Ayers nets final four goals in Prep lacrosse win

St. John’s Prep’s Jimmy Ayers scored six goals and dished out two assists in his team’s 12-8 win against Acton Boxborough Saturday. Photo by Item File Photo

The St. John’s Prep lacrosse team upped its record to 2-0 Saturday afternoon with a hard-fought, 12-8 win against Acton Boxborough at home. Jimmy Ayers scored the final four goals for the Eagles to finish with six and two helpers.

Chris Esposito played well in the face off category (18 for 22), helping the Eagles maintain possession throughout the game. Nick Schibli and Greyson Ambrosh were effective on defense, while Gavin Kornitsky made 11 saves on 19 shots for Prep.

Luke Kelly, Rowan Mondello, Nate Jones, Esposito, Matt Morrow, Cam McCarthy, and Noah Brown all found twine.

The Eagles return to action Tuesday when they travel to Morrissey Boulevard for a rematch of the 2022 state championship against the Boston College Eagles (1-0) at 5:30 p.m.

BOYS LACROSSE

Marblehead 16
Beverly 6

The Magicians produced a monster performance against the Panthers on Monday. Leading the way for Marblehead was the trio of Connor Cronin (4 goals and 3 assists), Charlie Grenier (4 goals and 1 assist) and Reece Moore (3 goals and 3 assists). Baxter Jennings (2 goals and 1 assist) and Carter Laramie (2 goals), also had strong performances for the Magicians.

BASEBALL

Marblehead 12

Manchester Essex 1

The Marblehead baseball team picked up its second win of the season after a 12-1 rout of Manchester Essex on Monday. The Magicians raced out to a 4-0 lead through the first three innings before cruising the rest of the way. Marblehead senior pitcher Ian Maude shut down the Manchester Essex offense, retiring five batters in as many innings to go with one earned run. Setting the tone for the Magicians’ offense was junior Charlie Sachs (3 RBI, 2 runs), junior Chris Cannuscio (2 RBI, 2 runs) and senior Shane Keough (2 RBI, 2 runs). Marblehead (2-1) will travel to face Peabody Tuesday afternoon.

Marblehead 20
Gloucester 6

Runs were aplenty in Marblehead’s 20-6 thrashing of Gloucester on Friday. Head coach Mike Giardi said his team “got some big hits at the right time,” which certainly stands true when looking at the box score.

Four Magicians had multi-hit games, including Riley Schmitt and Shane Keough who went home with three hits apiece. Drew Whitman pitched two innings and punched out three batters.

St. John’s Prep 7
Walpole 3

William Shaheen recorded two hits and two RBI, Marco Zirpolo collected two RBI, Nate Marston walked twice, and the St. John’s Prep baseball team cruised to a 7-3 victory against Walpole at Frates Field.

Prep’s Joe Williams earned the win on the mound, pitching six innings and retiring six batters. The Eagles return to the diamond Monday at 4 p.m. in a home matchup against St. John’s.

Danvers 17
Marblehead 8

Danvers jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first inning and never looked back en route to a 17-8 victory against Marblehead – headlined by six runs in the fifth inning.

Despite three-run efforts in the fifth and seventh innings, the deficit was just too much for Marblehead. Stefan Shepard, Shane Keough, and Chris Cannuscio all recorded two hits apiece for the Magicians, while Ian Maude retired four batters over 4 2/3 innings.

SOFTBALL

Salem 4
Marblehead 3

The Marblehead softball team played well, but was edged by a tough Salem team 4-3.

Despite the loss, there were plenty of positives for the Magicians. Pitcher Ruby Calienes struck out eight batters while allowing just four hits. On offense, Hailey Schmitt swung the bat well, going 3-for-4.

GIRLS LACROSSE

Beverly 13
Marblehead 11

The Magicians trailed the Panthers 6-5 at the end of the first half, but were unable to forge ahead in the second half. Leading the way for Marblehead were Sydney Langton (5 goals and 1 assist). Lucy Wales (2 goals), Ramona Gillett (1 goal and 1 assist), Isabelle Ferrante (1 goal), Maddie Forbes (1 goal) and Gretchen Smith (1 goal), who all found the back of the net for the Magicians.

Ipswich 6
Marblehead 5

The Marblehead girls lacrosse team fought hard, but it wasn’t enough to top Ipswich. The Magicians lost 6-5 and fell to 0-3.

That said, Marblehead won the second half 2-1, and Ramona Gillett led the charge with three goals and three ground balls collected. Gretchen Smith contributed with two goals and Sydney Langton dished out an assist, while Addie Lydon stood strong between the pipes with nine saves.

Marblehead’s Lucy Wales, Maddie Forbes, and Kate Burns all played well in the loss.

TRACK AND FIELD

The Marblehead track team ran away with things against Gloucester. The boys won 86-50, while the girls won 80-50.

For the boys, Alex Helsey impressed in long jump with a 19′ 10.75, followed by Harrison Curtis with a 19′ 3.75. In triple jump, Errol Apostolopoulos snagged first place with a 38′ 8, while Angelo Knight got first place in javelin with a throw of 94′ 10.

Thomas Carlson ran the 200m in 22.6s, while Ryan Thompson ran a 2:04.7 in the 800m.

On the girls’ side, Keira Sweetnam won the high jump with a 4′ 10, while Rachael Albert recorded a 28′ 3.50 in shot put – good for first place. She also won in discus with a 94′ 7.

Devin Whalen also caught eyes, winning both the 400mh (74.7) and 100m (16.0).

BOYS TENNIS

Marblehead 5
Beverly 0

In the first match of the 2023 boys tennis season, Marblehead handled a solid Beverly team. Winners for the Magicians were: junior Mika Garber (first singles, 6-0, 6-1); junior Jost Eggebrecht (second singles, 6-3, 6-4); sophomore Matthew Sherf (third singles, 6-4, 6-2); sophomores Ethan Farfel and Jayden Janock (first doubles, 6-1, 6-4) and senior co-captain Jimmy King and sophomore Luke Miller (second doubles, 6-1, 6-1).

GIRLS TENNIS 

Marblehead 5
Malden Catholic 0

The Marblehead girls tennis team upped its record to 2-0 after a sweep of Malden Catholic on Tuesday, April 11. Pauline Geissler (6-0, 6-1), Andrea Potvin (6-3, 6-1), and Charly Cooper (6-1, 6-2) all won their singles matchups.

Courtney Yoder and Aviva Bornstein were victorious in doubles (6-0, 6-2), as were Aoife Bresnahan and Lucia Levin (6-0, 6-2). The Lady Magicians return to action Wednesday against Swampscott.

Marblehead 5
Beverly 0

Marblehead coach Tracy Ackerman was impressed by her team’s showing, especially since it’s their first match of the 2023 season.

“It was a gritty win all around,” Ackerman said. “Perfect way to open the season, and get the players tested with strong opponents. I was especially pleased with the way all three of our singles players played incredibly close matches, and all came out winners.”

Winners for the Magicians were: Pauline Geissler (first singles, 7-5, 2-6, 6-4); Andrea Potvin (second singles, 7-6, 3-6, 10-7); Charley Cooper (third singles, 6-2, 4-6, 6-3); Courtney Yoder and Aviva Bornstein (first doubles, 6-1, 6-3) and Aoife Bresnahan and Lucia Levin, (second doubles, 6-4, 6-3).