EXETER/ANDOVER GAMES: Spring 2013

BaseballBig Red will play their rubber game of a three-game season series against Big Blue on Saturday. The teams’ first two meetings came in a doubleheader at Andover in early May, when Exeter triumphed 4-2 in the first game and dropped the second 0-1.Hunter Carey will be on the mound for the boys this weekend. Big Red’s senior captain will look to end his Exeter career with a win as well as send off coach Bill Dennehy with a victory when he retires at the season’s end.Exeter has benefited from excellent pitching over the season. The Exeter bats, on the other hand, have been inconsistent throughout the season. Big Red can surely be confident of another strong outing from Carey this weekend, and the boys will hope to give their pitcher enough run support for the win.“I don’t see why we can’t win,” senior Mac Flaherty said. “In our first two games, we did a great job of keeping [Andover] off the scoreboard, and now I think it’s just a matter of timely, clutch hitting. If we can come up big with runners in scoring position, there’s no way we’ll lose, especially with Hunter on the mound for his last game.”-Oliver JungTrackAfter winning both the girls’ and the boys’ New England Championship last weekend, Exeter track is looking forward to beating Andover this Saturday for the third time this season.The girls’ team beat Andover 100-68 earlier in the season in a tri-meet with St. Paul’s and beat them once again last weekend 116-56. They are hoping to carry their momentum into this weekend’s race. “I think we’re really ready and really strong in a lot of events,” senior co-captain Haley Baker said. “We have great momentum right now, and we just need everyone to stay focused and bring enthusiasm.” The boys’ side is coming into this weekend’s E/a games with a similar mentality, after thrashing Andover 94-38.5 last weekend and 115-31 in late March. The team is hoping for another strong performance from upper Tyler Courville and lowers Marcus and Mason Polk.Even though both teams are New England Champions, they have been training hard this week, as a victory at Andover would mark an undefeated season. “A win at Andover would definitely be nice; we’ve been undefeated at E/a for four years now, and it would keep us undefeated for the season. An undefeated season would also mean it a lot for the all the seniors, for a lot of us it’s our last track meet,” senior co-captain Alex Yang said.-Nikhil ChuchraBoys' LacrosseThe boys faced a tough challenge going into this season, as they attempted to better last year’s historic 20-2 team. The 2013 squad has proven that they belong with the top teams in program history, highlighting their season with impressive wins against St. Sebastian’s, Loomis Chaffee and NMH as well as a very close, 10-12, loss to national powerhouse Deerfield.The key to Exeter’s high-powered offense this season has been incisive movement. The unselfishness of this year’s team has led to four different players breaking the 20-goal mark on the season. Andover will have to try and cover senior co-captains Matt Ryan and Nick Weigel, senior Dan Mini and lower Michael Lackey, but overcommitting to defending these players could have dire consequences. No less than ten other players on the Big Red roster have tallied double-digit points this season.Senior co-captain Chris Keating (who was selected as an All-American earlier this week along with fellow co-captain Matt Ryan) and seniors Christian Ayscue and Stefan Soucy lead Exeter’s veteran defensive unit, as they look to stifle Andover’s attack. Playing behind them is senior netminder Colin Delea, who boasts an impressive .659 save percentage.*Andover owns a 10-5 record compared to Big Red, who is 13-5 on the season. Exeter is ranked #10 in New England on laxpower.com, while Andover is not far behind, at #17. A similar schedule with similar results suggests that the two bitter rivals will be very evenly matched when they meet in Phelps Stadium this Saturday.*Stats accurate as of 05/21/13-Oliver JungSoftballAfter guaranteeing a .500 season with a massive 13-0 victory over Proctor on Wednesday, girls’ softball looks to improve to 11-7 with a double-header sweep on Saturday. They also look to avenge a tough 0-8 loss they suffered at the hands of Big Blue earlier on in the year.Since taking this defeat, Big Red has tuned up their offensive production, winning three games by 13 runs or more. The girls also have the experience of facing Andover’s pitcher. Although she throws faster than what the team is used to, they are confident that they can warm up in the bats in their final two contests. Senior pitcher Ashley Metcalf has also been solid for the team, keeping opponents to one runs or less in multiple games.“We’re ready. We know how to play our game. We know how to play out positions. It’s just the culmination of all the chemistry we’ve gained over this season. It’s time to end the season right,” upper Nina Meyers said.Last season at E/a, the Big Red girls lost both games against their rivals 2-3. The team is also excited for the game to be at home for their final games of the year.-Alec GreaneyGirls' LacrosseAfter starting off the season slow, girls' lacrosse has completely turned around its season, winning five of their last seven games, supplying them with the confidence needed to beat Andover this weekend. "Andover has a better record going into the game, so we feel like the underdog, but we have beaten teams that they have lost to," lower Marley Jenkins said.Last year, Exeter fell to Andover in their final game of the season, and the athletes are hoping to use the memory of that loss to fuel them. "We lost to them last year, so we really want to come back and stick it to them this year," Jenkins added.Over the past few games, Exeter has picked up an offensive rhythm that few teams have been able to stop. Although their record may not show it, this team, as of late, has been playing like one of the best teams in New England. Do not be surprised if girls' lacrosse shows up at Phelps Stadium on Saturday and upsets Andover."I've never beaten Andover before, and none of the other seniors on the team have. We have the momentum to win this game, and it would be a great way to end the season," senior captain Gabii Wozniak said.-Nikhil Chuchra