Sports: Girls’, Boys’ Hoops Take Measure of Tanners, Home and Away

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Photo: Jenny Call (21) and Carly Christofori (12) turn on the ball during Belmont’s game with Woburn.

They weren’t games you’d write home about but two wins are two wins as both Belmont basketball teams took the measure of Woburn in a pair of important early-season contests.

Bench Comes Up Big In Belmont Girls’ Come-From-Behind Win

Jane Mahon wasn’t sure she’d be playing in Tuesday’s game against Middlesex League rival Woburn. The junior forward and the Marauders’ “sixth man” was ill with the stomach flu on Monday and didn’t practice.

“I’m not sure if I’m playing. I was really sick,” Mahon told the Belmontonian before the game.

It’s a good thing for Belmont that Mahon, junior center Ella Gagnon and freshman Maiya Bergdorf all came off the bench as the trio of non-starters sparked a second-half surge resulting in the Marauders taking the measure of the unbeaten Tanners, 43-38, at Belmont’s Wenner Fieldhouse.

“It wasn’t pretty but it was a win that showed a lot of grit from the team,” said Belmont’s Head Coach Melissa Hart who saw her team go to 5-1. Woburn is now 4-1.

After an even first quarter, 12-11 in Belmont’s favor, Woburn took advantage of Belmont’s team foul deficit – at one point the Marauders had been whistled for 7 fouls against a single infraction for the Tanners – to go perfect (6 for 6, four from junior Julia Taylor) from the charity stripe while Woburn’s leader Andrea Schiavone (11 points) hit a 3 and a layup to propel the visitors to a 24-19 lead into the half. 

Trailing midway through the third quarter, Belmont’s comeback began with a Bergdorf three-pointer – the first of two 3s on the night – followed by a pair of mid-range jumpers from Mahon which cut an eight-point deficit to one, 28-27, with a minute and a half remaining.

“Woburn was very aggressive and always on us very tight. So when a teammate was driving to the basket I was always there to take a pass and that allowed me to have open shots,” said Mahon, who finished with 7 points, a block and a steal.

Mahon has been contributing on both ends of the court, said Hart, “with the intensity and work ethic she brings.”                                                                             

Early in the fourth quarter, Bergdorf hit her second 3 with 6 minutes remaining in the fourth to give the Marauders the lead for good at 31-30, followed by a drive to the basket to increase the lead to 35-32. Belmont was up by five points as junior 2-guard Meghan Tan (5 points who played the entire 32 minutes for the second consecutive game) hit a layup with one second on the shot clock to make the score 37-33 with 1:50 left in the game.

Bergdorf finished the night hitting two clutch free throws – Belmont was a less than stellar, 8-17, from the line – in the final minute to seal the victory and give her a game-high 12 points. 

“I just wanted to go out there, just give it my all and prove that I can play with [my teammates],” said Bergdorf.

Hart said Bergdorf has been able to feel comfortable on the team due to the support of the juniors and seniors such as captains Jenny Call (3 points), Greta Propp (6 points) and captain Carly Christofori (8 points).  

“She brings a skill set that is pretty special,” said Hart.

While not in the scorebook, Hart praised Gagnon’s overall physicality in relief of junior center Jess Giorgio (2 points), clogging the passing lanes and being a presence under the basket. 

“[Gagnon] was awesome tonight. She was a real difference maker tonight on defense,” said Hart, noting the team held a good attack offense to six points in the third and eight in the fourth quarters.

Six games into the season, Hart said she “likes where we are going, heartened by the fact that we haven’t played our best yet. Woburn will be tough when we go there (in February) but I expect us to be sharper by then.”

Boys’ edge Woburn 

Just how poorly was Belmont High’s Boys’ basketball team was playing defense in the first half against host Woburn on Tuesday, Jan. 2? Head Coach Adam Pritchard gave up yelling at his squad. 

“I ended the game with my voice intact,” said Pritchard, who said in the first quarter, the team “couldn’t guard a tree” giving up 24 points and trailing by 9. 

In the second, the Marauders “were slightly better shooting” scoring 21 points while holding the suddenly cooled down Tanners to 15 to creep back into the game by the half, trailing 39-36. All-star shooting guard Danny Yardemian (a team-high 22 points) led the Marauders with 7 in each of the opening two stanzas. 

After intermission, Belmont seemingly abandoned anything within the three-point arc and like Steph Curry, shot lights out from distance, knocking down six treys and nothing else, propelling them into the lead after three, 54-48, with sophomore point guard Mac Annus (15 points) and senior forward Will Ellet (16 points) each burying a pair. 

Woburn attempted to steal the lead back but senior forward Jake Pollock (6 points) stepped up defensively by taking a pair of charges that gave Belmont possession during critical times in the quarter to give Belmont the win, 69-67, with the Marauders ending the game with 11 3s. Belmont and Woburn are 4-2, second in the Middlesex Liberty Division trailing only Arlington.

“We beat a very good team and these are the type of games that we just battle back to win,” said Pritchard. 

Another One Bites The Dust: Perkins Breaks 300 Record; Fastest 600 HS Runner in US

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Photo: Calvin Perkins at the 2017 Massachusetts All-State outdoor meet.

Don’t tell Calvin Perkins to slow down; he’s got more records to break.

The Belmont High senior all-star has taken down his second school indoor track record, turning in a stellar 35.67 second in the 300 meters last Thursday, Dec. 28 at Boston University in the team’s dual meet vs. Winchester.

And the New Year brought even better news for the talented Perkins – he is a multi-year all-district musician playing the trumpet – as his 600-meter record of 1 minute 21.42 set on Dec. 22 was ranked the fastest time in the US for High School 600 meter runners so far this indoor season.

Belmont Girls Hoops Fall To Top-Ranked Newton South, 44-35, For First Loss

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Photo: Belmont High School Girls Basketball.

A slow start coupled with free throw shooting as cold as all outdoors resulted in the Belmont High Girls Basketball falling from the undefeated as the Marauders lost to Newton South, the top-ranked team in eastern Massachusetts, 44-35, in the title game of the Garden City Basketball Holiday Invitational held at Newton North High School Thursday, Dec. 28.

“The team struggled offensively in the first half so you’re forced to battle back against a very good team for the rest of the game,” said Belmont Head Coach Melissa Hart. 

In what was essentially a home game for the Warriors at Newton North , Belmont failed to find the rhythm in the offensive side of the ball until midway through the third quarter when the Marauders cut a 15 point deficit to five, 38-33, with just under three minutes to play.

With Belmont knocking on the door, the Lions turned to its leader senior guard Veronica Burton who put the game on ice with a bucket, two free-throws off a steal and a pass that led to a free-throw on consecutive times up the court. 

“[Burton’s] quite a player, scoring half of their points but also involved one way or another in most of them,” Hart said about the Northwestern-bound all-star who tallied 21 points to go along with 6 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 blocks and 3 steals against the Marauders. 

Not that the game didn’t start on the upswing with Belmont scoring baskets on its first drives of the game to lead 4-1. It was then Newton South – a Division 1 South powerhouse coming off a 16-4 record last year – took off on a 14-1 run to end the first quarter, 15-5.

“While [Newton South wasn’t] shooting the lights out, they got off an awful lot of shots, more than I would have liked to see,” said Hart. “I thought early in the second quarter, ‘they’re going to score 80 on us’.”

While the Marauders defense began to stem the bleeding in the second quarter, the offense continued finding it hard to take advantage of Belmont’s frontline height difference.

“Their guard defense just made it difficult for us to get the ball into the middle,” Hart said.

Hart placed junior guard Meghan Tan – who along with backcourt partner senior captain Carly Christfori played the entire 32 minutes of the game – to play man-on-man on Burton, but did not attempt to send other defenders to assist Tan on the Newton South star.  

“We couldn’t do everything we wanted to against Burton because the other kids on Newton South were really good,” said Hart, pointing to the four 3s Burton’s teammates hit including a pair from fellow senior Paige Ollivierre. “If we would have sent more players to [Burton], we would have been killed from the outside.” 

At the half, Newton South doubled up Belmont 26-13, who were hurt by what has been an almost historic bugaboo for the Marauders; not taking advantage of chances from the charity stripe. Belmont went 2 for 6 in the first half and a woeful 4 for 11 in the second half. 

But Belmont kept the game close enough so when Tan hit a 3 pointer at the buzzer, Belmont was only down by 9, 34-25, having outscored the Lions, 12-8, in a strong third quarter on both ends of the court. During the team’s last-minute push, Christofori scored 7 of her team-high 11 points in the first five minutes of the quarter as freshman Maiya Bergdorf (5 points including a three) hit a deuce and junior sixth man Jane Mahon (5 points) went 1-2 from the line.

While the Marauders did hold Newton South to just a pair of baskets in the final quarter, it was Burton who almost singlehandedly finished off Belmont, including going 5 for 8 from the free throw line in the final stanza.

“We didn’t play a perfect game. We have further to go than they do and to me that the good news,” said Hart. “I see us getting better throughout the season. It’s an early-season loss to a good team.”

Sports: Girls’ Hockey Rockets To 3-0 Start With Home Opener Win Vs. Lincoln-Sudbury

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Photo: Belmont heading to the goal.

Everyone knew coming into the season that Belmont High Boys’ Ice Hockey would be a team to be reckoned with in the Middlesex League. But if you’re looking for the squad playing at the “Skip” with the undefeated season, look no further than the Belmont High Girls’ team who has rocketed its way to a 3-0 start which included an all-around solid 3-0 home ice opener against Lincoln-Sudbury on Monday, Dec. 18.

Led by junior goalie Amanda Hanley who pitched her first shutout of the season, the Marauders scored with some unlikely sources demonstrating that the team’s potent scoring punch – 14 goals in the first three games – comes from more than just a single offensive line.

Second line defender senior Meghan Noone scored Belmont’s second goal on a rising wrister from just to the right of the left circle on the power play at 11:34 in the second period with the assist from defensive partner junior Jordan Lettiere. The no-frills defender who contributes each shift for Head Coach Ken Murphy showed her versatility and senior leadership by immediately taking a 2-minute roughing penalty after a Lincoln-Sudbury player took one-too-many liberties at Hanley’s expense. The violation was deemed by one observer as “a good roughing penalty to take” in defense of the team’s netminder. 

After a first period stalemate against a good Warriors team – L-S came into the game 1-0 after defeating Concord-Carlisle 1-0 in its season opener – Belmont struck early in the second as freshman phenom Emma O’Donovan (coming off a hat-trick against Burlington) scored in tight with assists from fellow frosh Del Bonin and senior center Annabel Banks.

Hanley kept the advantage turning back two point-blank shots at the doorstep with five minutes to go in the period before Belmont took advantage of a call against L-S a minute later.

Belmont put the game out-of-reach early in the third as O’Donovan netted her second from a pass by Noone who came as close as one can in high school hockey to a “Gordie Howe hat trick”.

Belmont opened the season squeaking by Wakefield by one, 5-4, then coming away with a 6-2 victory over Burlington as O’Donovan and linemate Emma Brodigan scored five goals with sophomore center Katie Guden hitting the back of the net.

The Marauders will be busy this week with away match on Wednesday, Dec. 20 at Wilmington, away again on Friday, Dec. 22 at Medford before coming home to the fridged confines of the “Skip” on Saturday, Dec. 23 vs. Stoneham.

 

From the Headlines: Belmont High Performing Arts To Stage ‘9 to 5’ As Spring Musical

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Photo: The poster for the show.

It is a show ripped from today’s headlines; The Belmont High School Performance Arts Company’s Spring Musical will be “9 to 5: The Musical” with shows performed from March 22 to 24, 2018. Based on the hit 1980 movie, ‘9 to 5’ features music written for the show by Dolly Parton.

“It is upbeat, funny, full of great singing & dance numbers and delivers a message about empowerment that is relevant and important today,” said Ezra Flam, Belmont High’s Theater Specialist and Performing Arts Company Producer/Director.

“The plot centers around three women in the workplace who get fed up with being harassed by their sexist boss and decide to stand up for themselves and turn the office into a place where fairness and compassion prevails. The educational opportunity to have timely and relevant conversations about these issues with so many students is very exciting,” said Flam.

“It’s also a very fun show, with songs that run the range in style from pop to rock to country to contemporary musical theater. It definitely has something for everyone,” he said.

And PAC fans can expect another 

“Auditions are happening now, and this is already shaping up to be another big show for the PAC, with over 80 kids coming out to audition,” said Flam.

Watertown Airs It Out To Down Belmont, 35-16, in 97th Thanksgiving Game

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Photo: Belmont senior Will Ellet defended by Watertown’s John Korte. (photo by Ian Findlay)

The formula Watertown High Raiders used Thanksgiving morning to get by crosstown rival Belmont in the annual Turkey Day contest was relatively simple: find wide receiver John Korte and throw it to him.

And that tactic worked as the tall senior – the 6’5″ Korte is expected to be the Raiders’ starting center this upcoming hoops season – scored three times via junior quarterback Nick McDermott while making a handful of clutch catches to lead the Raiders over the Marauders, 35-16, in the 97th edition of the rivalry held at Victory Field.

“The defense was pretty stout through most of this game especially against the run from our linebackers and ends,” said Belmont’s Head Coach Yann Kumin after the game. “But I also thought we missed some opportunities on offense. Plays were there, but we didn’t execute. All credit to [Watertown Head Coach] John [Cacace]. They … played a great game,” said Kumin.

Watertown ends the season at 7-5 including some major silverware, the Division 5 North Sectional title and one win from a Superbowl appearance. Belmont finished the campaign at 2-9, coming close in some games but falling short. 

While Belmont’s defense was able to keep Watertown’s ground game in check for three-quarters of the game, it was just a step behind when the Raiders took to the air with Korte its most lethal weapon. Watertown scored on the opening (at 8:23), and closing (2:31) drives of the first quarter with Korte scoring from 48 and 46 yards.

There were a number of stellar plays in the first half by Belmont’s defense including a drive stopping run blitz tackle by senior linebacker Adam Deese on a third down and short deep in Marauder territory late in the first quarter and a timely sack of McDermott by sophomore lineman Derrick Bow followed by sophomore Justin Rocha’s breaking up a McDermott pass. Both drives ended in missed field goals by senior Conor Kennelly.

Offensively, Belmont’s usually accurate senior quarterback George Fitzgerald was a little off target especially in the first half when Belmont could not sustain its drives. The Marauders did get a boost from the punting of senior Aidan Cadogan who booted 53 and 45-yard punts on the day. Despite a muffed punt deep in Belmont’s end with less than a minute to play in half, the Marauders’ forced a field goal attempt that Kennelly hooked wide in the final seconds. 

After halftime – which saw the Belmont High Marching Band perform its “Gold” routine for a final time – it appeared Watertown was heading for another score after forcing yet another Belmont punt after a three and out. But a fumble recovery near midfield put a spark in Belmont’s offense, and it smartly drove downfield finishing with senior running back Tyler Reynolds turning the right corner and scampering for the TD from six yards out with five minutes left in the third to cut the lead in half, 14-7.

But Watertown quickly upped the lead back to two touchdowns as senior running back Matthew Muldrew scored the first of his brace from two yards out with 2:53 remaining on a series that began with a 40-yard completion between McDermott and Korte to increase the lead to 21-7. The Raiders would mix it up on its next drive with short strikes by McDermott and running plays that saw Muldrew score again with about eight minutes remaining in the game. 

Despite the score, Belmont kept plugging away on its next series, keyed by a great 45-yard catch by senior Jake Pollack to the Watertown 5 yard line and culminating in Fitzgerald finding junior wide receiver Dijuan Moore for the touchdown. The two-point conversion attempt failed by less than a length of the football to make the score 28-13. 

Korte who put the explanation mark on his game with his third TD, a 40-yard pitch and catch with McDermott.

In a nice gesture, Belmont sent out three-year starter Cadigan to finish his career with a 35-yard field goal with 49 seconds remaining in the game to end the scoring at 35-16. 

“One of our problems all season was being susceptible to the big play and it happened here,” said Kumin. 

‘Play, Music!’: 76 Belmont Student Musicians Earn Acceptance to Senior District Festival

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Photo:

The following announcement is from Arto Asadoorian, director of Visual & Performing Arts for the Belmont Public Schools.

This past Saturday, Nov. 18, 132 students from Belmont High School traveled to North Andover High School to audition for the Massachusetts Music Educators Association (MMEA) Northeastern Senior District Festival. These students spent weeks and months preparing an audition that required them to perform a piece of solo repertoire and demonstrate high levels of proficiency playing selected scales and sight reading. Auditions are judged by professional musicians, and the highest performing students are selected to perform in the MMEA-NED Band, Chorus, Orchestra, and Jazz Ensemble.

This year we are very proud to announce that 76 students from Belmont High School were accepted in the Senior District Festival. The question I will be asked by many in the community is, “Is this the most students that have ever been accepted?” The answer to that question is, “I really have no idea!”, since we don’t keep statistics like this on hand. What I can say is that I have been writing these e-mails every year for quite a while, and I don’t ever remember typing a number higher than 77.

Along with the students who were accepted, we must also congratulate those who auditioned and were not accepted – some by only the narrowest of margins. There are dozens of students who were one or two points shy of being accepted, which of course tells us that they are well-deserving of a place in the District ensembles.

The fact that so many of our students perform so well at these auditions each year is a direct result of their hard work, the support they receive from their parents, the excellence of the teaching faculty who work with them, and to the high value, our community places on music education in our schools.

Below is the list of students who were accepted to perform at the 2018 MMEA-NED Senior District Festival. Congratulations to these students and their families on this impressive achievement!

Idris Abercrombie Trombone
Rebecca Anderson Tuba
Eli Barnes Chorus
Merrill Barnes Chorus
Sam Bastille Chorus
James Boyle Chorus
Stephen Carvalho Chorus
Alyssa Chen Violin
Jason Chen Clarinet
Jessica Chen Viola
Katarina Chen Viola
Grace Christensen Chorus
Miriam Cubstead Chorus
Eleanor Dash Trumpet
Sylvian Davidson Tenor Saxophone
Tori Dignan Chorus
Emily Duffy Chorus
Garrett Eagar Trombone
Joia Findeis Viola
Mariko Findell Euphonium
Elizabeth Galli Chorus
Mary Galstian Chorus
Christopher Giron Bassoon
Alicia Grassia French Horn
Catherine Graves Chorus
Cameron Gurwell Euphonium
Sammy Haines Chorus
Honor Hickman Jazz Tenor Saxophone
Eva Hill Chorus
Allen Jang Chorus
Seiyoung Jang Trumpet
Wonyoung Jang Euphonium
Ethan Jin Jazz Trumpet
Nate Jones Jazz Trombone
Daniel Joh Kang Violin
Emily Kim Violin
Isabelle Kim Violin
Edward Lee Chorus
Miro Leeb Viola
David Leigh Flute
Meri Lochhead Chorus
Chris Lynch Trumpet
Philip Lynch Trumpet
Raffi Majikian Chorus
Jackson Mann Chorus
Natalie Marcus-Bauer Chorus
Clare Martin Alto Saxophone
Noah Merfeld Chorus
Matthew Miller Clarinet
Sebastian Newell Chorus
Charlotte Nilsen String Bass
Christina Noonan Chorus
Alex Park Jazz Trumpet
Chloe Park Trombone
Jessica Peng Flute
Calvin Perkins Trumpet
Olivia Pierce Chorus
Elisabeth Pitts Chorus
Audrey Quinn Violin
Connor Quinn Chorus
Valentine Reynolds Chorus
Annalise Schlaug Cello
Becca Schwartz Chorus
Lila Searls Alto Saxophone
Walter Shen Chorus
Ian Svetkey Chorus
Jason Tang Clarinet
Will Thomas Chorus
Shankar Veludandi Chorus
Allan Wang Clarinet
Alex Wilk Viola
Amy Wu Oboe
Andrew Xu Bass Clarinet
Alex Yang Cello
Clark Zhang Oboe
Henry Zuccarello Trombone

Put Your Two Cents In: New Belmont High On-Line Survey Ends Nov. 30

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Photo: Survey illustration.

The Belmont High School Building Project Community Input Survey is online, and the residents behind the proposed development want to hear from you!  Share your opinions on the Belmont High School Building Project by filling out the BHSBC Survey HERE before the end of the month. 

The Belmont High School Building Committee has received surveys from more than 1,200 community members, but we still want to hear from you. Take five minutes to complete the survey before the Nov. 30 deadline.

You can also sign up for email updates and learn more about the project, including timelines, videos, meeting schedules, presentations, and more, at www.belmonthighschoolproject.org

Questions can be sent to: BHS-BC@belmont-ma.gov

Belmont Swimmers/Divers Head to States After Claiming 4th in North Sectionals

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Photo: Belmont’s 2017 senior swimmers: Alison Sawyer, Sophie Lefebvre, Olive Kozelian, Olivia Hardy, Caroline Daskalakis, Julia Cunningham, Julia Bozkurtian. (Captains: Kozelian, Daskalakis, Cunningham and Bozkurtian)

A strong performance against some of the toughest Division 1 competition last Saturday has Belmont looking for a top-five finish as the Marauders head to the Division 2 state finals early Sunday morning in Worcester, Nov. 19.

Belmont’s 165 point total at the North Sectionals at MIT, Saturday, Nov. 11 earned the Marauders fourth place, one point ahead of Middlesex League rival Melrose. Andover took the title with 409 points followed by Reading (356) and Acton-Boxborough (264). 

After so many recent season without top-line sprint talent, Belmont has three as junior Sophie Butte and senior Julia Bozkurtian both recorded season-best times in the 50 yard freestyle with Butte finishing fourth in 24.74 seconds and Bozkurtian in seventh in 25.49, while sophomore Anna Doherty brought home a 10th place medal taking nearly a second off her best for a 25.68. 

Bozkurtian returned to the sprints with an eighth in the 100 free (55.35) while Butte equaled her teammate’s placement in the 100 backstroke in 1 minute 1.84 seconds, dropping nearly four seconds from her qualifying time. Senior Julia Cunningham took two and half seconds off her previous best to grab 12th in the 100 butterfly in 1:02.49 while Doherty finished 15th in 1:02.86. Cunningham would come back with a one-point grab taking 16th in the grueling 500 free (5:44.19, taking 11 seconds off her best) following sophomore teammate Mary Kilcoyne who finished 13th in 5:42.80. 

Belmont put two swimmers in the scoring column in the 100 breaststroke with junior Angela Li (1:12.07) and sophomore Katarina Chen (1:13.41) coming in 12th and 15th. 

Over in the diving area, two of Belmont’s three freshmen competed with Marina Cataldo finishing in 10th with 328.95 points followed by Sophie Cormier (319.2 points) in 12th. Also scoring for the Marauders was Li in the tough 200 individual medley coming in 11th in 2:17.29. 

Belmont garnered a total of 72 points from three outstanding relays; a 9th in the 200 free (Doherty, Olive Kozelian, Kate Sandage and Anna Bauerle in 1:47.72), 7th in the 200 medley (Butte, Li, senior Julia Cunningham and Bozkurtian in 1:55.32, an improvement of four seconds from qualifying) and 4th in the premier relay event, the 400 as Doherty, Li, Bozkurtian and Butte powered through in 3:44.00, taking 4th. 

Belmont High Volleyball Playoff Short But With Promise for Next Year

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Photo: Jane Mahon and 

After securing a playoff spot on the last day of the season, Belmont High Volleyball traveled to the 15-4 Cambridge Rindge & Latin last Saturday, Nov. 3 for the Marauders first sectional game in two years. And it was a quick trip in the postseason for Belmont and their Head Coach Jen Couture as the Marauders lost 3-0 (25-16, 25-17, 24-26). 

“Going into the match we knew Cambridge had two amazing outside hitters both with over 200 kills before our match. If you compare stats, we were right with Cambridge in serving, service receiving, and defensively. They just had more kills and aces,” Couture said.

Video: Jane Mahon setting Belmont Volleyball’s kill record.

They often hit down over the block and [sophomore libero] Sophia Estok did a great job adjusting into the back row and was able to pick up 19 digs,” said Couture. “[Junior] Gabby Viale was the go-to hitter for the match, hitting 13 for 14 with 6 kills. Cambridge was solid all around but Gabby was able to find holes in their defense and get balls to hit the floor. 

Despite its brief time in this year’s postseason, Couture is extremely upbeat concerning the program’s future

“We have a lot of players returning and a solid foundation to build upon,” said Couture.

  • Sophomore setter Mindee Lai worked hard in the offseason to come in ready to run our 5-1 offense. Leads team in aces with 50, 3rd in digs, and 4th in kills.
  • Sophomore libero Sophia Estok who was a freshman starting Outside Hitter last year and starting libero this year. She has the record for digs in a single match and serves received in a single match and second in aces with a 93.3 percent serving percentage.
  • Sophomore Nena Trifunovic is our Outside hitter/Right side hitter with a great swing who can hit the ball anywhere on the court.  Was nursing an injury much of the season but started off with 13 kills in the first match and will definitely be a big hitter and blocker for us next season
  • Junior middle blocker Audrey Quinn is second in kills, first in blocks for the season. She’s been a big force for us at the net and is also incredibly good at covering herself when blocked so she keeps points alive. Will no doubt be a force again next season.
  • Junior outside hitter/right side hitter Gabby Viale was the ultimate utility player this season. She has also set and played the middle in practice and at playdates and it someone we could count on to get things done. Came up big in the CRLS match with some strong and smartly placed hits.
  • Junior outside hitter/defensive specialist Leah Babroudi was starting OH/DS this season, second in digs and serve receiving, with the top serving percentage. She is so mentally tough and a warrior on the court that goes all out and leaves everything on the court.
  • Junior middle blocker and captain Jane Mahon also played outside hitter for a number of matches this season.  She is a strong hitter who also is good at finding holes for short shots. Jane is first in kills for the season with 144, second in blocks. She just broke the career kills record in our final match, at 262 before heading into her final season. Jane’s player who isn’t satisfied having the most kills if she feels she could’ve played better. She’s pushing herself and her teammates to be the best players they can be is why she was selected as a captain and what will make our team go even further next season. 
“At the end of last season (when Belmont finished with a 4-14 record) I was incredibly optimistic about the future of our program,” said Couture. “I told myself next year is going to be a good year, and 2018 will be a great year. So far the prediction of this year came true and I’m excited to see what next season brings.”