Whether it’s at the Lynn English High School gymnasium, the Peter Sawin Natatorium at Lynn Tech, or Connery Rink, it has been a jam-packed winter for sports on the North Shore.
That’s why the New Year provided a period of calm for athletic directors to reflect on the challenges of the past week, and other challenges that lie ahead.
English athletic director Gary Molea estimated that over 600 people attended the Walter J. Boverini basketball tournament last Thursday and Friday.
“For two days, I thought it ran pretty smoothly,” Molea said on Tuesday. “I would like to see more people out in support. It’s a great cause. The Boverini family was at the finals the second night.”
Molea praised the quality of play, calling the English-Classical boys game last Thursday “a very good game that went down to the wire” and also mentioning two girls games: St. Mary’s English and Classical-St. Mary’s, calling the latter “awesome.”
He also thanked Paul Halloran of Grant Communications for getting officials, and John Ford for his work with the ad book.
Last week was actually a tale of two tournaments in Lynn. As basketball fans cheered on their teams in the Boverini, hockey faithful flocked to Connery Rink off the Lynnway for the Lynn Christmas Tournament.
“The same two nights, people in Lynn had different choices,” Molea said. “If you’re a hockey fan, you went to the rink. If you’re a basketball person, you went down to English.”
This winter has also seen plenty of swimming at the recently dedicated Peter Sawin Natatorium at Tech.
“It’s doing well,” Tech AD Joe Skeadas said on Tuesday. “I’m very happy it was dedicated to Mr. Sawin. He was a great guy who cared about kids.”
The pool is used every day, beginning at 2:30 or 3 p.m. and continuing until 8 p.m. It is used by Tech, Classical and English.
Skeadas said that lead custodian Jim McDonald does “a great job with the pool,” and added, “Everyone in the conference appreciates coming in and using the pool.”
Later this winter, Tech will play host to two major swimming events: the Commonwealth Athletic Conference vocational tournament and the city tournament.
The regular-season games will pick up right where they left off today, with the Lady Bulldogs girls basketball team playing Medford in a non-league game at home (7 p.m.).
“I don’t mind the hectic schedule,” Molea said. “It makes the winter go a little quicker.”
He mentioned the basketball games on Tuesdays and Fridays, hockey on Wednesdays and Saturdays, and track and swimming as well.
“Before you know it, you’re into February,” he said. “As long as the Patriots keep winning, that’ll get us to Feb. 1.”
Rich Tenorio can be reached at [email protected].
