Roundup: Falcons basketball soars behind Merry, Martin

It wasn’t aesthetically pleasing in any way – in fact, Coach John Walsh called it downright ugly – but the undefeated Danvers High boys basketball team executed a tough turnaround and handled Tewksbury, 61-39, in a non-league road encounter Sunday afternoon.”We struggled early – that’s a hard turnaround from playing Friday night to playing Sunday afternoon. It’s out of the ordinary for us but we found a way to win,” said Walsh, whose club held its Merrimack Valley Conference opponent to four first-quarter points, opened a 31-19 halftime lead and steadily pulled away after the break.Senior center George Merry scored 19 of his game-high 24 points in the first half and added nine rebounds. Eric Martin scored 12 points and dished out seven assists while Nick McKenna contributed nine points for the Falcons (3-0).Danvers bounces back into action tomorrow night at Saugus against the Sachems, who trimmed Everett on Saturday, 59-57.WRESTLINGLynnfield in Wakefield TournamentLynnfield placed second at the annual Wakefield Tournament behind perennial powerhouse Methuen. The Pioneers amassed 176.5 points in recording their best-ever finish at this event.”We’ve been going to this one for years and have placed in the top five several times, but this is our best,” said coach Craig Stone.The Pioneers got second-place finishes from Eric Kerr (106), Phillip Bishop (160) and Cam Arseneault (HW). John Elliot claimed third at 152 pounds while Richie Falcione (138) and Mike D’Amico (195) both finished fourth. Matt Fox (113, fifth), Alex Pascucci (132, sixth), Travis Caulfield (145, sixth) and Ben Flaherty (182, fifth) rounded out the Pioneers’ placers.St. John’s 56, Agawam 9St. John’s 72, Southwick 10St. John’s 82, Windsor (CT) 0Eleven wrestlers went 3-0 for The Prep: T.J. Lemieux, 120; Jared Costa, 126; Micah Anderle, 132; Jamie Morey, 145; V.J. Mortillaro, 152; Pete Locke, 160; David Kou, 170; Ian Butterbrodt, 182; James Ingemi, 195; Jon Polansky, 220; and Corey Jean-Jacques, 285. The Prep is 6-1.TRACKPrep in Winter FestivalSt. John’s Prep took what coach Ray Carey described as a “step in the right direction” with its showing at Sunday’s Winter Festival at The Reggie Lewis Center. Bryan Browne clocked 36.50 to claim second in the 300 meters, then ran a sizzling 51.2 anchor leg to lead the 4×400 relay team to a win in the time of 3:37. Andrew Zucco, Andrew Gauthier and Jack Gourdeau joined Browne.SWIMMINGSt. Mary’s fell to Austin Prep, 96-66, in its season opener at the Lynn Y Sunday afternoon. Eddie Traniello, Ralph Bertrand and Barron Lincoln executed a sweep of the 50 freestyle, then were joined by Dan Kraemer on the victorious 200 free relay team. The Spartans are off until Jan. 3.