THE EVERETT ADVOCATE – Friday, April 5, 2019 Page 9 Tide girls’ softball ready to begin final season in the NEC Everett opens on the road vs. nonleague Melrose on Tuesday By Joe Mitchell S tacy Schiavo is beginning her 21st year along the Everett High School girls’ softball sidelines. It all started for her as an Everett varsity coach back in 1998, and once again her former high school teammate Jen Nigro will be the team’s assistant varsity coach. Lauren Powers is the JV coach, and Laurie Bono is in charge of the freshmen. game, along with Revere and Medford.” The Tide will open up the regular season on the road next week against host Melrose on Tuesday, April 9, starting at 4 p.m. They will then take on Latin Academy two days later at Northeastern University, also at 4 p.m. Visit Our Newly Expanded Facility. We will beat competitors pricing! (Restrictions apply.) Ariana Garay Ashley Fitzgerald Captain Kaylee Nearen not pitching, they will play first. Duraes, Bento and Smith will pretty much round out the rest of the infield, while Fitzgerald will be behind the plate. The Everett coach expects plenty of competition throughout the next three months. “North Shore teams always give us a run for our money,” she said. “Peabody always has a strong program, along with Lynn Classical. Beverly is always a great Maddy Duraes The Tide was 12-8 last year during the regular season, 13-9 overall. They defeated Newton South, 11-10, in a Division 1 North preliminary round game before losing to Concord-Carlisle, 9-5, in the first round. Schiavo is looking to replace three starters who graduated last June. But she does have six back with varsity experience, including senior captain Kaylee Nearen (four-year varsity starter), juniors Ariana Garay (pitcher, first base), Maddy Duraes (shortstop) and Veronica Bento (second base, outfield) and sophomores Ashley Fitzgerald (outMaddy Smith field, catcher) and Maddy Smith (third base). Schiavo will carry 15 on the varsity, 13 on the JV and 11 on the freshman squad this year. The veteran Everett coach has mixed feelings about the pending exodus from the Northeastern Conference (NEC) in order to reestablish the Greater Boston League (GBL) with the likes of Somerville, Medford, Malden and Revere starting in the fall. “It is sad that we are not going to be a part of the NEC next year,” said Schiavo. “Many of the coaches were very welcoming, and the Veronica Bento competition allowed us to get ready for the tournament. It was less stressful trying to find nonleague games, because we had so many teams to play against.” Schiavo expects to dominate with depth in the pitching department this spring – “I think having two pitchers this year will definitely benefit us, especially when we play three to four games in a week. The girls have also been working on their offense, and as a result I think this year we will have a strong lineup.” Nearen and Garay will provide that depth in the circle. When Mayor congratulates stair-climbing Jakes J& S LANDSCAPE & MASONRY CO. MULCH SALE! Discount Spring Special PICK-UP or DELIVERY AVAILABLE 617-389-1490 Premium Hemlock or Pitch Black BELOW WHOLESALE COSTS LANDSCAPERS WELCOME $43 yd. $38 yd. 222 Central St. Saugus, MA 01906 (Next to Saugus Iron Works) 781-231-5990 2FREE ND MONTH on 10x10 units No administration fees. 200 new units available. All sizes to fi t your needs. New Customer Specials Offer valid at 222 Central Storage. Must present coupon. Cannot be combined with other offers. Expires 6/12/19. www.222centralstorage.com FREE with Rental LOCK Mayor Carlo DeMaria congratulated Everett Firefighters Chris Grace, David Grace, Joe Devanna, Rich Costanza and Steven Schembri for completing their 41- floor stair climb in this year's Fight For Air Climb raising money for the American Lung Association! Great job! (Courtesy of Twitter@ Mayor_DeMaria) Reserve your unit NOW!
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