By Nick Curcuru
Sports Editor
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It didn't take very long for Geoff Kennedy to make an impact at the collegiate level.
Kennedy, a 2011 Gloucester High School graduate and lacrosse standout, took his lax game to St. Anselm College this spring and he has already burst onto the scene as one of the team's more prolific scorers.
Gloucester High School's leading scorer in each of the last three seasons, Kennedy is second on the Hawks in scoring as Freshman with 12 points on the year coming from eight goals and four assists. The Freshman attack's best games came in St. Anselm wins over Robert Wesleyan on March 5 and American International College on March 20 with three goals and an assist in each game.
Kennedy and the Hawks are off to a great start to the season at 4-1 and Kennedy is one of the reasons why they are hot at the moment.
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Former Rockport standout and current Pine Manor College junior Tia Nelson continues to be a two sport star. After finishing up Pine Manor's basketball season this winter with 6.3 points per game, Nelson immediately took her game to the softball diamond.
Early in the season Pine Manor sports a 1-3 record and Nelson has started every game either on the mound or in the infield. She is currently hitting .273 in the middle of the lineup and is second on the team with three runs batted in while making a pair of starts on the mound for the Gators.
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Gloucester's Josh Salah continues to elevate his golf game at Sacred Heart University. In the 2011-2012 golf season Salah, a junior, has been Sacred Heart's top golfer this year.
Through 14 rounds dating back to the fall season, Salah has put up a team best average score of just over 72. He has shot six rounds at par or under and averages a score of one over par on the year. Salah's lowest score for the school year is a 67. The spring season for Sacred Heart started on March 5.
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Former Manchester Essex standout and current Babson college junior Breezy DiPiertro has helped her school's softball team to a solid start to the spring. A junior outfielder, DiPietro has appeared in eight of the teams 15 games this spring in the outfield and is sporting a .267 batting average with four runs batted in. Babson is 7-8 on the season.
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Gloucester's Adam Quinn continues to power the Gordon College men's lacrosse team this spring. Quinn, a senior captain on the team, has done just about everything for Gordon this season leading the team in scoring with 17 points on 13 goals and 4 assists. Quinn was also named Gordon's Athlete of the Week for the last week of February.
Quinn's best game came in Gordon's 18-3 win over Salem state last week where the senior captain put up four goals and two assists.
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When the College of William and Mary finished in fifth place out of 47 teams at the Intercollegiate Association of Amateur Athletes of America (IC4A) a pair of Gloucester natives helped them along the way in junior Liam Anastasia-Murphy and Sophomore Andrew Ryan.
Anastasia-Murphy, a middle distance runner, is looking to qualify for the NCAA outdoor championships for the second straight season and build off of a strong 2011 campaign where he set several personal records. Ryan, a distance runner, is also helping the team in events such as the mile and two mile. Anastasia-Murpy, Ryan and the rest of the William and Mary track team got started the outdoor track season this weekend.
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Gloucester's Jennavie Orrell, the Gloucester Daily Times Gloucester Female Athlete of the Year in 2009, is off to a strong start at the University of Bridgeport this spring. Orrell, a junior midfielder who was one of the best girls lacrosse players to play at Gloucester High School, has a goal on the season for 2-1 Bridgeport but is scene as a jack of all trades player as she consistently helps out on both ends of the field and has started every game for Bridgeport over the last two season.
