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HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL HEADLINES

  • Andover High senior Mark Zavrl receives Courageous Award from state football coaches

    Just hours after undergoing surgery to repair complete tears to the anterior cruciate, medial collaterial, and posterior cruciate ligament in his right knee, Mark Zavrl was wheeled out to midfield on Oct. 12 to join his fellow Andover High football captains, in the pouring rain, for the coin toss before their game against Lawrence. On Thanksgiving morning, donning his blue and gold No. 33 Golden Warrior jersey, he walked out to midfield for the coin toss prior to Andover 's 22-19 playoff-clinching win over Central Catholic. On Sunday evening, Zavril was one of four seniors to receive the Paul Costello Courageous Player award at the Massachusetts High School Football Coaches Association's Hall of Fame banquet in Randolph. (   05/02/2013 1:20 AM )

  • Coaches to lead football camp

    The Friends of Natick Football and the Natick High School football coaches will hold a four-day summer workshop camp at the end of June at the high school to teach fundamental football skills and techniques to students in grades 2 through 8. to interested young athletes. The camp allows participants, for attendees, who will be grouped by age, to try different positions, and will include a competition on the last day. It will be held at Natick High, and meet on June 25 from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m., and June 26 through June 28 from 8:30 a.m. through 12:30 p.m. The cost to attend is $140 for advance registrations, or if registered prior to the workshop, or $150 for sign-ups at the camp. registered there. Funds raised from fees The proceeds will benefit the high school's football program. Applications for the camp are available at www.natickfootball.com. For more information, call David Dorant at 617-699-7512, or e-mail him at ddorant@comcast.net. (   04/28/2013 12:00 AM )

  • North Reading's Jared Coppola continues his courageous fight from crippling injury

    At age 20, Jared Coppola has seemingly endured a lifetime of challenges. Yet, the former St. John's Prep student-athlete continues to push on, undeterred by his daily routine. His resiliency is no surprise to those who know Coppola, who suffered a paralyzing neck injury during an on-field collision four years suiting up for the St. John's Prep football team, fracturing his fifth cervical vertebra. On Sunday (11 a.m. to 2 p.m.), his aunt, Robin Coppola Shelgren, is hosting a fund-raiser at St. John's Prep in Danvers, named "An Hour of Therapy" to help fund further rehabilitation for Coppola in Atlanta. (   04/25/2013 12:00 AM )

  • Rockland's Alyssa Jasper targeting a national title in javelin

    Launching the javelin into the air with all of her might is a relatively new passion for Alyssa Jasper. The 2011 Rockland High grad has only been throwing the jav for two years, but she is already targeting a national championship. A sophomore at Worcester State University, Jasper is likely headed to the NCAA Division 3 Track & Field Championships, scheduled for Memorial Day weekend at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse. Her best throw is 141 feet, currently the fifth-best throw in the country in Division 3. The top 16 throws are invited to the nationals. Last year, Jasper placed 15th. The 19-year-old Jasper has also qualified for the New England Division 3 championships in the shot put (   04/25/2013 12:00 AM )

  • Newton's Mike Mullowney guides Junior Eagles girls' hockey team to national title

    Three years ago, there was no Junior Eagles girls' hockey team. And judging by the first tryout, it looked like it might stay that way. Seven girls showed up. "We wound up with 13 players (10-year-olds) that first year," said coach Mike Mullowney, a 46-year-old Newton resident. "We found a goalie from Watertown who was very good. We started beating teams that had beaten us earlier in the season." His team is now made up of 11- and 12-year-olds, with no geographic restrictions for club programs, though Mullowney pretty much stayed local. The payoff has been swift and stunning. Last month, after winning the state championship, the Eagles captured the national championship, defeating a team from Chicago in overtime at Valley Sports Arena in Concord. (   04/25/2013 12:00 AM )

  • No vote on new Blocksidge Field in Swampscott Swampscott delays vote on new field

    The Swampscott Board of Selectmen opted not to bring the newest proposal to rebuild a town athletic field up for a vote next month, but that doesn't mean it won't be coming up again. Ultimately, Swampscott town officials explained, the decision not to bring the Blocksidge Field plan before the May 6 annual Town Meeting was based on timing and priorities. "We want to wait until the five-year capital plan is complete, to see where it fits in," said Rich Malagrifa, chairman of the Board of Selectmen. "We've also got some drainage issues, and want to do a townwide drainage study, so that's thrown in also." (   04/25/2013 12:00 AM )

  • Julia Sullivan throws no-hitter to lift Sandwich over Marshfield

    In the first inning of Sandwich's softball game against Marshfield on Wednesday, senior pitcher Julia Sullivan ripped andan RBI double to give the Blue Knights a 1-0 lead. their first run. That was all the offense Sandwich (3-0) would need as Sullivan pitched a no-hitter with 13 strikeouts and no walks as the Blue Knights won, 6-0. defeated the Rams, 6-0, in Marshfield. "It was her best pitching performance of the year," said Sandwich coach Jean Russell. of Sullivan who improved to 3-0 on the season."Her fastball had some giddy-up on it and she hit her spots, so it didn't matter what she was throwing. She was in control of all of her pitches." Sullivan, a lefty lefthander, almost had a perfect game, if it wasn'twere it not for a pair of errors made in the field.(   04/10/2013 11:35 PM )

  • Snowfall led to financial hit for football semifinals and Super Bowls, says MIAA Football Committee

    At the MIAA Football Committee meeting Tuesday, matchups and bad weather were blamed for low attendance in the semifinals and Super Bowls this past fall season.(   02/27/2013 12:00 AM )

  • Alex Collins finally signs with Arkansas

    A day later than expected and with his father -- not his mother -- by his side, highly recruited Florida running back Alex Collins signed his letter of intent to play at Arkansas. (   02/08/2013 5:47 AM )

  • High school football commitments

    A look at the high school seniors who have decided which college they will attend. (   02/06/2013 2:45 AM )

  • Everett running back Jakarrie Washington leads Massachusetts college recruits on National Signing Day

    National Signing Day is Wednesday, and Massachusetts is sending a lot of talent to the college football ranks. (   02/06/2013 2:39 AM )

  • MIAA grants appeals

    Seven schools were granted their appeals after a second attempt to change their divisional placement before the MIAA Football Committee Wednesday. (   01/31/2013 7:55 AM )

  • SportsLog: Tennessee Titans are interested in hiring Gregg Williams

    Gregg Williams may be a step closer to returning to the NFL after being suspended indefinitely for his role in the New Orleans Saints' bounty program. Tennessee Titans coach Mike Munchak has talked with Williams and is interested in adding him to his Tennessee staff, said a person familiar with the situation.(   01/28/2013 12:34 AM )

  • MIAA penalizes Natick for use of wrong football; Gardner barred from winter tournaments

    Plymouth South's and Natick's ongoing dispute regarding Natick's use of an illegal football at the Nov. 27 playoff game landed before the board with South appealing the decision of the Football Committee to punish Natick only by requiring Natick coaches to attend a class. In a discussion that was part "yes-you-did," part "no-I-didn't," the two sides split time expressing innocence and frustration. (   01/17/2013 5:59 AM )

  • Lynn Classical grad Jeff Akers on top of his game as college football official

    Last Thursday night, Jeff at the Westin Hotel in Waltham, Akers, 49,Akers received the Gridiron Club of Greater Boston's Joseph V. McKenney Award as the region's top collegiate official from the Gridiron Club of Greater Boston. He is on the short list of officials who might be hired by the National Football League. A standout linebacker at Lynn Classical High School, where he played on two Super Bowl squads, Akers received a scholarship to the University of Michigan, where he graduated in 1986, and he played for the NFL's Tampa Bay Buccaneers. (   01/17/2013 12:36 AM )

  • MIAA Football subcommittee grants division changes for seven schools

    Sixteen schools in the North sectional appealed to the MIAA Football subcommittee to change their divisions. With an additional 11 from the South sectional asking for a change on Tuesday, only seven of the 27 total schools were allowed to make changes. (   01/10/2013 10:54 AM )

  • Rich McKenna right at home in Billerica, as head football coach

    Rich McKenna left quite an impression on Peter Flynn, as both a player and assistant coach at Billerica High. So much so, that Flynn hoped McKenna would be his eventual successor as head football coach. Flynn ended his successful 23-year run at the helm of the Indians in November. On Friday, McKenna stepped down as head coach at Westford Academy to accept the same position at his alma mater. (   01/10/2013 12:00 AM )

  • Eleven South sectional schools appeal placement in new high school football format

    The appeals, held at Norwood High School, were the next step in a process that started when the playoff proposal passed in a statewide vote in October. The new format has six divisions as opposed to nine last fall. The MIAA slotted schools based on enrollment, and a variety of other factors. Sixteen North schools will appeal Wednesday in Burlington. The MIAA will announce decisions by Friday.(   01/09/2013 12:00 AM )

  • St. John's Prep basketball drops BC High

    St. John's Prep survived a sluggish start to top visiting BC High, 67-58, Friday night in Danvers.(   01/04/2013 10:16 PM )

  • Nick LaSpada of Billerica readies for Bates College

    Two years ago, Nick LaSpada dreamed of a career in National Football League. Harvard would be the stepping stone. Then came the diagnosis of a hole in his heart, the blood clots, and the six months without contact sports. The colleges were turned off. No more Harvard. After a full recovery, and a postgraduate season playing wide receiver and safety at the Taft School in Connecticut, LaSpada created the beginning of a new dream last week. He committed to Bates College.(   12/30/2012 12:00 AM )

  • North Reading's Frank Carey, Danvers coach Roger Day earn place in baseball halls

    It's been quite the offseason for Frank Carey and Roger Day. Entering his 48th season as head baseball coach North Reading High, Carey was recently inducted into the National Baseball Coaches Association Hall of Fame, as well as earning national Coach of the Year honors for 2012. Day, head coach at Danvers High the last 25 years, will enter the hall in January. (   12/27/2012 12:00 AM )

  • It was debatable

    Is ganja coming to a neighborhood near you? As soon as Bay State voters approved medical marijuana in November, cities and towns began pondering if they could restrict dispensaries within their boundaries. Parents, physicians, and coaches debated whether any equipment can help protect against sports head injuries (the short answer: maybe). And communities like Westborough argued over large solar panel projects, trying to balance "go green" enthusiasm with aesthetic concerns.(   12/27/2012 12:00 AM )

  • East Boston boys beat Madison Park at the buzzer

    East Boston senior guard Pat Santos hit an ESPN-worthy full court buzzer beater to defeat host Madison Park, 43-42, Tuesday night. (   12/20/2012 7:51 AM )

  • Everett is No. 1 in Globe's final school football rankings

    The Globe's preseason football Top 20 is based on what coaches tell us. But the final Top 20, released Sunday (   12/09/2012 4:09 AM )

  • Abington, Blue Hills, and Sharon cap stellar runs with Bowl victories

    The Abington High football team was perfect from start to finish, capping a 13-0 season with a 14-8 win over St. Mary's in the Division 4 Super Bowl. Sharon and second-year coach Dave Morse put the finishing touch on their remarkable 10-3 season with a 12-3 victory over Wayland in the Division 3 Super Bowl. And with just three returning starters, Blue Hills culminated a 10-2 run with a 26-8 win over Minuteman for the Small Schools Vocational title. (   12/09/2012 1:31 AM )