Update from WH Athletics

Update from Whitman-Hanson Athletics

1)      We are less than a week away from our Homecoming weekend which promises to be a series of great events celebrating Panther Pride.  The student council has been at work in planning an exciting Homecoming dance which will be held Friday October 12^th in the gym.  On Saturday morning October 13^th, from 9:30am (8:30am registration) to 11:30am,  the National Honors Society will be holding its Miles for Meals event aimed at raising money for the Whitman and Hanson food pantries.   There is still time to sponsor a student walker or better yet, get those sneakers out and join the cause.  Email advisor Mrs. Gabriel if you would like to support the event in some way (katherine.gabriel@whrsd.org).  Following the walk, the football  team plays host to Quincy at 1:30pm.  All around the stadium, the other sports and clubs will have tables set up with various games, information and items for sale.  In addition, the student council will also be adding an inflatable obstacle course to add to the fun.  At halftime of the game, the 2^nd annual Parade of Champions will be held with last year’s Whitman-Hanson championship teams being awarded their banners.  Of course, the cheerleaders, Marching Band and Majorettes will also be on hand to showcase their talents.  If you have any connection to Whitman-Hanson (student, teacher, parent, alumni, community member) this is an event you will want to be a part of.  Hope to see you there.

2)      A new girls sport is coming to Whitman-Hanson this winter.  The MIAA, District C and the Patriot League have all given approval for Whitman-Hanson to join Middleboro for a girls swimming cooperative team.  WHAM (Whitman-Hanson and Middleboro) will swim in the Middleboro town owned pool and they will compete in the Patriot League.  Our quest to add more opportunities for our female students has been a priority and this move is a great step forward for our girls.  It is our goal that in the near future, we will be able to break off and support our own Whitman-Hanson girls swimming team.  Some schools in our league have as many as 45 girls competing each winter and it would be great to see that type of interest develop here. 

3)      The baseball  team has a new coach as  the Panthers hired former Brockton coach Dave Fouracre this week.  Dave is a member of the Massachusetts Baseball Coaches Hall of Fame.  To read more about Dave, check out the blog for a complete bio.

4)      The football team bounced back from last week’s loss in impressive fashion by dominating Hanover on the road on Saturday, 28-6.  The trio of Tommy Sapienza, Ricky Schneider and Jerry Thompson combined for 160 yards on  the ground while Dondre James and Jake Walkins both were on the receiving end of TD passes from Sapienza.  The Panthers improve to 4-1.

5)      The girls soccer team continues to make teams around the league take notice as they remained in the drivers seat in their quest for the 8^th straight league championship by winning two league contests this week, a 7-0 win over Quincy and a 2-nothing victory over Hingham.  The team had a 2-nothing lead late in the non-league game on a rainy night at Weymouth on Saturday before the Wildcats came roaring back with 2 tallies to earn the 2-2 tie. Alexis Fruzetti had a big week scoring 3 goals.

6)      The boys soccer team didn’t fare as well dropping 2 games this week.  Alex Nicoletta scored a goal this week for the Panthers who have been banged up by the injury big but are starting to get healthy again.

7)      The volleyball team had some tough luck this week as they came very close in their games against Hingham and Rockland before losing in 5 sets in both games.  Samantha Richner (14 kills) and Erin Clifford (8 kills) both had strong games against Rockland.

8)      The undefeated cross country teams had the week off from competition but they have a big one this week when they play host to one of the best teams in the state, Pembroke High School.  That meet will be Tuesday, October 9^th.

9)      The golf team had a light week with just one match which they lost in a heartbreaker at Scituate, 37-35 despite captain Josh Green defeating his opponent 6 ½ to 2 ½.  The team heads to Martha’s Vineyard tomorrow.