Mystic Valley 5th & 6th Graders Split Weekend Games
The Mystic Valley boys’ 5th/6th grade basketball team split a pair of games over the weekend, beating a tough Masco squad 24 – 21 then dropping a 43 – 28 decision to a strong Winchester team.
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On Saturday, the Baby Eagles woke up early and got it going right away as they jumped out to a strong early lead. Masco hung tough and cut into the lead, eventually even going ahead 19 – 18 in the second half. However, Jimmy Arneil calmly stepped up after they took the lead and buried a 3-pointer to give the Eagles the lead for good. “The defense was the key to this win. Everyone stepped up and played a role in stopping Masco. I’m proud of how the team held on against a very strong defensive opponent,” said Coach Anthony Chiccuarelli. Arneil had 6 points, leading the Eagles on the day, both on 3-pointers. He has now hit a 3 point shot in 4 of the Eagles 6 games this season. Jonah Crain, on a couple of nice outside shots, and Ethan Nguyen had 4 points apiece. Jimmy Petras and Tyler Story had 3 big points apiece, Alex Maher had 2, and Michael DiFiore and Eric He added a free throw each.
Sunday’s game was against a big, tough opponent in Winchester and the smaller Eagles had a tough go of it. “We were overmatched in the game but the kids fought from the opening tap to the end of the game. We couldn’t be any prouder of them on how they never let up and never quit,” stated Assistant Coach Paul DeSantis. The Eagles fell behind early but fought back in the second half to cut the Winchester lead to 8 with about 4 minutes left, but the Sachems held on to give the Baby Eagles their first defeat since opening day. Jimmy Arneil scored 10 points to again lead the Eagles including another 2 3-pointers. Jimmy Petras had 6 tough points down low while John Carlino, Jonah Crain, Eric He, Ethan Nguyen, Michael Selter, and Tyler Story each had a basket for the Eagles.
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The Eagles return home on Saturday for a game against Saugus, only their second home game of the season for the road weary team.
