Sports

Sports from the community


Published: July 24, 2008

Dynamic duo: 2008 Massachusetts State Champions

Sisters Maddie and Mackenzie Gray of Andover each took first place in a number of events at their recent USAG State Championship meets. Maddie, 12 years old and a seventh-grader at The Pike School, is a Level 7 gymnast for Yellow Jackets Gymnastics Club in Middleton. At her State Championship Meet held on May 10 in Hopkinton, Maddie won first place on floor with a score of 9.8, first place on vault with a score of 9.45, sixth place on bars with a 9.1, and third place all-around with a score of 37.15 in the 12-year-old senior division. Maddie's floor score was the highest score of the entire meet, a season record for her gym and a personal best.

Mackenzie, 10 years old and a fifth-grader at The Pike School, is a Level 8 gymnast for Brestyans American Gymnastics Club in Burlington. At her State Championship Meet held on April 11 on Cape Cod, Mackenzie took first place on vault for the 11-under division with a score of 9.525 — the second highest score of her level, all age divisions. Mackenzie also placed ninth on bars and ninth all-around, helping her team win the Level 8 State Team title. As a result of Mackenzie's performance at the state meet, she was selected for the Region VI All Star Team which competed at the University of Rhode Island on May 4. Region VI is comprised of the top gymnasts from each of the New England states and New York. Again competing in the 11-under age division, Mackenzie took fourth place on vault with a score of 9.45 and was the highest-placing all-around gymnast from Massachusetts in her division.

Dartmouth honors 10 student-athletes

The Dartmouth College Department of Athletics honored 10 student-athletes recently at the annual Celebration of Athletic Excellence, highlighted by the presentation of the Kenneth Archibald Prize to swimmer Liz Mancuso of Andover, a graduate of Andover High School.

The Kenneth Archibald Prize is presented annually to "the member of the graduating class who has been four years in attendance, who has been the best all-around athlete, regard also being had to moral worth and high standing in scholarship." During her time at Dartmouth, Mancuso overcame life-threatening cancer and went on to be one of the most successful swimmers in Big Green history. She broke 10 school records during her junior year and eight as a senior and is in the all-time top 10 in 12 events.

A psychology major with a 3.63 grade point average, Mancuso has been named Academic All-Ivy and served as team captain.

St. George's wins national team racing championship

Andover resident Kelsey Crowther was part of the St. George's varsity sailing team that recently won the Interscholastic Sailing Association National Team-Racing Championship, the Baker Trophy. The championship regatta, which took place May 24 and 25 at the Lake Minnetonka Sailing School in Minneapolis, is the nation's premier high school sailing championship.

Only 12 teams from the more than 550 high school sailing programs from across the United States that are members of ISSA qualified for the national regatta. With a regular season meet record of 16-0, and an overall record of 51-2, St. George's qualified for the championship regatta by winning the New England School Sailing Association team racing championship, the Mark Trophy, on May 18 at the Massachusetts Maritime Academy.

A total of 90 races were held at Lake Minnetonka during the two days. St. George's finished with a 14-3 record in the regatta, including a 6-0 run in the championship round. St. George's defeated teams from San Diego and Newport Beach, Calif.; Annapolis, Md.; Chicago; New Orleans; Fort Lauderdale, Fla.; Bainbridge Island, Wash., and the Virgin Islands, en route to its first national title in team racing. The school won national titles in fleet racing in 1948, 1959,1968,1979, 1980 and 1985.

The Baker Trophy, which is engraved with all the past winners, is on permanent display at the United States Naval Academy.

Team members who brought home the national championship for St. George's include Ben Bainbridge, Class of '08; Alex Cook, Class of '09, Kelsey Crowther, Class of '08; Pete Johns, Class of '08; Kevin Martland, Class of '10; Anna McConnell, Class of '09; Johnny Norfleet, Class of '09; Julia Oak, Class of '10, and coach Roy Williams.