By PAUL J. SPETRINI
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NARRAGANSETT—When you’re made up of a large nucleus of freshman and sophomores, as is the case for the Narragansett girls soccer team this season, there’s just no telling how the postseason is going to affect you.
Some players respond to the pressure of the one-and-done atmosphere the playoffs bring, some let their nerves get the better of them and fall flat on their face.
Want to take a guess which category Mariner freshman Carla Porras falls into? Look no further than last Thursday’s Narragansett victory over Johnston.
Playing in her first-ever high school postseason game, Porras looked more like a season pro than a nervous newbie for the Mariners, scoring three times in the first half and once more in the second period to lead Narragansett past the Panthers, 6-4, bringing the team one win closer to the D-III title game.

For more, pick up the 11/4 edition of the Narragansett Times

By PAUL J. SPETRINI
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SOUTH KINGSTOWN—Ever since they walked off the field at Rhode Island College last November, everything the South Kingstown girls soccer team has done has been in preparation for getting back to the postseason.
Their 14-2 regular-season record? Big whoop. Their clinching of the No. 1 seed in Division I-South? Who cares?
The only thing the Rebels have thought about ever since that moment 12 months ago has been getting back to the playoffs, getting back to RIC, getting another crack at the title that so narrowly eluded them last fall.
And judging by what they did to Barrington last Thursday, it might not be wise to stand in their way.
With an energy and a drive not many teams can match, South Kingstown demolished the Eagles Thursday, winning 7-1 as freshman forward Emily McClarnon notched a hat trick in her first postseason game.

For more, pick up the 11/4 edition of the Narragansett Times

By PAUL J. SPETRINI
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NORTH SCITUATE—It was obvious from the very first meet of the season that this year was going to be a special one for the Prout boys cross country team.
Saturday’s Class C Meet only made it official.
Led by senior Mark Mathieu’s 17th-place time of 18 minutes, 9.66 second and the 22nd-place showing of sophomore Steve Conte, the Crusaders finished with six runners in the top 30 overall and racked up a team total of 121 points to come in fourth in Class C, behind only Smithfield, East Greenwich and Mount St. Charles.
Why is fourth place significant? Well, for one thing, it earned Prout a spot in the state meet. For another, it gives a tangible answer to the question of how well the Crusaders have performed this season and, for coach Tyson Edmunds, it’s nice for the Prout boys to see their hard work finally pay off.

For more, pick up the 11/4 edition of the Narragansett Times

By PAUL J. SPETRINI
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NORTH SCITUATE—When the final results of the Girls Cross Country Class B Meet were posted on the scoreboard behind the bleachers at Ponaganset High School Saturday afternoon, South Kingstown coach Sherry Hathaway couldn’t help but be a touch disappointed.
Sure, the Rebels did well—they finished third overall in Class B—but they finished in the same exact place, behind the same exact teams, as last fall.
And if there’s one thing the Rebels want more than anything … it’s to avoid repeating what happened at the end of last season, namely coming up short at states and just missing the cuts for a berth into New Englands.
South Kingstown freshman Kendall Feaster made a splash in her first major varsity race, finishing third overall with a time of 19 minutes, 45.80 seconds, but the overall tone was one of disappointment for the Rebel girls as SK finished behind both Barrington (24) and Westerly (77) with a team total of 90 points Saturday.

For more, pick up the 11/4 edition of the Narragansett Times

By BRANDEN MELLO
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CRANSTON — If Prout girls soccer Ria Carroll and her counterpart from Smithfield, Robert Squillante, learned anything from the teams’ tie earlier this season, it was that  not much separated two of the best teams in all of Division II.
When the squads met Monday night at Cranston Stadium with a spot opposite Exeter-West Greenwich in the D-II final on the line, Smithfield exploited its one big advantage over the Crusaders – blazing speed.
Playing on the Stadium’s extremely fast FieldTurf, the Sentinels used the speed of Tara Watson, Brianna Siravo, Brianna Penta and Ashley Kuhar to continuously put the Prout back four under pressure. After both squads scored in a fascinating first half, Kuhar and Courtney Maguire scored goals in a three-minute span late in the game to lift the Sentinels to a 3-1 win over the II-South regular season champions.
“They were the stronger team tonight,” Carroll said. “They were the first to balls. They came out harder and they are a quick team. We didn’t come out and play our game. When you play against a quick team, turf doesn’t help. We can hold our own, as we’ve shown, but they are quicker than us. We didn’t make ourselves available enough and they did a good job clogging the middle.”

For more, pick up the 11/4 edition of the Narragansett Times

By BRANDEN MELLO
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WEST WARWICK — Wednesday afternoon’s Division III-South clash between Prout and West Warwick said more about how much the Crusaders have improved since the teams’ last meeting in early September than anything about West Warwick.
When the teams met down in Wakefield, the Wizards dominated a young Prout team that simply couldn’t score goals. Wednesday, a more composed and mature Crusader squad showed up in West Warwick.
In a game that could be a preview of the Division III semifinals next month, Prout sophomore Ryan Cripps chested a rebound past West Warwick goalie Zack Panicucci in the first half to put his team ahead. The Crusaders played excellent defense in the second half to hold on for the 1-0 win. It was Prout’s (8-2-2) fifth straight win.    
“All you need is one more than the other team and that’s what we did today,” Prout coach Tim Ryan said. “Our defense played great today. They’ve been playing well all year, but today they were more organized, they were very smart. They gave those guys a few opportunities, but they kept them at bay.
“Especially (Christian Medeiros). They are a very good team overall, but he creates a lot of opportunities for himself and I think he only had one shot.”

For more, read the 10/16 edition of the Narragansett Times

By ERIC RUEB
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NORTH KINGSTOWN – Prout girls tennis coach Jerri DiCamillo only asks for one thing from her team – leave it all on the court.
And despite some disappointing results – including Tuesday’s 4-3 loss to North Kingstown – the veteran coach has been pleased with what she’s seen as the season winds down.
“You win some and you lose some,” DiCamillo said. “They’re trying, and all you can do is ask them to do their best and sometimes their best just isn’t good enough.”
DiCamillo was quick to praise North Kingstown’s play Tuesday, as the Skippers took three of the four singles matches before clinching things with a win at No. 3 singles.
But as it’s been in a few matches this year, Tuesday’s match could have easily been a win for Prout had one or two points gone their way.

For more, read the 10/16 edition of the Narragansett Times

By PAUL J. SPETRINI
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SOUTH KINGSTOWN—It’s one thing to say you’re ready for the playoffs, it’s quite another to show it.
Wednesday afternoon, the South Kingstown girls field hockey team did both and, with a dominant 1-0 win over Classical that wasn’t nearly as close as the final score would lead you to believe, the Rebels not only looked the part of a playoff contender, they looked the part of a team ready to make a substantial march right through the postseason.
South Kingstown’s Mackenzie Iemma scored the one and only goal the Rebels would need Wednesday, knocking in a pass from teammate Amy Babcock with 8:06 to play in the second half as SK improved to 8-3-3 on the season with an impressive victory over the now 7-6-1 playoff-bound Purple.
“They did a really good job against a team that was really aggressive and really plugged the middle of the field well.” SK coach Margaret McGregor said.

For more, read the 10/16 edition of the Narragansett Times

By ERIC RUEB
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NORTH KINGSTOWN – The South Kingstown boys soccer team looked great Tuesday night against North Kingstown.
The Rebels controlled the pace of play. They won 50-50 balls, played aggressively, made good runs and took great shots.
But the one thing SK didn’t do, North had no problem doing – finding the net.
While South may have outplayed the Skippers on the field, the Rebels heard more clangs and bangs than someone dropping silverware down a set of stairs as North Kingstown converted nearly every chance it had in a 4-1 win over South.
Walking off the field, South coach Scott Rollins was more baffled than disappointed.
“The score was obviously not what we wanted it to be but I thought we played really good soccer. I thought in that second half we really controlled the play,” Rollins said. “It’s a weird sport where if you don’t capitalize on opportunities, that’s what happens.”

For more, read the 10/16 edition of the Narragansett Times

By ERIC RUEB
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HARRISVILLE –Driving nearly 50 miles north to play a smaller, scrappy Burrillville, South Kingstown girls volleyball coach Jackie Fagan thought if her team played a solid game, they’d have no problem leaving with a win.
If.
The Rebels struggled to find consistency and every time they took one step in the right direction, it was two, or three, or four steps back as they couldn’t overcome their own mistakes in a 25-23, 25-20, 22-25, 25-23 loss to Burrillville Wednesday night.
“We had moments but too many unforced errors,” Fagan said after the match. “It’s kind of been the story of the season for us. It’s become a pattern now and the girls are feeling it, like Oh no, we’re doing it again. It’s tough to break that.”

For more, read the 10/16 edition of the Narragansett Times