Weekly Sports Roundup, Sept. 26 - Oct. 2

With another full schedule of games on the docket last week, the student-athletes of Wakefield saw plenty of action across several arenas of competition, while the Mystic Runners circumnavigated Lake Quannapowitt, as usual. Here’s the rundown from the fields, pools, courts and courses of Wakefield.

Football
Wakefield High (3-1) rolled past visiting Belmont, 37-7, on Oct. 1, scoring all 37 of its points before the Marauders could muster a response. The Warriors are now one game off the pace in what is looking to be a very competitive Middlesex League Small School Division.

The Warriors began their 19-point first quarter with a bang when Dan Cardillo returned a punt 67 yards for a touchdown, giving Wakefield a 6-0 lead following a missed PAT attempt. Josh Puccio broke off a 19-yard touchdown run that made the score 13-0 after Brian Auld’s PAT, and Matt McKenna capped off the opening frame, hauling in an 81-yard touchdown pass from Jamie Bourque, who completed five of eight pass attempts for 219 yards and three touchdowns. Puccio and Cardillo each caught touchdown passes from Bourque in the second quarter, before Sam Benoit collected Wakefield’s final score of the game, a 2-yard effort, in the fourth.

Wakefield will travel to face Arlington next week, on Oct. 6.

Cross Country - Boys, Wakefield High
The Warriors (3-0) traveled to Watertown’s 2.8-mile course, and served the Raiders a 15-50 defeat, capturing the top seven places in the process. Stephen Robertson eased to a first-place finish with a time of 15:39, nearly 30 seconds faster than teammate Aaron Lucci, who took second at 16:03. James Bridges placed third, crossing the finish in 16:31, while Marc Bucchieri (16:32) and Jonathan Miksis (16:32) were close behind, finishing fourth and fifth respectively. Jared Gellar was sixth at 16:42 and Chris Hadded rounded out the Warriors’ magnificent seven, finishing the course in 16:43.

Cross Country - Girls, Wakefield High
Wakefield’s girls team also emerged victorious in Watertown and earned a 15-45 win over the Lady Raiders, taking the top five spots along the way. Kelly Ledoux-Walsh captured the top prize, finishing the course on 20:25, while Jen Sapanoro (20:31) placed second. Emily Curran (20:52) and Lucy Howard (20:52) came in third and fourth respectively, while Lauren Sallade (20:56) was the fifth and final member of the fleet-footed five. Wakefield is now 2-1 overall and 1-0 in the ML Small.

Soccer - Boys - Wakefield High
After surrendering a pair of first-half goals, the Warriors managed to pull one back in the second half thanks to a penalty kick, but that was as close as they would get to Middlesex League Small rivals Wilmington, succumbing to the Wildcats 2-1 on Sept. 26. 

Soccer - Boys, Northeast Metro Tech
The Knights split a pair of games last week, and are now sitting at 5-3 overall and 3-1 in the Commonwealth Athletic Conference Upper Division. Northeast Metro took a real pounding at the hands of non-league opponent Rockport on Sept. 26, and fell by a 6-0 margin, before rebounding the following day to topple CAC rivals North Shore Tech by an identical 6-0 scoreline.

Soccer - Girls, Wakefield High
Wakefield High’s girls soccer team took on ML Small newcomers Wilmington on Sept. 26, and fell 2-0. The Wildcats never looked like losing, maintaining control throughout and allowing the Lady Warriors only one clear cut scoring chance—when Kaitlyn Manning got behind the defense, but was shut down by the Wildcats’ ‘keeper during the first half.

Soccer - Girls, Northeast Metro Tech
The Knights hooked up with the Shawsheen Tech Rams on Sept. 26, and were served with a 6-0 drubbing. Still seeking their first win of the season, the Northeast Metro girls soccer team will look to improve its fortunes next week.

Golf - Wakefield High
The Warriors (4-7 overall, 2-2 ML) played three times last week, and managed to take two of those three contests. On Sept. 27, Wakefield traveled to face Watertown on the road and emerged with a 40.5-31.5 victory. The next day, the Warriors suffered their only defeat of the week, falling 37-35 in Winthrop, before bouncing back nicely on Sept. 29 to return the favor, downing the Vikings 40-32 in Wakefield.

Mystic Runners Lake Q 5K
The weekly running of the Lake Q 5k took place on Sept. 28, and Medford resident Cam Manning came away the winner, capturing the top spot with a time of 19.52, while Middleton’s Greg Mastrangelo was runner-up at 20.16. Gerry McDonald of Reading was third at 20.28, Tim Brierley of Lynnfield took fourth at 20.29 and John Sievers, also a Lynnfield resident, rounded out the top five with a time of 20.53. Bob Broderick was the fastest Wakefieldian on the day, taking seventh place at 22.19, and Naomi Lainge was the fleetest female, placing eighth with a time of 22.44.