Weekly Sports Roundup, October 17-24

The Wakefield High football team took over first place in the Middlesex League Small School Division last week with a 14-6 home win over Burlington on Oct. 21 in conference play.

The Red Devils’ Marcus Odiah staked the visitors to a 6-0 lead in the first quarter, while their defense kept the Warriors off the board heading into the half. Wakefield got its act together after the break, and a third-quarter rushing touchdown by Josh Puccio from seven yards out tied the score, while Brian Auld’s PAT provided what would prove to be the winning point. The Warriors added another score in the final frame when James Bourque connected with Matt McKenna for a 20-yard touchdown, and Auld added another PAT to provide Wakefield with its final margin of victory.

The Warriors are now 6-1 overall, and 2-0 in the ML Small, and will host Stoneham on Oct. 28.

Boys Soccer, Northeast Metro Tech
The Knights (7-4, 5-2) picked up a win against Commonwealth Athletic Conference Lower Division foe Mystic Valley last week in a crossover game, grabbing a 6-0 victory in convincing fashion. Northeast currently occupies second place in the CAC Upper Division, trailing only Chelsea, who have yet to lose in league play.

Girls Soccer, Wakefield High
The Lady Warriors (5-7-2) earned a 3-0 win over Melrose on Oct.18, and dueled Burlington to a 1-1 draw on Oct. 20. Junior striker Kaitlyn Manning provided the goal for Wakefield, with senior captain Tori Berg picking up the assist. The win leaves the Lady Warriors in need of six points to qualify for the MIAA Tournament with four games left in the season.

Girls Soccer, Northeast Metro Tech
Northeast’s girls soccer team still hasn’t found a winning combination and dropped two more games last week. The Lady Knights (0-8) fell to Shawsheen Tech on the road, losing 6-0 on Oct. 20, and failed to get a result against Greater Lowell at home on Oct. 21, falling by a 4-0 margin.

Girls Field Hockey
The Wakefield High field hockey squad picked up a pair of critical road wins over ML Small opposition last week, besting border rivals Melrose, 3-0, on Oct. 18, and snagging a hard-fought 1-0 decision at Burlington on Oct. 20. The Lady Warriors are now 4-7-1 overall, and 4-6 in conference play.

Boys Cross Country - Wakefield High
The Warriors picked up a 19-42 win over the Wildcats of Wilmington in a ML Small clash on Wakefield’s 3-mile course. Senior Stephen Roberts paced the field, taking first place with a time of 16:48, while sophomore Aaron Lucci locked down second at 16:52. Senior James Bridges placed fourth, finishing in 17:14, while junior Jared Gellar rounded out the top five with a 17:16 mark. The Warriors remain perfect at 6-0 overall, and 4-0 in league play.

Boys Cross Country - Northeast Metro Tech
The Knights are still in search of their first win of the year, after falling to CAC Lower crossover rival Mystic Valley, 17-68, on Oct. 17. Northeast is now 0-4 on the year.

Girls Cross Country - Wakefield High
The Lady Warriors were edged out by Wilmington on Oct. 18, 27-29, slipping to 4-2 overall and 3-1 in the ML Small. Despite the setback, Wakefield remains at the top of the league table. Kelly Ledoux Walsh paced Wakefield, taking second place at 20:08, while Jen Saponaro finished third with a 21:03 mark.

Girls Cross Country - Northeast Metro Tech
On the girls side of the track, the Lady Knights fared no better than their male counterparts and lost to Mystic Valley 16-55 in a CAC crossover match on Oct. 17. The loss leaves Northeast at 0-4 on the year.

Mystic Runners Lake Q 5k
The weekly excursion around Wakefield’s beautiful Lake Quannapowitt took place on Oct. 19, and North Reading’s Chas Gallant took top honors with a time of 21:42. Waltham resident Dan McCormack placed second with a 22:08 mark, while Reading’s Gerry McDonald was third at 23:14.  Stoneham’s Alicia Furbush was the fleetest female, completeing the course in 26:26, good enough for sixth place, while Mike Hartin was the highest placed Wakefieldian, finishing eighth with a time of 26:48.

Summer Tennis - Singles
The results for the 2011 Wakefield Men’s Summer Tennis Ladder were released last week, and six-time Hartshorne Cup champion Brian Robertson, the fifth-seed, finished on top of the pile for the second year in a row. Robertson outpaced Al Allard, Jonathan Owen, Elliott Miller and Jonathan Laramie in the playoffs. Mike Staffiere topped the ladder during the regular season.

Summer Tennis - Doubles
Bill Conley and Paul Normile, The Big Bad Bruins, swept through the regular season undefeated, and that momentum also carried the duo through three playoff matches on their way to the 2011 doubles crown. Just Maybe (Barry Gehron and Jim Wulff), The Extremes (Steve Hayes and Laramie) and Power Twins (Miller and Rob Imbriano) all fell to Conley and Normile.