Region's Bulldogs squad scores US soccer title
The under-17 Mass. Premier Soccer Bulldogs, a Waltham-based squad with more than a dozen players from area communities, won the US Club Soccer national title last month in Virginia Beach, Va.
The Bulldogs, coached by Newton resident Joe Bradley and assistant Jon Coles of Lincoln, won the Northeast regional tournament in June to qualify for the national finals. The team competes in the Super Y League, made up of elite club teams from New England and Eastern Canada.
After winning three group games at the nationals, beating the Chicago Magic, Stanford SC from California, and Treasure Coast from Florida, the Bulldogs defeated a Washington state soccer club, River City, 4-1, to take the championship.
"The key to winning the tournament was the play of our back four," said Bradley, "center backs Ryan Pennie and Jon Ward from Framingham High, and our fullbacks, Tim Mensel and Jake Miskin from Needham High."
Lexington's Rami Sleiman was an offensive force, scoring a goal in the last 10 seconds to beat Stanford and a pair in the title game, as was Framingham High's Ronaldo Viera, who had three goals in the tournament.
Chris McDonald of Newton and Jesse Shafer-Hines of Holliston split the goalkeeping duties, with Shafer-Hines going all the way against Chicago and McDonald earning the victory over Stanford. Each played one half against Treasure Coast and River City. "Chris and Jesse were consistent throughout the tournament and they made important saves in the final," said Bradley, who also praised captain and midfielder Eric Brown from Newton North High for his all-around play and leadership.
Also seeing playing time were forward Cole Maxwell of Needham and midfielder Chris Garland of Wellesley. Defenders Daniel Harper of Wayland and Ryan Alcorn of Needham played in the regional tournament.
"This team has come on by leaps and bounds since they were together as U-13s, and some were the first graduates of our 'school of excellence' program for 8- to 12-year-olds," said Bradley. "It's a noteworthy victory and it was accomplished after we lost our first game in the regionals. They had a never-say-die attitude, they were well balanced, and they had an unbelievable camaraderie. They deserved their success."
Medfield native Poli snags kudos for lacrosse exploits
Western New England College women's lacrosse star Nicole Poli of Medfield was featured in the July issue of Lacrosse magazine for her record-breaking performance as a freshman this spring. Poli, who led all three NCAA divisions by averaging 4.01 caused turnovers in 21 games, was the Commonwealth Coast Conference's Defensive Player of the Year and was named to the league and ECAC Division 3 New England first teams.
Poli also was selected to the Intercollegiate Women's Lacrosse Coaches Association Division 3 All-Berkshire Region second team. Poli helped Western New England's lacrosse team set a program record with 17 victories while winning the program's first ECAC Division 3 New England championship.
Crackerbarrel race returns
The Wrentham Developmental Center will sponsor its 28th annual Crackerbarrel Classic 5K Road Race on Sept. 13, with the proceeds of the fund-raising event helping to defray therapeutic recreational expenses for residents of the facility.
The entry fee will include a breakfast buffet, T-shirts for the first 100 preregistered runners, awards, and raffle prizes.
The 9 a.m. race is part of a four-day "fair for families" that will be held on the Crackerbarrel fairgrounds at the Wrentham Developmental Center, running from Sept. 11 to Sept. 14.
For more information, contact race director Rich Katno at 508-384-1682 or go online to crackerbarrelclassic.com.
Marvin Pave can be reached at 508-820-4223 or at marvin.pave@rcn.com. 