Some of the Bartlett fans on hand for the Thanksgiving game

Text and photos by Steev Riccardo

Greeting Sports Fans!

It was frustrating and disappointing to see some very questionable calls affect the outcome of the Bartlett-Southbridge game on Thanksgiving morning, but unfortunately for the Indians, that’s the way it goes.

Not to make any excuses and take anything away from the Pioneers, who played good enough to win, but the refereeing in that game was at times suspect. The refs ruled in the Pioneers' favor on two fumbles that may have changed the outcome of the game.  Both looked like pretty bad calls.

Still the Indians made their share of mistakes and were stalled twice in the red zone and that crushed them in the end and extended their Thanksgiving Day losing streak to five.

The Hill: The Shepherd Hill Rams took care of business on Thanksgiving but all the marbles will be on the line this week.

At press time, the Rams were scheduled to take on the Doherty Highlanders Tuesday (November 27) at Foley Stadium in a rematch of their sensational meeting a few weeks back in which the Highlanders won 30-28. The winner will play Saturday morning at Gillette stadium in Foxborough.

Oxford 42-8 Loss:  If you think Bartlett coaches, players, and fans were frustrated with what happened to them on Thanksgiving morning, well then think about how the Oxford people must have felt.

Most people knew before the game even started what the outcome could be and frankly not many people were surprised.  On paper and on the field, the Oxford Pirates football team was no match for Auburn. In fact, 95% of the teams in Central Mass are no match for Auburn. They are clearly the best team in the area. Still you have to give the Pirates credit; they went out there and played the game.

The View’s stars of the week:

1. Drew Ravenelle, Shepherd Hill Football: Drew led his team back from a 20-6 deficit, scoring two touchdowns along the way, while winning the Tony Vegnone award as the Offensive MVP.

2. Chris Dutting, Shepherd Hill Football:  Dutting played a fantastic defensive game for the Rams in their Thanksgiving Day victory.

3. Alex Givins-Perry, Bartlett Football: “AGP” has been doing it all year for the Indians and the Southbridge game was no exception as he put up the big numbers and scored twice.  The junior running back finished the season with 1359 rushing yards. Not too shabby, kid.

4. Neil Flanigan, Bartlett Football: Only a sophomore, Flanigan is already getting noticed by everyone. He had a big interception against Southbridge and played a superb game in a losing effort.

5. Matt Faucher, Oxford Football:  Sophomore quarterback Faucher scored the Pirates' only touchdown with a 45-yard run and also threw for a two-point conversion.

Thanksgiving Morning sightings: Former WWE wrestler and current Nichols Bison footballer Ken Doane and Bartlett High school graduate and current Southbridge High boys basketball coach Bob Fowler were just two of the many local sports personalities seen in the crowd at the Bartlett-Southbridge game.

Emily Dawidczyk, New England All-Star: Oxford High School soccer star Emily Dawidczyk, above, continues to pile up the awards as she was named to the Mass State and the New England coaches all-star teams.  Dawidczyk led Central Mass in scoring with 32 goals this year.

High School Hoop Coming Soon:  We are anxiously awaiting the start of the high school basketball season with very high expectations for some of our local teams. 

Two teams that could be hard to stop this season will be the Bartlett boy’s team and the Shepherd Hill girl’s team. On paper both of these squads look to be built for winning.  If you want to throw a third team in that mix it would be the Oxford boys, led by defensive wiz Donny Freeland.

Until next week, see you on the sidelines! Contact This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it with any sports news and check out the new View From The Sidelines Facebook page with exclusive photos and news at https://www.facebook.com/ViewFromTheSidelines

Shepherd Hill's Taylor Daniels is awesome-- we can not tell a lie.

Text and photos by Steev Riccardo; more photos follow.

Greetings sports fans!

The high school fall sports season may have flown by this year but not before we witnessed some exciting action and some superb individual efforts and performances.

This week we take a look at some of the local female athletes who played at a premium level and earned our respect, and a nod for the View From The Sidelines fall all-star squad.

The girls’ soccer season was nothing less than spectacular this year. Oxford’s Emily "The Sweet Assassin" Dawidczyk led Central Mass in scoring. The Shepherd Hill girls played defense as well as anyone in Central Mass, and the Bartlett Indians look like they have a excellent group of underclassmen ready to turn their program around.

If you were going to start a team in these parts it would certainly begin with Emily D. on the front line, and Shepherd Hill’s Lauren Barton on the backline, and the talent doesn’t stop there.

Here is a look at some of our all-star choices:

Emily Dawidczyk, Oxford: The crème of the crop as far as Central Mass scoring goes and with her equal combination of speed and toughness, she’s a real force on the soccer field. She scored 32 goals enroute to breaking the all-time scoring record at Oxford. Next year she will be playing Division I soccer for Sacred Heart University where we have no doubt she will continue to star.

Lauren Barton, Shepherd Hill: The Shepherd Hill senior co-captain was the backbone of the Rams’ defense and an immovable force on defense, and she also has tremendous kicking ability, which make a double threat. Barton will be taking her talents to Manhattan College where she will be playing Division I soccer, quite a feat indeed.

Taylor Daniels, Shepherd Hill: One of our favorite players for her toughness and outstanding two-way play, Daniels covered a lot of ground for the Rams on both ends of the field and was instrumental in their successful season. Although hoop is her main sport, she proved to be dominant on the soccer field as well.

Gina Manzi, Oxford: One of the best defenders around, Manzi had an excellent career for the Pirates. As unselfish as it gets, she helped to make her teammates better.

Meghan Dunn, Shepherd Hill: When Dunn was called upon to take over in goal, she met the challenge and made the sacrifices for her team, and in turn became one of the best goalkeepers in Central Mass allowing less than a goal per game. Only a junior, she will be great next year at whatever position she plays.

Amanda Keovongmanysar, Shepherd Hill: Keovongmanysar led the high-powered Rams’ offense with 15 goals and 5 assists and was a force all season long. Like Barton and Daniels, Amanda K. played with grit all season.

Dani Stone, Bartlett: Stone is a hard-nose player with tremendous scoring ability and is on pace to have a record breaking senior season next year. She uses her speed to get open and used her blistering shot to lead her team with 10 goals. If she works hard in the off season, she could be a Central Mass all-star next year.

Anne Marie Markewicz, Bartlett: "Marksy" proved her value as a player when she did an outstanding job shadowing Emily Dawidczyk in a 4-2 loss to Bartlett this season. Only a freshman, she has tremendous upside.

Korra Joubert, Oxford: Only an eighth grader, Joubert scored 8 goals and added another 4 assists and along with fellow Rebecca Nguyen is part of the Pirates’ bright future.

Rams Volleyball: Despite a first round loss in the playoffs, it was a great season for the Rams who finished with an incredible 15-4 record. The team was led by their awesome senior class and co-captains Jen Green and Julie Preissler.

Girls Cross Country: Shepherd Hill was led all season by the outstanding trio of Stella Worters, Juleanna Schultz, and Brooke Packard. Bartlett found a new star in seventh grader Rachel Connor, who led them to their first winning record in eight years. Oxford received consistent contributions from Chloe Doyon.

Until next week, see you on the sidelines! Contact This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it with any sports news and check out the new View From The Sidelines Facebook page with exclusive photos and news at https://www.facebook.com/ViewFromTheSidelines

Bartlett Coach Dane Labossonniere and 2012 grad Rocco DiStefano following the Worcester South game

Text and photo by Steev Riccardo

Hello Sports fans!

If you missed the Shepherd Hill-Doherty football game at Foley Stadium last Friday night, then you missed what was probably the high school football game of the year!

The Rams may have come up on the short end of the 34-28 battle, but they certainly left it all on the field and battled right until the final seconds before being stopped inside the five-yard line with 6 seconds left.  It was an epic contest, well played by both teams, who will likely meet again in the playoffs.

Shepherd Hill can’t, however, afford to look past their Thanksgiving morning game with Tantasqua. Despite being 5-5, the Warriors are a very good football team and could be a challenge for the Rams secondary with their superb passing game.

Bartlett/Foley: The Bartlett Indians took their offensive road show to Foley Stadium and they didn’t waste any time putting points on the board with sophomore James Patterson dashing 81 yards on their second play from scrimmage.  From that point on it was the Alex Givins-Perry/Akeem Belnavis show. 

“AGP” scored three times and “The Dream” added a pair of scores as the Indians evened their record to 5-5 heading into their annual Thanksgiving battle with the Southbridge Pioneers.

It’s hard to believe that we are only a few weeks away from the end of the high school fall sports schedule.  It has been quite a been a great ride with a lot of highlights.   We will be compiling our View From The Sidelines Fall all-star team in the weeks to come and it's pretty certain that the list will include names like Barton, Dawidczyk, Ravenelle, and Belnavis, to name a few. 
 

The View’s Top 5 of the week:

1.  Emily Dawidczyk, Oxford Soccer/Track: “The Sweet Assassin” is living proof that you don’t even need to perform to be a top 5 performer of the week. Congrats to Emily on committing to play Division l soccer at Sacred Heart University.

2.  Alex Givins-Perry, Bartlett Football: AGP has done it all for the Indians this season and Saturday afternoon was no exception. The junior back only played three quarters but still rushed for 216 yards and scored three touchdowns in Bartlett 45-6 win over South.

3. Jake Gelb, Shepherd Hill Football: It's like a broken record, Jake Gelb is having a great season for the Rams and continues to blow us away week after week.

4. Neil Flanigan/Matt Pepin, Bartlett Football:  Only a sophomore, Flanigan is having a superb season on defense for the Indians. He recovered a fumble and picked off a pass this weekend against South. Making his varsity debut, Matt Pepin had six extra points and 28-yard field goal, the Indians' first and only one of the year.

5. Tyler Simmons, Shepherd Hill Football:  Senior Tyler Simmons scored a touchdown and was doing a lot of the dirty work for the Rams against Doherty, something he has been doing on a weekly basis.

Gina Manzi: Stay tuned next week for a feature on the Oxford Pirates Gina Manzi, who just finished a brilliant soccer career, and is entering her final season on the Indoor Track team before heading off to college.

Rams Girls in Top 25: Three members of the Shepherd Hill girls track cross country team all finished in the top 25 for the Central Mass Division I title. Sophomore Juleanna Schultz came in third, Junior Stella Worters finished sixth and sophomore Lucy Harmon came in 25^th place.

Until next week, see you on the sidelines! Contact This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it with any sports news and check out the new View From The Sidelines Facebook page with exclusive photos and news at https://www.facebook.com/ViewFromTheSidelines

Text and photos by Steev Riccardo

Hello Sports fans!

It’s hard not to feel bad for the 1-8 Oxford Pirates football team and first year head coach Mike Adams, who lost to Shepherd Hill 30-7 on Friday night. Not only is their schedule ridiculously difficult but on top of that they are in a rebuilding season.

There isn’t a team in Central Mass that would want to play Grafton, Northbridge, Shepherd Hill, Leicester, and Auburn in a row. These are all playoff-bound teams and there isn’t a weak one in the bunch. When you add Bay Path and Tantasqua to their schedule, you can see what a rough road it’s been for the Pirates.

I doubt that when Coach Adams received his welcome package that the letter looked anything like this:

“Dear Coach Adams:  Congratulations on your new job as the head coach of the Oxford Pirates.  Oxford is a small school and the team is rebuilding, but we know you won’t mind playing a minimum seven superior playoff teams in your first year here. In other words you have been awarded the most difficult schedule in Central Mass but you do get to travel 48 miles to play Nashoba Tech and you might win that game. Good luck.”

All joking aside, the MIAA is supposedly working on new schedules and a new playoff system which will be in place next season and there is even a rumor floating around that Oxford and Bartlett may play each other in football as early as next year.  We sure hope that is true. That would not only be good for the teams, but also the towns and the possibility of renewing that rivalry could be rewarding.
 

The View’s Top 5 of the week:

1. Alex Givins-Perry, Bartlett football:  “AGP” scored four touchdowns against David Prouty, all beauties.  He also went over the 1,000-yard mark for the season, which was pretty amazing since he missed two games due to injury and still has two more to go.

2. Jake Gelb, Shepherd Hill football: Jake has been improving every game and has suddenly become one of the Rams' biggest and best weapons. He scored twice against Oxford, bringing his touchdown total to 7 on the season.
 

3. Taylor Daniels, Shepherd Hill girl’s soccer:  The senior star, playing in her last game of her career, scored an outstanding goal in the teams loss to Shrewsbury. Her coach Sarah Garneau called it the best goal she’s seen all year.

4. Shepherd Hill Girls volleyball team (above): Entering the districts the Rams looked pretty unbeatable.  Danielle Watkins, Jen Green and company are on a tear.  Danielle Watkins gets extra points; she usually also sings the national anthem before every home game.

5. Akeem Belnavis, Bartlett Football: “The Dream” had two touchdowns and close to 100 yards rushing in the Indians' win over Prouty on Friday and leads the Indians in scores this season.

Indians, Rams soccer season over:  Before we were able to even see a Bartlett or Shepherd Hill boys soccer playoff game, both teams were eliminated in their opening round games on Friday. The Indians (8-8-2) lost their match to David Prouty 2-0 and the Rams (9-6-4) fell to Hudson 1-0.

The Rams' Tyler Martin finished the season with 21 goals and 14 assists, leading all local scorers.

Oxford Boys Soccer: The Oxford Pirates has tough year at 4-10-3 although they did close out season winning two out of their last three games. Donny Freeland, who also happens to be one of our favorite local hoop stars, finished the season with 10 goals leading the Pirates.

Shepherd Hill Girls Volleyball: Coach Tom Caffelle has been blessed this season with an amazing senior class of excellent volleyball players (see photo).  They finished 15-3, which was pretty amazing considering they play a lot of really good volleyball teams.

Rocco: It was great to see Rocco DiStefano (View From The Sidelines Super-teamer 2012) in attendance at the Bartlett-David Prouty game on Friday night. The Springfield College Freshman is playing football at the school and was also just chosen the president of his class. 

It was also pretty ironic that Rocco would come to the Prouty game. It was a year ago that he teamed with DJ Kirby-Thomas, who was also in attendance, to make the play of the year against this very same Prouty team at a game played at Worcester Tech.

BHS Golf All-Stars:Bartlett High School senior golfers Brett Tetreault and Matt Huberdault were both named to the SWCL All Star team. Tetreault has a first teamer and Huberdault was picked on the second team.

Tetreault, who is a four-year varsity golfer, placed fifth in the SWCL tournament finishing with an amazing 78.  Huberdault, a three-year player, was 15^th with an 84.

Until next week, see you on the sidelines! Contact This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it with any sports news and check out the new View From The Sidelines Facebook page with exclusive photos and news at https://www.facebook.com/ViewFromTheSidelines

Text and photos by Steev Riccardo

Greeting Sports Fans! It was another great week in local sports, highlighted by the SWCL cross-country meet at Memorial Beach in Webster last Thursday.

Before we get to the fun stuff —and that’s what this column is really about, having fun— consider this. Too many people take sports too seriously; the bottom line is that sports are supposed to be fun, especially when kids are involved..

There are two things that are really bugging me that need to addressed, so I will attempt to do so in the kindest way possible.

I have no other way to sugarcoat my observation that some really rude people were at the Bartlett-Leicester game— some even involved in the game in one way or another.  From the greeting that you receive when you enter the field to the hometown announcer, some folks seem to forget this is high school sports.

The hometown announcer was basically cheering for the hometown team while announcing the game, and he was absolutely obnoxious, probably the most obnoxious announcer I have ever heard at a high school football game. It was a little uncomfortable. They might as well let one of their cheerleaders announce the game if it’s going to be that one-sided.

To make matters even worse, there was a very huge man who decided that he needed to cheer very loudly for Leicester behind the Bartlett bench and smoke cigarettes while he was doing it. Hello? This was a high school, a place where smoking is not allowed. I wanted to say something to him but I feared for my life. Eventually the authorities did show up and the guy got booted, but it was not soon enough.

My second gripe this week is with the MIAA, and this is a topic that I will be elaborating on with a full story in the future.  It is time for the MIAA to stop scheduling games between Shepherd Hill and both Bartlett and Oxford. These schools are not equal in numbers and size; they haven’t been for a while.

I think if you polled the people, even Shepherd Hill coaches would agree. 

Do I think Bartlett and Oxford could beat Shepherd Hill in boys’ basketball this year? Yes I actually do, but that might be the only exception and maybe that might be the one sport in which they could still play each other.  As far as football, soccer, and track go, I am not so sure.

Shepherd Hill is playing Oxford in football this Friday and it’s probably the most lopsided contest in Central Mass.  Honestly I feel for both teams. What kind of thrill can Shepherd Hill players and coaches get out of beating a team that they significantly outmatch and what about the Pirates, they are going out there to play, no doubt about that, And they will probably play their hearts out, but seriously what are the odds that they can win? 
 

All fingers point to MIAA and its time they make some changes. They have to, because it is not much fun watching obvious mismatches between schools that are not even close in size.  

The View’s Top 5 performers of the week:

1. Stella Worters, Shepherd Hill Girls Cross Country:  Stella Worters has had an outstanding fall and it’s only going to get better once track starts.

2. Drew Ravenelle, Shepherd Hill Football:  It was only a matter of time before Drew Ravenelle starting throwing the ball more. This week he even threw a couple of touchdown passes.

3. Shepherd Hill girls soccer team: The Rams finished 13-2-3 and are looking to go deep into the playoffs.

4. Brian Tondel, Bartlett boy’s soccer: Sophomore goalie Brian Tondel has been quietly having an excellent season in goal.

5. Rachel Connor, Bartlett Cross Country:  Rachel Connor is only a seventh grader and already is Bartlett’s top runner. This girl could really be something.
 

“The Sweet Assassin”:  It looks like Emily Dawidczyk is going to win the Central Mass girls soccer scoring title which is an incredible accomplishment even for “The Sweet Assassin.”  With the soccer season over, one has to wonder when Emily will be making her decision about schools.  There are lots of rumors circulating, and we will let you know as soon as we know.

Photo of the Week: Oxford girls soccer co-captain Gina Manzi gets physical against Millbury.

Until next week, see you on the sidelines! Contact This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it with any sports news and check out the new View From The Sidelines Facebook page with exclusive photos and news at https://www.facebook.com/ViewFromTheSidelines

Congratulations to Bartlett soccer coach, Ryan Renauld

By Steev Riccardo

Greeting Sports Fans!

Congratulations to Bartlett High School soccer coach Ryan Renauld who won his 100^th game as the Indians soccer team defeated Blackstone-Millville 2-0 on Saturday at Bartlett High School.

“It was shocking because I didn’t think I would be around long enough to do it,” said Renauld, “but it’s not really me that does it, it’s the guys on the field that do it.”

Renauld started coaching in 2004 and is in his ninth year as the Indians coach. “I have been fortunate enough to have good quality guys who have been willing to work hard and trust each other. They treat each other like a family and I am very proud of the fact that this program is a family.  The guys can come back. I have two guys that were on the team last year that came back to run sidelines for me, not because I asked them to, they came back because they still want to be a part of it and that means a lot to me and that is what high school sports should be.”

“To see him get his 100^th win today makes me feel very proud of him. Playing for him was a great experience, he was a great coach,” said 2012 graduate Christian McManus, who was on hand to see his former coach’s achievement.

After a slow start this season, the 6-7-2 Indians suddenly find themselves in position to get a playoff berth if they can win two of their final three games. 

“I am proud of the guys, we battled a lot of adversity at the beginning of the year. We had a lot of injuries and we were playing the beasts of SWCL. The guys stayed positive and it never weighed on them. We are better than our record and we are young so it took a lot of mental toughness and it started to come. There is a lot of young energy out there.”

The View’s Top 5 performers of the week:

1 Taylor Daniels, (above, center) Shepherd Hill Girls Soccer: There were lots of stars this past week for the Shepherd Hill Rams girls soccer team, so it’s hard to single out just one, but all you have to do is watch senior Taylor Daniels play and you will get it. She is one of the best two players in Central Mass and along with Oxford’s Emily Dawidczyk definitely one of the most physical. It’s hard not to notice her game.

2 Akeem Belnavis, Bartlett Indians Football: Akeem Belnavis rose to the occasion in a big way last Friday in the Indians’ 26-20 win over Millbury.  The senior co-captain scored four times, including an amazing 80-yard catch in the final minutes that won the green the game.

3 Shepherd Hill Football Team: Many people picked Northbridge to beat the Shepherd Hill Rams this weekend and I am not going to lie, I was one of them. The Rams proved everyone wrong and put up 42 points against a very good Northbridge team and deserve a lot of credit.

4 Kody Morio, Bartlett Soccer:  Kody Morio scored two goals in the Indians’ win over Blackstone Millville. Morio has been playing very well, as has his team, which is on a roll and making a late push for a playoff spot.

5 Ricky Spooner, Bartlett Indians Football: A lot of people have been waiting for Ricky Spooner to arrive and this past Friday night the junior quarterback did just that it a huge way, helping his team beat Millbury in an important game for the Indians.

Shepherd Hill Boys Soccer: The Shepherd Hill boy’s soccer team tied Auburn 1-1 last Thursday night.

Senior Adam Darling, who battled back from two injuries to play said, “We dominated the whole game, Matt (Beauregard) scored an awesome goal and we held the lead for the entire game and we were dominating and they scored that late goal. We are healthy now which is the most important thing and we clinched a spot in the districts”.

Photo Of The Week: Shepherd Hill field hockey girl’s battle against Auburn last week.

Game Of The Week: Bartlett at Leicester. This should be a real battle between two teams that beat on each other pretty good last year and have a lot at stake with a playoff berth looming.

Until next week, see you on the sidelines! Contact This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it with any sports news and check out the new View From The Sidelines Facebook page with exclusive photos and news at https://www.facebook.com/ViewFromTheSidelines

Shepherd Hill's Emily Bagley. More photos follow.

Text and photos by Steev Riccardo

Greeting Sports fans!

We had another outstanding week in local sports highlighted by the Shepherd Hill Rams’ win over the Bartlett Indians in football this past weekend. If you weren’t there you missed out on one heck of a chilly night in Dudley. It was cold out there for an October night, but probably a lot colder on the bus ride home for the Indians than it was for the Rams.

This week the place to be will be Auburn high school on Thursday night when the Shepherd Hill soccer girls look to break the Rockets 30-something unbeaten streak.

The View’s Top 5 performers of the week:

1 Jake Gelb, Shepherd Hill Football:  Jake Gelb scored on a 47-yard run in the third quarter to put the game out of reach in the Rams 40-14 win over Bartlett.  Gelb has been playing well all year for the Rams.

2 Matt Faucher, Oxford Football: Sophomore quarterback Matt Faucher, who has played big all season for the Pirates, had a huge game leading his team to their first win of the season and the first win for head coach Mike Adams.

3 Gerald Davis, Oxford Golf:  Gerald Davis earned an invitation to the Division 2 District playoffs this week.

4 Jen Green, Julie Preissler, and the Shepherd Hill volleyball team: The Rams have been outstanding this season and are looking like one of the teams to beat this year in the Districts. They took care of Whitinsville Christian this week to improve to 11-1.

5 Nichols Bison Football:  Kevin Loney and his Nichols Bison football team snapped a 17- game losing streak on Saturday, defeating UMass-Dartmouth 26-16. It was also Loney’s first victory as head coach of the Bison.

Emily Bagley (photo above): Shepherd Hill senior Emily Bagley was a three-sport (soccer, basketball, softball) star athlete at Shepherd Hill until a series of concussions curtailed her soccer and basketball careers.

She is now relegated to playing only softball. She still remains very active with her teams.

Bagley can now be seen working on the sidelines for the Rams soccer team as an assistant trainer to Jay Giroux, who recruited her once she became unable to compete any longer.

She suffered the first concussion when she tore her retina in a soccer injury when she was only a freshman. She calls her sophomore year “a big blur” and was forced to start seeing a sports psychologist. 

Bagley received another concussion in a basketball game when she was the varsity team’s starting point guard and was hit in the jaw in a game against Auburn.

“It was really tough for me and I started suffering from depression. When I came back the deal was that if I got one more concussion, then I couldn’t play any more contact sports. During my junior year I was playing (goal) keeper and I came out on a breakaway and the girl missed the ball and kicked me in the head and I had a very large bump. I was taken out in an ambulance and I couldn’t walk.”

“That is when I was told to stop sports overall but that was too tough for me and that is when my mom and I came up with the agreement that I would no longer play any contact sports.”

“It was tough watching the girls play soccer at the beginning but you have to get through it and think positively”. 
She will be playing second base this spring for the Rams and hopes to attend Southern Vermont College next fall and study to be an X-ray Technician.

\
Don Cushing: It was great as usual to see Don “Cuffy“ Cushing, who was refereeing the Bartlett-Southbridge soccer game last week.

The legendary hoop coach was eager to talk about former St. Joseph’s and current Bartlett sophomore Jacob Mailoux, who at 6’4” will be a welcome addition to the Indians frontcourt this winter. 

Of course I initiated the conversation, being enamored with the Indians front line this season which will also include Akeem Belnavis and Alex Givens-Perry, but hearing the hall of fame coach agree with me only justified my thought process.

John Zablocki: Stay tuned for some upcoming news on some boxing in Webster in November from professional boxing referee local John Zablocki. We ran into “Zab” on the sidelines of the football game on Friday and the Shepherd Hill grad is excited about the upcoming bill. He is also excited about seeing his daughter Jordan play hoop for the Rams this winter!

Anne Marie Markewicz (above): It has been a great rookie season for Bartlett freshman Anne Marie Markewicz on the soccer field. People are still talking about her great performance against Oxford’s Emily Dawidczyk earlier this year.

Lindsay Bond: It was nice seeing Lindsay Bond, who was with her cousin Alyssa, on the sidelines in Dudley on Friday (photo above).

Game Of The Week: The rematch between Shepherd Hill and Auburn in girl’s soccer on Thursday, October 18, in Auburn should be a real dandy.

Until next week, see you on the sidelines! Contact This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it with any sports news and check out the new View From The Sidelines Facebook page with exclusive photos and news at https://www.facebook.com/ViewFromTheSidelines

Text  and photos by Steev Riccardo. Photos follow.

Greeting Sports fans.

A year ago, I fell victim to my heart, as one should, unless one is picking sports teams. I made a bold prediction in print that my alma mater, Bartlett High School, would beat Shepherd Hill in their annual football dance. 

That didn’t work out so well as the Rams scored on the opening kickoff and the Indians fumbled on their first possession en route to an ugly 40-14 loss and I found myself a week later sitting in a room with the entire administration of the Dudley-Charlton School Committee. Yup, that was slightly embarrassing.

This season, I am going to leave the predictions to guys like the other columnist that writes for the Patriot and that Jim Wilson dude. Still, even though on paper it doesn’t look good for Bartlett, I think the boys will show up to play and we are going to have a real battle on our hands. After all, this is a rivalry and records don’t mean much in games like this.

I really like what the Indians did last week offensively against Uxbridge and if they can block for Alex Givins-Perry and their other talented backs, they will have a chance to win.

Defensively, the Indians will have to be superb to keep Drew Ravenelle, Brad Picard, and the Rams’ excellent offensive line intact.  There really isn’t much room for error for the Indians. You can throw the Auburn game out the window, they are the best team in Central Mass and they are dismantling everyone, not just Shepherd Hill. 

This game should be a lot of fun.

The View’s Top 5 performers of the week:

1. Alex Givins-Perry, Bartlett Football:  Junior Alex Givins-Perry aka “The Human Wrecking Machine” ran for 273 yards and scored three touchdowns against Uxbridge, a performance that puts him up there with some of the best in Bartlett history.

2. Meghan Dunn, Shepherd Hill Soccer: Meghan Dunn has been incredible in net all season for the Rams. Last week she led her team by Leicester and Tantasqua, giving up only two goals in a pair of 2-1 wins.

3. Emily Dawidczyk, Oxford Soccer: “The Sweet Assassin” scored a hat trick against a very strong undefeated Auburn Rockets team in a 5-3 loss, giving her a Central Mass-leading 27 goals on the season.

4. Shepherd Hill Girls Volleyball team:  The Rams continued their volleyball dominance with a 3-0 win over Tantasqua last week. They improved to 10-1 on the season.

5. Akeem Belnavis:  Akeem “The Dream” Belnavis had a pair of long touchdown runs in Bartlett’s huge win over Uxbridge and also some time at quarterback, which is a new wrinkle that the Indians added to their explosive offense.

Sideline chatter: Oxford Pirates Soccer star Blair Reilly on teammate Bethanie Keefe: “Bethany has really stepped it up this year. It was hard to find a goalie but she has really taken on that role and played well.”

Anthony Wilga and Adam Darling would make a great comedy team

Adam Darling: We ran into Shepherd Hill soccer star Adam Darling in Auburn at the football game on Friday. Darling was sporting a cast on his sprained ankle, which will keep him out for at least three weeks but insists he will be back to help his team.  He was also “bragging” about his skills on the bowling alley and actually told us something we didn’t know. The Hill has a bowling team?  That’s right and Adam insists he is a top-notch bowler.

Along Darling’s side while we spoke was former Rams star footballer Anthony Wilga, who spent a lot of time smiling and nodding while Darling did his sermon.  He also showed us his swollen and purple ankle which I photographed but chose not to run here because it’s gross looking.

Shepherd Hill Girls Junior Varsity team with their ultra-cool coach Ashley Gustafson (far left)

Amanda Keovongmanysar: One player you can’t miss if you see the Shepherd Hill girl’s soccer team play is Amanda Keovongmanysar, who is not only a great player but also has one of the most interesting names.  To think we thought that Dawidczyk and Laboissonniere were hard names to spell, Amanda K. certainly has them beat.

The senior soccer star was on a real high following the Rams 2-1 win over Tantasqua, a team they rarely beat. She told us that Meghan Dunn played “fantastic in slippery conditions” and also praised the overall play of her entire team.

“We have done really well, we stepped it up in the big games but every game matters to us. We have played up to par with Algonquin and Miinechaug, two of the best teams in the state and tied both of them.”

The Rams have already clinched a playoff berth, but Amanda said that her team would not be taking any breathers because they are looking for some home playoff games.

She also praised teammate Lauren Barton, who reportedly will be playing Division 1 soccer for Manhattan College in the fall.

Photo of the Week (above): Oxford Field Hockey stars Jamie Brodeur and Ashley Mikkila, who were doing stats for the Oxford Pirates football team in Tantasqua on Saturday afternoon, took time with us to pose for a photo. Game(s) of the Week: It’s all about the battle on the hill Friday night in Dudley at 7 between the Indians and the Rams. The records don’t matter; this one is always about the pride.

Until next week, see you on the sidelines! Contact This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it with any sports news and check out the new View From The Sidelines Facebook page with exclusive photos and news at https://www.facebook.com/ViewFromTheSidelines

Photo of the week: Bartlett Indians Billy Phillips and the agony of defeat.

Text and photos by Steev Riccardo

If you have been reading this column for the last 13 months, then there is one name that you can probably spell without a problem – Emily Dawidczyk.

The 2011 View From The Sidelines Athlete of the year is at it again.

Last Thursday “The Sweet Assassin,” as we have so fondly named her, put on an unforgettable performance against Shepherd Hill as she and the Lady Pirates played the 6-1-3 Rams to a 6-6 tie in girls’ soccer.

Dawidczyk scored all six Pirates goals in a record-breaking effort that made her the all time leading scorer in Pirates history with 80 goals.

Now if you have been following “The Sweet Assassin,” you know she already holds several track records at Oxford and is a shoe-in for the OHS Athletic Hall of Fame. She is also on the verge of being heavily recruited.  It’s safe to say that we are talking Division 1 schools, which would be a rare and incredible feat for an athlete from this area.

When she been asked if she would rather play soccer or run track in college, she has yet to really give this reporter a definitive answer, but if I was to guess, I would say that she is playing big time college soccer a year from now.  That is just a guess though.

The View’s Top 5 of the week:

1. Emily Dawidczyk, Oxford High School girls’ soccer: 6 goals vs. Shepherd Hill and a record breaking 80 goals.

2. Amanda Keovongmanysar, Shepherd Hill girls’ soccer: The Shepherd Hill senior with a big kick scored a hat trick against Oxford in a 6-6 tie.

3. Brad Picard, Shepherd Hill football: The senior captain has been a spark all year. Against Gardner on Friday he had a sweet 53-yard run for a touchdown.

4. Marisa Colby, Shepherd Hill girls’ field hockey: The Rams goaltender recorded the shutout in her team’s 5-0 win over Oxford last week.

5. Dani Stone, Bartlett girls’ soccer:  Dani Stone continues to be a bright spot for a struggling Indians team. She scored a key goal in a 2-2 tie versus David Prouty last week for the 1-6-1 Indians.

Pirates lost 41-7: The Oxford Pirates are having a tough time of it so far, dropping their fourth straight 41-7 to the Uxbridge Spartans on Saturday. Matt Faucher, who has been pretty much all the offense the Pirates can muster lately, scored the only Pirates’ touchdown.

Andrew Delille: Apologies to Bartlett defensive sparkplug Andrew “Darkness” Delille for repeatedly butchering the spelling of his name and calling him “Darkman” instead of his ultra true cool moniker of “Darkness,”

Kobel-Ravenelle connection: Bartlett freshman Katie Kobel, who can be seen on the soccer field in the fall and shooting hoops in the winter for the Indians, was also recently seen at a Shepherd Hill football game cheering for their quarterback Drew Ravenelle. Why, you ask?  Because they are first cousins! Kind of reminds me of the Lindsay Bond/Kyle McKissick/Anthony Wilga connection. 

Speaking of Kobel(s), Katie tells me that her big brother Nick Kobel is doing great at Springfield College, where he is seeing plenty of playing time on the varsity soccer team.

Game(s) of the Week:
Shepherd Hill at Auburn, Friday (Oct 5) night football
Tantasqua at Shepherd Hill, Thursday (Oct 4) day girls’ soccer

Uxbridge at Bartlett, Friday (Oct 5) night footballUntil next week, see you on the sidelines! Contact This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it with any sports news and check out the new View From The Sidelines Facebook page with exclusive photos and news at https://www.facebook.com/ViewFromTheSidelines

Shepherd Hill's Matt Vertucci (#42) was huge in the Hill's win over SPM

Text and photos by Steev Riccardo

Greetings Sports Fans!

Usually it’s the inclement weather that causes disruptions in high school sports schedules, but that wasn’t the case this past weekend in Central Mass when several game times and dates were changed due to the threat of Eastern Equine Encephalitis (EEE).

The Bartlett Indians found themselves traveling to Warren to play Quaboag at 5:00 Friday afternoon, while Shepherd Hill and St. Peter-Marian played on St. Peters-Marian’s practice field when they had to move the 7:00 start time of their game from Anna Maria College to 1:00.  The Oxford Pirates had breakfast just in time to kickoff at 11 a.m. Saturday morning.

It was a little confusing, but the games were all played and the stands were full of fans-- and that’s the bottom line. Oh, and just for the record, I got three mosquito bites in Warren at the Bartlett game. 

Next weekend schedules are already being shuffled as well. The Indians will play Nipmuc in their home opener at 5:00 in Webster, while both Shepherd Hill and Oxford, also both at home, will play afternoon games on Saturday.

The View’s Top 5 of the week: This week we unveil a new weekly feature to celebrate the top five performances of the week!  Without further adieu, check out this week’s Top 5 performances.

1. The Shepherd Hill Rams offensive line: There were many great performances within the Shepherd Hill-St. Peters-Marian game, but none bigger than the Rams offensive line, which is outstanding once again this season.

2. Emily “The Sweet Assassin” Dawidczyk: “The Sweet Assassin” is on fire with 13 goals in the Oxford Pirates first four games. At this rate, Dawidczyk is going to set some marks that may never be matched. We are really looking forward to seeing how Shepherd Hill defends Emily on Thursday (September 27), should be interesting.

3. Alex Givens-Perry:  I saw AGP before the Indians-Quaboag game and I told him he needed to rush for over 100 yards to insure an Indians win and he just nodded. He didn’t let his team down and also scored a touchdown in the win in a solid performance.

4. Shepherd Hill Girls soccer team: The Rams are on fire and from what star players Tine Gauvin and Taylor Daniels (also part of the Rams outstanding hoop team) told me this weekend, this is only the beginning.  The girls are off to a 4-0-1 start after beating Bartlett 11-2 and tying Algonquin on Saturday.

5. Shepherd Hill senior running back Matt Vertucci: Vertucci was outstanding on Saturday with a 69-yard touchdown run and another big run for 44 yards.  Drew Ravenelle, who Vertucci edged out for the #5 spot, raved about his teammate after his performance on Saturday, telling us he deserves a lot of credit for the team’s early success.

Nick Lemay: We ran into former Oxford Pirate star pitcher Nick Lemay this past weekend at the Oxford-Worcester South football game and the lefty told us that he is getting ready to play Fall baseball for Becker College. He also said he may be getting the nod on the mound in the team’s opener, which will be in Florida. We are not surprised.

Secret Agent Soccer Bond: Turns out Lindsay Bond has joined the Anna Maria College soccer team as a walk on last week and even played in the team’s opener last Saturday. Looks like the Secret Agent will be playing three sports this year at Anna Maria. Just like the old days.

Lockdown Defenders: It was unlikely that Bartlett freshmen Anne Marie Markiewicz had any clue whatsoever who Emily Dawidczyk was when Bartlett coach Colleen Nasis told her that she would be guarding the Oxford all-star last week.  Nevertheless “Marksy” took it all in stride and then did excellent job covering the senior.

Until next week, see you on the sidelines! Contact This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it with any sports news and check out the new View From The Sidelines Facebook page with exclusive photos and news at https://www.facebook.com/ViewFromTheSidelines