Pelham News : lacrosse

Young, sub-.500 PHS has an air of success that its coach has already seen

Salem Editor — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 19:14:00 GMT

BY MATT SCHOOLEY

There aren’t many similarities between lacrosse and soccer, yet Matt Regan is still experiencing an enjoyable case of deja vu.

Regan coached the Pelham High School lacrosse team that was 2-12 in 2008 and a state semifinalist in 2009. He senses a similar turnaround for his soccer squad, one that ended its season with a 6-2 victory against visiting Milford on Friday, Oct. 23.

Following the triumph, the Pythons concluded their 2009 campaign with a 4-12-0 record. The team does not lose a senior off its roster.

“I was able to do it with lacrosse because we had a lot of talented juniors who became seniors and rose to a whole new level,” said Regan. “By doing that, they bring everyone with them.”

Sophomore forward Alec Paradis connected on a feed from junior Ryan White midway through the first half, giving Pelham a 1-0 edge.

White concluded the firsthalf scoring when he found the back of the net five minutes prior to intermission, extending the lead to 2-0.

Evan Skinner, also a sophomore, scored early in the second half to give his team a three-goal lead, and the outcome was not in doubt again.

The Pelham starting lineup against Milford included five juniors, four sophomores and two freshmen, including one who should be central to the PHS attack for years to come.

Rafeal Decampos is a tall and powerful player who possesses tremendous abilities both with the ball and in the air, said Regan, though the mentor understands his young midfielder has work to do.

“When he’s on his game, everyone molds around him,” said Regan. “The games he played good, we won. The games we lost, well, he was a freshman. He’s going to be a spectacular player.” DeCampos and Peter Figurito also scored for Pelham, while Brian Finney made eight saves.

Sophomore Derrick Defranzo has started his first two years at the school and was recently joined up front by Paradis, previously a midfielder.

The Pelham mentor said he’s excited about the duo’s potential thanks to the speed and quickness each possesses. “You can tell they’re sophomores,” said Regan. “They’re still raw. If we can hone those skills, they’re going to be extremely hard to defend in the next couple of years.”

Despite its poor record overall, Pelham has shown glimpses of what could await Class I foes in the near future. On Oct. 13, the Pythons fell to Oyster River by a lone tally in overtime, and on Oct. 20 Pelham led Bedford until late in the contest before falling to the Bulldogs, 2-1. Those two teams have 19 wins between them, and both reached the Class I postseason tournament. PHS also beat playoff-bound Laconia on Sept. 30, 3-1.

As was the case for his lacrosse team, Regan said offseason play is key to ensuring forward momentum continues.

“They had been struggling and had some tough years. They had to get it out of their heads that the teams they were playing were better than they are,” said Regan. “We can play with these teams now.”

Pelham girl's demeanor changes as lacrosse wins start to come

Salem Editor — Wed, 07 May 2008 19:24:00 GMT

BY JERRY LIPTAK

Two victories don’t seem like much. To perennial powers, that’s merely a week’s worth of work. But to the third-year Pelham girls lacrosse team, they’re worth much more.

In a historical sense, Pelham’s pair of wins in 2008 doubles the program’s total. In 2005 and 2006, the Lady Pythons won once. The win total in 2007 was zero.

“They had a basic understanding of the sport, but not any experience dealing with specific in-game situations,” said first-year head coach John Fichera, who brings plenty of in-game experience, as well as an expectation of success, following many years as a member of Division-I stalwart Pinkerton Academy’s coaching staff.

Fichera said his team has faced an early-season learning curve.

“… A big curve, but winning the Derryfield game was so important,” he said.

That April 17 contest showed Fichera and, more importantly, the young athletes they could remain composed and win a close contest. In a back-and-forth battle, Pelham prevailed, 6-5.

Following a 15-1 thrashing of visiting Pembroke on Thursday, May 2, Fichera and his charges, led by senior captains Katie Bourque, Heather Hilbert and Caitlin Morgan, realized they could also hammer an overmatched opponent.

“Now we need to focus on finding out how to get in the playoffs,” said the coach. “We’ve got to take it to the teams that have the same (town) population as us, the same experience. Also, we’ve got to be able to stay close with some of the more established teams.”

Following an 11-3 loss at Plymouth Regional on Monday, May 5, Pelham’s record fell to 2-6. The Pythons have winnable contests with Somersworth, John Stark and Hopkinton in May. Oyster River, Merrimack Valley and Hollis- Brookline, all good D-III teams, also await the locals.

Game notes

The matchup with Pembroke was effectively decided by halftime. Pelham jumped to a 4-0 lead.

Christine Morgan, a sophomore, opened the scoring 1 minute, 24 seconds into the contest. Freshman Alex Catalano scored the next three goals.

Senior goalie Jessica Blake allowed just one goal, cutting the Pelham lead to 4-1. She was quick and aggressive – many clearing passes led to Pelham scores on the other end of the field.

Christine Morgan’s second tally made it 5-1, then junior Cassandra Costello scored two straight, and sophomore Kally Riddinger did the same to cap the first-half outburst and give the hosts a 9-1 edge.

Devon Lamoureux, a junior, scored twice in the second half, while her classmate, Christine Downs, sophomore Keri Foley, Riddinger and Catalano also found the net.

Senior Caitlin Morgan collected multiple assists, while sophomore Sarah DeBaldo also passed effectively in the win.

Pelham lacrosse coach knows late-game poise is required to win

Salem Editor — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 21:28:00 GMT

BY RYAN O’CONNOR

With his team down, 2-1, entering the final quarter of play at Pembroke Academy on Thursday, April 17, Pelham boys lacrosse coach Matt Regan said it suddenly clicked.

“I watched (Pembroke’s) goalie play last week, and he made every ground save and gave up 15 goals, all of them were high,” said Regan. “That was the game plan coming in, shoot high, shoot high, shoot high … We shot low, shot low, shot low.”

That was true until the fourth quarter, when, with 7:36 remaining in the contest, junior attacker Michael Woonton found a hole, waist-high on the opposing goal ie, and tied the game. Then, less than a minute later, he scored again.

“Unfortunately,” said Regan, “we’re not over that hump of knowing how to win games.”

With 36 seconds left on the game clock, the Pythons suffered an unforced turnover. A couple passes later, the Spartans planted the ball firmly in the back of the net.

Then, with seven seconds remaining in regulation, they did it again. Regan kneeled on the sideline, his mouth wide open in disbelief.

“We had plenty of opportunities – more than our fair share. We just didn’t execute the game plan,” he said. “This one is going to take a long time to soak in.

“Tomorrow’s practice won’t be easy,” he continued. “I’m going to make it as hard as possible to show them that losing is unacceptable. I don’t know any other way to do it.”

Still, Regan said the Pythons were without two of their top players, defenseman Dan Trainor and long pole midfielder Chris Gagne.

In their stead, Billy Sullivan, Justin Mansfield and C.J. Ziogas stepped up to keep the contest close.

Experienced Pelham lacrosse team should significantly improve on last year’s win total

Salem Editor — Thu, 10 Apr 2008 00:45:00 GMT

BY RYAN O’CONNOR

Matt Regan coached the Pelham boys lacrosse team two of the program’s first four years, but missed last season because of time constraints.

This season, he is back at the helm and ready to reap the benefits of his initial investment.

“The group I had two years ago, when they were all freshmen, I now have them all as juniors,” said Regan of a team that won one game in 2006 and lost many contests by double digits. “They’ve always had good skills, but now they’re all grown up and a lot bigger, and physically they’re capable of playing at the varsity level.”

Included in that group of talented juniors are attacker Mike Woonton, midfielder CJ Ziogas, defensemen Sean Paradis and RJ Riddinger, and goalie Andrew Keegan.

They combine with seniors Billy Sullivan and Dan Trainor to complete a veteran group ready to take a huge step as a program.

“Last year, they missed the playoffs with four wins, so our first goal is to get to the postseason. I think we can do more, but I’m not setting those expectations just yet,” said Regan. “The biggest problem with Pelham lacrosse is these kids don’t know how to win yet. I’m hoping to get off to a fast start to show them they have the ability to make this run.”

Freshmen Ryan Ormsby and Richard Sullivan are likely to contribute immediately at the varsity level as well. Both are fast, and Ormsby, though he never picked up a lacrosse stick before this spring, runs like a gazelle, said Regan.

Recently, the Pythons competed at the Nashua Lacrosse Jamboree, and Regan said he was pleased with his squad’s performance.

Pelham beat fellow Division- III squad Gilford and DII‘ s Lebanon. The team also lost to perennial D-I power Nashua South by one goal.

Background to forefront – Experienced coach looks to raise Pelham’s young program

Salem Editor — Wed, 18 Apr 2007 17:42:00 GMT

BY SAPNA PATHAK

This year’s Pelham boys lacrosse team is the first that will breathe a bit easier before each game. That’s because it’s the first time the Pythons have a head coach who truly knows how to teach the game.

That’s not a knock on the fourth-year program’s two previous head coaches, but Roger Sampson’s addition brings lax some prominence in Pelham spring athletics.

“The program was done the first two years by the head football coach because he was willing to try something interesting, and it was helpful to keep his football players active in spring,” said Sampson. “It just wasn’t his first sport, which is fine, because he’s a great football coach. This year, after the first practice they knew I knew what I was talking about, and they know things will be different because of my background.”

That background includes five years coaching lacrosse at Londonderry High, three years coaching in the Londonderry youth lacrosse program and one year coaching in Merrimack.

Sampson takes over for 2006 coach Matt Regan, who had 12 players on the one-win team.

This year’s turnout swelled Sampson’s squad to 24 players, three of whom were out for the team’s season opener on Wednesday, April 11. The Pythons fell, 9-3, to Division III opponent Milford, but Sampson said the team’s performance was encouraging.

“They did everything I coached them to do. They executed the things I taught them, until they got tired,” said Sampson. “When you’re fatigued you forget what to do, and now I need to work with them on keeping the endurance during games.”

Against the Spartans, senior captain Kyle Roman put away two of Pelham’s three goals. Senior attackman Mike Peters added one goal before Milford pulled away midway through the third period.

Senior Billy DeBenetetto and Roman help lead Pelham’s seniors and three juniors. Seven sophomores and seven freshmen round out the roster.

Sophomore Billy Helliwell and juniors Jake Corbin, Billy Sullivan and Danny Trainer should anchor the offense. Goalie Andrew Keegan, with 20 saves against Milford, will work with defensemen Sean Paradis, Robert Riddinger, Mike Woonton and Chris Ziogas.

“They did five to 10 hours of classroom instruction, and we had pre-practices and then regular practices,” said Sampson of the preseason regimen. “But they’re dedicated to getting better, and the parents have been so supportive. There’s no feeder program in Pelham, so that’ll be hard to overcome. But I want to work towards having a youth lacrosse program in town someday.”

Fast and curious – With big numbers, third-year Pelham team, ready for turnaround

Salem Editor — Wed, 11 Apr 2007 20:56:00 GMT

BY MATT STOUT

Come early March, Tim Powers has the same conversation with many students.

In his search for new players, the Pelham girls lacrosse coach approaches athlete and non-athlete alike and asks them if they would be interested in playing the sport.

The usual response is, “Well, I don’t know anything about it.” Of course, Powers has one lined up, too.

“‘Well, so what?’” Powers asks them. “‘None of them knew anything about it when they came out day one, so you learn.’”

In the Pythons’ third-year as a varsity program, the recruitment strategy seems to be working.

As Pelham looks to improve upon consecutive 1-11 seasons this spring, it returns experience, speed and, most importantly, welcomes lots of players. With a program-high 58 girls suiting up, the Pythons, for the first time, will feature a full slate of JV games and, if other teams are enjoying the same growth, several freshman games to accommodate the 20 rookies who came out this year.

That all bodes well for a stronger varsity team, which, while young, should be able to withstand the loss of five 2006 graduates.

Seniors Meghan Harris, on attack; Kayla Kelly, in goal; and Danielle Golinski, on attack, are back, along with juniors Katie Bourque and Alicea Beaureguard to make up the Pythons’ core. Improving sophomores Nicole Golinski, Devon Lamoreux and Brittany Long should also contribute, Powers said, to a team that’s ready to learn from the lumps it took the last two years.

“Now is our chance to actually grow as a team because we have people who know how to play, and that gives a chance to everyone else to learn how to play,” said Kelly, who feels healthy after overcoming a broken leg two years ago and “trouble with (her) heart” that ended her season last spring.

“They couldn’t figure it out,” she said of the ailment. “Everything seems to be all set now ... And usually if I’m ready, the rest of the team gets excited. Other players have come up to me and said that, because if you have a goalie to back you up, they just get excited with that.”

It’s not the only thing generating a buzz around the team’s practices. As a squad, Pelham is faster than ever, Powers said, and the players have the work ethic to match. With their original Division III season-opener against John Stark postponed from Monday, April 9, the Pythons now are focusing on meshing all the parts together, the coach said, entering a scheduled game at Kingswood on Thursday, April 12.

“Usually you go through tryouts and the practices and the preseason and everything, and you get a few that say, ‘OK, all right, I’m not going to do it,’” Powers said. “But there hasn’t been one. They’ve dedicated themselves to doing it. But stick skills aren’t going to be the only thing that translates into playing. They have to learn and understand the game as well.”

Fortunately for Pelham, there probably hasn’t been a better environment to do it in.