11/09/202511/13/2025

Franklin Sweeps Andover To Book Spot In D1 State Semis

By Jason Cooke || ValleySportsDaily Editor

ANDOVER, Mass. — With No. 4 Andover applying pressure in the first two sets of Sunday’s quarterfinal bout with No. 5 Franklin, the Panthers leaned on their veterans who had been there before to cruise to a 3-0 win by way of 25-20, 25-22, 25-8 at Andover High School.

Franklin (21-2) advances to play perhaps the hottest team in the tournament in No. 16 Newton South, which has downed No. 1 Chelmsford and No. 8 Brookline en route to the Final Four. That game is slated for Wednesday at Westwood High School (7:15 p.m.).

A talented Golden Warriors team made Franklin work for its second semifinal appearance in the last three years. But Makayla Kuykendall (14 kills, 10 digs, two aces, two blocks) and Olivia Alberti (eight kills, two aces, four blocks) ensured a clean sweep.

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“We needed to close it out,” Kuykendall said. “Just to finish strong and finish it out right there. We didn’t want to go to a fourth set or a fifth set. We didn’t want to have that nervous ending.”

Both quarterfinal victories Kuykendall and Alberti have had a hand in have been upsets. Franklin edged No. 2 Haverhill in 2023 to punch its ticket to the semifinals, where it fell to Barnstable.

“My favorite moment throughout all of volleyball was making it to the Final Four a few years ago, and that was like a really big upset,” Alberti said. “So to do it again this year and to also be an upset is such a big moment.”

Andover (18-5) received strong play from Jessie Wang (10 kills, seven digs, block), Naomi Vajda (four digs, eight kills, 10 service aces) and Farah Berty (15 digs), but Franklin’s well-rounded engine was too much to overcome.

“You can’t be ashamed of losing to a team that outplayed you on a given day,” said Andover head coach Dan Young. “And I felt like today they were the better team, so they are deserving to move on.”

The teams were tied at 15 early in the first set in what was a tightly contested game. But Franklin eventually created a 23-20 lead and sealed game one with an ace from Alberti.

“We just had to stay steady,” said Franklin head coach Chris Ridolfi. “We didn’t panic. If you noticed in the first set, I didn’t take a time out. I just let it roll, and I asked them to be steady. They were steady.”

Alberti would notch huge kills in the second set to help Franklin pull away and set the tone in the final set with pivotal kills in the early goings. Phoebe O’Connor (37 assists, three aces, 24 digs) developed a strong connection with Franklin’s hitters.

“The energy overall was really good, so it was able to bring me up,” Alberti said. “And I think the setter-hitter connection all night was really good. We were just pushing really hard through every point.”

After Franklin raced to a 20-12 lead in the middle frame, however, Andover struck back. A pair of Vajda kills cut the deficit before Wang and Camryn Leithead added kills as Franklin’s cushion dwindled to 24-22. Kuykendall spoiled the comeback effort to take the set.

“They keep them on track and they keep them together,” Ridolfi said of Kuykendall and Alberti. “It’s something that you can’t measure. It doesn’t show up on the court, but we would probably be lost without it.”

Franklin’s attack was supplemented by a large supporting cast, including Emerson Delleo (seven kills, two blocks, 14 digs), Gianna Laurello (five kills, three aces, five digs, one block), Emma Cunningham (three aces, 24 digs) and Charlotte Yeulenski (four kills, two blocks).

Ridolfi may be a first-year head coach, but it didn’t take long for him to gauge his team’s determination early in the season to return to Sunday’s stage after a loss in the quarterfinals last fall.

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“From the very beginning, they told me this is where they wanted to go,” Ridolfi said. “And they’ve prepped like that, they’ve practiced like that, all of them.”

With a trip to the state finals on deck, Franklin will keep taking every game one point at a time.

“I think we definitely set the tone that this game is like, ‘You got to win this game.’ We were really excited, and we came into this wanting to win. Our goal has always been looking forward and just looking to the next game,” Kuykendall said.

Jason Cooke is the editor of Valley Sports Daily – a sister site of HockomockSports.com. You can contact him at Jason@valleysportsdaily.com and follow him on Twitter at @cookejournalism.

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11/09/202511/13/2025

Oliver Ames Overcomes Gutsy Canton Effort To Reach State Semis

Oliver Ames volleyball celebrates with its Final Four trophy after beating league rival Canton in four sets. (Ryan Lanigan/HockomockSports.com)

By Ryan Lanigan || HockomockSports.com Editor

NORTH EASTON, Mass. — For a moment, it felt like the script was flipping. Oliver Ames rolled through the first two sets, then let a late lead get away in the third as Canton forced the match to stretch longer than it looked like it would just moments earlier.

And then it nearly happened again.

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The Bulldogs erased an eight-point deficit in the fourth and drew level in the closing points. But this time, OA didn’t break. Canton kept answering, but back-to-back kills from Chelsea Wagner and Taylor Donohue finally closed out the fourth and sent the top-seeded Tigers to the Division 2 state semifinals with a 3-1 win (25-10, 25-15, 22-25, 27-25) over the Bulldogs.

The final point was emblematic of the match. Senior Angelina Romeiro went to the floor to dig up a Canton attack, and Donohue was forced to push it over. A free ball came back over, but the Bulldogs came up with a double block on Donohue’s second swing. On the third chance, Donohue slammed one to the floor to close it out.

“I think we got up in our feelings a little bit knowing that it was that close and all the pressure,” said Oliver Ames head coach Chelsea Cunningham. “They started to feel it towards the third set, but that just means after that we realized it’s anybody’s game. We had to take it one point at a time, reset as much as we could. I even took timeouts to calm them down because I could see it in them. You just can’t shake that feeling that it’s coming that close.

“I’m so proud of them. They fought through that pressure and learned how to persevere even when our weaknesses were being exposed constantly. We still gave it right back to them.”

Wagner went up and smashed one of her 20 kills to give the Tigers a commanding 19-11 lead in the fourth set. Canton freshman Brooke Connor (12 kills) had a perfect line shot for a kill and sophomore Michaela Singleton followed with an ace, but Wagner came through with another kill to make it 20-13 as OA was just five points from closing it out.

But a service error opened the door for the Dogs, and sophomore Brynn Connor sandwiched a pair of kills off loose passes around an ace from junior Fiona Trendell, and Brooke Connor put down another loose pass and suddenly Canton was within two at 20-18.

Sophomore Lyla McDonough (32 assists, four aces) won a battle at the net for a key point for OA, junior middle Claire Kenny (six kills, five aces, two blocks) put a kill down, and a service error put the Tigers on the brink at 23-20. But once again, Canton came back. Senior Chloe Dubuisson (18 kills) hit a roll shot into a hole in the defense and OA had back-to-back hitting errors as the set to knot the score 23-23.

Wagner got a kill, but Canton stayed alive after an OA hitting error. Wagner and Brooke Connor traded kills again to tie it at 25-25. Adjusting to the defense, Wagner threw one to the back corner to make it 26-25, and then Donohue (10 kills, 17 digs, four aces) ended it on her third swing.

“When the points are going back and forth, it gets so nerve-wracking and you just want to finish it as fast as possible,” Wagner said. “But when you have those swings where they keep getting it up, because Soley Rodriguez Martinez is an amazing player so the cross shots are hard, you have to think about where you can tip it and where you can place the ball smartly to get those points.”

The third set was mostly back-and-forth with Donohue getting some early kills for the Tigers while Dubuisson had some big swings for the Bulldogs. With the game tied at 13 apiece, Sean Raymond dropped a roll shot on the second ball and McDonough had consecutive aces. Kenny added a big kill from the middle and freshman Lyla Yurrita came through with a block to put the Tigers up 19-16.

Brooke Connor answered with a kill after a strong pass from Melanie McDonough, a long rally ended in favor of the Bulldogs, and back-to back errors from OA had Canton in front. OA got a kill from Wagner, but Connor came through again with two good swings. For the final two points, Canton senior setter Erin Bigham took over. She froze the OA defense with a perfect dump on the second touch to get within a point, and as a front row player, she went up and swung at the second ball for a kill to close it out and force a fourth.

“I couldn’t be prouder of the way the kids rallied after that second set,” said Canton head coach Pat Cawley. “I mean, I think we came in confident that we could do better than we had done against them during the regular season. We’re a lot better team than we were, but the nerves showed for us in the first two sets. And it would have been easy just to lie down and get out of here. But they fought tooth and nail the whole time in the third and fourth set. We were right there with them in that fourth set and it could have gone either way. And then you go into five and you never know. But I’m really proud of them. They really worked hard out there.

“[Oliver Ames] is an amazing team and their hitters hit the ball hard. All of the kudos to them. They’re a great team. The same kids pretty much went to the finals last year and they got another year [next year]. But I’m really proud of my kids who, everybody except for Soley and Erin, are pretty new at what they were doing. And I think that’s why we had such a slow start. I think the nerves set in and the confidence wasn’t there. But I really couldn’t be prouder and that’s all I can say to them. It hurts in the moment, but at least we know that we went home swinging.”

Rodriguez Martinez anchored Canton’s defensive effort with another stellar performance in the back row with 27 digs to go along with three kills. Bigham — one of the best players in Canton history, and arguably the more versatile setter the Hockomock League has seen in two decades — closed out her career with 30 assists, 17 digs, and four kills.

“I can’t say enough about Erin…a four-year starter, she has barely come off the court in four years,” Cawley said. “A six position player, she’s a leader, she’s calm. I think that’s one of her biggest attributes is her calmness on the court. She tries to keep those around her calm.

Every skill set she’s very good at. She’s not only a great setter, she’s a good blocker, she’s an excellent defensive player. She has some offense to her game. She’s a very good server. I’ve never had a setter younger than a junior pretty much. I’ve never had a setter that is so strong in all skill sets and such a hard worker. Kids come and they go, but we’re going to feel the sting of Erin leaving for sure.”

OA set the tone early in the match, winning seven of the first nine points. Canton clawed its way into it, including a perfectly placed tip from Brynn Connor, to pull within 11-7. But the Tigers took control from there — Kenny denied the Dogs twice with blocks, Donohue and Wagner had back-to-back kills, and then Kenny came back with two more blocks and a kill to close out the first set, 25-10.

The second set played out similarly. The Tigers used a 6-0 run early, highlighted by a kill from Yurrita and two aces from Kenny, to create some separation. Canton got back into it with some key plays from Brooke Connor and another timely play from Bigham as the Bulldogs pulled within 15-11. But it was another 6-0 run from OA — a block and kill from Kenny after strong defense from libero Molly Milliken, an ace from Donohue, and a block from Romeiro — that sent the Tigers to a 25-15 win in the second set.

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“I said it’s a feat in itself to play the same team three times,” Cunningham said. “We know the opponent, we know what to expect, but it doesn’t matter. [Canton] is still gonna try their best, they’re still gonna give their best game to us. And having to come here again for them, that must have been ten times as hard. So I give them all the credit to show up and play because they really did.”

“I said to my team, this is it guys, this is your last home game. How do you want to remember it? And then they took over from there.”

Oliver Ames (23-0) will face a familiar foe in the Division 2 state semifinals in King Philip (16-7). The date, time, and location has yet to be announced.

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11/06/202511/13/2025

Franklin Overcomes Slow Start, Shuts Out Waltham to Reach Elite Eight

Franklin Field Hockey — Franklin celebrates after Addie Weiss (left) opened the scoring with a goal in the second quarter against Waltham in the Sweet Sixteen. (Josh Perry/HockomockSports.com)

By Josh Perry || HockomockSports.com Managing Editor

FRANKLIN, Mass. – After a solid opening couple minutes, Franklin found itself on the back foot. Waltham, coming off its first playoff win in nearly two decades, started Thursday afternoon’s Div. 1 Sweet Sixteen contest at Beaver Pond Field intent on testing the relatively young Panthers and putting pressure on the higher seed.

The Panthers were struggling to move the ball, connect passes, and even get over half. They were pinned back in front of their own goal and the Hawks forced four corners in quick succession. Through it all, the Franklin defense held firm and senior goalie Devon Barry was untroubled.

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For the second playoff game in a row, it took Franklin time to get into its usual rhythm but the defense continued to hold firm and give the attack time to click. The Panthers eventually did find their offense, getting goals from senior Addi Weiss and freshman Cade Taccini to beat Waltham 2-0 and advance to a fifth straight quarterfinal.

“They had way too many offensive corners,” Franklin coach Michelle Hess said, “but I don’t really get nervous because we’re good at them. We have a good system, we’ve got it figured out, so I knew we’d be okay, but you just don’t know, they slip one in and that’s the game-changer. We can’t give them up.”

The first quarter was notable for Waltham’s pressure and for the lack of goal-scoring opportunities for either team. Miyana Bahl did find the back of the net for the Hawks, but her shot was outside the circle and Barry smartly watched it roll harmlessly over the line.

Asked about what has made the Franklin defense, which includes senior Ava Lucenta, junior Jossie Camp, and sophomores Clara Blongastainer and Samantha Feigen, Barry explained, “Myself and Ava like to direct traffic around there. We’ve played together so long, we know where to tell people to move. Especially on corners, I’ll step out of the goal. I’ll make sure everyone’s situated, everyone’s calm and taken a breath and we’re set and ready.”

Franklin started to find some joy in the attacking half of the field starting in the second quarter. From a corner routine, Ella Marzullo passed it to Tori Cahill, who slipped a pass on the edge of the circle to Taccini. The freshman looked into the middle and found Marzullo, but the shot was just wide of the post.

Two minutes later, on the second corner in a row, Camp teed up Taccini on the edge of the circle, but the shot blazed past the post.

Finally, with 2:37 left in the half, Franklin got a breakthrough. Blongastainer won possession back for the Panthers and Camp showed great composure to move the ball out of defense. In transition, Taccini fired it into the circle and Weiss was able to settle the ball and blast it through the save attempt from Nina Joannidis.

“It took a little pressure off. It helped them to settle in,” Hess said of the goal. “We’re so young and I think that inexperienced showed a little today. We’ve got to keep working with them, just flush it and don’t let them get in your head.”

One goal is never a comfortable lead. Waltham went back on the offensive for the final couple minutes of the quarter and nearly got a tying goal with no time on the clock. From a late corner, Bahl found Meri Guden in space on the left side of goal but her shot skimmed across the crease and just missed the far post.

The second half was more of what everyone has become accustomed to from the Panthers. Their intensity seemed a little higher and they were pressuring the ball more quickly, forcing turnovers and turning them into chances. Taccini got it started with an interception and she picked out sophomore Penelope Brady on the right side, but her shot flashed across goal.

Late in the third, Caydence Canavan forced a turnover and found Brady on the opposite side, but Joannidis made the stop. Another Canavan steal opened up space for Marzullo to have a run and shot. It was blocked but Taccini pounced on the rebound and forced another save.

The best chance to double the lead came with a minute left in the quarter. Marzullo picked off the ball in midfield and slipped a pass into the run of Brady on the right wing. The sophomore was clean through on goal, but Joannidis stood tall to make the save.

Asked about the play of Franklin’s underclassmen, Barry (who started in goal as a freshman) said, “I kind of know how they feel and the legacy that they want to build. Each of them wants to be part of something great and something really special. We like to say ‘play for your seniors’, play so we all go out on a high.”

One of the standout players in Franklin’s defensive unit was Camp. The junior seemed to always be in the way when Waltham tried to come through the middle and her presence of mind in possession allowed the Panthers to escape danger and get into the attack.

“Phenomenal,” Hess said about Camp’s play. “She has the experience from last year that’s carrying over and I think we found her spot, moving her position this year. I think it helps having her a line back because she has that time and she’s so calm and her IQ is so high that she makes better decisions.”

Franklin got a crucial insurance goal on its eighth corner of the day. Canavan started the play with a pass out to freshman Amelia Manning, who settled the ball for Taccini to wind up and smash it through a crowd and inside the post.

The Panthers almost added another goal from another corner. Lucenta got it started with a pass out to Taccini and, with Waltham defenders racing out to block, found Marzullo for a shot that skipped wide.

“I think we’re always holding each other accountable and lifting each other up because we know what’s on the line,” Barry replied when asked about the consistency of the program to be back at this stage for the fifth season in a row.

She continued, “If you lose, you go home, so I think we all have that thought in our heads that we don’t want it to be our last chance. We always like to think one game at a time, so whatever we can do to get to that next game.”

Franklin (15-2-3) will face No. 10 Hopkinton in the quarterfinal on Monday afternoon at Beaver Pond Field. The Panthers will be looking to secure a spot in their third Final Four in program history (all have come in the last five years).

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11/03/202511/13/2025

Franklin Shakes Off Rust in First Round, Runs Past Woburn

By Josh Perry || HockomockSports.com Managing Editor

FRANKLIN, Mass. – It had been nearly two weeks since Franklin closed out the regular season with a win against Bishop Feehan. Inevitably, the Panthers took a little while to find their footing in Monday afternoon’s Div. 1 tournament opener at Beaver Pond Field.

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Once the Panthers got up to speed, things went according to plan. Franklin scored three times in the second half and rolled to a 4-0 win against No. 31 Woburn to get back into the Sweet Sixteen.

“A little slow to start,” Franklin coach Michelle Hess admitted. “The break was good because we had some injuries but yeah we’ve got to get back to the routine. We’ve got to get back to playing and you play against each other so much it gets monotonous. And, I have a young team, so I think we had a little bit of nerves.”

Franklin struggled to connect passes and create scoring chances in the opening quarter. With 8:20 left in the first, the Panthers got a corner and Ella Marzullo fed the ball to the goal mouth where Ava Lucenta was stationed but her tip was cleared off the line by Woburn’s Emerson Lilley.

A couple minutes later, Clara Blongastainer pushed up from defense and picked out Marzullo in the middle. She tried to connect with Penelope Brady on the far post but Norah Poncia was in the way and cleared.

Things started to pick up for the hosts in the second quarter. Freshman Cade Taccini had a shot from distance that was kicked aside and Marzullo had two chances inside the circle — the first was blocked and the second hit off the outside of the net.

Hess explained, “They were pressing us pretty good, so we figured out that we had to switch the field and open up the field a little bit more. Physical team, they’re tough to get by.”

With nine minutes to go in the half, Tori Cahill slipped a pass into the run of freshman Lila Reardon, but her touch was just wide of the post. Taccini was controlling the midfield and she played a pass to Reardon, who cut it across for classmate Lily Aparo but the ball was kicked out.

The breakthrough finally came on the fourth corner of the night. Lucenta started it with a pass to Blongastainer at the edge of the circle. Her blast was redirected by Aparo to Marzullo, who in turn fed Cahill on the post for a tap in.

Franklin kept pressing and had another good chance off a corner. Caydence Canavan played the ball across the circle to Cahill, who was denied her second goal by a nice save from Jillian Machnik. Lucenta had a chance on the rebound but could only steer it onto the post from a tight angle.

Hess urged her team to not let up in the second half and to put the game away. The Panthers responded to their coach’s message.

“The second half was so much better,” she said. “I challenged them that I wanted two goals in the third and they went out there and were able to do that, so I was happy with that. Our corners were a little off today, so that’s something we’re definitely going to focus on going forward.”

Marzullo nearly doubled the lead just 30 seconds into the third when she cut across the circle from right to left and forced a save from Machnik. Addi Weiss sent a ball across goal for Cahill at the back post but there was no touch and it went out. Marzullo then teed up Brady for a close-range chance that looked like it crossed the line before it was cleared. Again Lucenta was close on the rebound but Woburn survived.

Two goals in 32 seconds finally put the game away for the Panthers. With 1:35 left in the third, Brady was able to roll one through a crowd and find the back of the net. Almost immediately after, Brady’s pass found Marzullo open in the middle of the circle and she fired one inside the post to make it 3-0.

Franklin maintained control in the fourth (Devon Barry was only forced into one save in the game), but the attacking opportunities slowed down with the result just about settled.

There was time for another of Franklin’s underclassmen to notch her first playoff goal. Aparo was well-positioned on the post and she knocked in a loose ball to seal the win.

Asked about her younger players, Hess said, “They can level up. Sometimes they’ll play down a little bit and I say, no, we always have to play our game. Once they started getting into the groove, it definitely opened up.”

Franklin (14-2-3) will be back at Beaver Pond Field on Thursday afternoon to take on No. 18 Waltham, which upset Lexington in the opening round.

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11/02/202511/13/2025

Oliver Ames Cruises Past Archies and Back to Sweet Sixteen

By Josh Perry || HockomockSports.com Managing Editor

NORTH EASTON, Mass. – Prior to Sunday afternoon’s Div. 2 tournament opener against No. 33 Archbishop Williams in the Nixon Gym, Oliver Ames coach Chelsea Cunningham was reminding her top-ranked team that its perfect (20-0) record in the regular season gets reset for the playoffs. Everyone starts over again at 0-0.

After a 10-day break between matches and a dominating regular season in which the Tigers only dropped four sets total, Cunningham wanted to make sure that her team avoided complacency now that the stakes are much higher.

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No concern needed. The Tigers were finally playing with their full complement (after injuries kept some key rotation players out for the past few matches) and each of them contributed to a 3-0 (25-12, 25-16, 25-9) victory that sends last years’s D2 runner-up back to the Sweet Sixteen.

Cunningham said, “I think they know it’s win or go home and the fact that we’re at home and we’re lucky that we’re able to host three matches, do you want to lose at home or do you want to stay winning? There’s an atmosphere here and being able to set the tone.”

If Archies harbored hopes of pulling a massive upset, OA dashed them right from the opening point. The Tigers won six of the match’s first seven points and held leads of 11-3 and 19-5. It was business as usual for a team that is aiming for a return to the final.

OA’s depth on the front line was on full display with juniors Chelsea Wagner (10 kills) and Taylor Donohue (14 kills, 10 digs, and four aces) firing on the outside and classmate Claire Kenny getting points in the middle. Junior setter Lyla McDonough (34 assists) was spoiled for choice and spread the ball around to get everyone touches early in the match.

Following a service error that made it 11-4, Wagner came right back with a kill, freshman Lyla Yurrita had a block, and Donohue powered a shot through the Archies block. Donohue added another blast two points later, this one assisted by junior libero Molly Milliken (17 digs) after a scramble.

Kenny followed with a kill in the middle and Milliken dropped in an ace. Donohue was able to squeeze a shot inside the back line for a point and senior Angelina Romeiro added a nice swing on the right side. Wagner added a well-place, cross-court shot to ease OA to an early 1-0 lead.

The Tigers were also playing well along the back row, as Evan Casey, Kerryn Cairns, Milliken, McDonough, Wagner, and Donohue all managed to deal with an array of awkward shots from the Bishops.

Cunningham explained, “They were only setting the middle and we had to reset our defense that way. We knew it was either going to be a tip or a dink or a deep push. We’re pretty deep on the bench defensively so it’s nice to be able to say we want to see something else and everyone rises to the occasion.”

Archies kept things tighter in the second set, although the Tigers led almost from the start. A nice tip from middle Avery Valicenti got the Bishops back within two (7-5), but a strong run at the service line from senior Lindsey Solomon opened up a six-point cushion for the hosts. Donohue would end a little run by the Bishops with another smash down the middle.

Chloe Kippenhan tried to give the underdogs some life with a kill, but Kenny answered with one of her own and dropped in an ace on the next point. After a pair of diving digs from McDonough, Romeiro came up with a rally-ending swing to make it 17-10.

Milliken came up with another clutch dig to set up Wagner for a blast and McDonough was able to push one down the line for another point. The setter would close out the second with an ace and OA was in total control.

OA never took its foot off the pedal, despite making several changes to the rotation in the third. Trailing 3-2, Donohue went on a run at the service line, delivering a pair of aces and getting a couple kills from Wagner to score seven straight. Archies would cut the lead back to 13-6, but then the Tigers rattled off 10 in a row.

Senior Ella Broadmeadow had an ace during the run, Donohue was unstoppable on the outside with five more kills, and Yurrita continued to impress in the middle with a big swing.

All in all, it was a very comfortable afternoon and a good way to ease into what could be a long tournament run for the title favorites.

“Each time they called a timeout, I used it to my advantage to reset the mindset that the ball is coming back over the net,” Cunningham said. “Just being able to respect the opponent no matter what and we need to earn our points, let’s not just rely on them.

“We reminded them this is our gym, we play our way, and remember that each point.”

Oliver Ames (21-0) will host No. 16 Hingham in the Sweet Sixteen on Tuesday at 6:00.

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11/01/202511/13/2025

Franklin Takes Care of Business Against Braintree in First Round

Franklin volleyball — Franklin senior Makayla Kuykendall (center) and the Panthers were all smiles after sweeping Braintree. (Ryan Lanigan/HockomockSports.com)

By Josh Perry || HockomockSports.com Managing Editor

BELLINGHAM, Mass. – Every coach will tell you that the opening round of the playoffs can be the most difficult as teams have to cope the different atmosphere and the pressure of a win-or-go-home tournament match.

Franklin went into its Div. 1 round of 32 match against Braintree having to deal with the rust of having not played a competitive match in 10 days and being forced to move down the road and play its “home” game at Bellingham High (an annual issue because the town takes over the school’s gym for elections).

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The Panthers shrugged off all of those challenges on Saturday afternoon, rolling to a comprehensive 3-0 (25-16, 25-17, 25-13) win and advancing to the Sweet Sixteen. It was Franklin’s 13th win in a row and the Panthers have only dropped three sets total during that stretch.

“It was important,” Franklin coach Chris Ridolfi said about Franklin getting off to a strong start to the match. “We haven’t played in a long time. So, it was important that we shook off a little of the rust and came out strong.”

When asked about the challenge of not playing at home, he added, “It’s hard. They earned it, but it is what it is. We scrimmaged here on Thursday on purpose to get ourselves used to it and we treated it like a home game.”

As the favorite, Franklin wanted to avoid giving the Wamps any momentum to start thinking about an upset. Mission accomplished. The Panthers served well right from the start, Emerson Delleo had a pair of aces to open the match and Olivia Alberti and freshman setter Phoebe O’Connor (30 assists) added two more to open up a 9-4 lead.

Franklin’s depth on the front line made it difficult for the Wamps. Makayla Kuykendall (15 kills, 11 digs, three aces) blasted a kill and then blocked another for a point. Delleo (eight kills, four aces, and 10 digs) followed with a block and managed to finish off a tough set with a deft tip into an open space. She then picked the perfect angle on a cross-court shot to score another.

Kuykendall smacked one off the block and Alberti had back-to-back aces as the Panthers led 18-9. Braintree tried to get a run started with a kill from Norah Downey and a block from Zerena Chung, but each time Franklin answered back. Sophomore Charlotte Yeulenski got a kill and Kuykendall had consecutive aces to push the lead to 22-14.

Delleo gave the Panthers set point and libero Emma Cunningham (12 digs and five aces) closed it out with Franklin’s ninth ace of the first.

“We try to be the more physical team,” Ridolfi explained. “So, if we can add a little physicality and make them run around a little bit, that’s what we try to do.”

Momentum carried into the second, with Franklin racing out to a 17-5 lead. Kuykendall continued to stand out, getting a big swing off a Braintree hand and then finding the court with an accurate tip. Cunningham dropped in two aces in a row and Alberti followed with a pair of blocks. Gianna Laurello (seven kills and five digs) got in the act as well, adding a kill and a block to pad the Franklin lead.

To their credit, the Wamps never let the energy dip and stayed engaged in the match. Braintree started to chip away with a block from Stella Lam, a kill from Downey, and an ace from Lauren Caranog to get the lead down to eight (18-10).

Kuykendall responded by smashing one down the line. After an ace from Joely Wang made it a seven-point lead, Kuykendall dropped one just inside the back line. Braintree would get as close as six points on a kill from Izzy Rotondo, but a hitting error and then another perfect, cross-court swing from Delleo put the Panthers on the brink of the next round.

The Wamps got the opening point of the third, but it would be Braintree’s only lead of the match. Franklin came right back, winning 10 of the next 11 points and essentially putting the match out of reach.

Emerson Stewart came in and gave Franklin a lift, getting a kill and a pair of aces. Laurello and Yeulenski added big swings as well to build the lead. Kuykendall blasted one off the block, Yeulenski had a nice tip, and Kuykendall got another ace to push the advantage to 13-4. After a great rally in which Franklin scrambled to save the point multiple times, Alberti (four blocks and three aces) ripped a shot down the middle.

Click here for a photo gallery from this game.

Downey got back-to-back points but Laurello’s kill made it 23-10. Kuykendall set up match point with another pinpoint swing down the line and, after a couple of points for the Wamps, she would do it again on the final point to send the Panthers into the next round.

“We just play our game and find our spots when we can pull away,” Ridolfi said about his team’s approach. “That’s what we did each of those sets. We were kind of playing them point-for-point, we got one server who got hot and one rotation and we pulled away. Then we tried to settle in and play with the lead.”

Franklin (19-2) will face No. 12 seed Lincoln-Sudbury in the Sweet Sixteeen, with the match likely taking place on Wednesday back at Bellingham High, although the final date and time haven’t yet been announced.

Franklin Volleyball Franklin Volleyball Franklin Volleyball Franklin Volleyball Franklin Volleyball

07/28/202407/28/2024

LANIGAN: An update on HockSports, subscriptions

Just over a year ago, we announced our decision to continue our extensive coverage of the Hockomock League through a subscription-based service. It was a tough but necessary decision that allowed us to continue to highlight the success of the student-athletes in the Hock.

One year in, we’re incredibly grateful for the support we received. On top of keeping HockomockSports.com going, one of our main goals was to increase our coverage among all sports, and I’m really proud of what we did in our first year in this format.

The bottom line is we increased our in-person coverage throughout the 2023-2024 school year by nearly 50% from the previous year, attending over 120 more games, matches, and contests than the previous school year.

We’re also very excited about the direction of our student reporter and digital content program. We had students from nearly half of the schools in the Hockomock produce content throughout the school year, including paid video content. This is an area we’re looking forward to expanding to more students and across more sports throughout the entire year.

Our goals will remain the same moving forward as we look to increase and improve all aspects of our coverage. In doing so, we’ll be looking to hire paid freelancers to take on coverage of specific sports. Starting this school year, we’re seeking a motivated writer interested in covering all things cross country as well as both indoor and outdoor track. We’ll be posting the job in the coming weeks.

If you’re interested in either the student reporter/digital content roles or the cross country/track freelancing position, please reach out to info@hockomocksports.com.

We’re locking in current subscribers at the current rates as a thank you for your support. All subscriptions are recurring and will automatically renew. You can visit your My Account page to check or change the status of your current subscription.

Starting August 15th, we’ll be updating pricing for subscriptions for the upcoming school year. Annual subscriptions will start at $50, seasonal subscriptions (billed every three months) will be $25, and monthly subscriptions will be $10. Any subscriptions purchased prior to that date will be locked in at the current rates.

If you have a current subscription, you can visit the My Account page to view information regarding your plan. If you have any questions regarding your current subscription, please reach out to support@hockomocksports.com.

I just want to say thank you once again to all who have supported us over the years and throughout this past school year as we continue to improve and increase our coverage of the Hockomock League.

Ryan Lanigan
HockomockSports.com Editor

07/24/202307/24/2023

LANIGAN: Expanding The HockSports Team

To our loyal readers and supporters,

Last week, we announced the next steps for HockomockSports.com, and the response has been amazing – THANK YOU! Going to a subscription-based model provides us with additional resources that allow us to invest in and recruit local talent to help us increase our coverage. We will have a series of paid positions, including our expanded Student Media program. This will allow us to cover more sports, more student-athletes, and more unforgettable moments throughout the school year.

For all inquiries, please reach out to Ryan at RyanLanigan@hockomocksports.com.

Student Reporters – We are thrilled to bring our Student Reporter program back as a part of our newly expanded Student Media program. This program is for anyone that has any interest in sports journalism with any amount of experience. The program includes hands-on training with our editors and the chance to learn and sharpen modern-day journalism skills. Previous student reporters currently work at The Boston Herald, The Taunton Gazette, Yahoo! Finance, Steelers Depot, and more.

Freelance Writers/Photographers – We’ll be extending our game and event coverage throughout the year to make sure we aren’t missing any big games, moments, or achievements. Must have some level of journalism/photo experience.

Photographers/Videographers – We strive to provide complete coverage of the league, and that includes photos and the ever-growing video/social media industry. We’re looking to build a student-led creative media team that can take our coverage to the next level. If you have an interest or passion for creative digital content. If interested, please include examples of work to the email provided above.

Digital Marketing Sales – Over the past 10-plus years, our advertising partnerships have been the lifeline of the site and we very much appreciate each of them for their support. These partnerships give us the ability to deliver their message to a unique and targeted group of people for a reasonable budget. While we take the next step, we are looking to create more partnerships with businesses in the Hockomock communities. We are in search of self-motivated individuals to identify and develop partnership opportunities. This will be a high-commission opportunity. We are looking for people interested in working the entire HockomockSports.com region. If you are well-connected in your community and would like to start there, this is a great opportunity for some extra income.

For the upcoming school year, we are looking to create more partnerships to feature your local businesses on the most popular local website in this region. We have a vast array of advertising opportunities that will market your product directly to potential customers. If interested, please contact info@hockomocksports.com.

We can’t wait for the upcoming school year to continue our unmatched coverage of the best high school sports league in all of Massachusetts. PLEASE forward this to any potential contacts that might be interested in any opportunities mentioned above.

Thank you,
Ryan Lanigan
Editor

07/16/202307/16/2025

LANIGAN: The next chapter for HockomockSports

To our loyal readers and supporters:

My name is Ryan Lanigan and I am the creator and editor of HockomockSports.com. Alongside our Managing Editor Josh Perry, we have created a one-of-a-kind source for unmatched coverage of the Hockomock League. Our goal from the beginning has been to promote student-athletes in the Hock and to provide information you can only find in one place.

Before launching HockSports in late 2011, I covered Stoughton athletics for a hyper-local website Stoughton Patch. As I became more invested in high school sports, I wanted to try something outside the box and create a media source that had everything all in one place. I had no idea at that time what journey I was about to embark on. As a young reporter, I was able to focus on establishing the foundation of what HockomockSports has become: the number one source for players, parents, coaches, and fans for anything and everything related to the Hock. For nearly the entirety of the website, both Josh and I have worked full-time jobs during the day on top of running the site in any spare time that we’ve had.

I couldn’t be more thankful for every single reader that has followed along at any part of this journey. This has grown into something I never imagined it would have and I hope you will continue to support us as we take the next step.

I take great pride in our process; we started with a goal to promote student-athletes and that’s what we’ve accomplished and continue to focus on. It’s important for us that our coverage has a positive outlook. We’ve been there to cover some incredible achievements that include Super Bowls at Gillette Stadium, state championships at the TD Garden and Polar Park, buzzer beaters, game-winning goals in the final moments, walk-off wins, overtime thrillers, and hundreds of personal achievements and record-breaking performances.

As I approach the next phase of my career and my life, it is becoming more and more difficult to work a full-time job while still providing high-quality coverage that meets the standards we have set over the past 10-plus years. The last few months have been a bit of a rollercoaster ride that included a lot of conversations about different potential avenues, and I considered ending the site and this chapter of my life. It took some convincing, but I believe it’s the only viable way of continuing our coverage at a high level.

Starting on August 1st, we’ll be moving to a subscription-based service and will be offering annual, seasonal, and monthly subscriptions. We’ll be bringing back some old features and adding plenty of new ones, and we’ll expand our coverage across the board. With the additional resources, I am so excited we’ll be able to add to our staff to increase and improve our coverage including game recaps, feature stories, photos/videos, and more. We are thrilled to re-launch our Student Reporter program and will be looking for students interested in a career in journalism, both print and digital.

I have a completely renewed energy and haven’t been this excited about the direction we are headed since the early years of HockomockSports. We don’t plan on just meeting the high expectations we’ve set in the past, we are looking to raise the bar even higher.

Thank you again for following along, it really means so much to both myself and Josh. I hope you’ll continue your support as we move forward because your support has been vital in making HockSports the go-to source for comprehensive coverage of the Hock.

Ryan Lanigan
Editor/Founder

05/29/202005/30/2020