By Rachel Talcoff
Hometown Weekly Intern
This fall’s high school sports season is right around the corner, yet countless student-athletes and eager fans are left with uncertainty as to how the season will play out. Teams must prepare for whatever lies ahead while COVID-19 is spreading, making it particularly difficult for...
Hunter Anderson (pictured) turns on a ball and drives a base hit into right field. Photo by Mike Flanagan.
By Mike Flanagan
Hometown Weekly Sports Editor
There’s a reason why baseball does not have a time limit. Things can change from inning to inning, and...
Needham's Andrew Barnett towers over a pair of Xaverian defenders for a jump-ball on Tuesday during seven-on-sevens. Photo by Mike Flanagan.
By Mike Flanagan
Hometown Weekly Sports Editor
It's still unknown whether or not high school football will be played this fall in Massachusetts. States...
Starting Pitcher Nico Schwartz (pictured) stares in and reads the signs from his catcher. Photos by Mike Flanagan.
By Mike Flanagan
Hometown Weekly Sports Editor
After months of cancellations and postponements due to COVID-19, organized team sports finally returned to Needham this past week, thanks...
Good effort to run out this ground ball from Hunter Anderson, even in a game that wasn’t going Needham’s way.
By James Kinneen
Hometown Weekly Reporter
With no American Legion baseball being played this year, the Massachusetts Independent Baseball League has stepped in to take...
Needham High School's Lauren Tarlow was recently named the MIAA's Unified Track and Field Coach of the Year.
The news was announced by the Needham High School Athletics Twitter account on June 25.
All...
By Mike Flanagan
Hometown Weekly Sports Editor
It was an extremely special 2019 season for Needham High School girls volleyball. The Rockets absolutely dominated their way to an unbeaten 21-0 season and won the Division I state championship.
Junior outside hitter Karen Nie recorded 275 kills, 138...
Pictured clearing a ball last season against Hingham, midfielder Matt Guagliano (27) is one of 10 Needham High School lacrosse seniors who robbed of their 2020 senior season due to COVID-19. Photo by Mike Flanagan.
By Mike Flanagan
Hometown Weekly Sports Editor
In 2019, Needham...
By Mike Flanagan
Hometown Weekly Sports Editor
The last two weeks have represented an extremely difficult time for our country. It should go without saying that racism and hate have no place in our country. Sadly, the murders of George Floyd, Ahmad Arbery and Breonna Taylor have proven that hate and...
By Maddie Gerber
Hometown Weekly Intern
Last spring, Needham High School’s girls’ softball team played its final game against Braintree, which was not only an undefeated team, but also the league champions. The Rockets, who hadn’t made the playoffs that year, were undoubtedly the underdogs, and knew this would be...
Avery Mathias (left) and Kate O'Brien (right) are cheered on by friends and family as they make their way down Boylston Street in Boston on Saturday afternoon during their makeshift marathon run. Photos by Needham Swim & Diving.
By Mike Flanagan
Hometown Weekly Sports...
Davonte Burnett was a dominant force for Needham High School track from 2014-2018.
At the indoor championships his senior year in 2018, Burnett set a new meet record in the 55M at 6.36 seconds. As a junior in 2017, Burnett won state championships in the 100-meter dash (10.63 seconds)...
Pictured on the ice this past winter, senior Hugh Curran (6) has served as a defensive mainstay for Needham High boys lacrosse and hockey each of the last four years. Photo by Mike Flanagan.
By Mike Flanagan
Hometown Weekly Sports Editor
An athlete who has perhaps...
By Mike Flanagan
Hometown Weekly Sports Editor
If you grew up in Needham playing ice hockey, there is a 100 percent chance you’ve heard the name Robbie Ftorek. My father, Joe Flanagan, grew up in Needham in the 1970s. So, even as a Walpole guy, Robbie Ftorek's name was all I heard...
Annually one of the top boys high school lacrosse leagues in the country, 2020 was going to be one of the ISL's most competitive seasons in years.
St. Sebastian's entered the year looking to defend their league title following a dominant 15-0 campaign in 2019 that also saw an...
Needham High School baseball was robbed of its season and ability to honor its seniors in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Photo by Mike Flanagan.
After winning the 2018 Division I state championship and making it back to the tournament in 2019 (5-4 first-round defeat to Xaverian),...
Needham native and Montrose center/forward Sophie Kocho (20) was named All-NEPSAC after helping lead the Mavericks to back-to-back IGC Division I championships this season and leading the team in rebounds. Photo by Montrose Athletics.
By Mike Flanagan
Hometown Weekly Sports Editor
The Montrose varsity basketball team...
By Mike Flanagan
Hometown Weekly Sports Editor
One could certainly call Eric Johnson accomplished. Born and raised in Needham, Johnson attended both Needham High School and Belmont Hill, where he played football as a wide receiver, as well as basketball. Johnson’s efforts on the gridiron and in...
By Mike Flanagan
Hometown Weekly Sports Editor
Needham native Danny Jacobs was living the dream: a senior lacrosse player at Middlebury College in Vermont preparing to cap off his athletic and academic career this spring.
Nicknamed “Diesel” by teammates, the 5’10,” 175-Ib attack-man out of Nobles was set...
By Mike Flanagan
Hometown Weekly Sports Editor
The MIAA has pushed back the potential start of the 2020 spring athletic season to May 4, at the earliest, the organization announced on March 30. Originally scheduled to resume on April 27, the decision to push back the start of the season an...
