Page 16 THE EVERETT ADVOCATE – FRiDAy, AugusT 30, 2024 Tide football looks sharp in scrimmage against powerful Arlington Everett begins regular season next Friday night against non-league Mansfield at home By Joe McConnell E verett High School (EHS) football coach Justin Flores welcomed nearly 70 players to the first day of practice on Aug. 16. Flores is beginning his second year, but unlike last year when he learned that he was chosen to be the football boss only weeks before the first day of practice, he now has a better understanding of what he has to work with for the upcoming campaign. “(Getting almost 70 to tryout) was right around what we were expecting,” Flores said. “We will be adding more freshman this week when school starts.” There really hasn’t been any surprises so far, because Flores and his coaching staff have been around the players since last winter, and have seen their growth and development first-hand with all the work they have put in throughout the last nine months. The size of his linemen and a veteran quarterback – Carlos Rodrigues – are nice places to start as they strive for another Greater Boston League Justin Flores EHS Head Coach (GBL) title. “Right now, we are still working on depth at certain positions,” said Flores, “but I like the way some of the younger guys are stepping into those roles.” But with the exception of Rodrigues at quarterback, all the other positions are up for grabs, and only scrimmages will determine the starting offensive and defensive lineups. The Everett boys had one game scrimmage against Arlington on Tuesday, and Flores thought his players looked good on both sides of the ball. “There are still some small things we need to clean up before we head into next week’s first game (against visiting Everett quarterback Carlos Rodrigues looks for an opening to make a pass during last year’s comeback win over BC High, 35-34. (Advocate file photo) Mansfield on Sept. 6 at 7 p.m.),” the coach added. “Arlington was a big, tough team with some serious FBS (college) recruits, so it was good to play against great competition before playing a great program like Mansfield next Friday night.” Besides Rodrigues, some of the other returning players include wide receiver Yariel Ortiz, wide receiver / defensive back Joao Barreiros, offensive linemen Marvin Desruisseaux and Chris Ruiz, linebacker Kevin Diaz, linebacker / safety Armani Negron, linebacker Fabrice Michaud, defensive back / wide receiver Gidion Legall, running back Manny Santiago and defensive back / wide receiver Elijah. Lassister. They are competing against some formidable newcomers for starting spots, and only more intrasquad scrimmages will settle that question. But it’s a nice problem to have for Flores, who will be looking for another GBL title, but more importantly a berth in the Division 1 playoffs. Tide girls soccer eager to get going with talented underclassmen Everett opens up the regular season at home against Brockton Tuesday By Joe McConnell E verett High School (EHS) girls soccer coach Dom Persuitte is beginning his third year in charge of the program, and he can’t wait to get going. “I’m extremely excited to start this season, because we have a lot of promising talent and depth on the roster,” he said. “The depth is coming from the underclassmen, who have big shoes to fill after we graduated a whole team of seniors last year.” Persuitte is employing three captains this year, and they among them include seniors Yelsa Garcia and Emilia Marie-Babcock. Both players have been starting since their freshman year. They will be joined by junior defenseman / midfielder Casey Martinez, and she too has been a starter since ninth grade. The Crimson Tide participated in a jamboree last Sunday to get ready for the upcoming season. They went up against Mystic Valley and Bedford. They tied Mystic Valley, 1-1. Kayla Andrade netted the lone Everett goal. It was her first career varsity marker, and it was assisted by Garcia after she pushed the Mystic Valley goalie to the side to give her teammate an opportunity to tap it home. The scrimmage against Bedford was another solid effort by the Tide, despite giving up two goals. Babcock played very well in net, a relatively new position for her after she took it over last fall. “This team has some serious promise and talent, and I truly believe we are going to make noise in the Greater Boston League (GBL) this year,” said Persuitte. “I have a great group of girls this year.” Bridget Cifuni is Persuitte’s assistant varsity coach, while Leah Ferullo heads up the JV team. “Leah is one of my former players, who captained the team when I took it over two years ago. She is going to be a great addition to my staff.” The Tide girls will open up the regular season against Brockton at 7-Acres on Tuesday, Sept. 3 (4:30 p.m.). They will then welcome Medford to town two days later. This game will begin at 4:15 p.m. They will be at Methuen tomorrow morning (Sept. 7) to take on the Rangers at 11 a.m., before returning home to go up against Malden Tuesday afternoon at 4:15 p.m. 2024 Tide girls soccer varsity roster The 2024 EHS varsity roster includes the above-mentioned captains Garcia, Babcock and Martinez, and their teammates are senior midfielder Hilary Monja, senior defender / midfielder Alondra Flores, junior forward / midfielder Kathleen Desouza, junior forward Gisele Erazo, junior midfielder Luna Sepulveda Masselli, junior midfielder Gabriella Lones Rivera, sophomore forward / midfielder Leah Ferullo, left, returns to the Everett High School girls soccer program this year as its JV coach. Two years ago, she was a varsity captain, along with Lamiah Wyzard, center, and Layla Bentancur-Cardona, right. (Advocate File photo) Kayla Andrade, sophomore defenseman / midfielder Sofia Arana-Quintanilla, sophomore midfielder Layla Leles, sophomore midfielder Mariana Rodrigues, freshman goalie Ashley Heath, freshman defenseman / midfielder Gissell Lemus, freshman midfielder Rosa Romero, freshman defenseman Nicole Lemes, freshman defenseman Leilany Rodrigues, freshman forward Mariana Franca and freshman defenseman Tiffany Aguilar.
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