By Craig Forde, Globe Correspondent

Malden Catholic’s newly refurbished Gerard Doherty Gym will see plenty of action this weekend when the school hosts the inaugural IAABO 27 Referees vs. Cancer Holiday Basketball Tournament.

The two-day event features eight teams with a combined 20-9 record competing in two separate divisions, with each crowning a champion on Sunday.

Saturday
Small School Division
Game 1, Noon - Winchester (2-2) vs. Whittier Tech (3-1)
Game 2, 1:30 p.m. - Arlington Catholic (3-0) vs. St. Clement (4-0)

Large School Division
Game 3, 3 p.m. - Brookline (2-2) vs. Belmont (0-3)
Game 4, 4:30 p.m.- Malden Catholic (3-1) vs. Salem (3-0)

Sunday
Consolation games
Game 5, noon- Small School Division
Game 6, 1:30 p.m. - Large School Division

Championship games
Game 7, 3 p.m.- Small School Division
Game 8, 4:30 p.m.- Large School Division

All proceeds will benefit the IAABO 27 Referees for Cancer initiative, which has raised nearly $13,000 for cancer research in 2012.

Malden Catholic is located at 99 Crystal Street in Malden.

This Saturday, September 29th, Concord-Carlisle High School will play host to the sixth annual Kicks for Cancer to support cancer research.

Twelve teams will gather for a day-long event filled with superior soccer action, raffles, food and more. The same teams return from last year’s event, all of which were participants in the 2011 MIAA postseason tournament and four of which are currently ranked in the Globe’s Top 20.

Despite dreary conditions last year the event still managed to raise over $27,000 with proceeds benefitting the Dana Farber Cancer Institute and in total Kicks for Cancer has raised over $71,000 as it has grown from a one-game event to six-game extravaganza.

“It says so much about the other schools and their communities,” said Concord-Carlisle head coach Ray Pavlik. “The volunteers and the kids do such an amazing job with this and we couldn’t be more proud of the efforts they make each year.”

The event began back in 2007 to honor the memory of Lois Wells, mother of Concord-Carlisle assistant coach Steve Wells. Each team wears pink or blue jerseys with the name of a loved one who has or is battling this disease emblazoned on their back.

The games will begin at 1:00 p.m. with simultaneous action going off on side-by-side fields behind Concord-Carlisle High School at 500 Walden Street in Concord. Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for children.

The following is the day's schedule of games:

1:00 p.m., Game One, Turf 1 – Lexington vs. Belmont
1:00 p.m., Game Two, Turf 2 - Stoneham vs. Wakefield

3:30 p.m., Game Three, Turf 1 - Brookline vs. Newton North
3:30 p.m., Game Four, Turf 2 - Reading vs. Woburn

6:00 p.m., Game Five, Turf 1 - Concord - Carlisle vs. Lincoln - Sudbury
6:00 p.m., Game Six, Turf 2 - Acton – Boxborough vs. Wayland

For additional information, including directions to the fields, click here.

For those who are unable to attend the event, but still wish to make a donation to Kicks for Cancer, click here for the Dana Farber donation page.

By Zac Vierra, Globe Correspondent

Going into his team’s game with Walpole, Brookline coach Joe Campagna had a good feeling. He felt the undefeated Rebels had a lot of pressure on them and his team could take advantage. The Warriors (4-2) did, defeating No. 3 Walpole, 4-3, at Parsons Field in Brookline Tuesday.

Senior righty Eric Dumas (2-1) picked up the win after allowing three hits and striking out four in seven innings, although it wasn’t easy.

“He struggled with control, walking seven,” said Campagna. “He pitched with a lot of guts and got outs when we needed it.”

Walpole (6-1) left 15 men on base and Brookline was getting out of trouble all game. In the first, senior right fielder Campbell Narron threw a runner out at the plate trying to score from second on a single.

“That was a big play,” said Campagna. “It kept them off the board and didn’t allow them to get that early lead.” In a game between the teams last Monday, the Rebels jumped out to a 6-0 lead and the Warriors could not recover in an eventual 6-4 loss.

In the fourth, Walpole was threatening again with two on and no outs but a timely 6-4-3 double play helped Brookline get out of the inning.

The Warriors got on the board the in the bottom half of the inning. After senior Seb Dobrow and Dumas singled to start the frame, Narron stroked an RBI double. Junior Scott Cordner then followed with a two-run single giving Brookline the 3-1 lead.

“Those are the kind of hits we haven’t been getting,” said Campagna.

In the bottom of the seventh, the Warriors got what proved to be the winning run when senior Henry Lucey singled to right driving home senior Mariano Suriel.

In the eighth, junior righty Nate Spielvogel came in to relieve Dumas. He allowed a pair of runs in the inning but held on for his second save when the Rebels stranded the tying run on second to end the game in the ninth.

It was a big win for Campagna's club.

“The kids were all smiles after the game,” said Campagna. “They knew what beating Walpole means.”

Pavel Dzemianok for the Boston Globe

The high school boys got off to a fast start in the Boston Athletic Association Scholastic Invitational Mile on Sunday morning.

By Justin A. Rice, Globe Correspondent

Ben Groleau is hitting .500 lifetime at the boys’ Boston Athletic Association Scholastic Invitational Mile.

Running the race — which loops around Boylston and Newbury Streets before finishing on the Boston Marathon’s finish line — Sunday morning for the fourth straight year, the Framingham High senior had a winning time of 4 minutes, 27.2 seconds. The race features two athletes from each city or town along the Boston Marathon course.

“That was rough,” said Groleau, who also won the race as a sophomore. “Coming into it I knew it was going to be a hard field, I knew I was going to have to take it out early, but man I didn’t know I had [that kind of kick] in me. I’m excited. I guess experience paid off a lot.”

Groleau said he was surprised to win by such a large margin. Justin Keefe from Newton North (4:39.7) finished second and Tim Bolick of Hopkinton (4:40.4) was third.

“You can’t get caught up behind anyone right off the bat,” Groleau said when asked about what he’s learned from running the race in the past. “On a course with this many turns, you get boxed in way too much on the corners so you have to take it out. I knew that going in, so I jumped in front at the beginning of the race and I figured I’d let those guys figure it out.”

In the girls’ race, Newton North sophomore, Evelyn Heffernan, won with a time of 5:23.1. Shelby Aarden (5:24) of Hopkinton was second and Melissa Lodge (5:24.8), also of Hopkinton, third.

“It was great,” Heffernan said. “The crowd is incredible and they are really helpful. There are people all around and they just push you through the whole thing and it’s great.”

A freshman, Aarden was running the race for the first time.

“I was trying to keep up with the leaders,” Aarden said. “At the end I had some more energy so I went ahead, I passed one or two in the final 100 yards.”

The morning also featured a boys’ and girls’ middle school 1-kilometer race. Zachary O'Leary of Ashland won the boys’ race in 2:54.5, ahead of John Lara of Boston (3:00) and Thomas D’Anieri of Wellesley. Leah Metzger of Newton won the girls' race in 3:35.9, ahead of Piper Higgins of Wellesley (3:43.3) and Nicole Anselmo of Natick (3:44.5).

“I was really nervous so I just decided to go out and have fun,” Metzger said.

O’Leary said, “John Lara caught me at the end of the first lap; I had to pump through it. I couldn’t feel my legs. The first lap I had to pump it. Then I said to myself ‘I have to kick it in.’

"I can't feel my legs right now but it was worth it."

In the high school boys’ race, Newton North’s Keefe didn’t have enough kick to eclipse Groleau. Keefe was running the race for the first time.

“I was hoping for the win but what can I say, he has the most experience,” Keefe said of Groleau. “He’s a strong kid. I’ll get him later in the season.”

Justin A. Rice can be reached at jrice.globe@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter @GlobeJustinRice or @BPSspts.

By Seth Lakso, Globe Staff

Dexter football player Abner Logan Jr. has verbally committed to the University of Maryland for the fall of 2012, according to head coach Casey Day.

Logan, a running back and linebacker that stands 6-foot-1 and weighs 212, was one of the state's top uncommitted recruits in the class of 2012, according to Rivals.com. In his final season at Dexter, a Brookline prep school, Logan rushed for more than 1,100 yards and 18 touchdowns in eight games. On the defensive side of the ball, Logan amassed 42 tackles (nine for a loss), 10 sacks, and two interceptions.

Logan had previously narrowed his selection to Maryland, North Carolina State, and Northwestern.

According to Day, "Abner made two trips to Maryland and loved them both.”

"I think it’s going to be a great fit for [Logan]," Day said. "From what we’re hearing, he may have a chance to play [at linebacker] right away."

By Juan Rivera

TJ Butler scored all three goals as Weymouth edged Bay State Conference rival Brookline 3-2 in a boys' soccer showdown yesterday.

On a sloppy and wet field, Weymouth, which is aiming for a deep playoff run, handed Brookline its first loss.

“We have a good group of players this season,” said coach Bill McEachern “we felt like this was a big game. We can’t peak this early and expect to win, but we’re playing good soccer right now.”

Weymouth is led by senior captains Robbie Lynch, a
two-time Bay State Conference first-team all-star, Zak Stuart, a Bay State Conference all-star goalie, and Matt Wallace. But Butler, a junior, shined.

“He made some moves early to score his first two goals,” said McEachern, “but his third goal was the biggie.”

With 13 minutes left and the score 2-2, Lynch dribbled down the sideline and sent a cross toward the net. Butler cut in front of his defender and punched the ball in for the hat trick.

“Robbie Lynch did a good job with the ball,” said McEachern. “He delivered a great pass and TJ delivered with the finish.”

After losing their season opener to Natick 1-0 and playing a scoreless tie against Framingham, Weymouth has gone 5-0-1 since.

By Braden Campbell, Globe Correspondent

Last season, then freshman Jim Wronoski shot an unspectacular 92 at tryouts for Brookline to open his career. Over the course of his debut season, he demonstrated little of the skill he packed so tightly into his small frame.

Wronoski devoted himself to getting better. Each day he would go to the course to practice, breaking down each aspect of his game, according to the local course staff.

That discipline paid off when, as a sophomore, Wronoski led tryouts with a 76. Yesterday he outdid himself again as he carried the Warriors to a win in their season-opener with his 2-under 34 at Wollaston golf club.

“I’ve been doing this a lot of years and I’ve never seen a kid come back that quick,” said coach Bill Camelio.

Wronoski, who tees off seventh, didn’t surrender a single hole to his opponent. He didn’t even hit a bogey.

Camelio said the youth has demonstrated character far beyond his few years, enough to give him high hopes for Wronoski’s potential.

“You have to think he would be [great],” said Camelio. “You watch somebody with not only the talent he possesses, but just the maturity, as a sophomore. Sophomores are still babies, but he shows a lot of poise and maturity.”

Despite the breakout success, Camelio plans to keep the pressure off his young stud by holding him at 7th, at least for the next few matches.

A few good rounds don’t make a career. Camelio knows that, and fortunately for his future, Wronoski does too.

“He’s got a long way to go,” said Camelio. “And he’s not letting success go to his head.”
Teammate and fellow varsity sophomore Jacob Dana has a similar story, as he shaved seventeen strokes off his 97 tryout round last year, though he’s still a few steps behind Wronoski.

Brian Corcoran, the Warriors’ No. 2 guy, shot a 1-over 37.