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Sports in RI: Fall school sports get their crowns – John Cardullo
by John Cardullo, sportswriter
The Rhode Island Interscholastic League crowns the Fall season champions with the traditional football Super Bowls topping off a successful Fall season!
November is a big month for high school sports; it is the month when all the teams that compete in the late summer, early fall sports make a run for taking their respective championship crowns. Traditionally the chase for the hardware begins with Cross Country and Tennis taking the spotlight. This season held true to that schedule with Field Hockey, Boys and Girls Soccer, Game Day Cheerleading and Girls Volleyball wrapping up their play-off runs leaving the stage for football to wrap up their season. In years past Football was the final sport to crown their champions. One of the reasons why is because football is a once-a-week game. Add to the mix that Football plays until Thanksgiving for the annual rivalry games that had been established years ago.
Boys’ and girls’ Cross Country kicked off the championship season with Bishop Hendricken winning the boys State team competition while Cumberland took the girls team State title. The RIIL divided up the classifications for individual champions from A to C. The A class individual winners were Marshall Vernon of LaSalle for the boys and Pilgrim’s Keary Bayha took the girls individual championship. The “B” titles went to Sean Gray of Portsmouth for the boys, and Allie Kaull, also from Portsmouth, taking the girls championship. In the “C” division Narragansett’s Cole Francis won the boys’ championship while Julia Dowling or North Smithfield won the girls championship.
Girl’s Tennis division I champions had LaSalle beating Barrington 4-1, in division II Westerly topped Prout 4-1 and in division III Tiverton beat Exeter/West Greenwich 5-2.
Field Hockey crowned three division champions. Moses Brown defeated East Greenwich 4-1 for the division I championship, while Lincoln nipped Cumberland 2-1 in overtime for the division II championship. But the division III championship had Smithfield and Classical ending regulation tied 0-0, but Smithfield took the championship with a 4-3 shootout victory.
Competitive Game Day Cheerleading has gotten bigger every year since it became a competitive sport. Three divisions had been established for teams to compete in. Division I had LaSalle beating Coventry. Division II saw defending champions West Warwick downing Barrington and Achievement 1st out of Providence edged out St. Raphaels for the division III crown.
Girls Soccer wrapped up its season with four divisions playing on Alumni field on the campus of Rhode Island College. The North Kingstown Lady Skippers and Cumberland Clippers played to a 2-2 tie that was settled in a shootout. North Kingstown won the Division I championship 5-4. In a nail biter, The Prout school beat Westerly 1-0 to take home the division II crown. The St. Raphael Saints shut out Exeter/West Greenwich Scarlet Knights 4-0 to bring home the division III championship. The division IV championship was claimed by the Tiverton Tigers 2-1 over the Davies Patriots.
Boys Soccer had some exciting games of their own. Division I had Hendricken and LaSalle locked horns to a 2-2 tie which Hendricken went on to win in a 4-3 shootout. The Raiders of Shea edged the Lions of Lincoln 1-0 to claim the division II championship. Division III powerhouse Scituate beat Johnston in their division III match up.
The championship weekend wrapped up at the Murray Center at Rhode Island College when Girls Volleyball took center stage. In Division I, North Kingstown beat Portsmouth 3 games to 2. The Barrington Eagles beat Middletown 3 games to 1 for the division II championship. The division III went to the Tolman Tigers who won their schools first ever girls volleyball championship when they beat Ponagansett 3 games to 1 and in the division IV championship, the Central Lady Knights ended their season with a win over inter-City rival, Hope.
This leaves only football left to wrap up the Fall season. Most play-in games have been played last weekend, setting up semi-final games to be played this weekend (November 15-16), at the higher seeds home field, then every game moves to the historic Stebbins field at Cranston Stadium. The line up for this weekend will start with the State Championship division teams squaring off. The Bishop Hendricken Hawks will play the Clippers of Cumberland while the LaSalle Rams will take on The St. Raphael Saints.
In the division I game will have the Patriots of Portsmouth playing the North Kingstown Skippers, while the Burriville Broncos will play the Central Knights. The division II match ups will have The South Kingstown Rebels playing the East Providence Townies while the Wizards of West Warwick will play the Westerly Bulldogs. While in Division III the Purple of Classical will host Rogers and Ponaganset will take on the Pilgrim Patriots. Wrapping up the Super Bowl weekend will be The Narragansett Mariners playing Smithfield and the Patriots of Davies will play the Scarlet Knights of Exeter/West Greenwich.
After everyone gets a chance to catch their breath, the winter sports programs will be revving up. Boys’ and girls’ basketball, Competitive Cheerleading, Wrestling, Boys and girls hockey, gymnastics, boys and girls swimming and boys and girls indoor track will take over center stage. One thing is for sure, the cold weather sports will be warming up the winter!
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Look forward to John’s radio show “Settling the Score” – starting December 7th:
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John Cardullo, sportswriter. John is a lifelong Rhode Islander. His sports experience is extensive, as a player, coach and sponsor of youth and high school sports. He has been the Public Address Announcer for the CCRI Men’s and Women’s Soccer teams. Both the Cranston East and Cranston West football, Cranston East Boys and Girls basketball for 12 years before moving onto the Central, Juanita Sanchez and Mt. Pleasant football teams. Also, Central HS Boys and Girls Basketball, Scituate High School Boys and Girls Basketball, Johnston High School Girls Basketball, Boys Volleyball, Girls Softball, Boys and Girls Soccer teams, and CLCF football.
John has been involved in Men’s softball for 61 years, starting as a batboy for his father’s team in 1964. He moved to the teams scorekeeper then became a player in 1975, and created the men’s team, Players Corner Pub, that went on to win 20 State Championships in their 35 year history. In the 1990’s he published the statewide softball magazine “The Fielders Choice” which was dedicated to all topics related to adult softball. As a feature writer, John and the publication won several media awards. In 2019 he was elected and inducted into the Rhode Island Slow Pitch Softball Hall of Fame which he also helped create. John is a softball umpire in Warwick, Rhode Island.
In his spare time John golfs with his life long friends on a weekly basis in season. After retiring from the printing Industry after a 45-year career, he now writes specialty sports columns for RINewsToday.com.