Indoor track buzz, Pirates defense, and Alex Givens-Perry

By Steev Riccardo

There was a tremendous buzz in the air last Wednesday (Feb. 1) at the Southern Worcester County League Indoor Track Championship Meet at Tantasqua Regional.
 
First of all, the facility at the high school in Fiskdale is just plain fantastic and the hosts for the event were terrific.  Secondly, the talent level of the local schools and how they were represented in the meet was top notch.  We could name over a dozen athletes and they all would deserve to have their name here, that’s just how good this group is. The talent pool is deep.

Shepherd Hill’s Stella Worters may be only a sophomore, but she was exceptional, as was her teammate on the boys’ side, Leonard Harmon, who had one of the finest finishes of the year in the two-mile run.

Oxford High junior Emily Dawidczyk owns the girls 300 meters in these parts. She also has some pretty good company on her team in Jordan Orrell and Shelby Stretton.

Bartlett is also loaded with talent. Both Nikita Truhanovitch and Rocco DiStefano both excelled in their senior year as two of the fastest sprinters in the area.  Alicia Garamy also deserves a mention for pulling off an upset by winning the girls SWCL shot put title.

Alex Givens-Perry: We were impressed with Bartlett sophomore forward Alex Givens-Perry’s athleticism the first time we saw him and despite some inexperience, he continues to get better and impress. The one area that he really shines at is rebounding.  His 12 rebound a game average leads the Indians and his strong inside presence and 10 point a game scoring average is key to their outside game.
 
Clark Tourney: All three of the local teams look like they will be getting invites to the Clark Tournament this week, barring some sort of a shocker.  Bartlett was 10-5 at press time, Shepherd Hill 11-5, and Oxford at 10-6. There will be an official announcement on the Clark selections this Thursday night. The Tourney will get underway on Sunday, February 19, at Clark University in Worcester.

Kobel in Top Ten: Bartlett senior co-captain point guard Nick Kobel remained in the Central Mass top ten in scoring with an impressive 19.4 average after 15 games.  Bay Path’s TJ Gentry, who is the midst of a great season, is averaging 17.1.  Oxford’s Corey Stone is next for locals at 14.4, with Bartlett’s Akeem Belnavis also in the mix at 13.5. Shepherd Hill’s Jesse Gilchrist is at 13.4

Fornaro Number One: Shepherd Hill’s Meghan Fornoro has been a scoring machine for the Rams and continues to be the top scorer in Central Mass with an impressive 21.9 clip. Lauren Puishys of Oxford is having a solid year with a 12.9 average, while Lindsay Bond leads Bartlett with a 12.9 average.

Pirates Defense: Despite losing to Auburn on Saturday, the Oxford High School Pirates have been putting on defensive clinics on a regular basis. After holding the Bartlett Indians high powered offense to 38 points, a week later they did the same thing to Douglas High School, holding them to 38 points as well.

One coach who is also impressed with the Pirates is Bartlett High School head coach Tony Paranto. “They have a winning record, they have some quality players, and they buy into their defense and they play real well.”

Paranto’s got skills: Logan Paranto, son of Bartlett High School boys head basketball coach Tony Paranto, won the Knights of Columbus Free Throw Championship last Thursday, making 14 of 15 shots. The competition was held at Park Avenue Elementary School in Webster.
 
Key Game of the Week: The Bartlett-Quaboag rematch contest Thursday night in Quaboag has the makings of one of the best of the year. Quaboag won the first meeting 72-63.

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