The Chelsea high baseball team parlayed some timely hitting and clutch pitching to earn a 9-6 victory over North Shore Tech last Wednesday.
Odonys Urbaez went all the way on the mound for Chelsea. Though he was touched for runs in a few innings, he saved his best for last when he fanned the final North Shore hitter of the ballgame with the bases loaded.
“Odonys pitched a gutsy game for us,” said CHS head coach Alan Beausoleil. “He kept his poise and did what he had to do to get the victory.”
After spotting Tech a 2-0 lead in the opening inning, the Red Devils rallied for four runs in the second. Urbaez got the ball rolling with a lead off double and Peter Marmolejos followed with a walk. A base hit by Ryan Motta delivered Urbaez and another hit by Manny Ferrer brought in Marmolejos and Motta. Brandon Morales’s RBI base hit sent Ferrer homeward for a 4-2 CHS advantage.
The Red Devils made it 5-2 with a solo tally in the third inning when Urbaez singled, stole second, and scooted home on a triple by Jason Reyes.
Tech got one back in the fifth and tied matters with two tallies in the sixth. However, the Red Devils reasserted their control of the game with another four run uprising in the bottom of the sixth. A walk to Juan Encarnacion and a base hit by Dan Velastegui set the table for Morales, who belted an inside-the-park homer to deep right field.
Chelsea continued with its offensive fireworks, as Urbaez tripled and scored on a sacrifice fly by Marmolejos to up the count to 9-5. Urbaez then closed out the contest for the “W.”.
The Devils did not fare as well the next day at Whittier, which is the top team in the Upper Division of the Commonwealth Athletic Conference, falling by a 7-0 margin. Chelsea had numerous scoring opportunities early in the game, placing runners at second and third in the first inning, loading the bases in the second, and putting on a baserunner in the third. But the lack of a timely hit kept the Red Devils from putting some runs up on the scoreboard.
“We had our chances early,” noted Beausoleil, “but once their pitcher settled down, he got into a groove and we weren’t able to do anything later in the game.”
Chelsea next traveled to Greater Lawrence on Friday, coming up short by a close 3-2 score. Carlos Vega was the CHS starter and tossed a strong game, but a lack of run support proved fatal for the Devils.
After Greater Lawrence scored twice in the initial inning, Chelsea evened the count with two runs in the fifth. Motta singled, stole second, and came home on a double by Ferrer, who took third on the throw home to get Motta. A base hit by Francisco Molina delivered Ferrer with the game tying tally.
However, Greater Lawrence pushed across a marker in the sixth to retake the lead. Velastegui kept Chelsea’s hopes alive when he singled with two outs in the top of the seventh and took second on a wild pitch, but he got no further.
“Carlos pitched a great game for us and gave us a chance to win,” said Beausoleil, “but we couldn’t get the job done at the plate.”
The Red Devils, who now are 5-4 on the season, host Northeast Vocational today (Thursday) and Lynn Tech Friday. They entertain Greater Lowell next Wednesday and host Maimonides next Thursday under the lights at 7:15.
Greater Lowell tops CHS boy tracksters
The Chelsea High boys track and field team came out on the short end of an 82-55 decision to Greater Lowell last Thursday.
First place finishers for the Red Devils were: Luis Hernandez in the 110 high hurdles, running 17.11, and the high jump with a leap of 5-6 (Luis also took second in the 400 hurdles and second in the long jump with a leap of 19-7, giving him a team high 16 points on the day); Ronnie Gomez won the discus with a throw of 100-9 (which paced a Chelsea sweep in the discus with teammates Anthony Carrasquilla and Richard Andino); and Brian Pliego was a double winner in the shotput and javelin with personal record (PR) throws of 36- 8 and 125- 9 respectively.
Second place performances that added three points to the CHS scoresheet were turned in by: Xavier Martin in the 100 meters in 12.3; captain Brandon Rath in the 400 in 56.7; captain Francisco Colindres in the 800 in 2:13. Carrasquilla in the shot put with a PR heave of 35-7; and John Fabro with a high jump of 5-0.
Rounding out the scoring for the Red Devils with third place efforts were: Wilfredo Leiva in the 110 high hurdles, Chester Rath with a PR of 5:15 in the mile, Brendan Horn in the 400 meters and the triple jump; and Kevin Luu in the 200 meters.
The loss drops Chelsea’s record to 1-2.
CHS girls track team stays undefeated
The Chelsea High girls track & field team improved to 3-0 on the season with an 81-54 victory over Greater Lowell last week.
“The hard work that the girls put in over the April vacation week really paid off,” said CHS heas coach Kim Huffer. “Thirty personal bests were set by members of the team.”
The meet started off well as a new school record was set in the first event. Senior co-captain Thien-Ly Che bested her previous school record in the 400 hurdles, set in 2010, by a second, establishing a new mark of 76.42.
“Ly has been a member of the track team for the past four years and has been a leader both in the classroom and on the track,” noted huffer. “Her hard work and determination has been so motivational for all the younger members of the team.”
Ly went on to have a stellar day, achieving personal bests in all of her events. She finished the day with a 1st place finish in the 400 hurdles and 2nd place finishes in the 100 hurdles and triple jump, improving her best jump by over six inches in the latter.
Other Chelsea standouts on the day included:
Shuly Sejour who finished the day with three 1st place finishes (100 hurdles, 200 dash, and high jump). Shuly also had a 3rd place finish in the long jump;
Arandeni Ramos continued to improve her time in the two mile, finishing first. Arandeni also was a member of the winning 4 x 400 relay team;
Tatyana Almeida finished first and improved her time in the 800. Tatyana was also a member of the winning 4 x 400 relay;
Shanice Hernandez finished first in the shotput, improving her best throw by close to a foot;
Zuleima Castillo finished first in the javelin. Additionally, she finished third in the 100 dash;
Patricia Guardado finished first in the mile;
Quinnee Valenzona finished second in the 400 dash and third in the 400 hurdles;
Vanesa Mercado finished second in the two mile;
Stephanie Moni finished second in the 100 dash;
Katherine Villagran finished second in the mile, breaking the seven minute mark for the first time;
Cristal Rodriguez had two second place finishes in the 800 and Javelin;
Andrea Umana finished third in the 400 and was a member of the winning 4 x 400 relay team;
Kenia Santana finished third in the 200;
Rebeca Torrento finished third in the discus; and
Bahiya Nasuuna finished third in the shotput;
The team faces a tough battle on Thursday when they host Mystic Valley.
“Mystic Valley is a tough opponent,” said Huffer. “Last year, the meet was decided by the 4 x 400 relay. Luckily, we came out on the positive end. I expect an even tougher meet this year. the girls have shown that they can rise to meet a challenge. I’m excited to see how they continue to progress this season.”