Cape Ann sports fans may have become a little spoiled given the success of local high school teams this winter. Teams from Gloucester, Rockport and Manchester Essex dazzled in their respective sports this winter as the area had six state tournament hockey and basketball teams, a state champion relay team and two more state final qualifiers to go along with a pair of squads that had the most successful season in their respective school's history.
This winter was surely highlighted by its hoops success, most notably the Manchester Essex girls. The Hornets, who finished the regular season at 8-12, came into the postseason as the No. 16 seed and a supposed long shot to get to TD Garden. But local basketball fans should have known better than counting out Lauren Dubois' squad as the team rang off five straight wins by an average of 22 points per game and steam-rolled its way to Boston for their second trip to the Division 4 State Final in three seasons. In the final, the Hornets fell to undefeated Cohasset for the second time in three seasons.
The Hornets were led by junior guard Lizzy Ball, who all but carried the team on her back, scoring 20 points or more in the team's first five postseason games. In Ball's four years on the team (she played as an eighth grader), the Hornets have compiled a 13-4 record in the state tournament.
The Manchester Essex boys, led by head coach Duane Sigsbury, were not too shabby either as it won a share of the Cape Ann League Small title and entered the state tournament as the No. 3 seed in Division 4 North. The Hornets, who have four players standing at least 6-foot-4, won their first tournament game before bowing out to Winthrop in the quarterfinal round.
The Hornets hoops teams had some impressive individual accolades to boot. Hornets junior forward Joe Mussachia and Ball both eclipsed the 1000-point plateau this season. Mussachia, who averaged 22.1 points per game this winter, got his 1000th point in a January 25 game against Wilmington while Ball got point No. 1000 in the Hornets Division 4 North first round win over top seeded Pope John. Mussachia and Ball currently have 1166 and 1080 career points respectively.
Manchester Essex wasn't the only school to have success on the hardwood this season; the Rockport boys basketball team also had an outstanding season qualifying for postseason play for the first time in 12 seasons. The Vikings were led by senior sniper Josh Altman, who was named All Cape Ann League and averaged 21.1 points per game.
And lets not forget about our local hockey teams, who also had their fair share of success as both Rockport and Gloucester qualified for the state tournament this season.
The Vikings finished the season with 12 wins, the most for a Vikings hockey team since 2000. Rockport also won just its second state tournament game in program history with a 3-2 overtime win over Latin Academy in what was one of the best games this winter season. Tied 2-2 after regulation, Vikings senior captain Pat Hofmann scored the controversial game winner, sliding the puck into the net just as the goalie was attempting to cover the puck. With the win, Rockport qualified for the Division 3 North quarterfinal, which is the furthest a Rockport team has ever been in the tournament.
And that brings us to the area's lone state champion, the Gloucester boys track team's 4x800 relay team, who tore through the competition this winter en route to a first place finish at the All State meet two weekends ago. Senior Andrew Ryan along with juniors Gilbert Brown, Kyle Hurd and Kevin Hurd have their sites set on the National Championship meet in Boston this weekend.
The quartet will be joined by Gloucester senior shot putter Gus Margiotta, who finished third in the state and will be heading to a Division 1 school next year. Gloucester girls sprinter Emily Doucette also had a fantastic year on the track as she did not lose a race in the 55-meter dash in Northeastern Conference play.
Lastly, the Gloucester/Ipswich gymnastic team put together the most impressive season in program history finishing seventh in the state and qualifying for the state championship meet for the first time in school history. The "Tigerfish", who were led by Ipswich's Liana Jaeger and Gloucester's Kiley Aiello, finished third in the North sectional despite a No. 7 seed coming into the meet.
