This Week: Town Meeting Starts Monday, Annual Pops Concert Friday and Saturday

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Photo: Town Meeting in Belmont.

This week begins the annual Town Meeting starting at 7 p.m. on Monday, May 4, at the Belmont High School auditorium. Expect a second night on Wednesday, May 6, at 7 p.m. at the same place.

Other governmental business “This Week” include: 

  • The Belmont Board of Selectmen will meet before Town Meeting at 5:30 p.m., Monday, May 4, in the Main Office’s conference room of Belmont High School to vote on its support (or lack thereof) of the Warrant articles and the fiscal year 2016 budget.
  • The Planning Board will meet on Tuesday, May 5, at 7 p.m. in Belmont Town Hall is hear some special permit requests and other actions. 
  • The Underwood Pool Building Committee will be meeting on Thursday, May 7 at 7:30 p.m. in Belmont Town Hall. 

• Music & Movement with Rubi is all about moving to songs; recommended for ages 3 to 5 but 2 year olds are welcome.  There will be two sessions, at 9:30 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. on Monday, May 4, in the Belmont Public Library’s Assembly Room.

• Tuesday is story time at both of Belmont libraries. 

  • Pre-School Story Time at the Benton Library, Belmont’s independent and volunteer run library, at 10:30 a.m. Stories and crafts for children age 3 to 5. Parents or caregivers must attend. Siblings may attend with adults. Registration is not required. The Benton Library is located at the intersection of Oakley and Old Middlesex. 
  • The Belmont Public Library on Concord Avenue will be holding two sessions of Story Time for 2’s and 3’s, at 9:30 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. 

• Registration for Smart 911, Belmont’s new enhanced emergency call system in which residents can supply dispatchers with information on their medications and medical conditions, will take place at the Beech Street Center, 266 Beech St, from 11 a.m. to noon on Tuesday, May 5.

• Kathy Devine of the Executive Office of Elder Affairs will speak about the state’s Prescription Advantage on Tuesday, May 5, at 1:15 p.m. at the Beech Street Center.

• An Indian dinner, courtesy of The Friends of the Indian Seniors and catered by Arlington’s Punjab restaurant, will be served on Tuesday, May 5, at 5 p.m. at the Beech Street Center, 266 Beech St. There is a $4 cover at the door, but you must reserve a place by calling 617-993-2970. Limited to 50.

• Papercrafting for Adults; a Mother’s Day Floral Commemorative will be held on Tuesday, May 5, 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. in the Belmont Public Library’s Assembly Room. All supplies included. For more information, including registering, either call 617-993-2870 or link here. 

• On early release Wednesday, May 6, from 1:30 p.m. to 3 p.m., Chenery Middle School student can stop by the Belmont Public Library’s Assembly Room, work on your homework, enjoy some lemonade and cookies, and try out an activity. This is for middleschoolers only, so high school students can do something else. The activity is funded by the Friends of the Belmont Public Library. Just drop in, no registration required.

• The Friends of the Belmont Public Library will be meeting on Thursday, May 7, from 9:30 a.m. to 11 a.m. in the Belmont Public Library’s Assembly Room.

• The LEGO Club for kindergarteners through second graders is back on Thursday, May 7, from 3 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. in the Assembly Room of the Belmont Public Library. Drop in anytime. Members will be creating their own unique LEGO structures. All LEGOs will be provided. Just bring your imagination!

• Belmont High School Performing Arts Company presents Improv! on Thursday, May 7, at 7 p.m. in the Little Theater of Belmont High School. $5 for adults. It’s the spring Long Form Show in which  actors will develop an on-the-spot, original series of scenes, complete with recurring characters, thematic development and possibly even improvised musical numbers.

• Belmont Girl Scouts leaders meeting will take place on Thursday, May 7, from 7:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. in the Flett Room of the Belmont Public Library.

• The Senior Book Discussion Group will meet on Friday, May 8, at 11 a.m. at the Beech Street Center as the group will continue its discussion of War and Peace (Part 8 through the end of the book).

• Powers Music School faculty members will present the music of the “Great American Songbook” canon, including Jerome Kern, Richard Rogers, Cole Porter, Hoagy Carmichael, and more on Friday, May 8, from 1:15 p.m. to 2:15 p.m. at the Beech Street Center.

• Parents of Music Students hosts the annual Belmont High School Pops Concert, an evening of light concert music, performed by the school’s Symphonic Band, Concert Chorale, Jazz Choir and Jazz Collective on Friday and Saturday, May 8 and 9 at 7 p.m. in the school’s cafeteria.

Belmont Girls’ Lacrosse Takes Two at Home After Spring Recess

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Photo: Belmont High Senior Sophia Eisenbach-Smith (center in white) in action.

Behind a goal-scoring binge from speedy senior Left Wing Attack Sophia Eisenbach-Smith, the Belmont High School Girls’ Lacrosse team took two well-earned victories at its home at Harris Field to move its record to 3-5. 

The multi-sport (soccer and basketball) standout Eisenbach-Smith tallied 14 goals in the two games, leading Belmont by Wilmington High, 15-8, on Wednesday, April 29, and over Burlington High Red Devils, 19-12, on Friday, May 1.

Friday’s victory over the visiting Red Devils was the team’s best game of the season, said Belmont’s Head Coach Aimee Doherty.

“We played very well beginning to end. The girls showed a lot of heart which I have been nagging them about. They stepped it up with the ground balls. And while we had some turnovers, we got a lot of them back by fighting for it so that made a huge difference,” she said. 

After falling behind 2-4 midway through the first half, the Marauders went on a 6 to 2 goal run to go into halftime up 8-6, as junior attack Lizzy Frick (3 goals) scored on a penalty with a minute remaining.

The second half has been a worrisome time for the Marauders this season when Belmont, but not this game as despite not having a great deal of possession in the first 10 minutes. Up 10-9, the Marauders started connecting on its passing, freeing up attackers for some open shots and goals starting with junior Sophia Pollack (3 goals) to make it 11-9 at the 12 minute mark. 

And when the passes weren’t there, sophomore Annemarie Habelow ran 40 meters up the middle of the defenders to score giving Belmont a 12-9 lead with 10 minutes remaining.

Preserving the lead were sophomore goalie Anastasia MacEwen – who made several in-close saves – and defenders juniors Bridget Treanor, Leah Bram and sophomore Margot Kubasek who crowded the slot in front of MacEwen.

Up 14-10 (through goals by Eisenbach-Smith and Kerri Lynch), with eight minutes remaining, Belmont swept up the victory with a great display of passes that put Belmont’s forwards, like Ellen Bragg (2 goals) one-on-one with the Burlington goalie. Fittingly, Belmont’s final goal was scored with 30 seconds remaining by Eisenbach-Smith, her eighth of the match. 

“Our passing was excellent today. Accuracy is something we’ve been working on for the last couple of weeks and I think we nailed it today. Those passes were dead on,” said Doherty.

Next up for the girls are Winchester on Saturday, May 2 (after the SAT tests) and Monday, May 4 at arch-rival Watertown. 

Snakebit: Belmont Girls’ Lacrosse Finds it Hard to Reach Win Column

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Photo: Belmont High School Girls’ Lacrosse 

Belmont High School Girls’ Lacrosse Head Coach Aimee Doherty knows her team is just that one … something so it can begin being on the right side of the win/loss column.

But every time it appears that the team has come close to solving the issues at hand, the team ends up looking at another defeat. 

It’s not like the Marauders are being skunked in each game. In the three previous games before its game against Newton North Saturday, April 25, Belmont was in the game until the final horn blast, before falling to Lexington (19-16), Reading (15-11) and Arlington (13-12). 

“Overall, we’ve been playing really hard and really well,” said Doherty, whose team has seven seniors and eight juniors. “But in the last two games, we’ve been missing half of our team which five are starters so that’s had a huge impact on our play.” 

On Saturday, the Marauders could have used as much fire power against a talented Div. 1 squad, ending up on the short side of a 16-5 loss.

Key players this year have been seniors Sophia Eschenbach-Smith and Elena Bragg along with juniors AnnMarie Habelow (2 goals Saturday), Katherine McCarthy (also 2 goals) and Kerri Lynch.

“The three biggest things we need to focus on which will help turn our game around are getting possession of ground balls, winning the draws (which occurs after every score) which is really hurting us and placing our shots. We are shooting at the right time but not hitting the right spots on goal,” said Doherty. 

 

 

Belmont Softball Finds the Going Tough Against Established Teams

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Photo: Junior third base Lia Muckjian.

After a quick start to the season, the Belmont High School Softball team took on the crucible of playing the better established softball programs in the Middlesex League which, it turned out, was a bit more than this young team was able to handle.

But unlike past years, the Marauder were competitive in each of most of the games during its four-game losing streak, including a 3-2 loss to non-league visitor, Cambridge Rindge and Latin, on a cold and breezy Thursday morning, April 23.

Belmont started off quickly with junior right fielder and lead off hitter Ani Hackett coming home with the game’s first run on junior shortstop Julia Rifkin‘s ground out.

Freshman pitching standout Christine MacLeod cruised through the CRLS Div. 1 squad in the first three innings, facing the minimum nine batters. But a two-out single in the fourth scored a pair for the Falcons in the top of the fourth to put them out ahead 2-1. 

On the Belmont side of the plate, despite singles by MacLeod, junior catcher Meghan Ferraro and second base Katrina Ruzzuto, the Marauders came up empty getting those players around to score.

In the bottom of the fifth, consecutive singles by junior third base Lia Muckjian, senior captain and first baseman Lauren Noonan and MacLeod brought in Belmont’s second run as Muckjian scored. But what appeared to be Belmont’s third run when Kate Lester, running for Noonan, seemingly beat out a wild pitch was taken back as she was called out by the umpire. (see photo here)

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Cambridge would retake the lead on two singles and a fielders choice and Belmont could not muster a challenge in their final at bats. 

The team is currently 3-6 with games on Friday, April 24, away at Lexington, and Monday, April 27, home vs. Winchester. 

Belmont High Baseball Unbeaten at Break Thanks to Another Late Game Win

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Photo: Cal Christofori pitching in relief in the 7th inning during Belmont’s 6-3 victory over Arlington, April 17. 

Like students who waits until the last minute to complete their work, the Belmont High School Baseball team has been biding their time until the late innings to eek out a pair of victories.

After Belmont snuck by Stoneham, 8-6, on Tuesday, April 14, the team scored four runs in the penultimate at-bat to defeat Arlington, 6-3, on Friday, April 17, at Grant Field in Belmont.

The wins, along with a blow out of Watertown in the season opener, sends the Marauders into the spring break undefeated, sporting a 3-0 record overall and in the Middlesex League and providing the players some needed confidence.

“The thing we preached in the beginning of the year was mental toughness and they are buying into it,” said Belmont Head Coach Jim Brown.

“They were losing a couple of games and it’s not phasing them and they are getting the bats going as well,” Brown said.

Friday’s heroics came the arm and the bat of Robbie Montanaro who threw two shutout innings in relief of starter Cole Bartels and stroked a two-out, two-run single to score Bartels and catcher Cal Christofori to push Belmont ahead, 5-4, after trailing by a run entering the bottom of the fifth.

Centerfielder Nick Riley’s double sent Montanaro home for the final run in the four-run fifth. 

Riley scored the first run in the second inning, scoring on Bryan Goodwin double.

Monanaro’s run scoring hit was part of the first-baseman/pitcher’s three-RBI day, having scored Bartels in the third with a single.

Christofori moved from catching pitches to throwing them to earn the save hurling a one-hit final inning.

It will be a busy time after the spring recess when Belmont plays on Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday of next week.

“We have four games the week we get back so they have to be focused like they’ve been so far,” said Brown.

Butler Reaches 150 Goals as Belmont Boys LAX (4-3) Down SpyPonders

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Photo: Trey Butler setting up to score his 149 goal in his high school career. 

Junior attack Trey Butler reached the 150 goal milestone as the Belmont High School Boys’ Lacrosse won its first Middlesex League match of the season, defeating Arlington High School, 17-11, in a chippy affair at Harris Field on Friday, April 18. 

“From freshman year, it’s been a team effort and it’s all part of the teammates passing me the ball and encouraging me every step of the way,” Butler told the Belmontonian after the game in which he scored four goals and two assists.

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“Last year there was a lot of pressure and it was hard not to get frustrated when things aren’t going your way,” said Butler, who is also a standout defender on the hockey team.

“But this year, we’ve been winning because everyone has been putting in a lot of work in the off season and it’s starting to pay off this year,” said Butler.

“Huge win of us,” said Belmont Head Coach Josh Streit after the win, lifting the program over .500 at 4-3. The SpyPonders drop to 2-4. 

“Arlington has been a rival for us in my tenure and they have played us very tough in the league so we knew this was a place for us to see to kind of see where we could stand and if we can make some noise,” said Streit. The win puts Belmont five victories from a return to the Eastern Mass. Div. 2 playoffs since 2011.

The match started off at a crawl, going more than half the first quarter before a pair of goals from junior Michael Cole (3 goals, 1 assist) and Butler’s first gave Belmont a 3-1 lead going to the second.

Goals by Cole, senior Samuel Bozkurtian (3 goals, 1 assist) and two from by Butler with outstanding defense from seniors Joseph Paolillo and Luke Paolcari along with junior Andrew Ballard allowed the Marauders to enter halftime with a 7-3 lead.

It was at 3:38 left in the third – in a half which saw a multitude of penalties calls – when Bozkurtian passed to Butler to the left of the goal, snapping the ball into the net to hit 150 goals as Belmont doubled its goals to take a 14-6 advantage into the final period.

After the game, Streit continued to speak highly of his team after a mid-week loss to Reading High, in which he discovered his team “could grind and have the grit to stay with everyone in the league.”  

Down 10-2 in the third quarter and unable to generate an offensive surge, the team “stood up for themselves”, grinding out four straight goals against the Rocket’s top squad, falling 12-8 but putting Reading on the back foot for the remainder of the game.

“We made people notice and they saw the heart of this team,” said Streit.

The squad’s next match will be against Dracut next Saturday. 

Nicholas Kristof To Speak Tonight on Transforming Lives

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Photo: Nicholas Kristof.

Nicholas Kristof, New York Times columnist, two-time Pulitzer Prize winner and author will speak tonight, Wednesday, April 15, at Belmont High School on the best-selling book co-written with his wife, Sheryl WuDunn, “A Path Appears; Transforming Lives, Creating Opportunities.”

The 7:30 p.m. speech has sold out. The event will be broadcast by the Belmont Media Center.

“A Path Appears” describes how ordinary people can make extraordinary differences in the lives of others both globally and locally. The issues addressed include; human sex trafficking, domestic violence, poverty, hunger and many others, all closer to home then we may think.

The book inspired members of the Belmont community to gather together and initiate a local campaign, A Path Appears in Belmont: A Campaign to Make A Difference which has received wide spread support across the community from both community non-profits, to public and private entities.  

The ultimate goal is to identify the top concerns and to bring people together to find ways we as a community can Make A Difference in the Lives of Others.

Current community supporters include:

  • Belmont Against Racism,
  • Belmont Chapter of Amnesty International,
  • Belmont Health Collaborative, 
  • Belmont Human Rights Commission,
  • Belmont Media Center,
  • Belmont Public Library,
  • Belmont Public Schools,
  • Belmont Religious Council,
  • Founding Member: First Church in Belmont Unitarian Universalist. 

A Path Appears; Transforming Lives, Creating Opportunities provides a roadmap of sorts for how to navigate through all the different organizations and information in order to make the best choices for use of resources. It also highlights how giving not only benefits the receiver but also the giver. 

Several events were held to share ideas and concerns. There were community film screenings and discussions of the three PBS films based on the book.  Then for the first-time ever over 25 non-profits seeking volunteers all with links to Belmont were showcased, followed by a talk given by Rick Weissbourd, senior lecturer at Harvard Graduate School of Education and co-director of the Making Caring Common Project, who spoke about “Raising Caring, Ethical, and Happy Children.”

Donors who have supported these series of events and made “A Path Appears in Belmont: A Campaign to Make A Difference “ possible are:

  • Lawndale Realty,
  • First Church in Belmont Unitarian Universalist,
  • Belmont Against Racisim,
  • Jackie and Tom Neel,
  • Carl Brauer and Nancy Sheifflin,
  • Anne Stuart and Paul Santos,
  • Electric Rushe,
  • Hamill Builders, and
  • Donna Perry 

Belmont Baseball Comes from Behind to Take Opener vs. Stoneham

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Photo: Junior pitcher Joe Shaughnessy vs. Stoneham High, April 13. 

A three run, two-out sixth inning and a great relief pitching stint by junior Joe Shaughnessy saw Belmont High School Baseball reel in a tough Stoneham High team for a 8-6 victory in the team’s home opener at Grant Field on Monday, April 13.

The win raises Belmont’s record to 2-0 overall and in the Middlesex League. 

A 3-2 triple by third baseman Nick Call drove in junior right fielder Matt Kerans and sophomore catcher Cal Christofori to give Belmont a 7-6 lead before scoring on a wild pitch for the final run.

Starter pitcher junior Cole Bartels (7 strikeouts) got through the fourth before giving up a three-run, bases loaded double to Stoneham’s center fielder Justin Oliphant for the Spartans to go ahead 6-5. 

Shaughnessy then came in for the final 2 2/3 innings of shut out pitching including striking out three Spartan in the top of the 7th. 

Trio Leads Belmont Girls’ Track By Reading in Spring Opener

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Photo: 100 meters.

A pair of personal bests in the throws, two wins on the infield and a double in the sprints allowed Belmont High School Girls’ Spring Track to rocket by Reading High in the home opening meet on a warm and sunny Monday, April 13 at Harris Field.

With three events remaining, the Reading coaches came over to congratulate Belmont’s Head Coach Melissa Glotzbecker as the Marauders held a 72-45 point lead.

“This is a really great opportunity just to start off the season since we didn’t finish our first meet [due to a sudden snow storm],” said Glotzbecker.

“It’s a great measure to see how people are performing and how all their hard work is paying off. So we’re actually excited where people are at and for the rest of the season,” she said.

The top performance came from junior Katrina Rokosz who make significant personal records in both the javelin and shot.

“It was a pretty good day,” said Rokosz, who won the javelin by nearly 40 feet with a throw of 107.3 feet and finished first in the shot with a throw of 26 feet, 8  1/2 inches.

“I’ve been working a lot with javelin with a teammate and that has helped a lot because we trade tips which is great,” said Rokosz. In the shot, she’s got some sage advice from someone close to home.

“My dad use to throw the shot and his tips were great,” she said.

Rokosz was joined by Anoush Krafian and Julia Cella as duel winners on the day. Krafian – the best freshman high jumpers in the state and a national finalist – took home her speciality clearing 5 feet, 1 inch as well as coming in first in the long jump with a 16 foot, 10 inch effort.

On the track, sophomore Cella, coming off a second place in the 200 meter state Div. 2 outdoor championships last year, took the sprint double, winning the 100 meter in 12.8 seconds (with Krafian in second in 13.4) and the 200 in 26.9 seconds.

Other strong performances included a dominating run by Meggie MacAulay to win the 400 meters wire to wire in 1 minute, 3.9 seconds, Kayla Magno took the 400 meter hurdles in 1:09.7 and Rachel Berets finished top in the 100 meter hurdles in 16.9 seconds.

Freshmen Lead Belmont Softball to Home Opener Win Over Stoneham

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Photo: Belmont pitcher Christine MacLeod against Stoneham. 

Powered by the pitching and hitting from the team’s two freshmen, Belmont High School Softball cruised to a home opening win, defeating Stoneham High School, 13-1, in a shortened five-inning game on Monday, April 13. 

“This is a great group of girls who can pitch and play defense,” said Bob Magarian, the rookie head coach whose team record is above .500 at 2-1. 

“That’s from the old school, but you also need to score runs so you have to get the offense clicking which we did today,” he said.

Freshman starting pitcher Christine MacLeod threw her second consecutive one-run game – the first was an 18-1 beat down of hosts Watertown High School April 7 – giving up a pair of singles and two doubles while putting up five strikeouts. 

Up by a single run going into the bottom of the 4th, the Marauders scored seven times with two outs as junior third base Lia Muckjian and junior catcher and co-captain Meghan Ferraro stroking RBI  singles during the rally.

Belmont wrapped up the game in the fifth with 9th grade left fielder Kate Lester bombing a triple – one of two extra base hits for the Marauders – to score senior first base and co-captain Lauren Noonan with the first of five runs in the inning resulting in the game being called early due to the mercy rule. 

“I wasn’t really thinking. I just swung the bat and ran,” Lester said about her hit, which goes along with her double against Watertown.

“She got the big hit, hasn’t made any mistakes out in the field in three games and we like her a lot,” Magarian said of Lester.