WHAV (https://whav.net/category/sports/)
Haverhill High School Hillie’s football is playing St. John’s High School of Shrewsbury in the state tournament’s round of eight, Thursday night. As WHAV previously reported, Hillie’s football is playing in the state tournament for the first time in a decade. After defeating Leominster High School last week 34-28, on the road, in the round of 16, the Hillies, ranked 10 in the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association Division I, are back on the road to play St. John’s, ranked second.
Mitchell Holmes is looking to continue the legacy left by Jeffrey Mejia, as the new head coach of Knight’s baseball. Holmes comes with three years of playing experience in college baseball at SUNY Cobbleskill. He said he was “A horrendous baseball player,” noting, his true passion is for coaching. He purposefully graduated college a year early to start his coaching career with some travel teams in the New England area. Holmes’ experience coaching also includes the previous two seasons as the lead assistant coach at Babson College, where he oversaw hitting and catching and helped lead the recruiting efforts for the Beavers.
Northern Essex Community College men’s basketball is looking to repeat last-year’s championship. Sophomore and team Captain Jay’von Depina said other teams in the National Junior College Athletics Association division III are “coming for our heads.”
Last season, Northern Essex won its first national championship, beating Dallas College Richland, 68-62, Saturday, March 14. Star sophomore players Alejandro Delgado, Christian Sanders, Alex Johnson and Yunosuke Matsuda were key to the championship season. The Knight’s are now without these players going into this year, as only about five players are returning. Head Coach Darren Stratton referred to the players as “my kids,” and shared with WHAV the mentality he hopes to instill in every player.
Merrimack College athletics is adding four sports as part of its “Warriors Rising: A Blueprint for Athletics Growth and Competitive Excellence” Plan. Merrimack will add four Division I varsity sports including women’s flag football, acrobatics and tumbling, men’s swimming and men’s rowing, beginning in the 2027-28 academic year. Merrimack becomes the first NCAA Division I institution in New England to sponsor varsity women’s flag football. Over the next five years, the department plans to grow its student-athlete population by more than 40%. President of Merrimack College Christopher E. Hopey said “Athletics is an important part of who we are at Merrimack.
Haverhill native Mollie MacIntosh is competing in Major League Baseball’s pitch, hit and run national championship and going to the World Series. After finishing at number one overall in North America, MacIntosh is heading to game two of the World Series, between the Milwaukee Brewers and Tampa Bay Rays this Saturday. MacIntosh and other competitors will be recognized on the field before the game. Sunday, she’ll head to the MLB Pitch, Hit & Run national championship at the Brewers home turf, American Family Field. MacIntosh will go into the championship as the top seed after finishing number one overall in North America during the regional championships at Fenway Park. In an interview with WHAV two years ago, she explained how she had to compete.
Mitchell Holmes is the new baseball coach and assistant athletic director of the Northern Essex Community College Knights. Holmes most recently spent the previous two seasons as lead assistant coach at Babson College where he oversaw hitting and catching and helped lead the recruiting efforts for the Beavers who captured the 2026 NEWMAC championship and earned the third seed in NCAA Division III Southern Maine regional. Prior to his time at Babson, Holmes spent three seasons on the staff at Holy Cross. Athletics Director Dan Blair said Tuesday Holmes officially begins his duties next Monday. “I’m pleased to welcome Mitch to Northern Essex.
Northern Essex Community College men’s basketball team was selected Monday as the number one team in the national pre-season poll as announced by the NJCAA Basketball Committee. The Knights, who captured the program’s first-ever national championship back in March, are coming off a 33-3 season and will have a fresh look for the 2026-27 under head coach Darren Stratton who enters his 24th season with a record of 384-213. With four starters from last year’s national championship game moving onto to the four-year scholarship level, the Knights say they will rely heavily on sophomores Jay’von Depina and Jacob Mercedes, who both played significant roles a season ago. Xavier Rivera, who was a member of the Knights program in in 2024-25, returns to the program after taking a year off. Expected to make an immediate impact on the court this season, the team adds, are newcomers Rolky BreaArias, Isaiah Bean Britain and Martin Drejaj who will all provide significant minutes in the frontcourt.
(Additional photograph below.)
Haverhill High School Hillies Football is 4-1 on the year. After winning only three games the previous four seasons, the Hillies have already surpassed that mark in five games. In its last game, Friday, the Hillies handed Concord, N.H., High School its second straight loss, on the road in a 52-32 final. The Hillies play next on Friday at New Bedford High School, 6:30 p.m.
Haverhill High volleyball is 9-6 on the year. In a game, Tuesday night, it defeated Peabody Veterans Memorial High School 3-0, in sets.
Northern Essex Community College is adding women’s flag football to its varsity athletic offerings beginning with practice in the fall of 2027 with competitions the following spring. The fastest growing sport at the collegiate level, the National Junior College Athletic Association will offer a national championship in the sport for the first time at the same time. The Knights are also expected to be taking the field by then on its outdoor athletic complex at the Haverhill campus. “We’re excited to join the growing number of schools to sponsor Women’s Flag Football, and offering new opportunities for women to continue their athletic careers at the collegiate level,” said Knights Athletic Director Dan Blair, adding, “Right now, the sport has its greatest number of participants in Massachusetts within the Merrimack Valley and this will help us tremendously in building our program.”
The college said, girls flag football participation at the high school level has increased nearly 50% over the previous year across the nation and more than 80 high schools in Massachusetts will sponsor the sport in the spring 2027. Participation at the NJCAA has more than doubled since it began recognizing the sport in 2025.
