On May 16, the Girls’ Tennis Team made the trip up to Quabbin, and easily came home with the win.  The team was led by veterans Sam Kehoe and Ashley Chiu, while many underclassmen dominated the rest of the line-up.

Sam Kehoe, Ashley Chiu, and Lauren Almy swept first, second, and third singles, respectively.  Not only did they sweep, but all three won 6-0, 6-0.  First and second doubles also came home with victories.  Alexa Conlin and Maggie Liu won their first doubles match easily, 6-2, 6-0, while the second doubles team of Winona Noronha and Vaishali Malik won theirs, 6-0, 6-2.

After another win on May 17, the team improves to 12-2.  Their next match will be May 20 against Algonquin at Westborough High School, starting at 3:30.

Photo Credit: Steve Aronson

Coming into the League Meet on May 15, the Westborough Boys’ Track Team was undefeated in their league dual meets.  At the League Meet, the Rangers were edged out by a mere 9 points by Nashoba Regional High School, but because Westborough had beaten Nashoba in a dual meet back in April, they share the title.

Westborough started out strong in the field events, especially in the throwing events.  In the shot put, Kurtis Sciba (Jr.) and Tom Kotosky (Sr.) went 2-3 to secure 14 points.  Wyatt Borchetta-Platt (So.) also threw well, placing eighth with a throw of 34′ 3.25”.  Sciba then came back to compete in the discus, throwing 111 feet to place fifth.  David Tubman (Sr.) and Guhan Krishnan (Sr.) threw 92′ 11” and 88′ 4”, respectively.  In the javelin, Joe Bretta (Jr.) and Steven Price (Jr.) had throws of 141′ 3” and 130′ 2”, which placed them second and sixth overall.  Charlie Burress threw 122′ 10” to finish ninth.

In the jumps, the Rangers captured 18 points with the help of David Klimavich (Jr.), Brett Robinson (Sr.), Sean VanDoren (Jr.), and Matt Wilichowski (Sr.).  Klimavich was the runner up in high jump, while Robinson placed sixth.  David Morency (Jr.) also competed in the high jump, clearing 5′ 2”.  VanDoren had a huge PR to place third in long jump.  Wilichowski was seventh, and Shreedhar Deshpande (So.) also PR’d on his way to finishing ninth.  In the triple jump, Wilichowski and VanDoren were fifth and sixth with jumps of 37’9” and 37′ 4.5”, respectively, while Morency placed eighth in the event.

The Rangers scored 15 points in the pole vault, thanks to Jamie Plowman (Jr.), Jack Chuma (Jr.), and Jason Silva (Jr.).  Plowman was second in 12′ 6”, and Chuma placed third at the same height.  Silva also had a great day, finishing in sixth at 11 feet.

Westborough’s balanced line-up continued into the running events.  The Rangers won the 4x100m relay, the 4x400m relay, and were second in the 4x800m relay.  The 4x400m team of Julian Binici (So.), Oren Dennett (So.), Ari Lazarine (Sr.), and Robinson won by about 8 seconds for a dominating finish to the meet.  One of the most exciting races of the meet came during the 4x100m, when Kevin Casey (So.) edged out the 2012 55m New England Champion by 0.002 seconds at the line.  He had combined with Aric Zhu (Fr.), Lazarine, and VanDoren to secure their spot at the top of the league in the event.

As for the sprinting events, Casey and Zhu qualified for the finals of the 100m.  In the finals, Casey placed third in 11.74 seconds, while Zhu placed seventh in 12.24 seconds.  In the finals of the 200m, VanDoren was fourth in 24.43 seconds.  In the 400m, Robinson, Binici, and Jake Pirdy (So.) placed first, second, and fifth, to capture 20 points.

In the hurdles, Wilichowski and Chuma led the way for the Rangers.  Wilichowski won the 110m hurdles by 0.04 seconds, and was third in the 400m hurdles.  Chuma also did well, finishing fifth in the 110m hurdles and fourth in the 400m hurdles.  Val Meleshkevich (Fr.) just missed qualifying for the 110m hurdles finals by 0.06 seconds, while Sam Poza (So.) was tenth in the 400m hurdles.

Brendan Anzures (Sr.), Michael Hiller (Sr.), and Mark Aronson (Sr.) finished 5-6-7 in the 800m.  Aronson also placed third in the 2 mile in 10:24.95, with Eric Latimer (Fr.) about 10 seconds behind him.  Nick Schur broke the 11 minute barrier, finishing in seventh place.  In the mile, Dennett and Robert MacElhaney (Jr.) earned 9 points for the team, placing second and sixth, respectively.  Dan McKay (So.) ran very well, completing the race in 5:09.37.

Next up for the Rangers is the Central/Western Division I Meet at Fitchburg State University on May 25, which is a performance based meet, where athletes must achieve certain standards to compete.  From there, any athlete that qualifies on My 25 for the All-State Meet will compete on June 1.

For the first time in a decade, Westborough’s Softball Team is headed to the postseason.  They clinched a playoff birth after beating Algonquin on May 15, where they came out on top, 7-4.

Jenny Pilkington (Sr.) led the team with a homerun, while Emily Reilly (Jr.) and Haley Collentro (Jr.) also had strong hitting.  Tori Flahive (Jr.) played well in the field.

“I am very excited to be a part of a qualifying team; they work really hard, and I am looking forward to the postseason,” said senior Jess Orlando.

The Rangers are now 10-7 overall, and have three more games over the next week against Shrewsbury, Marlborough, and Tantasqua before they start postseason play.

The Rangers’ Boys Lacrosse Team had prepared well for the tough game against the Shrewsbury Colonials, the number three team in Central Mass, that took place on May 7.  The Rangers gave it their all in the game, topping Shrewsbury with a score of 14-4.

After previously losing to the Colonials 12-3, the Rangers came ready to play and made it known that they were on the Rangers’ turf, and they were not going to let Shrewsbury leave with another win.  Within minutes of the game starting, senior Tony Cibelli scored giving the Rangers a lead of 1-0.  Westborough continued to roll, taking an early 3-0 lead.  After Shrewsbury’s leading scorer scored, Jake Foster scored the first of his soon to be hat trick.

Only minutes into the second quarter, Sean Anderson (Sr.), Connor Joyce (Jr.), and Kyle Lemack (Jr.) each scored for Westborough, giving the team a 9-1 lead, heading into the half.  The Rangers’ goalie, Dan Terry (Sr.), stonewalled 8 tough Shrewsbury shots, and let up only four by the end of the game.  Unfortunately for Shrewsbury, their goalie, Chris Gorman, who was thought to be the number one goalie in Central Mass, was turned upside down, letting in 14 goals to send Westborough into a frenzy.

The Rangers left the field on a natural high, feeling that they can beat any team that stands between them and a prestigious District Championship title.

On May 7, the Boys’ Track Team concluded its dual meet season, with St. John’s High School (Shrewsbury) edging them out 80-65.  The Rangers only won 7 of the 17 events, but their depth kept the meet close.

Matt Wilichowski (Sr.) placed first in three events and second in another, leading the team by scoring 18 out of a possible 20 points.  Wilichowski won the 110m hurdles (15.1), 400m hurdles (59.9), triple jump (38′ 8.75”), and then placed second in long jump (18′ 8”.)  Other first place finishers included Joe Bretta (javelin), David Klimavich (high jump), Kurtis Sciba (shot put), and Jamie Plowman (pole vault.)

Westborough was edged out at the line in the 4x100m, but the team finished with a 1.3 second PR  (personal record.)  The 4x400m team also ran well in 3:43.2 minutes, but came up just short in the event.

The Rangers have their Class Meet on May 11 at Shrewsbury High School, and after that, they will be gearing up to defend their League Title on May 15.

After a disappointing loss to Wachusett on May 1, the Rangers Girls’ Tennis Team came back strong, beating Wachusett, 4-1 on May 7.

The team was led by a sweep from the first, second, and third singles players: Pooja Ganesh (Sr.), Sam Kehoe (Jr.), and Ashley Chiu (Jr.), respectively.  Second doubles players Anna Skidmore (Sr.) and Samantha Mack (Fr.) also defeated their opponents, while the first doubles team of Stephanie Johnston (Sr.) and Arielle Siegel (Jr.) played well, but came up short.

Ganesh commented, “It was a very well fought match, and everyone played their best.  Our season is going extremely well, and with out team qualifying for Districts, we are ready for some tough matches ahead.”

The Girls’ Tennis Team is now 9-1 overall, and 7-1 in their league.  Next, they will play Nashoba in a rescheduled match on May 10 in Westborough at 3:30 PM.

Spring is finally here and everyone is itching to get outside to enjoy the warm weather the second the bell rings signaling the end of a school day.  Unfortunately, administration is discouraging WestboroughHigh Schoolteachers from bringing their students outside for some fresh air as they teach their lesson plans. 

Previously, teachers were allowed to bring their students outside when they felt it was beneficial to their students, whether that be to teach a lesson or simply walk around and take in the fresh air to release the stress of the week.  Now, it is prohibited to go outside unless there is a reasonable cause that is approved by administration, and let’s face it, administration isn’t always very lenient.  What was once something refreshing and different to do in class has now become a hassle for teachers.  We are now locked in this dungeon for six hours a day, five days a week.

 The reasoning behind prohibiting class outside on beautiful day was teachers don’t want to feel pressured to take their students outside or look like the “bad guy” if their lesson plans don’t permit going outside.  They don’t want their students to complain to them that another class got to go outside but their class didn’t. 

 A similar argument can be made to dispute the reasoning behind administration’s decision.  It can be argued that the Accelerated English classes go to a whale museum after reading Moby Dick, but other English classes don’t go on field trips after finishing a book.  Or Legal Studies goes to a courthouse but other elective classes don’t go anywhere.  Some classes permit different activities and we have to accept that and be aware of the class’s benefits when it’s time for course selection.  It’s understandable that not every class can benefit from going outside, but those that can should not be punished.