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Principal Warren F. White, Jr. is pleased to announce the Third Quarter Honor Roll for the Lynn Classical High School 2005-2006 school year.

Anyone who has seen Monique Lee play basketball knows she is creative. The former Lynn Classical star has a vast repertoire of moves around the basket and a knack for finding a way to put the ball in. Now a sophomore at Quinnipiac University, Lee is also channeling her creativity off the court, majoring in advertising.

So, what is Lee's advertising slogan for this year's Quinnipiac women's basketball team, which starts four underclassmen? ''We're young and fresh and that good," said Lee, when reached last week at the Hamden, Conn., school.

Although Lee was referring to the entire Quinnipiac team, her impromptu promotional pitch could easily be applied to herself. Lee has emerged as the leader of a green group that has jumped out to a surprising 9-5 start. After 14 games, Lee led the Braves in both scoring (16.6 points per game) and rebounding (9.2 rebounds per game). The versatile forward ranked third in the Northeast Conference in points per game and fourth in rebounding.

''She is relentless," said Quinnipiac freshman guard Erin Kerner. ''Sometimes she is double- and triple-teamed, and she never gives up. If she misses a shot, she'll get her own rebound and get fouled. Mo takes all the hits and just works nonstop in a game."

Lee made an immediate impact at Quinnipiac last season, finishing third in the conference in rebounding average (9.6) and garnering Northeast Conference All-Rookie honors. Her 25 rebounds against Monmouth last season were an NCAA season high.

This season her role has expanded due to graduation and defection. Krystal Pressley, Quinnipiac's leading scorer last season, has transferred to American International College in Springfield. Her change of address left Lee, who finished second on the team in scoring last year at 10.1 points per game, as the Braves' go-to player this winter.

''She was the key, coming back," said Quinnipiac's coach, Tricia Sacca-Fabbri. ''We needed her to do what she is doing now. When she's going good, we're going better as a team."

That's why it was disappointing when Lee was forced to sit out the first two games of the season because of an unspecified violation of team rules. Lee declined to elaborate but said the transgression was not academic.

In Lee's absence, Quinnipiac was blown out by Dartmouth (90-42) and Stony Brook (87-61). Lee returned with a vengeance against Providence College, tallying 26 points and 11 rebounds as Quinnipiac prevailed, 83-80, in overtime. She has been on a roll ever since.

''I definitely learned that my actions affect the rest of my team, and that I have to be more responsible and be a leader on and off the court," said Lee.

''After serving the suspension, I was determined to do anything in my power to help my team get better."

For Lee, that means routinely outplaying opponents who have two or three inches of height on her in the post. To prepare for that assignment and her increased responsibilities this season, Lee stayed at Quinnipiac last summer, working on her game and taking classes. Sacca-Fabbri said Lee made the commitment on her own because she wanted to become a better player.

''That's why Mo did it, and that's why she's a different player this season," said Sacca-Fabbri. ''She was committed to improving over the spring and summer, and it's been the difference for her this year."

Local fans might remember how Lee shined in another NEC, the Northeastern Conference, while playing high school basketball at Lynn Classical. As a senior, Lee led Classical to a 22-1 mark and its first NEC crown, earning conference MVP honors. But she said going off to Quinnipiac was a big adjustment, on and off the court.

While Lee's on-court transition to college was smooth, things were a little bumpier off the court. ''I missed my family and friends," said Lee. ''It was difficult at times to not be around the people I love. All I knew was Lynn."

Lucky for Lee, she had fellow Lynn native Helen Ridley as a teammate last season to quell her fears and ease her discomfort. Ridley was one of the main reasons Lee went to Quinnipiac. Lee said she always looked up to Ridley, who was rewriting the Classical record books when Lee was a gangly freshman. Now, Lee said, she considers Quinnipiac a ''second home."

''I think it made all the difference for [Monique] that Helen could speak of her experience, as a personal friend," said Sacca-Fabbri. Kerner, one of three freshmen who start for the Braves, said Lee has taken on the mentoring role that was played by Ridley last season. ''Mo gained a lot of experience last year as a starter, and she has helped us freshmen learn what to do in the games. She has definitely emerged as a leader, even though she's not a captain. She definitely looks out for us and we look up to her."

Quinnipiac is likely to lean on Lee even more now that the team is entering the gantlet of conference play. However, Sacca-Fabbri is expecting other teams to try to take away Lee's game in the low post, which is why she said it is imperative that Lee and her teammates continue to improve. For Lee, that means doing a better job of passing when she's double-teamed, Sacca-Fabbri said. And for her teammates, it means capitalizing on open shots. Double teams might slow Lee down, but Sacca-Fabbri said they won't keep her from being a factor. She's too good for that.'' You can't keep her off the boards. She just has a sixth sense about that. She does things that you can't teach, and that's why she's a great player," Lee's coach said.

''For the next couple of years, Mo is our nucleus. The team will revolve around her," said teammate Kerner.'' As long as she keeps working hard, we're going to go really far."

December 21, 2005 ---Principal Warren F. White, Jr. is pleased to announce the First Quarter Honor Roll for the Lynn Classical High School 2005-2006 school year.

Grade 12 – Caryn Carrabba, Stephen Delvecchio, Mark Duran, Mimoza Hysenaj, Alice Lao, Ashley Messina;

Grade 10 – Jacqueline Batres, Amy Bourgeois, Angelica Carey, Kelsey Cowdell, Evan Davolio, Afton Dean, Eleni Doulis, Evelyn Eng Nol, Eliana Field, Amanda Harney, Johnny Long, Sereyleak Nov, Emely Pring, Alexander Rittershaus, Eric Silva, Alexander Watler;

Grade 9 – Basant Badr, Cesar Castro, Jr., Patrick Dunn, Rachel Dunnigan, Linda Duong, Zachary Houghton, Matthew Lunden, Kevin Mazige, Pierina Mora, Lena So, Maritza Torres, LeJean Williams

Grade 12 – Stephen Borrelli, Keara Calnan, Rory Calnan, Molly Cavanagh, Virginia Champigny, Sandra Coulanges, Michael Coviello, Aleisha Curneil, Lisa Duong, Matthew Ecclesiastre, Hasan Elsadig, Richard Field, Sarah Fortucci, Erika Galvan, Georgios Georgoudis, Diane Gheringhelli, Phally Heang, Jessica Herrera, Michael Jesoraldo, Emily Jimenez, Marinna Khon, Samual Kollie, Stephen Lally, Jr., Nathan Legere, Lisa Lim, Felisha Lopez, Sabrina Lozandieu, Anela Marjanovic, Georgie Martinez, Alfredo Nunez, Nina Ny, Meagan O’Neill, Michael O’Toole, Jr., Gloria Patten, Tinh Phan, Alexandria Pierre, Nicholas Pitsis, Kyleigh Porter, John Powell, Meaghan Reddy, Andrew Richard, Sorath Roeung, Joel Rojas Moscoso, Joan Ros, Yana Ros, Eordea Sherifi, Kyle Shurtleff, Erica Singer, Benjamin Smith, Ly Sok, David Tattle, Camica Williams;

Grade 11 – David Ardon, Casey Atkins, Corinne Bradley, Rathanak Bun, Corey Cheever, Angela Christian, Tiffany Clark, Savanna Clemens, Nicholas Colon, James Cowdell, Courtney Dentremont, Amira Dzebic, Austin Feula, Vanessa Francois, Minela Gacanovic, Melissa Galindo Catherine Geary, Alana Gerald, Vincente Gonzalez, Michael Grant, Phallin Heang, Marien Hernandez, Claudia Herrera, Sreypoo Honn, Rema Kanj, John Kellett, James Khun, Dara Kim, Courtney King, Lauren Kolodziej, Amanda Kou, Anna Koutoulas, Paulina Koutroubis, Keith Langlais, Belinda Lao, Giang Le, Samantha Lozzi, Jill Magner, Kara Mazareas, Scott Nadolna, Hao Nguyen, Johnny Nguyen, Adebanke Owolewa, Benjamin Patten, Marko Paunovic, Bethany Persenaire, Maria Plessas, Eric Polanco, Jazmine Ramirez, Marissa Ruiz, Debra Sentner, Jessica Shepard, John Sok, Sasha Sosa, Robert Soye, Kara Sullivan, Melissa Suon, James Tarr, Phi Thi Thach, Tiffany Valentine, Ashley Wandberg, Tyler Zachari;

Grade 10 – Trisha Allard, Vincent Amenta, Karina Ariza Samper, Brittani Barrett, Bianco Barrios, Elizabeth Bright, Juody Bun, Brian Burgess, Nicholas Capano, Nicole Capone, Mary Champigny, Johny Chau, Sophany Chau, Shane Clemens, Brian Coffill, Jerrica Conley, Jennifer Coviello, Timothy Cowdell, Kristen Dean, Jaydiris Delossantos, Reginal Douyon, Tachand Dubuisson, Same Duong, Erica Ferrier Lynch, Briana Galeazzi, Jetta Garrity, Sarah Gillis, Joshua Horgan, Janeal Hoyte, Gerryanne Jean, Roberta Lantigua, Erik Lawless, Julie Lundrigan, Dyna Ly, Lauren Marnik, Erin McCall, Enos Mullings, Tia Murkison, Jodi Murray, Erin Muschette, Dillon O’Toole, Joseph Paru, Zephaniah Phillips, Guerdine Precilien, Elaine Pres, Jillian Reddy, Michael Reece, Daniel Richard, Andrew Rybak, Andrew Scanlon, Savoeun Seam, Kacey Sonia, Lisselot Soriano, Amanda Stevens, Courtney Sullivan, Doneeca Thurston, Kristin Tomerlin, Linh Tran, Benjamin Wheeler;

Grade 9 – Sarita Ago, Keith Beaupre, Jaime Behen, Kayla Behen-McGough, Paul Buccheri, Melinda Buth, Jessenia Carredano, Rachel Carroll, Daveth Cheth, Davey Chhoeun, Nichole Curcis, Cinda Danh, Amanda Deberardinis, Wiselene Dorceus, Jeremy Dorson, Jacob Duyon, Mark Edmunds, Brenda Eng, John Erekson, Dari Fabian, Jr., Steven Fortucci, Jeffrey Gaudet, David Gonzalez, Tressa Harris, Toni Hill, Hongchau Huynh, Innera Idris, Brian Kolodziej, Christopher Lewis, Mandi Magistrelli, Frances Mathieu, Dinorah Mazara, Maryanne McCarthy, Chantell Morris, Samantha Murray, Nathan Neff, Lan Nguyen, Sereyrath Nov, Ozine Ntamuhanga, Maria Nunez, Samantha O’Neil, Vivian Ong, Alba Ortega, Solanlly Paulina, Sophountharry Pom, Jessica Randazza, Maureen Rosenthal, William Saengthavy, Jomaira Salas, Thyvong Sar, Michael Shea, Emily Shepherd, Alexander Siaki, Kathleen Simmons, Jasmine Sneed, Shawn Story, Athina Sutson, Jessica Tannian, Aleksandr Tokarev, Jill Toner, Sarah Venezia, Sean Winchell, Kaleigh Young, Sarai Zelada

The Endicott College Women's Soccer team, the Gulls, qualified for the NCAA Division 3 Tournament and Paula McGinn made sure they got there, scoring both goals in a 2-0 win over Gordon in the conference tourney final . Endicott College sophomore Paula McGinn , a graduate of Lynn Classical High School, apparently wasn't satisfied with just being named Commonwealth Coast Conference Player of the Year in women's soccer.

Lynn Classical's Coach Penny Pension was named NEC South Girls Tennis Coach of the Year.

Carlos Cifuentes and Devon Dupuis were named to the Division Boys Soccer All-Star Team

Ashley Donovan and Paulina Koutroubis were named as Divisional Girls Soccer All-Stars.

McGrath Settling into Role at Trinity

Eric McGrath is settling into his role as a back-up quarterback for the unbeaten Trinity College football team.
The former Lynn Classical signal caller was on the sidelines in uniform at Zimman Field in Medford on October 15 for the Tufts-Trinity football game that was played in a driving rainstorm. Trinity extended its winning streak to 26 games with a 7-0 win over Tufts. The Bantams’ now-27-game winning streak is second only to USC in college football.
“I’m paying my dues and learning a lot from our two senior quarterbacks,” said McGrath.
McGrath was the starting quarterback for the Trinity sub-varsity team in a game against Bridgton Academy and did well in his first collegiate performance.
“Eric is progressing well, learning the system, and he’ll be a key player for this team in the future,” said Trinity coach Charles Lapriore. “He’s a good athlete who knows the game of football well.”
McGrath runs the scout team’s offense during practice. “I get some reps once in a while with the first team, but mostly I just run the scout team and go to film sessions,” said McGrath. We run a no-huddle, multiple-set offense so I had to learn all the signals.”
McGrath, who prepped for one year at Avon Old Farms, is taking courses in computer science, writing, and mathematics along with a freshman seminar.
McGrath said he hasn’t been able to attend any Lynn Classical games this fall. “I’ve been following them. I speak with Coach [Matt] Durgin once a week. It was good to see Classical beat Gloucester at Newell Stadium and I was happy to see them go for the [game-winning] two-pointer in overtime against Revere.”
McGrath will begin workouts for the Trinity College baseball team following the football season. McGrath is expected to be a starting left-handed pitcher for the Bantams. “I’m going to try to play two sports,” said McGrath.
Eric is the son of Pat and Sharon McGrath. He has two sisters, Kelly, a senior majoring in communications at the University of Rhode Island, and Krystal, 13.

Melissa Suon, Vincente Gonzalez and Chris Perry each earned perfect scores on part of the MCAS tests. (Reba M. Saldanha photo)
By Jill Gadsby, The Daily Item of Lynn, Thursday, October 6, 2005

LYNN - Three Classical High School juniors whose backgrounds seemingly could not be more different clearly have one thing in common - they all aced the high-stakes MCAS test.
Athlete Chris Perry, jazz percussionist Vincente Gonzalez and history buff Melissa Suon each scored 280 on one portion of the test.
Both Perry and Suon received perfect scores on the math portion while Gonzalez scored perfectly on the English portion. Students statewide must pass both portions of the test with at least a 220 in order to receive a diploma.
"We're very proud of those students for their individual achievement," Principal Warren White said. "It certainly speaks to their effort and attitude on the test, as well as their academic excellence."
The students gave a variety of reasons for why they did well on the test.
"I didn't really try that much," Perry said. "I just knew everything, I guess. I've always been good in math. A lot of students look up to me for my math. They're always asking for help and stuff."
Gonzalez, who also scored a near-perfect 276 on the math portion, said he was motivated by his brother, Jose, who received a perfect MCAS score in 2003.
"My brother set the bar high with him getting a perfect score," he said. "He ended up at Cornell, so I just tried to follow in his path."
Suon said she was methodical when taking the test.
"I took my time, I didn't rush things and I just tried my best," she said. Both Suon and Gonzalez said they both feel that Classical's ninth-grade MCAS preparation class helped them do better on the test.
"It definitely helped," Gonzalez said. "It showed you how the format was so you knew (ahead of time) and could just get right into it."
The students are now sitting pretty when it comes time to fill out college applications, although Perry said he doesn't have a dream school. "Whatever opens up," he said.
Gonzalez said he would be happy attending school with his brother.
"I'm looking a lot into going into political science at Cornell," he said, adding that he dreams of one day being president. "I want to mainly get my degree (here) and go back to Bolivia and run over there because (as an immigrant) it's not possible to run here."
Suon said she probably won't focus on her advanced math skills at college.
"I want to work in the medical field, so I'm leaning more toward science," she said. "I want to go to Harvard because I know they have a good medical program. I want to be a brain surgeon."
All three students are eligible to receive the Abigail and John Adams Scholarship, which waives tuition at Massachusetts state schools for students scoring in the top 25 percent on the MCAS by their junior year. By scoring in the top 10 percent, the students are also eligible to receive a $2,000 annual bonus to defray the cost of fees.
Perry said he will consider taking the state up on its offer to attend a state school.
"It's a good way just to get into college and get an education," he said.
Suon said she is also considering it.
"I would go for two years and transfer maybe to an Ivy League school to save some money," she said.
Although he'd rather attend a private school like Cornell, Gonzalez said the free tuition gives many students another option after high school.
"It's a great opportunity, whether it's right for you or not right for you," he said. "I'm not being ungrateful, but it's really not my first option. But it does open a lot of doors."
Gonzalez said he would not have received a perfect score if it weren't for the support of his teachers and his family.
"I want to thank all the teachers at Classical because they are all great - they really helped me," he said. "It's an honor to represent Classical and Lynn and the Gonzalez family."

Monique Lee Sets the Standard

Former Classical star excels on college court

McGrath Settling into Role at Trinity