Sports in a Minute: Salem's Sibanda picks Mississippi Valley State – Eagle-Tribune
Sibanda to MISSISSIPPI
Eagle-Tribune All-Star running back Charles Sibanda of Salem will be playing his college football at Division 1-AA Mississippi Valley State, he confirmed on Friday.
Mississippi Valley State is most notable as the school where NFL Hall of Famer Jerry Rice played his college football.
“I have always wanted to play football down south and I wanted to look at MVSU because Jerry Rice played there,” said Sibanda, whose mother is a native of Mississippi. “I talked to the coaches, visited the school and loved it.”
Sibanda rushed for 1,128 yards and scored 16 TDs last fall, his lone season as the team’s primary ballcarrier.
Local duo drafted
Central Catholic freshman Sean Brown and Matt Quercia of Andover were selected in Tier 2 of the United States Hockey League draft.
Quercia, who recently committed to play hockey at Boston University, was selected in the third round by the Sioux Falls Stampede. The forward led Andover High in scoring in 2014 (11 goals) before moving on to play for the New Hampshire U16 Monarchs of the EJEPL.
Brown was picked in the 19th round of the draft by the Bloomington Thunder. The Seabrook resident finished second on the Raiders with 13 goals this winter, trailing just Eagle-Tribune MVP Jake Wise. Brown’s breakthrough moment was his game-winning shootout goal in Central’s Super 8 play-in round victory over Reading. He added two goals in the Super 8 series against BC High.
The two join Haverhill’s Jordan Harris, who was chosen in Tier 1 of the USHL draft.
BAWMANN’S NEW JOB
Tim Bawmann, who stepped down as Lowell Spinners president and general manager in April after 12 seasons, has been hired as president of the Fort Wayne Mad Ants, the NBA Developmental League affiliate of the Indiana Pacers.
Bawmann, 50, spent 30 years in professional baseball, including stints with the Houston Astros and Montreal Expos organizations.
Web Gem
Whether you are a fan of lacrosse or not, the goal scored by Brodie Merrill of the Boston Cannons last week was flat-out awesome. With 3.3 second left and the Cannons trailing by two, Merrill fired a the game-tying shot in from a whopping 80 yards out.
You can see the video by searching “Brodie Merrill Hail Mary” on YouTube.
Lyons’ share
The Red Sox made a bold move limiting long-time analyst Jerry Remy to almost exclusively home games, while using Hall of Famer Dennis Eckersley and former utility man Steve Lyons on the road.
While Eckersley is a solid commentator, I reach for the mute button anytime Lyons is on the air. He rarely shares any insight, isn’t especially entertaining and has no true connection to the Red Sox fanbase,
Once again, the perfect replacement for Remy is there: the always hilarious Pedro Martinez!
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Reach sportswriter/videographer David Willis on Twitter at @DWillisET
