Male Athlete of the Month:
James Falco

by Matt DelCore

Starring on the diamond, James Falco is April's male athlete of the month. James is a senior captain for the baseball team. He's been on varsity all 4 years of high school and has played a major role on those teams. With the season just beginning James looks to lead his team to success with his hitting and playmaking in the infield.

He's been working all offseason to prepare for this season and he is very excited to show what he's capable of this year. Teammates of James only have positive things to say about him.

Senior pitcher and teammate of James, Evan O'Brien said “James is one of the hardest workers in the program and makes everyone around him better when he steps on the field.”

Teammate Ryan Bradley added on to that by saying “James is a great athlete and we all know that but the things he does in the dugout and in huddles are what really make him an important piece of the success”. James played baseball his whole life and with this being his senior season he knows he has to go out with a bang!

The Titan Times sat down with Falco to talk about the season.

Q-What are your personal goals for this season?

A- “My goals for this season are to have a good batting average and to not make errors”

Q-What are the team's goals for the season?

A-”We really want to make the playoffs and try to win a league title”

Q-Who has been your biggest influence throughout your baseball career?

A-”My big brother Jake has always played with me my whole life and we always pushed each other to be the best so probably him.”

Q-What did you do in the offseason to prepare for this year?

A-”I went to the baseball fields a lot to work on my hitting and fielding skills, I also lifted whenever I got the chance.”

Photos courtesy James Falco

Female Athlete of the Month:

Kelly McGee

by Fabiana Younan

This month's female athlete of the month is senior Kelly McGee. McGee is a pitcher on the varsity softball team. She loves playing softball and likes helping her team improve on new skills to help them get to the state tournament.

McGee was first inspired by her dad who played baseball. She looked up to her dad and began playing softball at age 12, and she has been improving her skills every day so she could get better.

McGee said, “My last season went pretty well. I made it to the second round of the state tournament and we worked well as a team.”

As McGee said she enjoyed playing with her team and had fun. McGee also mentioned that she thinks she could work on her throwing more and getting ahead on the count early. She has a pitch speed over the 50s and hopes to improve on her skills that will help her in the future which is one of her many goals that she will work on to get better. She also hopes the team makes it to the State Tournament.

Her statistics have had a big increase over the years; including 142 innings pitched while only letting up 36 earned runs. McGee also had 219 strikeouts and an earned run average of 1.72. She also had 219 strikeouts and a 1.66 ERA in 22 games.

McGee said that her plans “I will be attending the University of Maine Orono in the honors college with a major in nursing.” She hopes that she can become a nurse and study nursing to help people get better. McGee loves playing softball with her team and playing in games, although she hopes that in the upcoming years, she can become a nurse and help people get better.

photo credit @AndyillesPhotog

Varsity Softball

by Grace Torrey

Although they are starting off their season with a whole new coaching staff, senior captain, Liv Skeiber, is excited for an expectedly great season. Skeiber said, "This is definitely one of the closest teams I've been on over my 4 years playing softball. We all compliment each other so well and we have a completely new coaching staff, which we are all super excited for. Our toughest game this season will probably be Silver Lake. They are literally insane at softball but we always put up a good fight against them." With a 19-game schedule, the girls softball is ready for a great season.

photo credit @AndyillesPhotog

Varsity Baseball

by Nolan McGrath

The Boys baseball team is looking for a bounce back season after just missing the playoffs the season before. James Falco who is a senior captain of the team said, “Our team has the ability to go very far this season and I think we will be a good team. I can definitely see us being a playoff team this year.” Senior Ryan Bradley said, “I think we can be a very good team this year. Barely missing the playoffs last year has brought a new intensity for the team.” Baseball is looking to have an above .500 record and a playoff appearance in this year's new upcoming season.

Boys' Tennis

by Nolan McGrath

The boys tennis team is expecting to have a great season. The team is excited to get going this season and they know they have to all buy in if they want to have another good season. The boys tennis team is in the Patriot League, which is a very competitive league with a lot of good competitive schools. Although the league is tough, the team definitely has the ability to have a strong successful season.

photo credit @AndyillesPhotog

Girls' Tennis

by Grace Torrey

The girls tennis team, coached by English teacher, Jessica Walls, is kicking off with practices and ready for a great season. The team has four senior captains: Emma Gerlach, Claire Richardson, Amanda Considine, and Madison Buckley. With many strong players such as sophomore Nicole Makarewicz, they are looking at a great season ahead. Last year they made it far in the postseason tournament and are even more excited to try and go further this upcoming season.

Sophomore Nicole Makarewicz pictured above.

photo credit @AndyillesPhotog

Girls' Lacrosse

by Grace Torrey

Girls lacrosse started off the season with a winning scrimmage on Tuesday, March 26, versus Stoughton. There are four captains, all seniors: Katie Abban, Bella Diprizio, Maddie Mikkola, and Allie Woods.They have a schedule of 18 regular season games. Senior captain Bella Diprizio stated, "Plymouth North has a lot of great players and Hingham has always been a great team so those will probably be the biggest games of the season." The girls lacrosse team recently got a new head coach, Abby Moynihan, and are excited for the games ahead.

Boys' Lacrosse

by Nolan McGrath

The Boys Lacrosse team finished 4-14 last year and are looking for improvement. The team graduated four seniors last year so the team has good chemistry and have played together before. Connor Walker who is a senior goalie on the team said, “The team is hoping to go five hundred and get a playoff win.” Senior Middie Brandon Perry said, “We have the skills and talent. We just need to work hard and put it together.” Senior captain Drew Peck said, “The team has a bright future if they work hard throughout the season and push the underclassmen to do their best”. Hunter Burke, who’s a new addition to the team, said, “As coach Johnson says, we have a lot of potential here, we just need to figure out how to put it all together so we can do some serious damage.”

photo credit @AndyillesPhotog

Boys Spring Track

by Nolan McGrath

The Boys track team is looking to have another great season. The team has been doing very well in recent years and track is looking forward to attempting to break more Pembroke records. Senior Joe D'angelo says, “I think the team is capable of winning a division three state championship and should have multiple champions on the team.” Senior Andrew Chahed said, “I think we’re going to be real good this season and we will win the division 3 state championship."

photo credit @AndyillesPhotog

Girls Spring Track

by Grace Torrey

Track and field kicks off their spring season with their first meet April 4th against Hanover at home. Senior Sarah Claflin says, "We have a big strong team this year so I think we're going to have a good season. There's a handful of good girls in each event which will get us a lot of team points. We trust our coach's season plan to set us up for success, and the beginning of the season is always hard, but as a team we hold each other accountable and push through it."

*Follow PHS Athletics on Twitter @PHS_Titans for any updates.

Track and field kicks off their spring season with their first meet April 4th against Hanover at home. Senior Sarah Claflin says, "We have a big strong team this year so I think we're gonna have a good season. There's a handful of good girls in each event which will get us a lot of team points. We trust our coach's season plan to set us up for success and the beginning of the season is always hard but as a team we hold each other accountable and push through it."