Girls' Basketball: O'Bryant and New Mission Advance in State Tournaments

The O'Bryant Tigers beat Somerset Berkley 4-34 last night. O'Bryant advances to the Division 2 South quarterfinals to play Scituate. The game will be played Friday night at 7 at Madison Park.

New Mission blew out Minuteman 47-18. The Titans will play in the D4 North quarterfinals against Shawsheen Regional Technical School. The game will be Friday night at Shawsheen, which is in Billerica.

South Boston lost to Amesbury 60-42.

Boston Latin School fell to Lexington 41-27.

The City League has 4 teams still competing in the Girls' Basketball State Tournaments. Here are the upcoming games:

Friday:
7:00pm - Belmont at Latin Academy
7:00pm - Scituate at O'Bryant
7:00pm - New Mission at Shawsheen
7:00pm - Fenway at Pope John (note: this game was originally listed as a Sunday game)

Five City League Teams Advance in State Basketball Tournaments

Five City League teams have advanced in their State Tournaments so far. The boys' teams from Brighton, New Mission, Latin Academy and Snowden all won their tournament openers. Fenway's girls' team also won. Here's an update on all the City League teams in the tournaments:

Monday's games:
Boys':
Latin Academy beat Chelsea 68-43. The Dragons will play their next game Thursday night at 7 against North Andover, the #2 seed in the Division 2 North bracket. The game will be played at North Andover High School.

Dover-Sherborn beat O'Bryant 67-48 to eliminate them from the Division 3 South tournament. The Burke was also eliminated from that tournament, 61-53, by Ashland.

Girls':
West Roxbury took a tough loss to Quincy, 64-26

Tuesday's games:
Boys':
The Brighton Bengals advanced to the D2 North quarterfinals by edging Burlington 62-60. Brighton will face Salem Friday night at 7.

New Mission also advanced to the D2 North quarterfinals. The Titans beat Reading 60-57. They'll face the winner of the Melrose/Arlington game, Saturday night at 7.

Snowden beat Mystic Valley 42-38 and advanced to the D4 North quarterfinals. They'll play Matignon at Somerville High School, Friday night at 7.

English lost 74-43 to Milton.

East Boston fell to Everett 77-65.

South Boston lost to Minuteman 71-56.

Girls':
Fenway crushed Notre Dame-Lawrence 53-21. They'll continue their title defense against Pope John on Sunday.

Charlestown lost to Belmont 67-31. Belmont will play Latin Academy Friday night at 7.

English fell to Dedham 60-34

Here are the upcoming games...

Tonight:
Girls' Games:
7:00pm - Boston Latin @ Lexington
7:00pm - Somerset Berkley @ O'Bryant (game played at Madison Park)
7:00pm - Amesbury @ South Boston (location TBD)
7:00pm - Minuteman @ New Mission

Thursday:
Boys' Games:
7:00pm - Madison Park @ Newton North
7:00pm - Medfield @ Dorchester (game played at Latin Academy)
7:00pm - Latin Academy @ North Andover

Friday:
Boys' Games:
7:00pm - Brighton @ Salem (location TBD)
7:00pm - Snowden @ Matignon (game played at Somerville HS)

Girls' Games:
7:00pm - Belmont @ Latin Academy

Saturday:
Boys' Game:
7:00pm - New Mission vs. Arlington OR Melrose (location TBD)

Sunday:
Girls' Game:
Time TBD - Fenway @ Pope John (location TBD)

Latin Academy Girls' Hockey in State Tournament for the First Time in Five Years

Latin Academy girls' hockey coach Ronald Ford expected his team to be a "little bit better" than last year. Last year they were 3-17, and were winless the season before that. He expected some improvement, but did not expect his team to be as good as they were. This year the Dragons won 10 games, lost 6, and tied 4. They finished 4th in the East Division of the mostly suburban Southeastern Massachusetts Girls' Hockey League (SEMGHL). And they qualified for the State Tournament for the first time in 5 years.

The team is led by a few key seniors, particularly goalie Natalie Lombardi, a two-time SEMGHL All-Star...

...but overall they're still a young squad. They have 4 juniors, 1 sophomore, and 5 freshman on their roster. Along with an 8th grader, and two 7th graders. So even when Lombardi and her classmates graduate, there will be a new core of experienced players in position to build on the success of this season.

Coach Ford attributes that success to "Speed, strength, and accuracy." Along with hard work. And going into the State Tournament, he wants his team to continue that hard work as well as reduce mental mistakes. Mainly, though, he wants to "Make sure [the girls] are having fun, and not worrying about the magnitude of the game, let them focus on what they need to be doing."

Latin Academy will face Martha's Vineyard Monday afternoon at 3:00pm in the preliminary round of the Division 2 tournament. The game will be held at the Murphy Memorial Rink in South Boston. BLA and Martha's Vineyard are in the same division in the SEMGHL, and played each other twice this season. BLA lost 4-1 to them in December, and the teams tied 2-2 on February 18th.

Last year this team won 3 games. This year they're hosting a State Tournament game.

20 City League Teams Qualify for State Basketball Tournaments

The City League will send 20 basketball teams (12 boys' and 8 girls' teams) to state tournaments. Tournament games start Monday. Here are the City League teams that qualified, as well as which tournament bracket they'll compete in:

Boys' Teams:
East Boston - Division 1 North
Madison Park - Division 1 South
West Roxbury - Division 1 South
Brighton - Division 2 North
New Mission - Division 2 North
Latin Academy - Division 2 North
Dorchester - Division 2 South
English - Division 2 South
South Boston - Division 3 North
O'Bryant - Division 3 South
Burke - Division 3 South
Snowden - Division 4 North

City Champions Brighton are a 5 seed in the D2 North bracket. City runners up New Mission are an 8 seed. Dorchester is the #7 seed in Division 3 South.

Girls' Teams:
West Roxbury - Division 1 South
Latin Academy - Division 2 North
Charlestown - Division 2 North
O'Bryant - Division 2 South
South Boston - Division 3 North
English - Division 3 South
New Mission - Division 4 North
Fenway - Division 4 North

Boston Latin School, which doesn't compete in the City League but is a Boston Public School, qualified for the Division 1 North tournament. Latin Academy will be the #2 seed in Division 2 North. O'Bryant and South Boston are 3 seeds in their respective tournaments. New Mission is the #6 seed in D4 North.

Here is the schedule of games this week. Boston Urban Sports will update this schedule as these tournaments play out...

MONDAY 2/25:
Boys' Games:
7:00pm - Chelsea @ Latin Academy
7:00pm - Dover-Sherborn @ O'Bryant (game played at Madison Park)
7:00pm - Burke @ Ashland

Girls' Games:
7:00pm - Quincy @ West Roxbury

TUESDAY 2/26:
Boys' Games:
7:00pm - East Boston @ Everett
7:00pm - Newton South @ West Roxbury
7:00pm - Burlington @ Brighton (game played at Latin Academy)
7:00pm - Reading @ New Mission
7:00pm - English @ Milton
7:00pm - South Boston @ Minuteman
7:00pm - Snowden @ Mystic Valley

Girls' Games:
4:30pm - Dedham @ English
7:00pm - Charlestown @ Belmont
7:00pm - Fenway @ Notre Dame-Lawrence (game played at Greater Lawrence Technical School)

WEDNESDAY 2/27:
Boys' Games:
7:00pm - O'Bryant @ Bishop Feehan (if O'Bryant beats Dover-Sherborn on Monday)
7:00pm - Burke @ Cardinal Spellman (if Burke beats Ashland on Monday)

Girls' Games:
7:00pm - Boston Latin @ Lexington
7:00pm - Somerset Berkley @ O'Bryant (game played at Madison Park)
7:00pm - Amesbury @ South Boston (location TBD)
7:00pm - Minuteman @ New Mission
7:00pm - West Roxbury @ Braintree (if West Roxbury beats Quincy on Monday)

THURSDAY 2/28:
Boys' Games:
7:00pm - Madison Park @ Newton North
7:00pm - Medfield @ Dorchester (location TBD)
7:00pm - West Roxbury @ Mansfield (if West Roxbury beats Newton South on Tuesday)
7:00pm - Latin Academy @ North Andover (if BLA beats Chelsea on Monday)
7:00pm - English @ Dennis-Yarmouth (if English beats Milton on Tuesday)

Girls' Games:
7:00pm - English @ Abington (if English beats Dedham on Tuesday)

FRIDAY 3/1:
Boys' Games:
7:00pm - Snowden @ Matignon (if Snowden beats Mystic Valley on Tuesday)

Girls' Games:
7:00pm - Charlestown OR Belmont @ Latin Academy (BLA will host the winner of Tuesday's game between Charlestown and Belmont)

Girls' Ice Hockey: Scituate 3, Boston Latin Academy 2

Full Photo Gallery on our Facebook page

The Latin Academy Dragons finished their regular season with a tough loss on the road to Scituate, one of the top teams in the Southeastern Mass. Girls' Hockey League.

BLA took a 1-0 lead in the 1st when senior forward Jordan Fleming scored an opportunistic Power Play goal from the high slot.

In the 1st period, the Dragons were able to frustrate Scituate's attempts to carry the puck into the zone. In the 2nd, Scituate figured out how to get through and were able to put massive pressure on the Dragons' net. But Latin Academy goalie Natalie Lombardi made save after save to keep Scituate from scoring. Lombardi was especially good when the Dragons were shorthanded.

Scituate were eventually able to slip one past Lombardi on a 2-on-1 breakaway to tie the game at 1-1.

Latin Academy quickly retook the lead when, after serving a penalty, junior Kathleen Torpey emerged from the penalty box and received a long pass from Rachel Wells. Torpey drove to the net all alone and put BLA up 2-1.

The penalties finally caught up to BLA in the 3rd. They'd killed 3 straight Scituate Power Plays. With their 4th Power Play, Scituate finally capitalized. Less than a minute later Scituate scored again to take a 3-2 lead.

In the closing minutes the Dragons were able to create chances, but Scituate's goalie made tough stops to keep her team in front.

Latin Academy's regular season may have ended with a loss, but they're not done playing. They'll be in the State Tournament for the first time in 5 years, with a 10-6-4 record. We'll have more on Latin Academy's tremendous season tomorrow.

BC High Defeats Brighton 55-51, Wins The Comcast Classic Championship

In a game where the players on both sides were hardly given any room to breathe, let alone enough space to get a clean shot off, it seemed fitting that the most crucial play came on a scramble for a loose ball. BC High, the #6 team in the state, led #11 Brighton for most of the Comcast Classic Championship game at Babson College. Up 52-51 with 30 seconds to play, the Eagles ran the clock down and Senior guard Charles Collins drove the lane for a tough floater in traffic. During the ensuing scrap for the rebound, the ball traveled all the way out to midcourt before another BC High senior, Jameilen James, hit the deck to secure the ball and call a timeout.

There were 4 seconds remaining. Brighton was forced to foul James on the inbounds play and he knocked down both free throws, thus sealing the tournament for BC High.

Nick Simpson led the way for Brighton with 17 points, 9 rebounds, and 5 blocked shots. He was rather efficient from three-point range (4 for 7) but the rest of the Bengals went 2 of 20 from deep. BC High’s tough zone defense deserves a lot of credit for this poor percentage, but Brighton’s shooters will certainly see these shots as missed opportunities that they need to rectify in the upcoming City League tournament.

Ball security was also an issue for the Bengals, as they turned it over 11 times in the first half alone. However they fought back, outscoring the Eagles in the second and third quarters before Prince Unaegbu threw down a thunderous dunk to tie it at 34. A few minutes later Simpson drained a three to give Brighton their first lead of the game at 40-37, but the Eagles answered right back.

Simpson Hits A Corner 3

Collins and Jones were immense for BC High throughout the game, and with a combined 24 points, 13 rebounds, and 7 assists from the two Senior guards, it’s easy to see why college scouts and coaches were in attendance to get a close look at their talents. However it was Senior Pete Timmins, a center with range, who hit several clutch three pointers to stop Brighton’s momentum and put the Eagles back in the drivers’ seat.

#13 Jones With A Tough Pull-up

After falling behind early in the fourth quarter, Timmins's big shots sparked a 12-4 run that put BC High in control up 49-44. Brighton guard Malik James started to take matters into his own hands and nearly closed the gap, but unfortunately the Bengals could not connect on a big outside shot when needed. James and Simpson were the stars on Sunday night when Brighton upset an undefeated Danvers team in the semifinals, yet towards the end of this game the Bengals ran out of gas against a very well-coached BC High team.

Timmins Drives Baseline

Brighton will take on South Boston in the semifinals of the City League Tournament on Wednesday February, 20^th at 4 p.m. at Madison Park High School.

Boys' Basketball: Xaverian Brothers 70, West Roxbury 55

West Roxbury ventured out into the suburbs to play Xaverian Brothers in Westwood Saturday afternoon. And although the Xaverian Hawks were only 4-12 coming into this game, they play in a very tough league. The Catholic Conference is home to #3 St. John's Prep and #6 BC High. So this was a tough opponent for the Raiders of West Roxbury.

The opening quarter was a defensive struggle, ending tied at 8-8. Neither team's shots were falling. In the 2nd quarter, Xaverian started hitting their shots. The Raiders never got much of a rhythm going, disrupted by fouls (all of Deven Robinson's 6 points came from the free-throw line) and the occasional turnover. Westie was still keeping things close, until Xaverian went on a run just before halftime, capped by a Paul Regan 3-pointer that made the score 37-28 at the break. The Hawks pulled away even further in the 3rd quarter.

Westie played their best basketball in the 4th. The shots were finally dropping. A full-court press was forcing turnovers and hampering Xaverian's offense. Taquan Skeen scored 11 points in the 4th. He and Timoy Jarrett led West Roxbury with 13 points each.

It just wasn't enough to overcome a young, but deep team from a tough league.

#14 New Mission Holds Off East Boston 62-52

The New Mission Titans were coming off a loss to Brighton, the only team from Massachusetts that has beaten them this season. The East Boston Jets were coming off a 91 point performance against Providence's Hope High School. New Mission wanted to rebound from a loss, and East Boston wanted to keep their momentum going. Eastie made it tough, but New Mission eventually wore down the Jets and took one more step toward the City Championships.

New Mission forward Isshiah Coleman dominated on defense in the 1st quarter with 3 huge blocks, but he was forced to leave the game in the 2nd when he was injured trying to haul in a rebound.

Eastie was led by Will March and Dion Knight. March finished with 20 points, including 8 in the 3rd quarter. East Boston was at their best in the 3rd when they rallied to a slim lead. Dion Knight also had 8 points in the 3rd, and finished with 17.

New Mission spread their offense around. Four players finished with 10+ points. Junior guard Shaquan Murray led the Titans with 12, Juwan Gooding and 6' 6" center Chima Ebele each had 11. Sam Freeman had 10.

With the injury to Coleman, and East Boston's surge in the 3rd quarter, New Mission's depth was put to the test. The Titans passed that test, and look poised for a strong run in the City Championship and then States.

Latin Academy Sweeps Indoor Track and Field City Championships

The Dragons of Boston Latin Academy won City Championships in both boys' and girls' Indoor Track & Field at the Reggie Lewis Center this afternoon.

In the boys' Championship, BLA started strong. Malik Anderson won the 55 Meter Dash with a time of 6.69 seconds. Sekou Stuppard followed that with a win in the 300 Meters. Anderson and Stuppard would later finish 5th and 4th in the High Jump, respectively.

The Dragons were consistently solid in each event, scoring points in all but one. Xavier Hill scored points in both the 55 Meter Hurdles and the Long Jump, with a jump of 19 feet, 2.5 inches. Damian Cruz finished 3rd in the shot-put with a toss of 40 feet, 4.5 inches. These points were vital, and gave BLA a 10 point lead going into the relays.

Latin finished 4th in the 4x200 Relay, but O'Bryant finished out of the points in 8th. That clinched the boys' Championship for the Dragons.

In the girls' Championship, BLA dominated from start to finish. DiAndrea Galloway won the High Jump and finished 2nd in the 55 Meter Dash. Ashley Lewis finished 2nd in the 300 Meters, and 5th in the High Jump. BLA scored 2nd and 3rd place in the 300. Then finished 1-2-3 in the 600 Meters, then 3-4-5 in the 1000. Catherine Van Even won the 1 Mile and the girls' Championship belonged to Latin Academy. As icing on the cake, the Dragons won the 4x400 relay.

Latin Academy finished with 120 points, almost a third of the total available.

This is 3rd straight City Championship for BLA's girls' indoor team.

Photo Gallery of the Event on Facebook

Here are the rankings from both Championships:

Boys':
1. Latin Academy - 58 points
2. O'Bryant - 51
3. Dorchester - 48
4. Brighton - 37
5. South Boston - 36
6. Charlestown - 30
7. Snowden - 23
8. East Boston - 21
8. West Roxbury - 21
10. English - 13
11. The Burke - 12
12. Madison Park - 10
13. CASH - 6
13. New Mission - 6

Girls':
1. Latin Academy - 120 points
2. O'Bryant - 83
3. West Roxbury - 67
4. Snowden - 24
5. New Mission - 23
6. Dorchester - 18
7. East Boston - 12
8. CASH - 10
9. South Boston - 8
10. Brighton - 4
11. English - 3

This Week in City League Sports

Here's a schedule of events in the City League this week:

TUESDAY:
Boys' Basketball:
3:30pm - CASH @ Latin Academy
5:30pm - English @ O'Bryant
6:00pm - Madison Park @ #11 Brighton

Girls' Basketball:
3:30pm - Brighton @ CASH (game played at the Grover Cleveland School in Dorchester)
4:00pm - Fenway @ Madison Park
4:00pm - O'Bryant @ English
4:30pm - Latin Academy @ Charlestown

Indoor Track & Field
3:00pm - City Championships - Reggie Lewis Center


WEDNESDAY:
Boys' Basketball:
4:30pm - Excel @ Burke
4:30pm - Dorchester/Tech Boston @ Snowden (game played at the Holland School in Dorchester)
5:00pm - #14 New Mission @ East Boston
5:00pm - Fenway @ Marian (Framingham, MA)
7:00pm - West Roxbury @ Cambridge Rindge & Latin

Girls' Basketball:
3:00pm - Burke @ Dorchester/Tech Boston
4:30pm - Madison Park @ Milton
5:30pm - East Boston @ Snowden (game played at the McCormack Middle School in Dorchester)
6:00pm - West Roxbury @ New Mission (game played at former Hyde Park H.S. gym)

THURSDAY:
Boys' Basketball:
5:00pm - CASH @ Randolph

Girls' Basketball:
4:30pm - Latin Academy @ West Roxbury

FRIDAY:
Boys' Basketball:
4:00pm - Fenway @ CASH (game played at the Grover Cleveland School in Dorchester)
4:30pm - East Boston @ Snowden (game played at the Holland School in Dorchester)
5:30pm - Excel @ #7 BC High (Dorchester, MA)
6:00pm - Latin Academy @ Dorchester/Tech Boston
6:00pm - Madison Park @ #14 New Mission (game played at former Hyde Park H.S. gym)
7:00pm - #11 Brighton @ English
7:00pm - O'Bryant @ Charlestown

Girls' Basketball:
3:30pm - CASH @ West Roxbury
3:30pm - Snowden @ Latin Academy
4:00pm - English @ Burke
4:30pm - Excel @ East Boston
4:30pm - Dorchester/Tech Boston @ Brighton
5:30pm - New Mission @ O'Bryant
6:00pm - Charlestown @ Fenway (game played at the Shelburne Center in Roxbury)

SATURDAY:
Boys' Basketball:
2:30pm - Charlestown @ Cathedral (Boston)
3:00pm - West Roxbury @ Xaverian (Westwood, MA)

Girls' Basketball:
7:00pm - New Mission @ Somerville