. Mixing up the plays, QB Cal Christofori hit receiver Dylan Ferdinand down the middle for 32 yard to the Arlington 33. But as Belmont was preparing to score, they lost a fumble at the 8. But two plays later, they recovered an Arlington miscue leading to Jones scoring with 12 seconds remaining in the first quarter.

Despite having the ball for most of the second quarter, Belmont could not convert. But Arlington did in spectacular fashion. After punting with 30 seconds left in the half, Arlington’s junior Jaden Dottin took a slant pass from sophomore QB Adam Bowler and simply outran the Belmont defensive back to score with 20 seconds left in the half to tie up the game at 7.

If Arlington was hoping its fast strike would shift the momentum, it simply wasn’t coming this time in Belmont. Getting the ball to start the second half, QB Cal Christofori handed the ball off to Jones who would pick up five to seven yards with each carry, ending when Jones went to his favorite right side and popped into the end zone to give Belmont a 14-7 lead.

“Arlington’s a tough team, but I think we are a little bit tougher. We have been preaching that all season. We want to be the hardest hitting team by far and they felt it and that’s why we went took the lead,” said Jones.

But Belmont enjoyed the lead for a mere 20 seconds when senior John Nascimento ran the kickoff – which was pushed back due to a knocking the kickoff out-of-bounds – down the right sideline 70 yards for the equalizing TD.

The remainder of the game until the final drive was each defense took charge. Belmont’s Tyler Reynolds knocked away a 40 yard pass from Bowler to Dottin that would have given Arlington the ball deep in Marauders territory with three minutes remaining.

The last drive, with only 2:17 left in the game, saw a trio of big plays: a pitch to Jones who rounded the left side for 28 yards to the Arlington 37, a quarterback sneak by Christofori on fourth down to the SpyPonder’s 23 with 23 seconds left and dump pass from a scrambling Christofori to junior fullback Adam Deese who hugged the slideline going out on the 8 with only five ticks on the scoreboard.

“Adam just popped out of his protection and gave [Christofori] an outlet and that abled us to get down inside the 10 [yard line]. We got the best kicker in the Middlesex [League], and he proved that for us tonight,” said Kumin

After Cadogan hit the ball through the uprights – the kick would have been good from 40 plus yards – all that needed to be confirmed with the end of the game which came after half a minute of discussion from the refs. The whistle blew and the celebration commenced.

“Ask me when it becomes real. It’s not real!” said an ecstatic Kumin, who high-stepped across the field after the traditional handshake a-la Michael Flatl ey.

Football: Jones Records Record Breaking Run in Home Opening Win [VIDEO]

September 19, 2016 By Franklin B. Tucker Leave a Comment

Photo: An exhausted Ben Jones at the end of a record-breaking effort vs. Medford.

Under the Friday Night Lights of Harris Field, Belmont High’s Senior Running Back Ben Jones scorched Medford as the running back ran for five touchdowns – four for more than 50 yards – as he piled up 334 yards in the Marauders’ biggest home opener victory in recent memory, 34-6, over the Mustangs Sept. 16 before a large crowd of residents and students.

Ben’s performance tops older brother Max’s game against Salem in 2014 in which the Belmont back ran for 261 yards and five TDs.

“Ben had a great day off tackle,” said Belmont’s third-year Head Coach Yann Kumin. “He got to the holes and off he goes.”

Jones’ 334 yards is an unofficial Marauders’ rushing record, breaking Makhi Johnson’s 280 yards set against Somerville last year.

“To be honest, it wasn’t that hard to do because I wasn’t touched on most of those runs,” said Jones, crediting his offense line for creating “huge holes” in the Mustang defense.

“All I needed to do was go straight. I was a track runner,” said Jones.

After a disappointing 21-6 loss against Stoneham last week, this past Friday was the chance for the Marauders to prove it was capable of moving the ball against a Medford team coming off an emotional win over rival Revere, 30-28. It didn’t take long after the National Anthem for the Marauders to dominate on both sides of the ball.

The Marauders bottled up Medford’s senior QB Ben Antoine who ran for 248-yards and three touchdowns against Revere, forcing the Mustangs to punt after running five plays.

On its second offensive play, Belmont QB Cal Christofori (4-7, 54 yards) handed off to Jones who made a quick move through a gap on the left side of the line and ran 59 yards for the first of five trips into the end zone at the 6:12 mark.

After a Mustang three and out – facilitated by junior OLB Adam Deese forcing a seven-yard loss on first down – Belmont took over at their 46. The next time the ball was downed was again in the end zone after Jones took the ball 54 yards to the house at 2:14 in the first quarter, giving Belmont a 14-0 lead.

In the second quarter, Medford found themselves with a fourth down and 16 for the first down on Belmont’s 29. But Antoine showed poise facing the Belmont rushers to toss a TD to sophomore WR Nathan Brand to cut the lead to 14-6.

“If that’s how they’re going to beat us, it’s going to be a good night for us,” Head Coach “Q,” told his team.

The touchdown would be the last time Medford threatened as Belmont’s line and linebackers – led by Ryan Noone, Dennis Crowley, and Dylan Ferdinand

Just before the half, Christofori marched the team down the field with a minute remaining on the clock. With 26 remaining, Jones took the rock and scampered 23 yards for his third TD on of the half, giving Belmont a 21-6 lead.

In the third quarter, Jones struck again, going 56 yards for his fourth of the night. The senior who is a state track finalist in the 200 meters sprint, took off for 83 yards in the fourth, stumbling over the goal line with cramps as she equaled his brother’s five TDs in a game.

“That was the best offensive and defensive schemes” the team had for a game in his three years at the helm, said Kumin, praising his coaching staff in preparing the varsity for the game.

“We are going to enjoy this for one night, then watch film and prepare for Arlington,” said Kumin.

Sports: After Two Games, Field Hockey Has That Scoring Touch

September 14, 2016 By Franklin B. Tucker Leave a Comment

Photo: Morgan Chase scoring vs. Stoneham.

One hope of Belmont High School Field Hockey Head Coach Jessica Smith’s for the 2016 campaign was the team could be as proficient in scoring as last year’s squad which totaled 91 goals.

After the first two games of the season, Smith can probably check off that box.

Against Melrose and Stoneham, this year’s team has scored a total of 17 goals while giving up just one. And in almost any sport, that’s a darn good ratio.

To be fair, the Marauders’ initial competition comes from the smaller school division of the Middlesex League and haven’t had successful programs for some years (although Stoneham did draw 1-1 in the season opener with Winchester – a team which defeated Belmont last year and placed second to the Marauders for the division championship) so the numbers may appear gaudy this early in the season.

But it’s not just how many goals Belmont is scoring or how they are scoring them. In the season opener against Melrose, the Marauders as a team were showing end-of-the-season like form in their passing, dribbling and ball placement skills as they topped the Red Raiders 8-0.

In the game, the playmaking and scoring were not just coming from the two senior all-stars on the team, AnnMarie Habelow, and Julia Chase. In fact, Habelow, a Boston Globe All-Scholastic who will compete for a spot on the US National Under-19 team in November, is not atop the team’s scoring table. That honor currently goes to a freshman, forward Katie Guden, who has tallied five goals to Habelow’s three.

The scoring prowess is a result of some precise ball movement from around the field. At times, Habelow will drive “long balls” – where the player sends the ball nearly the length of the field (about 80 meters) – to a teammate who is racing onto it. But Belmont is as adept moving the ball via passes and dribbling, using their speed on the wings – via sophomore Morgan Chase and Bridget Gardiner – to open room near the goal mouth for attacking players. Also showing great prowess on the ball have been Jordan Letticer and youngster Mia Kalend who has shown great use of her endurance and athleticism in the midfield.

Against Stoneham, Belmont scored from in-close where Guden and junior Alexa Sabatino are deadly accurate and from the 19-yard limit (goals can only be scored from within the attacking semi-circle) which has become Habelow’s bread and butter with the field hockey equivalent of the ice hockey slap shot. Belmont scored eight times in the first half to walk away with a 9-1 win.

While a good defense is a great offense, Belmont has a great deal of experience on the backline starting with Chase who is committed to UNH next year and Molly Goldberg starting in front of the second-year goalie, Chrissy McLeod.

The Belmontonian

Belmont's Independent Media Outlet Covering the 'Town of Homes'