A Decade of Dominance: Westwood High Girls’ Lacrosse and a Legacy of Success

The scoreboard was not working properly. It read 99-96 before the game even got started. As the first half wore on it began to feel as though at least one half of that score line was possible. The girls in white were winning every face-off and swarming the opposition goal. Their two All-Americans would combine for 12 goals and 7 assists. It was a rout.

It was also the cap on a decade of dominance by one of the most successful programs in any sport in the state. The 20-6 victory over Algonquin at Worcester’s Foley Field was the 6th state championship in 10 years for the Westwood High girl’s lacrosse team and 3rd in four years for the star-studded senior class.

Losing players of the caliber of Kate Rich, 5 goals and 2 assist in the finals, Laura McHoul, 7 goals and 5 assists, and goalie Mollie Brown, 7 saves, would seem to imply an upcoming dry spell, but Head Coach Leslie Frank has dealt with this before and has never missed a beat. One of the reasons for the team’s continued success is that when players graduate they don’t leave the program, but rather come back and attend practices, cheer their former teammates on from the sidelines, and give advice to the new squad members.

The program has talent, that is unquestioned, but the strength of history and the legacy of winning pushes the Wolverines to title after title.

“Every year a team leaves something behind and the new players pick it up,” said McHoul (who along with Rich was named an All-American in her senior season) following the team’s triumph in Worcester. “Each year you just want to carry the legacy of what each year has left behind. And just to carry this on and to set up the sophomore class to go four for four was great.”

This past season did not start in typical manner with Westwood losing their opening game of the season to Lincoln-Sudbury, one of the few teams to challenge their supremacy in Division 1. Later in the season, Westwood would fall to their South Sectional rivals from Needham, a team that Coach Frank would later call the best they had played that season. In the playoffs, both those losses would be avenged and the season that began with Westwood looking like they might finally be dethroned ended in a very familiar manner.

Laura McHoul, a senior captain and All-American,
searches for an opening against Needham.

Frank has become a legend in the lacrosse community with the program that she has built at Westwood High and her focus and modesty has translated to her players. Rising senior midfielder Marina Burke noted, “It all started from her and she is an amazing coach. It might be possible that someone could match her in the number of wins or something, but I don’t think anyone could ever match the positive impact she has had on a lacrosse program.”

Following her team’s title, the reporters in attendance asked Frank what it was about Westwood that made them consistently dominant. She answered, “It’s the mentoring. It’s the legacy. Those girls are here year after year coming back to support them. We love the game and we are going to help anyone that’s going to grow the game.”

One of those former players is Erica Nangeroni, a 2010 graduate who won two state titles in her four years on the varsity squad and is currently playing as a junior at Bowdoin College. Nangeroni admires the ease with which former players are welcomed into practices by the coaches and current players. Advice is not only welcomed - it is sought and, despite winning titles of their own, current players want to learn from those that have already gone through the pressure of being the best.

“In my experience with the Westwood program, all of the players are so determined to learn as much as they can and to always better their play; Westwood players take advantage of every opportunity to learn and get better and they were absolutely willing to listen and try new things to do so,” said Nangeroni by email.

The former players add perspective to the hard work that the girls put in everyday on the practice field. The championships are great and seem to happen every year, but after graduation it is easier to realize how important it is to enjoy the celebrations with teammates and to appreciate how short the time really was during those intense playoff moments.

Senior captain and All-American Kate Rich
 pumps her fists to celebrate a goal against
Needham in the Sectional finals.

Nangeroni commented, “Being such a consistently strong program, a lot of the players know what it’s like to participate in the high pressure games; what they don’t realize is how fleeting those moments are. I advised the girls to really have fun and enjoy each game and to cherish the time with their team on and off the field because they won’t realize how special this time is until after it’s gone.”

Chasing a championship each season adds a certain pressure but both Burke and Nangeroni insist that the legacy of Westwood’s success has not added stress. According to Burke, “I don’t think there is added pressure because every year is a new year and a new team and we try to look at it that way. There is definitely added desire and ambition to do the same as the years before, but not too much pressure.” Nangeroni agreed, “Though the past success of the program may appear to add pressure to the current team, I think that there is more of a sense of pride. Within the team, the past success of the program was something that we always use to boost us up, never to bring us down.”

The new season is still over six months away, but already Westwood are the heavy favorites to be lifting the trophy again at Foley Field. Already the teams at Needham High, Lincoln-Sudbury, and Algonquin are plotting their revenge and trying to find the strategy to end the Wolverines’ title tradition. The target squarely on their backs again, Westwood will take the field confident in their ability to rise to the challenge.

What has made Westwood capable of continually finding a way to surpass all opponents? Erica Nangeroni believes that she can provide the answer:

“Ultimately, it has been the combination of incredible physical and mental effort, a lot of talent, and incredible groups of girls with chemistry on and off the field and a coach who has the ability to better her players as people that has led to the success of the Westwood program.”

The Westwood Wolverines clinched their 6th state championship in 10 years at Foley Field in Worcester.

Kevin Lynch Finding Gridiron Success in Poland

Kevin Lynch leading the Warsaw Eagles. Photo Courtesy of Kevin Lynch.

Medfield High graduate Kevin Lynch put together a stellar rookie season for the Warsaw Eagles in the Polish League Football Americansky on the heels of a record-breaking three years at Southern Connecticut State University. The former Warriors quarterback led the Eagles to the PFLA championship game and threw for nearly 30 touchdowns in his first season in Europe.

Lynch, who became the starting quarterback at Medfield High in his sophomore season, was not a top college quarterback prospect when he left the Warriors after a 9-2 season in 2005, despite being named Tri-Valley League MVP for his performances under center and as the team’s starting middle linebacker. Instead of heading right to the collegiate level, Lynch took a year of prep school at New Hampton. He credits that year for “paving the way” to the success he found at Southern Connecticut.

“The year of prep school really enabled me to learn the game more but also allowed me to focus on my studies. All in all it was a great experience for me,” said Lynch by email from Poland. As great as his prep school experience was, Lynch was forced to make another jump when he arrived in college, “The schemes of the plays are much more complex and it is really like a full time job when you play in college. I learned a lot in prep school but really learned a lot about the game once I got on campus my freshman year of college.”

Lynch set numerous records in his time at Southern Connecticut State.
Photos courtesy of SCSU Athletics.

His former coach at Medfield High, Mike Slason raved about Lynch’s technique, intelligence, and attitude, although there was a wry chuckle when describing his athleticism, “I was skeptical at first. He doesn’t have great speed, but we ran the option with him and he was so mechanically sound. Our fullback was tackled so many times because of his fakes. He ran everything to a T.”

In three seasons at Southern Connecticut, Lynch became a star. His 42 touchdown passes rank fifth in the program’s history, and he is third overall in career pass completions, attempts, and yardage. This past season he led the Owls to a 7-3 record and was given an invitation to the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) Senior Bowl in South Carolina. Lynch was named MVP of the Division II versus NAIA Senior Bowl.

It was in South Carolina that the 6-foot-3, 200-pound Lynch was first introduced to the general manager of the Warsaw Eagles, Jacek Sledzinski. Prior to that meeting, Lynch says that he had given no thoughts to playing past college.

Although Europe has grown as a destination for aspiring basketball players that just miss out on the NBA and is considered the pinnacle for those pursuing a career in soccer, it is rare for a football player to seek out an opportunity overseas. In the PFLA, four American players are allowed on the roster, but only two can be on the field at one time. The hope is that by limiting the amount of Americans there will be an increase in interest from local Polish players.

With a contract offer on the table from the Eagles, Lynch spent hours with his family and friends to decide if this was the right move. “To be honest there was some hesitation about playing in Europe, it took me a couple of days of talking to my family and people I respect to realize that this was a once in a lifetime opportunity that I couldn’t pass up.”

The guarantee of a starting spot at quarterback helped to convince Lynch that moving to Warsaw would be the right option for his career. It also helped to know that his family could follow his success on the field through the Warsaw Eagles Facebook page and website (www.warsaweagles.com), which offered live streaming of all of the team’s games.

It is rare for a local high school quarterback to make it to the professional level, but Slason is not surprised that Lynch has succeeded, “No one has the passion for football that he does. There was never a day that he didn’t want to play. He is a true student of the game.”

Lynch led Eagles to the championship game in the Polish League.

The Eagles, led by Lynch’s 26 regular season touchdown passes, finished 8-2 and qualified for the postseason. The Eagles beat the Wroclaw Devils 37-20 in the semifinals, but at Warsaw’s National Stadium on July 15th, Lynch and the Eagles fell to the Gydnia Seahawks 52-37.

Despite the loss in the championship game, Lynch is enjoying his time in Poland and the opportunities to explore Europe. One of the surprisingly fun aspects of playing in Warsaw has been the enthusiasm of the fans, “They are truly passionate about the game of football and I cannot say enough about the support that we get from them. They are like our 12th man out on the field.”

It is a road less traveled that has brought Lynch to his current success. He may not be thinking about next year quite yet and has no illusions about where his career path may end, but he knows that it was only through determination and hard work on and off the field that he has achieved this rare chance:

“I would say to anyone that is interested in playing football at any level is to just give it your best shot, don’t settle for anything. If your goal is to play in college, than you must work for it because there are a lot of other athletes that have the same goal. You must be willing to put in the extra time in the gym and the field when nobody else is around because that will truly make the difference in your ability.”

Mohawks on the Brink (Layout)

Here's the layout to my article on the Millis-Hopedale Mohawks and their path from near extinction to the brink of a Super Bowl appearance. I'm going to post another blog later with text that's a little bit easier to read.

Grass is Always Greener

With the annihilation of a very poor Somerset Berkley team at McGrath Stadium, Bishop Feehan clinched another EAC title, another berth in the Division 3 playoffs, and another great chance to get to Gillette Stadium for the Super Bowl. The Shamrocks went a perfect 4-0 in the conference this season and did so by a combined score of 134-7. In fact the only touchdown that Feehan gave up against an EAC opponent this season came in the final minute against Somerset with the starters bundled up on the bench.

In some circles this would be all the proof that is needed that Feehan needs to find a new conference, there just isn’t enough of a challenge from the current set-up. Many people wanted Feehan to make a jump to the Hockomock League before it was announced that Taunton and Milford would be moving in next season. My question is: what would make Feehan want to change anything?

Sure the EAC isn’t the best competition, especially since Attleboro and Dartmouth took away the two biggest schools in the conference, but it is an almost guaranteed spot in the football playoffs, which is the big money maker for any high school. Meanwhile in other sports, under the current rules, Feehan teams will almost always find themselves with a spot in the postseason. But the lack of proper opposition is almost a myth; Martha’s Vineyard won the league in boys’ soccer this season, while Coyle and Cassidy are always strong in softball, baseball, and hockey. Oh by the way, last year Somerset beat Feehan in football. Yet it is always the assumption that no one in the EAC can stand up to Feehan. This is generally true in cross-country and girls’ soccer but not across the board.

An underrated benefit to playing in the EAC is flexibility. With only four conference opponents Feehan can continue to play a very difficult out of conference schedule. When Attleboro High switched from the five team Old Colony League to the 10 team Hockomock it left very little room for Athletic Director Mark Houle to keep longtime rivals such as Dartmouth, New Bedford, Taunton, and even Feehan on the schedule because every game was taken up by conference play. This is a problem that will only be exacerbated by the move to a 12 team conference next season.

Feehan on the other hand can schedule match-ups with LaSalle, Barrington, Fontbonne Academy, Cardinal Spellman and other teams that provide the challenges that may not be consistently there within the EAC. This may seem like a small point in the long run, but there is something to be said for a little variety. It’s nice to see teams that would otherwise never find their way to Attleboro.

Now that the Hockomock League has closed its doors to Feehan, at least for the foreseeable future, there also doesn’t appear to be an obvious landing spot for the Shamrocks. Maybe the EAC invites in the remnants of the OCL or Feehan moves to the South Coast Conference but this isn’t Boise State moving to the Big East to get a BCS berth there are issues with each option.

Unfortunately, there is also the question of whether or not Feehan would be welcomed in with open arms. There is some hesitation for schools to bring in Feehan because of their regional nature, their excellent resources or because of the long-held belief that they recruit potential players from their rivals.*

*(Disclaimer- I’m not making any claims that Feehan recruit, I honestly don’t know anything about the subject and I’m not taking a side. I’m simply saying that people believe they do, it does influence the way some people see the school, and distasteful or not it is part of the equation.)

There are a lot of factors working both for and against Feehan moving out of the EAC, but in the end the most important decision for Feehan has to be how to build on an already successful sports program and, at least to me, the best choice is to stay put and keep on winning. Now if they could just get someone decent on Thanksgiving Day…