2-0 on season after thrashing of Stoneham
Published May 14, 2021
By JENNIFER GENTILE
MELROSE—It’s been a dynamic start to the season for the MHS girls’ lacrosse team who return two years after their 2019 season. This week, they kicked off their 2021 spring season showing no signs of rust as they collected a pair of wins over Stoneham, 16-1 and 18-1 in home and away games. In their two games they’ve outscored their Stoneham opponents 34-1, proving that there seems to be no facet of the game lacking.
“It’s awesome being back,” says Melrose head coach Matt Galusi. “Getting back on the field after two years was an adjustment at first, and we were a little out of flow in early practice, but then it’s just like riding a bike.”
Indeed. Melrose started their season on the road on against Stoneham last Thursday and exploded with a 16-1 season-opener win.
Much of their success comes at the hands of their senior captains Ava Palumbo, Ella DeCecca, Liz Casey and Meghan Fogarty. “This group has been with me since their freshmen and sophomore years,” says Galusi. “They have deep knowledge of the sport and bring different aspects of the game in terms of leadership. These are all multi-sport athletes. They bring a lot to the field.”
Senior goalie Paige Rocha premieres at the net and so far has been pretty lights out. “Paige is new to this role because it’s been two years since we formed a team, but she already earned her first shut out.” Goaltending runs in the family as her brother Matt was a notable goalie for Melrose High and now playing lacrosse at Colby College. “Goaltending runs family. She’s been playing great,” says Galusi.
Supporting her on defense are Maeve Fogarty, Meghan Fogarty, Liz Casey, Kate Hubbard and Jenna Maguire.
Against Stoneham, Melrose enjoyed a plethora of scoring. In their 16-1 season opener, Ella DeCecca had five goals and an assist, while Sofia Pitcher had 3 goals and 3 assists. CoCo Francazio also enjoyed three goals. In Melrose’s 18-0 shutout three days later, Melrose relied on a large amount of goals from Ava Palumbo (4 goals 2 assists) and Ali Maguire (4 goals 2 assists), while DeCecca and Francazio also came up with with three goals each.
Sophomore Sofia Pitcher is having an impressive start to the season, according to her coach. “She’s had incredible games. We run plays through her like a quarterback. She plays almost every minute of the game.” Look for middies Kailey Donovan, Olivia Galusi, Ava Palumbo and Allie Maguire to generate offense for Melrose. Rounding out of the roster are returning players Kalina Piasecki, Rory Kirby, Erin Doherty and underclassmen Meghan Maher, Meghan Casey and Sofia Hitchman.
Expect Melrose to vie for a league title this season. And they eagerly await an appearance in the Middlesex League tournament later next month. Says Galusi, “This is a shorter season and we had a later start, but I think competing in the ML Tournament will be a great chance for us to prepare for playoffs. Even if we take our lumps it will only make us a stronger team.”
Coming up this week: After hosting Watertown on Wednesday (post deadline) Melrose will travel to Watertown this Saturday morning at 9:00 a.m.
