Former Oliver Ames standout Caitlyn Abela is off to a hot start in her sophomore season at St. Anselm. Abela, who scored more than 1,000 points in her high school career, is the leading scorer for the Hawks (5-12) averaging 14.7 points per game, while shooting 34 percent from beyond the arc and 88 percent from the line. Abela is also third on the team with 4.9 rebounds per game this year.
Abela has been in a hot streak with at least 18 points in each of her last four games. She scored 18 in a near upset against No. 3 ranked Adelphi and then followed it up three days later with a game-high 19 points in a loss to Southern Conn. State.
On Jan. 22, Abela scored a game-high 22 points for the Hawks in a loss to Le Moyne. She shot 7-13 from the floor, including 5-10 from three, and added nine rebounds and a pair of blocks. It was the second straight 22-point effort from Abela, who also reached that total in a win against Pace on Jan. 17.
Former Sharon player Emilee Daley, who spent two seasons with the Eagles before transferring to Rivers, had a career-high five three-pointers for Boston College on Thursday night in the Eagles 60-56 upset of No. 13 Duke. Daley finished with 17 points, five rebounds and three assists. She knocked down three treys in the span of a minute late in the second half to help BC turn a five-point deficit into a 58-54 lead. It was the first time that BC had defeated a ranked team since 2011.
Last week, a pair of former Franklin High teammates squared off in the Staake Gymnasium when Chris Rodgers and WPI held on for a 67-57 victory over Sam Bohmiller and Babson College in a battle of ranked teams. Former HockomockSports.com Player of the Year Bohmiller, a starter for Babson, scored 15 points in 39 minutes of action and added a pair of rebounds and two steals. Rodgers, a freshman, played 15 minutes off the bench for WPI and pulled down five rebounds and dished out two assists.
King Philip graduate Jake Layman became Maryland's first Big Ten Player of the Week since...himself back in December. Layman averaged 17.5 points, 12.5 rebounds and 2 assists per game to help Maryland take down Rutgers and Michigan State last week. He had a double-double in both games, with 12 points and 13 boards against Rutgers and then a season-high 23 points against the Spartans.
Just one week after being named Rookie of the Week, Oliver Ames' graduate Cameron Williamson was named the MASCAC Field Athlete of the Week. Now helping Bridgewater State win track meets, Williamson captured the Tufts Invitational meet title in the triple jump at 12.32 meters. According to the MASCAC, Williams ranked 35th overall in D3 in the country in the triple jump.
Former Mansfield standout Michael Lofton was named the MASCAC Men's Basketball Player of the Week for the fourth time this season and ninth time overall. Lofton averaged 17.3 points, 9.3 rebounds, over two assists and just under two blocks and two steals last week. Going into this past week, Lofton led the MASCAC in scoring at 17.6 points per game and was second in rebounds at 8.6 per game.
Speaking of Bridgewater State's men's basketball team, it was Hockomock alumni who carried the Bears in their overtime win over Fitchburg earlier this week. Franklin's Kyle Gibson scored the game-winning bucket with 3.6 left in OT to give the Beats a big win over their MASCAC rival. Gibson notched his first double-double of the season with 10 points and 10 boards while Michael Lofton scored 15 points, Mansfield's Rocky DeAndrade dropped 10 points with four assists, Milford's Michael Soares had two points and Mansfield's Greg Romanko had three points. Lofton moved into 13th place all-time in scoring.