A year of championships for Melrose sports

A look back at another banner year of 2019-20

Published June 19, 2020

By JENNIFER GENTILE

MELROSE—It was a year of state championships, Super Bowl rings, and numerous playoff appearances for Melrose High as the Red Raider locomotive plowed over most of the competition in 2019-20.

The script had it all: appearances at Gillette Stadium, historic achievements by the state champion MHS wrestling team, individual state titles, plus a slew of league championships to add to the many banners in the high school gym. The train was running full force and on time. Then March came. The train stopped. And the world halted. Spring tryouts didn’t even happen. Basketball teams weren’t allowed to finish state tournament play. Teams fighting for state championship had to share titles and probably didn’t feel good about it.

And then came crickets. Tumbleweeds. The dreary month of April.

Even now, athletic fields remain largely empty due to phase restrictions from the COVID-19 virus. Watching high school sports seems like a distant memory now. Fans weren’t able to watch high school athletes compete in baseball, softball, lacrosse, tennis and outdoor track. It leads us to wonder, would we have seen the Melrose High boy’s lacrosse team compete for a Div. 2 North title? (We bet) And, how far would the girls’ outdoor track team have gone this year? (Probably a league title and a trip to States.)

And while it’s tough to imagine what could have been, there was a lot to celebrate in the six academic months that high school students were in session. It ended up being a year of staggering good fortune and historic firsts by a remarkably talented senior class, many of whom are taking their athletic skills to college teams. There were a lot of medals collected, Super Bowl rings and wrestling trophies now added to the cases at Melrose High. They represent memories that these graduates will no doubt cherish as they begin the new chapters of their lives.

So let’s rewind, and look back at the innocent days of varsity sports when the only thing an athlete feared they’d catch was ringworm.

In the opening days of school last fall, Melrose enjoyed an embarrassment of riches. Four teams clinched the Middlesex Freedom League to earn league titles and over 40 athletes were selected as league all-stars.

First, there was the MHS golf team, who took the Freedom title and earned their first trip to the Div. 2 State Finals in 18 years after placing third at the North Finals, behind an incredible effort by North Sectional winner Thomas Brodeur. Melrose named four all-stars: Quinn McCarthy, Sean Senior, Will Pierce and Tim Healey. Pierce earned All-Conference honors for his effort.

The girls’ cross country team swept the league undefeated and became state silver medalists at the Div. 4 Finals. That punched their ticket to All States, where they placed sixth, which represents their best ever finish. They named six All-Stars: Jane Harrington, Charlotte Tysall, Marissa Zelton, Jillian Bakey, Katherine Duffy (League MVP) and Alex Cotugno (All-Conference.)

The boys cross country team had a solid season and enjoyed an appearance at the EMass Division Championship where they placed fifth. Runner Charles DeMayo advanced to All States after a solid 7th finish.

In girls’ swim, Melrose sent six swimmers to states: Abby Gauch, Milania Saggese, Madeline Brodeur, Courtney Casey, Grace Haseltine and Lucy Tyson.

The boy’s varsity soccer once again secured another playoff spot in the Div. 3 North field before falling to Dracut, 2-0. They named four All-Stars for their efforts: Thomas Bergin, Furio Forconi, Tarekegn O’Neil and Robert Wiesen.

The girls’ varsity soccer team made huge improvements in 2019 and were just three points shy of playoff qualification after turning around a 4-12 season in 2018. All-Stars Ciara Smith, Olivia Scarpa, Andrea Mortimer and Jenna Champagne helped the cause. Melrose will return with both goalies in 2020.

The field hockey team also enjoyed a revived season with impressive wins over Winchester, Stoneham and Woburn. Their winning efforts helped secure Nora Daly and Briana Stanton All-Star nods.

The Melrose Unified Basketball team battled a hard-fought fourth-quarter comeback to earn their first win of the season over Malden, 43-34, in front of a raucous home crowd at the MVMMS gym. Their season was well attended, spirited and hard-fought, with several players sweeping the floor with the competition. Just try to stop Aiden “Dash” Downey, Alex Revutchi, James Donovan, James “The President” Kavanaugh, Erik Rego and Alex Revutchi.

Over at Arlington Catholic, Melrose’s Sean Kay became an All-State champion in cross country. The Cougar had previously earned the Div. 5 state championship when he broke his own personal best record with a time of 15:49.

It was a historic year for Melrose High girl’s volleyball and longtime coach Scott Celli, who earned his 400th career win. Melrose clinched another league title by beating Burlington, 3-1, and advanced in playoffs to the Div. 2 North semifinals, where they fell to a loaded Lynnfield team who was 23-0, ending Melrose’s season at 19-4. Senior captain Emma Randolph set a new Melrose High School record for career kills with 913, edging MHS alum Hannah Brickley. Randolph received All-State and All-Scholastic honors for her efforts and was named League MVP. Other All-Stars included Nicole Abbott, Emily Hudson, Mary Kate Mahoney and Erin Torpey.

December was a month to remember for Melrose sports fans when the Melrose Red Raider football team completed a perfect 12-0 season and capped it off with their second Super Bowl win in three years when they defeated Plymouth South 28-13 at Gillette Stadium in the Div. 4 Super Bowl. They became arguably the most dominant Melrose team to ever wear a uniform, remaining the ONLY high school team to finish their season undefeated and that helped them earn a spot on Max Prep’s Decade’s Best Team Top 20. A slew of awards were issued to Red Raiders. Chris Cusolito, division leader in touchdowns, earned All-Scholastic honors in the Boston Globe and the Boston Herald and was named the MVP of the Middlesex League. All-Stars included Sean Herbert, Brendan Maher, Mical Duntin, Micye Duntin and William Pesce. All-Conference honors included Cusoilto, Matt Hickey, Charles Haggerty and Jared Karelas, who was selected to the Shriner’s Football Classic. And while some remarkable talent graduates, expect new captains and strong starters Brendan Fennell (Super Bowl-winning QB) Matt Hickey and Andrew Norton Jefferson to keep Melrose at the top of the pack in 2020.

Winter efforts earned even more hardware 

It was another winning year for the MHS gymnastics team who enjoyed a 6-2 season and punched their ticket to the North Sectionals. All-Star Katie Wright earned All-Scholastic and All-Conference honors and qualified for Nationals after an outstanding All-Around season.

The Melrose Red Raider hockey team finished their season 11-8-3, after a big turnaround that saw them go unbeaten in 9 of their last 10 games, a winning streak that helped clinch a playoff spot and briefly find mention in Super 8 consideration. Their playoff run ended in the opening round of the Div. 1 North bracket with a  loss to St. John of Shrewsbury. Junior Brendan Fennell is on the cusp of breaking the school record in points and was named league MVP and Boston Herald All-Scholastic. All-Stars also included Quinn McCarthy, Charlie Haggerty and Cam Marks.

Still no stopping Sean Kay! On February 16, 2020, the Arlington Catholic High School senior became state champion again, this time in the 2-mile at the Div. 5 indoor track State Finals. He’s off to compete at Yale, where he’ll no doubt win more championships.

It was another Championship year for the MHS wrestling team who once again became Div. 3 State champs, their second state title following their 2017 feat. Melrose crowned three individual state champs in their effort: Sean Thomas, Hunter Adrian and Sean Herbert. Both Herbert and Adrian went on to earn All-State titles, a first for Melrose. The trio and their teammates advanced to All-States where they place fourth overall. Hunter Adrian became only the third wrestler in state history to earn four All-State titles. He was also named the Div. 3 Wrestler of the Year and was named All-American. He’s off to Brown. Melrose is quite Ivy this year.

The Melrose Red Raider hoop team enjoyed a 12-8 season that culminated in an electrifying postseason game against Malden Catholic. The Red Raiders fell 59-44, in the opening round in a jam-packed auditorium with rival fans competing for air time. Despite the loss, Melrose saw players Luka Vlajkovic and Charlie Borstel named All-Stars.

StoneRose girl’s hockey was established this year as a cooperative team between Melrose and Stoneham. The team, outfitted by Stoneham, fought a tough season, coming up empty in wins, but was well represented by their tri-captains Marie Maher, Sofia Gukelberger and Emma Lynch Galvin. Senior Emma Lynch Galvin earned All-Star honors for her efforts.

The Melrose High boy’s swim team enjoyed a wild win over Wakefield/Lynnfield on Jan. 31 and also had a record-breaking season when freshman-find Nick Goodman broke the school record in the 100 fly with a time of 55.67 and represented Melrose at States in the 100 fly and 100 back. Goodman was also named All-Star.

The Melrose girls varsity hoop team competed in a tough Middlesex League but secured wins against Wakefield, Medford, Watertown and Stoneham. Junior Adriana Centrella earned an All-Star nod for her season.

The Melrose Red Raider indoor track team had a very solid showing at the Div. 4 State Finals, where athletes Charles DeMayo and Jack O’Hara medaled. O’Hara became the state bronze medalist in the 600 with a third-place finish and advanced to All States. Taking home All-Star honors was Charles DeMayo.

The Melrose High girl’s indoor track team became Div. 4 State Finalists and earned silver at the MIAA Div. 4 State Finals. The team also crowned Div. 4 State Champions when their 4×800 relay team of Jenna Fracasso, Ava Palumbo, Alex Cutugno and Anna Mackey ran away against the competition to earn gold medal rights. Overall, Melrose earned six individual medals while all three of their relay teams medaled, making Melrose one of the most decorated teams in the division and advancing to All States. They named a slew of All-Stars: Alex Cotugno, Nora Daly, Grace Donahue, Katie Duffy, Ella Flemming, Anna Mackay, Chelsea Otaluka, Ava Palumbo and Kaiya Thompson.

And with spring canceled, the story of the 2019-2020 athletes ends here. No matter how many months they competed, these student-athletes gave more than any fan or coach could ask for. The numbers speak for itself.

Grand total:

State Championships: 6

2 team, 3 individuals, 1 relay team.

All-State Titles: 2.

League championships: 5. 

Congratulations to the graduation class of 2020 for another outstanding athletic year and for helping Melrose to become “Title Town.”