Red And Black And Blues: Winchester Makes For Awful Week For Belmont Sports As Playoffs Get Underway

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Photo: Winchester’s junior goalie Amelia Burke secure the ball as Belmont’s Danica Zinka was taken to the turf in the Marauders tie with the Red and Black.

In the last week of regular season, several Belmont High teams had “Winchester High School” on the schedule with a lot to play for: a pair of Middlesex League championships on the line and having a chance to making the playoffs.

And at the end of the week, things didn’t come out well for any of the Marauder squads as the Red and Blacks made for an awful week for Belmont. Still, three Marauder squads found their way into the playoffs, with two looking at long stays in their touraments.

Scoreless Tie With Belmont Gives Winchester Girls’ Soccer Middlesex League Title

When the final whistle was heard at Harris Field on Monday, Oct. 27, the Winchester Girls’ Soccer team rushed to swamp their goalie and celebrate its 0-0 “victory” over Belmont.

Both teams came into the final game of the regular season with identical overall records, 14-2-1, and side-by-side in the MIAA Division 1 power ranking with Belmont 8th and Winchester 9th. The winner of the game would bring home (figuratively) the Middlesex Liberty title as Winchester was playing to retain the crown while Belmont was seeking its first title in the past decade.

But Winchester was holding a golden ticket: a better league record. The Black and Red had lost one Middlesex game, to Belmont, 3-1, compared to Belmont’s two losses. If the contest ended in a tie, the crown was going back to Winchester for the fourth consecutive season.

From the start, both teams were giving no quarter and didn’t expect none, as crushing shoulder checks, pushing in the back and hard sliding tackles sent student athletes from both sides to the turf. The teams tactics were clear from the start: Belmont was looking for the long pass to stretch the Red and Black defense and find a runner with senior forward Danica Zicha – the league’s leading scorer and Boston Globe All-Scholastic candidate – the likely target. Winchester was play making through the center of the field while playing a high line with the plan to keep Belmont’s forwards thinking about the offside trap. It also kept a bevy of defenders on Zicha’s hip, for good measure.

Marauder sophomore midfielder Madhavi Ramadas

Belmont came close in the first four minutes as Zicha turned the corner of the defense with a clear path to the net. But her shot was stuffed by Red and Black junior goalie Amelia Burke who left a short rebound at Belmont’s scoring leader’s feet as Burke was facing away from the ball. But before she could get a stab at the ball, Zicha was subsequently shoved into the turf by a forearm to the back. While a likely foul anywhere else on the pitch, no ref was going to call a potential penalty shot so early in the game.

Each team had stellar chances with Belmont sophomore mid-fielder Catherine Greiner just missing a one-timer from first year Catherine Tierney. The save of the game came from Belmont’s Martha Dimas with a full stretch, two handed punch save late in the first half. The junior keeper came back from a knee injury to claim nine clean sheets this season.

Continuing her season long all-star-worthy performance, Marauder sophomore midfielder Madhavi Ramadas moved from quarterbacking the offense with deft weighted passes to being the first line of the defense, influencing the run of play.

While Belmont did have the better chances in the second half – including a floater that barely sailed over the crossbar and a pair of shots that skipped by the post – Winchester’s defense was solid enough to keep Belmont, which led the league with 59 goals, off the ball until time ran its course.

The tie has had ramifications in the upcoming tournament with Winchester leap frogging over Belmont to 7th while Belmont has stayed in the eight slot, which gives them two playoff home games. Belmont will know its dance card in the D1 playoffs by Saturday, Nov. 1.

Belmont’s Great Start Didn’t Deter Host Winchester As Marauders Can Keep Its Crown

Through 14 games in the 2024 season, Belmont High Field Hockey was a scoring machine, netting a total of 73 goals. Then over the final four matches of the season, the Marauders prowess putting the ball in the net went bitterly cold as Belmont scoring average fell to just one per game and resulted in a .500 record. That drop in form resulted in the once unstoppable Belmont squad tumbling from 3rd in the MIAA power rankings to 6th.

And in the middle of it all, Belmont took the short trip to Winchester on Friday, Oct. , to battle the Red and Black for the Middlesex Liberty championship. And the teams could not be any closer with Belmont coming in with a 14-2-0 record to Winchester 14–3-0 records with Belmont as the five seed and the Red and Black sitting sixth.

Belmont started the match on the right foot as Belmont’s Kendall Regan slotted in a centering pass by Winchester’s goalie three minutes into the game. And Belmont would continue to pressure the Red and Black in its end.

But Winchester would come out of its shell and use long balls down the sidelines to bring the fight to Belmont. Subsequently, the Red and Black would pile up a growing number of penalty corners through the first half. And giving a strong opponent the advantage of placing numbers in front of the goal, the inevitable occurred as scored on a loose ball inches from Belmont’s goal with remaining in the half.

Kendall Regan (18) scoring vs. Winchester

The match in the second half would resemble a tennis match as the teams would bounce from one end of the pitch to the other. What would decide the game had a little of everything – a Belmont penalty hit, a brilliant solo run and an ignored infraction. The Marauders had a solid try on a penalty corner which was deflected towards the sideline. A Winchester defender played it up the right line to who proceeded to zigzag past Marauders before sending a running shot by sophomore goalie Zoe Bruce.

But during her slalom run, a whistle was heard calling an infraction against a Belmont player. While the Belmont players turned to where the penalty was called, continued her scoring run. Belmont players and Head Coach Jess Smith questioned the non-call to no avail.

With the home squad up by a single score, Belmont’s own attack turned tepid as frequent foyers into Winchester’s end would flounder without a shot on goal. Over the final 20 minutes, Belmont registered zero chances on the Red and Black goal. Belmont would have a final penalty corner after time ran out but the ball was safely turned aside.

Along with a 3-1 loss to a very strong Dover-Sherborn team (3rd in Division 3), Belmont’s razor thin 1-0 results against Lexington and Arlington resulted in its power ranking to fall to 6th in the final MIAA posting.

Belmont will host two playoff games starting with 23-ranked Newton North High School (4-10-3) on Friday, Halloween at an early start of 3:45 p.m. at Harris Field. If all favorites win in the first round – which is unlikely to occur – Belmont will match up with 11th-ranked Natick High (12-5-1) in the Sweet 16 with a possible battle against one-loss and three-seed Wellesley in the Elite Eight.

Volleyball On The Long Road To The Playoffs

After being roughed up by the 18-1 Red and Black in the final game of the season, Belmont Girls Volleyball finished the season at 9-8 in a very competitive league and secured a playoff spot as the 24th seed in Div. 1. The team will take the nearly 100-mile round trip to meet 9th-ranked Attleboro (17-2) on Thursday, Oct. 30 at 5 p.m.

The team recently had its signature win of the year defeating 7th ranked in Div. 2 Wayland, 3-1, in a revenge game for the squad. After losing to the Warriors, 3-0, earlier in the season, the Marauders used a combination of a strong back line and at the net defense with outstanding serving to come back from a one set deficit to sweep by one of the favorites on reaching the state semi-finals.

Boys’ Soccer

Winchester did no favors for Belmont as the Red and Black defeated the Marauders, 3-0, on Monday and sending the Marauders record into the red at 6-7-4. With the loss and sitting at 43rd in the power rankings, outside the 32 automatic playoff slots, Belmont needed a win against host Newton North on Wednesday. But the prospects of a tourament run ended when neither team found the back of the net.

Belmont High Volleyball Takes Powerhouse Melrose To Five Sets In Season Opener

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Photo: Belmont High’s Kat Hsu (No. 11) and Sadie Boas (No. 8) at the net vs Melrose

For the past decade, Belmont High School Volleyball has been paired in the season opener against perennial Middlesex League powerhouse Melrose. In the early years of this competition, it was a humbling experience for the Marauders as the Red Hawks would walk through the opposition.

But over the past three years, the competition between the teams has become competitive with Belmont falling 3-2 last season, after defeating the Red Hawks, 3-1, in 2023.

The season opener at Belmont’s Wenner Field House on Wednesday, Sept. 3, had all the feel of a changing of the guard in the opening sets as Belmont’s lineup of first time starters out hustled the visitors to take a two set lead (25-20, 25-20). Belmont’s new head coach Raylynn Kauila had the players performing at a tournament level against a talent-laden opponent.

Belmont High’s new head coach Raylynn Kauila

“The players did play very well defensively,” said Kauila, who coached at Springfield Central previously. “They kept that ball up. They kept it in. They were talking and moving really well and were doing really well with our serving too. We didn’t have too many missed serves.”

But Melrose was holding a very big weapon in its arsenal: senior Sabine Wenzel. At 6’6″ and 175 pounds, the Division 1 commit to East Texas A&M, is THE presence on the court both at the net blocking and especially on the attack. “Melrose were so good at finding [Wenzel on the] right, and they adjusted really well later in the match,” said Kauila.

In the third and fourth sets, Wenzel was the Red Hawks offensive stalwart, winning multiple points on set shots with deadly accuracy. While the Marauders kept both sets close, they could not narrow the margin to within a point, dropping Belmont 25-21 and 25-19.

Melrose High Volleyball senior Sabine Wenzel in action vs. Belmont High

The match came down to Melrose’s better finesse and fitness as Belmont’s earlier performance slipped as the match wore on.

“We got tired, and it definitely showed,” said Kauila. “We were not being able to finish and made some hitting errors. Once we got down in that third set, it was really hard to come back.. We closed it just a little bit. But just not get over the hump,” she said as Belmont fell, 15-11, in the deciding set.

[Belmont would take two of the next three matches – defeating Reading and Watertown while losing to Wayland – to end the first week at 2-2.]

But there was a lot to take from the match: a player that impressed Kauila was junior middle blocker LeeLee Kozelian, who was matched up against Wenzel. “It’s very intimidating to play against someone with that big of a height difference. And she surprised me by really committing to playing there and not being scared. She had some good fight in her and it’s important at that position.” Three times in the match, the junior stuffed Wenzel’s attempted spikes to win the point.

Belmont senior Libero Zulal Merdinian

In the back court, senior Libero Zulal Merdinian was ‘talking, reading the game, adjusting to the defense, and just doing a phenomenal job,” said Kauila.

Despite the loss, Kauila did find encouragement for the rest of the season.

“It’s a nice baseline for game one. So I can’t wait to see their growth over the next couple of games,” she said.

Belmont High Volleyball Knocks Off No. 8 Bishop Feehan In First Round Upset

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Photo: Belmont High School Volleyball’s Wenxi Wang (No. 11) in action earlier in the season.

Last year, Belmont High Volleyball entered the Div. 1 state championships as the ninth seed with an impressive 17-2 record (and a first-ever Middlesex Liberty title) with high hopes of a long run in the tournament. But the Marauders found themselves walking off the Wenner Field House court heartbroken after falling 3-2 to 24th ranked Lincoln/Sudbury Regional in the first round upset.

“There is that pressure as the higher seed,” said Belmont Head Coach Jen Colture at the time. “There’s an expectation you have, and the other team has no expectations. They had nothing to lose.”

Fast forward on Halloween in Fall River, it was the Marauders’ turn to play with nothing to loss. And on the night for tricks or treats, the 25th seed Belmont came back from a set down to sweep the next three to upset 8th ranked Bishop Feehan High, 14-25, 25-23, 25-14, 25-19.

While Belmont took time to find the right mix of players and positions, the Marauders entered the tournament registering an 8-2 record in the end of the season, showing its potential in the playoffs. It was less an upset than a solid win for the Marauders.

It was the team’s front line standout junior Wuyee Ke that led the way with double digit kills (11) with a kill percentage just over 25 percent. Ke was only second (4) to senior Gabrielle Hashioka (6) in serving aces as Belmont totaled a gaudy 16 aces in the four sets. Of 90 serves, Belmont only committed four errors, a 96 percent success rate.

Quarterbacking the Marauders was junior Sophia Qin who handled the ball 115 times and assisting in 26 winning shots.

Defensively, the pair of junior Sadie Boas and sophomore Yekaterina Polina prowled the net, making a total of three all important blocks against the Shamrocks while Ke (26) and Hashioka (20) put in the work digging the ball off the court.

Belmont (13-8) will make a second long trip south as they travel down Rt 495 to Franklin for a match against 9th seed Panthers (15-5) on Wednesday, Nov. 6 at 6 p.m.

Belmont High Volleyball On Seven Win Run As Marauders Enters A Gauntlet This Final Week

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Photo:

After coming off a “season to remember” last year – finishing 15-2 and wearing the Middlesex League Liberty crown for the first time – the 2024 campaign for Belmont High Girls’ Volleyball was, at best, underwhelming. For a team that returned a slew of veterans from Head Coach Jennifer Couture’s championship squad, the Marauders stumbled out of the blocks going 4-6 for September.

One big reason for the slow start was the loss of graduating senior Bella Radojevic who was the team’s offensive stalwart who could be relied on to ring up points in bunches. While Couture’s defensive set up is solid, finding the right combination of a new “go to” outside hitter and a steady setter from a group of candidates who were not-as-tall as the players they were facing across the net proved frustrating.

“So we have (junior) Sadie Boaz as our middle [blocker] and she is amazing (18 attacks, nine kills and no errors against powerhouse Melrose), but we are not swimming in starting level middles and [an outside hitter]. We were switching players from other positions to see what could fit where,” said Couture.

“This year is one of those years where we have what we need to do well, but we’re still figuring some things out,” she said.

And soon after a loss to Burlington, all the pieces fell into place as the Marauders are coming off a 7-0 winning streak to up its record to 11-6. Stepping into the hitters role, junior Wuyee Ke (one of nine juniors on the 15 player roster) leads the team averaging 20.5 kills in the last two games with a rocket of a shot which has translated into 50 serving aces this season. Much of Ke’s success comes from the steady hand of returning setter junior Sophia Qin.

Belmont’s team foundation is built on the D. Junior Erin Dailey has become a presence as its defensive specialist who is the team’s top ranked server (7 aces while placing 26 of her 27 serves in play in a clutch performance against Concord-Carlisle which Belmont won 3-2) Add Boaz blocking skills – she is joined up front by sophomores Yekaterina Polina and Stella Ivkovic – with senior Gabrielle Hashioka who leads the team in digs and the Marauders’ defense with the best in the Middlesex League.

And they will need to be at their best during the final week of the regular season as the Marauders will be heading into a gauntlet of top teams beginning with a visit Tuesday, Oct 22, by 14-3 Lexington who defeated Belmont 3-2 in September. On Thursday, the opposition just gets tougher as league leaders Winchester, sporting a 15-2 record, welcomes the Marauders. The Red and Black also defeated Belmont, 3-2, when they met earlier. To finish the season, Belmont travels to a strong D-3 Wayland squad, (11-4) who handed the Marauders a 3-0 defeat at home.

At 11-6, Belmont will make the post season as they currently sit 26th in the MIAA Division 1 Power Rankings.

Belmont High Girls Volleyball Host ‘Marauders Dig Pink’ Match On Thursday, Oct. 10 [VIDEO]

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Photo: Funds raised by Side-Out go toward a clinical trial specifically for patients with stage 4 breast cancer,

Belmont High Girls Volleyball is hosting a “Dig Pink” match on Thursday, Oct. 10 against Reading with the junior varsity/first year game starting at 4:15 p.m. with the varsity to follow at 5:30 p.m. The team is raising funds for the Side-Out Foundation, a metastatic breast cancer research organization. There will be a concession stand and link/QR code for fans to donate to the cause. 

Belmont High Head Coach Jen Couture said the team is “excited to be part of The Side-Out Foundation and its Dig Pink initiative, and we need our fan’s help to make our campaign successful.”

Funds raised for Side-Out go toward a clinical trial specifically for patients with stage 4 breast cancer, the most advanced form of the disease and the least funded area of research.

Heartbreak Season: Belmont Volleyball’s Tournament Ends Early As Lincoln-Sudbury Upsets Marauders In Thriller

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Photo: Belmont senior Isabella Radojevic (number 1) led the way for the Marauders vs LB

The playoffs are “heartbreak season in the sporting world … when pain is felt in its most acute form,” David Coggins wrote this month in his “The Contender” website on Substack.

Heartbreak is the only word to describe what occurred in the Wenner Field House Friday evening, Nov. 3. Heartbreak for the players and fans of the Belmont High Girls’ Volleyball, whose season included a historic first Middlesex League Liberty title and a formidable record of 17 wins from 19 matches.

But all the hard work and records are now at the wayside as the 9th-seeded Marauders would take the match vs. Lincoln-Sudbury to five sets but end up losing to the Warriors, 16-14, in the fifth (20-25, 25-23, 25-22, 21-25, 14-16). And the pain was made only more inflicted after a controversial call at the net at 14 in the fifth set, allowing L-S’s senior Emma Agne to serve an uncontested ace to end what was one of the most thrilling matches either team played this year.

While the Warriors were jumping, ecstatic that they would be facing eight-seed Bishop Feehan, the Belmont team (17-3) was stunned into silence as the players slowly walked back to where their backpacks were located. Only when they stopped to pack up their gear for the final time did the emotions – mostly in tears, some in righteous indignation for the penultimate decision – come out in all its excruciating simplicity.

Teammates held their friends – so they didn’t have to cry alone – coaches, dealing with their disappointment, offered a hand, a thoughtful few words, and parents waiting across the field house with open arms.

Belmont Head Coach Jen Couture was expecting to be tested Friday as it was the first round of the playoffs, and the Marauders were facing one of last year’s Division 1 state finalists, losing to Newton North in the championship match.

“I have nothing but good things to say about Lincoln Sudbury,” she said after the game. “When you enter a tournament game, every team will be really good. They were incredible blockers, probably the best we’ve seen all year,” said Colture of the team coached by Greg Falcone.

“It was still a good game for us. Just not every little thing came out in the way we wanted to,” she said.

L-S’s two-player blocking scheme was immediately effective at the start, especially on Belmont’s senior standout Isabella Radojevic (17 kills, three aces, 15 received serves, four digs), as L-S built a quick 1-5 lead. Every time Belmont would tie or come within a point in the first set, the Warriors would counter with a run of their own, which was the pattern of play all match long.

Belmont’s first lead, 14-13, via a combined block from Sophia Qin and Eva Grant, was short-lived as L-S took it up to 17-19 with the first look of the Warriors’ exciting junior Gabby Pierre (14 kills), who when on the floor with Radojevic produced sparks on the front line.

While Belmont scrapped back to 19-21, the Warriors would take the set on a 4-1 run.

The second set was a nail-biter as Belmont again fell behind 5-10 before sophomore Wuyee Ke concluded a 5-0 run with an ace to pair up the second set at 10. The teams would be tied at 22 when first-year Yekaterina Polina stoned a Warrior kill attempt by herself before Ke made a one-arm dig from the floor, which Radojevic sent cross-court for the winner that sealed the set two serves later at 25-23.

The third set was a carbon copy of the previous as no team held a lead of more than three points. The presence of senior Sonya Ivkovic (11 kills, one solo, one combined block) at the net was the difference maker, whose hitting and blocking allowed Belmont to surge ahead 23-18. But The Warriors would make it tight at 24-22 on a down-the-line smash from junior Joyce Li. But Belmont hung on for the 25-22 win and two sets to one lead.

The fourth set saw Belmont race out in front 8-4, only for L-S to make a 5-1 service run. In a set that saw several long rallies, Belmont would pull ahead 17-13 through sophomore Ella Mizuta, only for Li to give a 17-18 lead with two critical points via combination blocks from Pierre and senior Abby Venis. It did appear a two-point push that gave Belmont a 21-19 was harbingers to come, but Pierre – who was outjumping very one by more than 6 inches if not a foot – who took the set by the throat to tie the sets at two.

It came down to a fifth set sprint to 15, in which L-S took a quick 2-5 lead, but Ivkovic was a presence in the middle and helped push Belmont into the lead at 7-6. While the Warriors would come back to move ahead 8-10, Belmont’s 13 in Ivkovic didn’t show any nervousness as she made a pair of kills, including one off a block that tied the score at 12-12. With Radojevic and Pierre on the court, it came down to which of the six players on each team would make a play. With L-S serving for the match at 13-14, Radojevic pulled out a strong shot that L-S miscued to tie at 14.

Now, the controversy. By winning the point at 14-14, either team would be serving to win the match. Agne smashed a great assist that Hashioka dug off the floor. The save barely cleared the net directly in the path of Venis, who won the point with a kill. Yet it was apparent that the net moved as Venis hit the ball. Did Venis’s hand hit the net, which would have given the point to Belmont, or did the net move by the ball? For a second or two, both teams’ attention was directed to the net judge, who deemed the ball caused the net’s movement, to the dismay of the Marauders in the field house.

Watch the play (at 1:20) here.

After the match, Colture said Lincoln-Sudbury held a surprising advantage during the match, being an overwhelming underdog.

“There is that pressure as the higher seed,” said Colture. “There’s an expectation you have, and the other team has no expectations. They had nothing to lose, and we played like we did have something to lose, and I think that is what happened.”

Thoughts now turn to the future as Belmont loses several key players to graduation.

“We still have a young team, and they’re getting that experience, and there’s so many sophomores out there. There are a lot of young players who like to play at this level. It’s their first time playing in a state tournament game, and there was a little bit of nerves there many of them will be returning next year.

Yet right now, the heartbreak is knowing that the companionship of teammates made on the court during games, in the locker room, and on long bus rides during evening rush hours has come to an end.

“What’s harder than losing is that your time together is done sooner than you thought,” she said.

“Personally, it’s not the pride of needing to get further in the tournament that hurts. Winning earns you more time together. What’s harder than losing is that your time together is done sooner than you thought,” Colture said. “And I think that’s the hardest part for everybody, especially the seniors.”

Banner Year: Belmont Girls’ Volleyball Takes First Middlesex Liberty Title, Set For Tournament Run

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Photo: Belmont High senior Isabella Radojevic is this season’s difference maker

The west wall of the Wenner Field House was recently festooned with brand new banners highlighting Belmont High School’s state, division, and league championship teams going as far back as the 1940s.

But one team is conspicuously missing from the wall of champions: Girls’ Volleyball, a program that has come close to bringing home silverware but could never seal the deal in the 30 years it’s been played.

But that was until this season.

“We’re about to put a banner up there,” said long-time Belmont head coach Jen Colture, as the Marauders swept aside the opposition in the Middlesex League Liberty Division to secure its first league title.

In a dominating 2023 season, Belmont went 14-1 in the league with an overall record of 17-2. This sets a new program record for overall wins and winning percentage, breaking the 16-4 record compiled in 2018. The team can match the best win total of 18 achieved during Belmont’s run to the Central East Division 1 section finals.

Ranked 9th in the MIAA Power Rankings, the Marauders roll into the Division playoffs on a 10-game winning streak, hosting a first-round match against 24-seed Lincoln-Sudbury (7-13) on Friday, Nov. 3 at 5:30 p.m.

Belmont High senior Isabella Radojevic

With a make-up of senior and underclass players who each contribute to the team’s success, there is a Marauder that stands out, and appropriately enough, she wears the number 1 jersey.

On the court, you can spot senior Isabella Radojevic with her ever-present smile and bouncy personality. But Radojevic is all business during rallies, especially when she’s on the front row. She leads the team with 201 kills this season, resulting from a combination of power and placement, skillfully striking balls down the sidelines and in open spaces on the court. Add to that, an impressive service tally along with a complete set of skills and Radojevic is essential for the team’s march in the tournament.

Radojevic importance to the team was in evidence last month when she was sidelined for two games due to a nagging injury. Without her on the court, Belmont lost to a good Woburn team in straight sets and then lost in five sets to Concord-Carlisle, a team they handled easily in the preseason.

Colture spoke at the time that Radojevic’s loss was seen as an opportunity for her varsity and some junior varsity athletes to play in alternative roles against teams that could press them in a playoff setting.

While no one can underestimate Radojevic’s importance to the team, Belmont is stacked with top-notch players. Sophomore Sophia Qin, the team’s setter – who quarterbacks the attack – has collected 542 assists on 1,817 attempts while leading the team in service aces with 60.

On the backline, junior Gabriella Hashioka has 264 digs or about 14 per match while all-around skill player sophomore Wuyee Ke doesn’t just lead the team with 426 receiving serves and 210 digs, she’s second in kills with 182.

Three seniors anchor the front, Soyna Ivkovic has 16 solo and five combined blocks while Eva Grant has a total of 20, with Sydney Boulanger on 10.