Massachusetts High School Sports - Boston Globe

08/26/2025

Muji Vader grew up at an orphanage in Kinshasa, the capital of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, before moving to Concord, Mass. in 2016 to live with her new family.

She started playing organized basketball in eighth grade, realized she had a knack for it, and has since blossomed into a talented and versatile player for Minuteman High in Lexington. Last winter, the 5-foot-8-inch guard averaged 21.3 points, 10.4 rebounds, 7.5 steals, and 4.5 assists per game for a Revolution team on the rise.

Vader’s personal coach, Antoine Gillespie raved about her work ethic and potential.

“Her consistent willingness to learn and lead can only be found in success-bound players who are destined for greatness,” said Gillespie, who played professionally overseas for 17 years after starring at Texas-El Paso. “As a coach, when you come across a player like Muji, you’re easily reminded why we love this game.”

As much as she’s accomplished on the court, Vader is also a catalyst off it, using basketball as a vehicle for change. She and her brother, Joey, captain of the boys’ basketball team at Minuteman, founded a non-profit service organization called “The Assist” that spearheads basketball-related service projects around the world.

She also holds Swiss citizenship through her father, Dave, who was born and raised in Switzerland.

We chatted with Vader to learn more about her latest experiences and why they mean so much personally.

Read Trevor Hass's interview: https://www.bostonglobe.com/2025/08/23/sports/minuteman-high-basketball-lexington-muji-vader/

📷Matthew J. Lee/Globe staff and Courtesy
✏ Trevor Hass/Globe correspondent

08/20/2025

On hiatus since mid-July, high school takeaways are back as the 2025-26 MIAA season begins to unfurl.

08/20/2025

While there wasn’t much talk about the Super 8/Division 1A tournament, one of the more controversial topics on the agenda, the conversation was robust when discussing the process for adding new schools.

08/19/2025

We stopped by St. John's Prep boys' soccer and checked in with Oliver Ames boys' soccer, Newton North girls' volleyball, Masconomet girls' soccer, Norwood field hockey, Walpole field hockey, Natick girls' volleyball, and Billerica cross-country on the first day of fall practices.

Read the story: https://www.bostonglobe.com/2025/08/18/sports/ma-high-school-sports-day-1/

📷Ken McGagh/For the Globe
✏Mike Puzzanghera, Alexandria Evans, Matty Wasserman, Toby Moses, Bailey Reynolds, and AJ Traub/Globe correspondents

08/16/2025

Stoneham savored its new turf, Mansfield showcased athleticism, Brockton and Bridgewater-Raynham continue to build, Foxborough's fire still burns, and D1 heavyweights St. John's Prep and Xaverian flexed their muscles to kick off workouts.

Read about all eight of our stops on Day 1 of Massachusetts high school football season: https://www.bostonglobe.com/2025/08/15/sports/ma-high-school-football-day-1/

📷Jonathan Wiggs/Globe staff
📷Brendan Kurie/Globe staff
✏ Nate Weitzer/Globe correspondent
✏ Brendan Kurie/Globe staff
✏ Toby Moses/Globe correspondent

08/16/2025

Stoneham savored its new turf, Mansfield showcased athleticism, Brockton and Bridgewater-Raynham continue to build, and D1 heavyweights St. John's Prep and Xaverian flexed their muscles to kick off workouts.

08/15/2025

The 2025 MIAA high school football season kicks off Friday with the first of 14 preseason practices (conditioning only on Days 1 and 2). The first regular season games are scheduled for Sept. 4-5.

Get primed for the season with the top storylines across the football landscape: https://www.bostonglobe.com/2025/08/14/sports/ma-high-school-football-preview-2025/

✏ Nate Weitzer/Globe correspondent
📷Mark Stockwell/For the Globe

08/15/2025

The Catholic Conference grabs the top three spots in the Globe’s first Top 20 football poll of the 2025 season, with defending Division 2 champion Catholic Memorial sitting atop the fray, followed by two-time defending D1 champion Xaverian.

Central Catholic brings back a ton of experience after a down year and Bishop Feehan is another program loaded with returners. Needham debuts at No. 10 after graduating the bulk of the senior class that carried the program to the D1 Super Bowl.

Scituate returns key players from an undefeated D4 Super Bowl squad and Shawsheen looks to keep rolling after going undefeated for the D5 state title. Barnstable is coming off a strong series of performances this summer and Milton is primed to bounce back after a down year.

08/15/2025

The 2025 MIAA high school football season kicks off Friday with the first of 14 preseason practices (conditioning only on Days 1 and 2). The first regular season games are scheduled for Sept. 4-5.

Get primed for the season with the top storylines across the football landscape:

A batch of star quarterbacks are poised to electrifyu the 2025 season, starting with St. John's Prep sophomore Chris Vargas and Archbishop Williams freshman Hudson Garrity.

08/08/2025

Braintree walked off Bedford (N.H.), 3-2, in extra innings Thursday to win the New England regional tournament in Bristol, Conn., and punch its ticket to the Little League World Series for the first time in town history.

“I honestly can’t believe it, I don’t know how to explain it,” assistant coach PJ Kippenhan said. “It’s hard to describe . . . just so happy.”

Braintree punched its ticket to Williamsport, Pa., behind a brilliant six-inning relief appearance from Colman Gouthro and heads-up baserunning from Frank Fasoli, who scored the winning run in the bottom of the eighth.

08/04/2025

As Elyse MacDonough masterfully buried a barrage of jump shots during the A Shot For Life Challenge on Saturday, the expression on her face never wavered.

She stared intently at the rim, caught the pass from her father John, set her feet, and fired away on repeat. Eventually, when a spectacular streak of consecutive makes reached 24, John smiled ever so slightly as he passed the ball to his daughter.

When the next shot rimmed out, MacDonough briefly grinned herself, then quickly regrouped and began her next avalanche of buckets.

“Mentally, it’s very challenging to keep going for two hours straight,” MacDonough said. “All I kept saying to myself was, ‘Positive mind-set, you got this, be confident.’ I just kept my shot going.”

Continue reading Trevor Hass's story: https://www.bostonglobe.com/2025/08/02/sports/shot-for-life-challenge-cancer/

📷Trevor Hass/Globe correspondent

08/04/2025

Midway through the third quarter of Boston vs. Cancer’s matchup with The Ville, a team of former Louisville stars, in the million-dollar The Basketball Tournament, Mike “Speedy” Rodriguez stepped to the line for two free throws.

He swished the first, then turned to a teammate and grinned from ear to ear. Rodriguez wiped his hands on his shorts, took three dribbles, and drained the second.

For Rodriguez, TBT was a chance to prove he still has what it takes to compete at the professional level. It would be easy, in his situation, battling stage 4 colon cancer, to accept that his time on the court had come to an end.

Rodriguez, who grew up in Boston and played at West Roxbury High, will never reach that point. The 5-foot-10-inch guard — scrappy, relentless, and unflappable by nature — uses setbacks and lowered expectations as fuel.

Continue reading Trevor Hass's story: https://www.bostonglobe.com/2025/08/02/sports/mike-rodriguez-the-basketball-tournament/

📷Courtesy Mike Rodriguez