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ARROWS SPORTS
Vol LXIII, No. 2
Varsity Soccer Vying
for Final Playoff Spot
By ALEX SPEAR ‘11
As the St. Sebastian’s Varsity Soccer
Team approached the middle of their
season, they ran into a little bit of a
rough patch, losing their first game
and following the loss with three
straight ties. After the Arrows played
a fine match at Milton Academy on
October 10th, which featured senior
goalkeeper Tom Gregg’s first shutout,
gutsy play in the backfield, dominating
midfielders, and relentless
offensive pressure by the Arrows—in
which the Red and Black won twonil—the
team’s record was an impressive
4-0-2 (four wins, no losses, and
two ties). Nevertheless, though, as all
athletes can attest, all great seasons
have their ‘roadblocks.’ But, as you
will see as you progress through this
article, the Arrows Soccer Team has
battled through some tough games
and has gotten back on track—a true
testament to the outstanding character
shared by all players and coaches.
After the Milton Academy
game, the Arrows hosted a fast,
scrappy Brooks Academy squad.
Throughout the first half of the game,
both teams battled and the play went
back and forth, and the entire match
truly was a back and forth battle. As
the whistle blew to end the first half,
both teams were scoreless yet playing
high-paced, solid soccer. The second
half began as expected—high tempo
and physical as both teams were
doing everything possible to scratch
out a goal. The score remained at a
zero tie until a Brooks forward came
streaking through the middle and received
a beautiful through ball which
he buried into the goal to make the
score one to nothing. Minutes later,
a Brooks’ midfielder get through the
defense and put a nice hooking ball
into the left side of the net to widen
the score midway through the second
half and stun the Arrows. There has
been an interesting trend throughout
the season for the Arrows, and this
trend is the following: that the Arrows
tend to play better and better as the
game gets on. Any spectator can
confidently say that the Arrows—no
matter the score—outplay their
opponent in the last ten to twenty
minutes to due phenomenal conditioning
and never quitting. And, of
course, the match versus Brooks is
a great example of this trend: as the
Arrows restarted the play after the
Brooks goal, the Arrows had the ball
in their offensive zone for the rest of
the game, looking for opportunities
to score. Just under ten minutes, midfielder
Ryan Hayes ’10 put a bouncing
ball into the bottom left corner of the
net, and all of the sudden the Arrows
were back in the game. Once again,
the Arrows loaded the pressure on
Brooks, and it for sure seemed that
the Arrows would once again score.
But a speedy Brooks forward caught
the defense playing a bit too aggressive
and got past them en route to
scoring his second goal of the game.
As Brooks took a three-one lead with
about seven minutes to play, the Arrows
brought on the immense pressure
again but just could not find the
twine and suffered a heartbreaking,
yet well-played match. This was the
Arrows’ loss of the season.
The following day, the team
hopped on the bus on a cold, rainy
Thursday afternoon to travel to Tabor
Academy. The Arrows possessed the
ball very well throughout the game,
and midfielders Zane Stanton ’11 and
Hayes played many beautiful balls to
the forwards and the outside midfielders.
In the latter part of the first
half, senior midfielder Chris Dillon
notched a nice goal as he sprinted to
the left post and scored on a loose
ball inside the six-yard box. The score
remained one-nothing until the
Tabor forwards caught the Arrows
defense back on their heels as a midfielder
hit a long through ball behind
the defense and to a forward who
beat freshman keeper Ben Piersiak
for a goal. The Arrows left Tabor’s
campus that afternoon with a 1-1
tie. The Tabor goalkeeper played a
good game, saving an Arrow penalty
kick and an unbelievable number of
chances the Arrows had to score.
Two days later, the Red
and Black welcomed a very good
Belmont Hill team for Homecoming
2009. This game was simply a battle
on all aspects of the field. Gregg and
the back four consisting of seniors
David Ruffolo, Nick Jacoby, Peirce
Daly, and junior Alex Spear played
a great defensive game, shutting
down fast, talented Belmont Hill
forwards. Once again, the midfielders
of Hayes, Stanton, Chris Dillon,
Kevin Dillon ’12, and Nick Creegan
’11 played great games. Strikers
Dillon Kerr ’11, Charlie Callanan ’11,
and George Price ’13 had to deal
with big, athletic backs but toughed
it out and had terrific games as
they mounted heavy pressure and
created some solid chances. In front
of a massive Homecoming crowd
of parents, teachers, students from
many schools, and the San Miguel
School, the Arrows gave their fans
a well fought game that featured
no goals but basically everything
else one would enjoy watching in a
soccer game—heavy pressure, solid
possession, lots of energy, intensity,
and good scoring chances.
In the final portion of the ‘roadblock,’
the Arrows took a long bus ride out
to Lawrence Academy to take on the
Lawrence Rebels. The Arrows’ adversaries
made their presence on the
scoreboard first as the two Lawrence
forwards connected on a through
ball that was struck into the top left
corner of the net. The second half
convening with Lawrence Academy
leading one-nil, the Arrows came out
flying and Creegan earned a penalty
kick for the Arrows as he took a
hard tackle just inside the top of the
eighteen-yard box. Daly took the
penalty kick, and placed his strike
perfectly into the side of the goal.
Minutes later, though, the Rebel
forwards once again connected on
passes and buried their second goal
to take another lead. The Arrows
then dominated the play in their
offensive zone, until finally a hard
tackle just outside the eighteen-yard
box gave the Arrows a free kick in
a very dangerous part of the pitch,
and the Arrows capitalized. Kerr taking
the free kick, he perfectly struck
the ball right over the defending
wall and netted the ball just under
the crossbar towards the right side
of the net. Kerr’s beauty leveled the
scoring, and that’s the way the score
stayed—two-two.
At the time, the Arrows had
a 4-1-4 record, and were preparing
to take on the Middlesex Zebras in a
very meaningful contest. In arguably
their best-played match of the year,
the Arrows shut out the Zebras 2-0,
earning Gregg his second shutout
and the defense turning in another
fine performance. The defense and
Gregg thwarted the opponent’s
attacks long enough for Callanan to
bury a ball to the back of the net to
break the scoreless tie, giving Price
the assist. Until late in the second
half, the scored remained at onenothing.
It was at this point—late in
the second half—that Kerr scored off
a Kevin Dillon strike to put the Arrows
up by two and win the match.
Once again, the Arrows out-hustled
and wore out their opponents in
the second half. The following week
featured a well-earned six-point
week for the Arrows as they beat a
good St. Mark’s squad 3-1 on a frigid,
rainy afternoon off of goals from
Stanton, Callanan, and Creegan. That
Saturday, the team ventured off to
Newport, Rhode Island to take on
a very, very good St. George’s club.
The two teams matching up quite
similarly, the game was extremely
well-fought, fast-paced, and physical.
As expressed by coaches Lynch
and Schell, the team who capitalizes
on scoring chances will win the
game. Both Arrow goals were scored
off of tremendous hustle. The first
Arrow goal, coming in the second
half after St. George’s opened the
scoring at the beginning of the
second half off of a free kick, was
produced off of great efforts from
Callanan, who beat the St. George’s
keeper to rolling ball and hit a short
cross to Junior Tim Stoddard who
pounded the ball into the back of
the net. About fifteen minutes later,
Callanan once again hustled to a
loose ball and gave it off to Kevin
Dillon, who was unmarked inside
the eighteen-yard box, settled the
pass, and chipped the ball right over
the St. George’s keeper’s head for a
stellar goal. This match was fantastic
and incredibly well-played against
an athletic, smart St. George’s Team.
Although the Arrows have
most recently suffered a tough 2-1
loss to St. Paul’s School, in which St.
Paul’s scratched out two scrappy
goals and the Arrows one hardearned
goal knocked in by Ryan
Hayes, the match was again another
fast-paced and physical one where
the Arrows—once again—took
control of the game with superior
conditioning, especially in the
second half. Many scoring chances
arose for the Arrows, but the team
just got unlucky in burying them.
Kerr had many nice tries and Stanton
just nearly missed from a long way
out.
This loss does not define
how mentally and physically tough
this Arrows team is, as they will do
their best—and expect of themselves—to
respond with another
well-played, energetic game on
Friday, November 6th at Groton at
2pm. Hopefully, this time though,
their maximum efforts will be
rewarded with a win. The Arrows—
with the prospect of post-season
play—have a tough remainder of
the regular season as they take on
Groton (aforementioned), leagueleading
Roxbury Latin, and Thayer
Academy (last home game, 10am on
Saturday, November 14th).
All twenty-two players
continue to work extremely hard
at practice day in and day out, and
a record of seven wins, two losses,
and five ties (overall) reflects this
hard work. The team thanks senior
managers Joe Albanese and Tom
Smail for their devotion to the team
and for helping out with equipment
at practices and games. This is an
exciting time for Arrows Soccer, so I
urge all of you who read this to try
and watch some of the game against
Thayer that wraps up the season—I
promise you will not be disappointed!
As Kevin Dillon ‘12 looks on, Ryan Hayes ‘10 breaks from the pack in effort to charge upfield.
St. Sebastian’s School November 2009
QB Brian Strachan ‘11 lines up in the shotgun as Mike Ewing ‘10 prepares for the handoff
5-2 Football On Tear
By DOUG KINGSLEY ‘12
Coming out of a close win against
Milton Academy the previous week,
the Varsity Football team was itching
for another victory. The Arrow’s
next game would be against their
archrivals Belmont Hill at home, on
homecoming.
The tension was rising between the
two teams as they strode out onto the
rain soaked turf early in the morning
of October 17th. The Arrows began
to warm up in front of a crowd of over
a thousand fans consisting of parents,
students, and alumni. The game was
sure to be a battle of the titans. It all
began as Captains, Max Kingsley (‘10)
Mike Ewing (‘10) and Bill Connolly
(‘10) approached center field for the
coin toss, accompanied by the honorary
captain Kevin Rich.
For those who do not yet know, Kevin
Rich is the six year old son of alumnus
W.T. Rich. Kevin has recently been
diagnosed with leukemia and is undergoing
multiple treatments as they
try to find a cure. While at St. Sebastian’s
W.T. Rich was a talented running
back of the Arrows football teem. The
football teem is honored and inspired
by having him as a member of our
team, and our prayers and support go
out to the Rich family.
After Kevin won the coin toss for the
Arrows, the game began. The first
half was eventful and fast paced,
as the Arrows battled up and down
the field, and with the help of the
offensive line, Mike Ewing and Brian
Strachan (‘11) were able to move the
ball into Sextant territory. Eventually
a touchdown pass to Charley Allen
(‘10) bolstered the Arrows with a 7-0
lead. Unfortunately however midway
through the second quarter Belmont
Hill was able to make two touchdowns
placing them in the lead with
a score of 13-7. With one last effort to
score before the half the Arrows were
able to drive down the field and score
one last time putting them up by one
point going into the second half with
the score of 14-13.
The Arrows entered into the second
half with the support of many fans
behind them, but unfortunately,
the momentum shifted again in the
Hill’s favor midway through the third
quarter. The Arrows experienced
an array of both carless errors and
unneeded penalties which slowed
down their momentum and eventually
cost them the game. The final
score was 14-36.
After the tragic loss against the
Belmont Hill school the football
team faced their next opponent,
Middlesex.
The Arrows faced off against the
Zebras at home on October 24th.
At the start of the game, the Arrows
took the opening possession and
quickly moved toward the Zebras’
territory due to a few big plays. The
first came as Brian Strachan broke
to the outside and scrambled across
the field for a 15 yard gain. Two plays
later Strachan found sophomore
Kendall Dardy-Jones, (an expert at
his position and a key part to our
offence) who maneuvered his way
around defenders for a gain of 30
yards. A few plays later Strachan
found running room off the edge
again and tiptoed past the pylon for
the touchdown. The Arrows sidelines
erupted with shouts as the points
were put up on the board and they
went ahead.
However, on the next kickoff, the
Middlesex found a lane and ran the
ball up the Arrows’ sideline all the
way down to the 20 yard line. A few
plays later the Zebras’ made a touchdown
tying the score 7-7
Once again the Arrows fought back
with another great drive. Strachan
found Jake O’Malley and made the
pass for what looked to be a short
gain. However, O’Malley shook the
first few defenders and powered his
way up the sideline for a gain of 23
yards. The next play was good for six
yards after being run by Ewing, who
put the Arrows at tin scoring position.
Strachan finished off the drive
again, by scoring, and putting the
Arrows in the lead once again with
the score 14-7. Sadly, the Zebras
scored yet again leaving the score
Varsity Results
Varsity Football:
Middlesex W 27-21
St. George’s W 34-8
Groton W 41-13
Varsity Soccer:
Middlesex W 2-0
St. Mark’s W 3 -1
St. George’s W 2-1
St. Paul’s L 2-1
Groton W 2-0
Cross Country:
St. George’s W 17-38
Nobles L 22-36
Middlesex L 26-31
Roxbury Latin L 18-44
21-14 going into the third quarter
In the second half the Arrows struck
back at the Zebras with intensity.
Charles Conigliaro pinned the Zebras
deep in their own territory to start
the third quarter, and the St. Seb’s
defense played hard, making it impossible
for Middlesex to score the
Middlesex team had no other choice
but to punt, which left the Arrows
with a chance to get back and score.
Unfortunately, just when St. Sebastian’s
moved the ball down near
the goal line, the ball was fumbled
on the three yard line by Bill Connolly,
who latter was heard saying “I
thought the count was on the color
not on two.”
In the last quarter the game came
down to a one touchdown difference,
because of an unlucky missed
the extra point. However on the kick
off Charles Conigliaro kicked the ball
on a line drive, which then bounced
off of the helmet of one of the
Zebras’ front line men and landed
in the hands of sophomore Austin
Franchi.
The Arrows burned some clock on
this fortunate possession before
punting and pinning the Zebras
deep in their own territory on an
outstanding tackle by Murphy
Vandervelde (11).
In all, the Arrows playing tough on
offense and defense, St. Sebastian’s
was in control the entire game. The
final score was 21-27. The Arrows
came out with another win.
The next week the Arrows traveled
to Newport, R.I. to take on the St.
George’s Dragons. The dragons were
egger to play, and impress their
families who had arrived for the St
Georges Family day.
The Arrows stepped drowsily
stepped off the busses in Newport,
R.I. last Saturday, after a two hour
buss ride, to find the St George football
team ready to play.
The fields were wet and muddy
which made it difficult for the football
team to run the ball. Fortunately
the Arrows overcame this obstacle.
Fortunately, the same was true for St.
George’s offence and the St. Sebastian’s
defense was able to stop the,
countless times.
Midway through the first quarter,
Brian Strachan was able to gain
some positive yards and eventually
scored after a 57 yard run. For the
remainder of the first half, the Arrows
continued to stop any offensive
chances for the Dragons, eventually
forcing three interceptions. Peter
Burke played an excellently, picking
off two passes. Jack Connolly made
a key interception in the end zone
for a touchback. Meanwhile, the Arrows
offense fought hard again, and
scored two more times in the second
quarter. One touchdown was made
by receivers Brendan Ecclesine and
the other Charley Allen, both of who
had magnificent games.
The Arrows began the second half
with a 21-0 lead, which they made
bigger with the help of Charles
Conigliaro. The final score for the Arrows
came minutes later on another
explosive play when Jake O’Malley
received a punt, lowered his shoulder
through the first defender and
found his way into the end zone for
a touchdown.
This proved to be the end of the
scoring for St. Sebastian’s but not the
end of the team effort. Several nonstarters,
including many JV players,
saw the field for the Arrows. However
with the Junior Varsity players
on the field, the Dragons were able
to score once, leaving the score 34-8,
another victory for St. Sebastian’s.
So far this year the St. Sebastian’s
football team has done a great job
and we wish the team much luck in
the final game of the season.