Every year, there are a great deal of talented athletes who come through the Patriot League both in the Keenan Division and Fisher Division to compete against teams throughout the South Shore and beyond.

The athletes are also recognized year after year for what they have achieved on the playing surface and earlier this month, the Patriot League awards were announced for a few different sports. With this in mind, here is a look at which Silver Lake athletes were recognized.

Soccer

Forward Patrick McMahon took home the highest honor possible in boys’ soccer: Patriot League MVP. Needless to say, he was also a league All-Star and the same could be said for many of his teammates including Justin Keating, Colin Canniff, James Gallagher, Alex Loyd and Cole Whidden. While six winners for one team may seem like a lot, it should come as no surprise that the Lakers had so many league All-Stars this year. After all, they went undefeated during the regular season (17-0-1) and won the Patriot League championship.

On the girls side, there were three more All-Star selections. Calliste Brookshire, Izzy Ruprecht and Hannah Vogt were all recipients of the honor. Plus, Ari Damery earned the team’s sportsmanship award while Ellie Swanson was their scholar-athlete.

Cross Country

On the boys side, Ryan McCarthy and Chris Tilton earned the nod as Patriot League Keenan Division All-Stars for Silver Lake. While the girls did not have any All-Stars after going 0-4 in league play, Ally Tonsberg, the Lakers top runner, did receive the team’s sportsmanship award and was also named their scholar-athlete. 

Field Hockey

The Lakers had one player selected as a Patriot League All-Star: senior midfielder Colleen Foley.

Football, Boys Golf and Volleyball

As of Wednesday morning the football, volleyball and boys’ golf Patriot League All-Star recipients had not been revealed, but they are expected to be announced later this month.

Albeit they did not make it to the MIAA tournament this season, the Silver Lake football team continues to compete hard–and their offense shined last week.

While the Lakers were unable to come out on top in their Thursday, Nov. 1 bout against the Rockland Bulldogs, they scored three touchdowns in the 42-21 bout; it was their third-highest point total of the season and the most they had scored in a game in which they did not come out on top. With the loss, the Lakers fell to 2-7 on the season.

From an offensive standpoint, quarterback Ben Lofstrom helped propel the team’s attack, among others including Michael Cambria, who had a pair of touchdowns (one rushing and one receiving) in the team’s 27-9 win over Norwood one week prior.

The Lakers next bout is this Friday, Nov. 9 against a Patriot League opponent. They are set to host the Hanover Indians in a game that will start at 6 p.m., according to MaxPreps. It is their second to last game of the season as they will have a bye week next week, giving them more time to prepare for their Thanksgiving Day (November 22) bout against the Pembroke Titans.

The Lakers will be at home on Turkey Day this season and both of those games present the team with the opportunity to earn their first Patriot League win of the season; so far, they are 0-5 in league action this year. The two opponents left on the Lakers schedule are in the Fisher Division while Silver Lake is in the Keenan Division and Hanover is 5-4 this season while Pembroke is 1-8 on the year. Offensively, Pembroke has struggled mightily this season, averaging just six points per game while allowing more than 30 in those same contests.

The Second Senate District for Plymouth and Bristol features incumbent Democratic State Sen. Michael Brady facing off against Republican candidate Scott Hall.

Brady is currently seeking re-election for his third term for the district, which represents Plympton, Halifax, Hanson, Whitman, Brockton, and parts of East Bridgewater and Easton. Prior to becoming a senator, he served four terms as State Representative in the Ninth Plymouth District.

As chairman of the Senate Committee on Revenue where he has worked to provide funding for the district for education, public safety, infrastructure, seniors and veterans, according to a statement from Brady’s campaign.

Some funding the campaign highlighted included:

•$1,000,000 for expanded handicapped accessibility and building code improvements at Halifax Council on Aging and $50,000 for design of a new building and parking.

•$500,000 to build four monitoring stations to monitor cyanobacteria levels in Monponsett Pond.

•$500,000 to design and construct a pump house system for distributing aluminum sulfate in Monponsett Pond.

•$320,000 for new field lighting at Silver Lake Regional High School.

•$170,000 for Central Plymouth County Water District Advisory Committee for water quality monitor program.

A statement from Brady’s campaign said, “Senator Brady will continue to support and fund and protecting public education, incentives for renewable energy resources, opioid abuse prevention, helping veterans, the elderly, and increasing economic development.  He says that constituent services have always been his top priority and will continue to do so if re-elected.”

Challenger Scott Hall has kept a relatively low profile this election season, not using a Facebook page, or social media to promote his campaign. His website focuses on cutting costs in public safety and schools by investing in more software that can automate and integrate certain departmental tasks.

“Harnessing the power of predictive analytics and other business intelligence solutions would be most effective towards becoming more proactive and less reactive,” his campaign website said. “We can reduce operational costs by millions of dollars within a few years that may also lead to the generation of new revenue streams and additional employment opportunities for the people of the Second Plymouth and Bristol District.”

Despite the low profile, Hall had a strong showing in Plympton’s primary, garnering 222 votes compared to Brady’s 155. Both candidates ran unopposed. In Halifax, Hall had 534 primary votes compared Brady’s 410 votes.

It’s worth noting voter turnout tends to be much lower in primaries compared to general elections.

HALIFAX – Halifax Selectmen held a brief meeting Tuesday, Oct. 23, where they chose a police chief (see accompanying story), heard about challenges to the local and worldwide recycling industry and held a dog hearing.

Recycling Concerns

Sue Johnston, the town’s recycling coordinator and Todd Koep, of the MassDEP, appeared before the board. According to both Town Administrator Charlie Seelig, and Koep, China has been the processor of about 40 percent of the recycled materials for the world for many years now.

About 12 years ago, according to Koep, the entire world was put on notice by China to clean up their recycling. Too many contaminants were making it through in bundles of recyclables. “It’s not that the Chinese aren’t accepting materials, it’s that they’re not accepting contaminated materials.”

In fact, he says, inspectors from China now inspect all loads here in the U.S. before they are shipped to China, rejecting contaminated loads.

In order to prevent this contamination, materials are being run through MRFs (or Material Recovery Facilities) such as the one in Avon that Halifax uses for its recycling program more than one time (sometimes two or three times), to reach the target of only 0.5 percent contamination.

“Halifax has one of the cleanest streams around,” said Koep. “But, most towns are running 20-40 percent contamination,” he added.

Costs are increasing in the short term, and are up to $72.50 per ton, said Johnston.

When the board asked what to do about the problem, Johnston said she simply didn’t know. “Raise the recycling fee?” she asked, tentatively.

Selectman Troy Garron noted that citizens have to dispose of their trash and recyclables properly.

Selectmen Chairman Kim Roy thanked both Johnston and Koep for the history and their time.

Dog Hearing

A dog hearing was held in the case of a 1-year-old Halifax puppy, owned by Erika Azuma, of Lake Street.  The puppy jumped up on a Quincy woman after she attempted to pet him. Noreen Callahan, the Halifax Animal Control Officer, described the incident.

While the owner’s boyfriend was walking the puppy, a Quincy woman and her Halifax date were walking as well. The woman had her sunglasses knocked off when the puppy, apparently excited, jumped up at her while she attempted to pet him. Callahan noted no reports of a bite, injuries or a hospital visit.

The parties went their separate ways, said Azuma, until the Halifax date called the Town Clerk’s office, not wanting to file a complaint, but wanting “owner information” and threatening to sue, according to Callahan, who said he had left two “long-winded” messages.

Callahan, a warm but stern character, was unusually sympathetic to the owner and the puppy. Although she said the dog had “lunged at the victim,” she also noted that “puppies jump.”

“He’s a big puppy,” said Azuma, a veterinary technician, who attended the hearing with her mother. “And sometimes puppies are going to jump,” she added.

Roy, who historically has taken dog hearings very seriously, asked if the dog was in any kind of training program.

“Yes, since February,” Azuma replied.

This prompted Roy to make a motion to take no action regarding the incident, although Garron, himself an animal lover, interjected and made a motion that a standard letter reminding the owner to keep all vaccinations up-to-date and to ensure the dog is licensed be sent.

The motion passed unanimously.

Azuma and her mother thanked Callahan for her help and thanked the board for their decision.

In other BOS news:
• HOPS received permission to raze the playground at the Halifax Elementary School in mid-November so that they can get a head start on building the new playground when the winter is over. They are still short some money, said Jonathan Selig, of HOPS, and any donations are appreciated.

• Evergreen Beverage, doing business as Twin Lakes Liquors, has had their liquor license revocation hearing continued. They are behind on a tax payment plan, and are being given the chance to catch up by the board.

• The board will next meet Monday, Nov. 5, at 9 a.m. (Note the unusual time and date due to scheduling conflicts.)

The Silver Lake High football team continued its Patriot League play last Friday night at home and ran into yet another tough foe.

The Lakers hosted the Whitman-Hanson Panthers and while the game was competitive for the majority of it, Silver Lake was not able to get enough big plays to overcome a now-healthy Panthers squad. The Lakers fell 29-6 in the game and to 1-5 on the season.

At first, it looked like Whitman-Hanson could run away with the game. They scored a pair of touchdowns and hit their extra points just three minutes into the game, making it a 14-0 contest before the Lakers had a full offensive drive. However, the Lakers would fight back with a big play of their own later in the quarter.

Sean Waters reeled in a 71-yard touchdown pass from Ben Lofstrom with 2:53 remaining in the first quarter, making it a 14-6 game. The Lakers played stout defense for the rest of the first half, so this would also end up being the score headed into halftime.

Neither side got much going offensively in the third quarter either, but Whitman-Hanson pounded their way downfield and took a two-touchdown lead with 7:29 left in the game with a short touchdown run and successful two-point conversion.

About a minute later, the Lakers threw an interception which set the Panthers up for a 76-yard touchdown run with 5:23 left in the contest to go up 29-6.

Ultimately, that would end up being the final score because when Whitman-Hanson got to the Lakers 4-yard line with under two minutes remaining in the game, they knelt to run out the clock.

The Lakers next bout is this Friday, Oct. 19 (7:00 p.m.) on the road against the Duxbury Dragons, who are 6-0 so far this season.

The Silver Lake High football team went up against one of the top teams in the Patriot League and could not get much going against the formidable opponent in their homecoming bout.

The Lakers hosted the Hingham Harbormen on Saturday, Sept. 29, after playing on the road for the past few weeks. Ultimately, home field advantage did not help the Lakers as they fell 46-6, 1-3 on the season.

On the opening drive, the Lakers did make a great defensive stop on Hingham. Matt Gabra intercepted a pass at the Lakers’ own 4-yard line, giving his team some momentum. However, Hingham managed to force a safety on the Lakers to go up 2-0.

From there, Hingham proved themselves as the more dominant team in the bout. They had no problem moving the ball downfield, forced a Lakers interception and blocked a punt as they put up 24 unanswered points. In that span where the Lakers could not get much going offensively, punter Owen Thompson had a 54-yard boot that pinned Hingham at their own 10-yard line midway through the second quarter.

The Lakers lone touchdown of the game came with 3:11 in the first half. Quarterback Ben Lofstrom tossed a jump ball to wideout Bobby Ohlson who snagged it for a 31-yard touchdown grab. The team’s two-point conversion attempt was unsuccessful, so the Lakers trailed 24-6.

At halftime, the Lakers were down 32-6. The Lakers were unable to make a big second half comeback. They threw a pick six in their own red zone in the third quarter which put Hingham up 40-6 with a successful two point conversion.

This week, the Lakers will be challenged yet again. They will host the Plymouth North Eagles, who are 3-1 on the season, on Friday, Oct. 5 (7:00 p.m. start time).

PLYMPTON– Plympton Selectmen heard some good news about the Dennett Elementary School Monday night, such as the long-awaited water filter coming online, and a new generator being installed, reimbursed by Town Meeting.

But the theme of the presentation to the board by Jon Wilhelmsen, Chairman of the Plympton School Committee and Joy Blackwood, Superintendent of the Silver Lake Regional School District, was that of a leaky roof.

The elementary school needs a new roof, and, “It’s not in great shape and it’s not going to be cheap,” said Wilhelmsen.

Blackwood said the roof was leaking in many places, and therefore insulation was wet underneath.

“It’s just a mess,” she said.

The two stated that the leaky roof is leading to inefficient air circulation in the building all year-round, causing classrooms to be too hot or too cold. Blackwood also mentioned that she believed this in turn leads to what she sees as high electricity costs at the Dennett.

A Massachusetts School Building Authority grant may be able to pay for somewhere in the range of 40-50% of the project, which Selectmen seemed to reticently accept.

Blackwood, as Superintendent, must apply for the grant and then Plympton assumes responsibility for the project. She noted that the due date for the grant, mid-February of next year, comes at a bad time for her.

“It is an astounding amount of work,” she said of the MSBA grant. “It is an onerous project.”

No work will begin on the project until summer of 2020 at the earliest, if the grant application is accepted. An STM approving the funds for whatever portion is not covered by the grant, must be held before then as well, said Blackwood.

Selectmen Chairman John Traynor asked if there would be patching in the meantime, to which Wilhelmsen said, “Yes, we’ll have to.”

Selectman Mark Russo asked if there was any sense of what would happen to the roof if the project was delayed, and Blackwood responded that water problems tend to get worse with time. Grants also come and go, and costs can go up, they said.

“We don’t want to use the ‘m’-word.” Blackwood said, referring to mold.

All agreed that the Dennett roof must be replaced sooner rather than later.

Old Town House

After putting new windows and painting out to bid, contracts were awarded by the selectmen on the recommendation of Town Administrator Elizabeth Dennehy. MJ Connors Company Inc., of Hanson, won the bid for the new windows for $46,964, after the lowest bidder, Aden Construction Company, Inc., of Dudley, which bid $34,900, withdrew. The painting project was awarded to the lowest bidder, DeMelo Construction Services Corp., of Whitman, for $19,435.

Last week, Dennehy said that the bids came in higher than expected.

Traynor wants to change the lettering on some of the signs on and in front of the building. Dennehy recommended getting one of the historical wooden signs from the Massachusetts Historical Society.

Special Town Meeting Debriefing

Selectmen also spoke about the special Town Meeting held the previous Thursday. 193 registered voters were in attendance, which Russo said was, “pretty amazing.”

“That sense of shared purpose, sense of community was really a beautiful thing, kind of in sharp contrast to other issues we’ve had at Town Meeting,” said Russo.

That kind of attendance rivals some annual Town Meetings, pointed out Traynor and all the board agreed.

The board was very pleased with the Town’s approval of the project to acquire the Twin Brooks Preserve.

In other news:

• The board will next meet Oct. 1 at 6 p.m. at Town House.

• Town House will be closed Oct. 8 in observance of Columbus Day.

PLYMOUTH– Documents at Plymouth Superior Court show that allegations against Robert Tinkham, the current Plympton Health Agent, have been amended. The complaint, submitted by counsel for the Carver, Marion, Wareham Regional Refuse Disposal District, details and expands allegations against Tinkham, specifically.

He stands accused of nine civil charges, including Conversion and Civil Theft, Fraud, Civil Conspiracy, as well as violations of the Uniform Procurement Act and the Conflict of Interest Law.

He is accused with two other defendants, Ray Pickles and his wife, Diane Bondi-Pickles. Pickles is the elected Marion town clerk while Bondi-Pickles is a real-estate agent.

The corruption by the defendants has resulted in monetary damages to the waste district in an amount in excess of $838,458.22, according to court records, and the investigation is ongoing by state and local officials.

The Office of the Inspector General is investigating, as well.

Tinkham, of Carver, previously worked as the Carver Health Agent, and, in that capacity, served as Carver’s representative to, and, at times, chairman of the committee overseeing the waste district. Pickles was the Executive Director of the waste district and the authorized signatory of all its accounts.

Committee members did not receive compensation for their services to the district, yet Tinkham received monetary payments from the district for periods of time between 1995 and 2018. He did not have a contract or employment agreement with the district, and no taxes were withheld on the payments, according to the lawsuit.

He stands accused of billing the waste district for landfill inspections while working for the Town of Carver. The Town of Carver job description for the health agent includes inspecting the Carver landfill, according to public records.

In 2007, Carver officials reaffirmed this aspect of Tinkham’s job description, and that he would be “paid for such work by Carver, even if the work occurred outside his normal working hours.”

But, the Carver landfill, leased by the district, is inspected by a professional engineer. Tinkham is not an engineer, according to his résumé, and he kept no records of his inspections for Carver, if they indeed occurred, the lawsuit alleges.

The total amount paid to him for inspections by the district was $88,990.

The plaintiffs submitted 13 representative examples from 2004 and 2005 alone of Tinkham collecting payments from the district while being paid a salary from the Town of Carver.

Tinkham also stands accused of providing no goods or services in connection with money he was paid for the district’s “Grant/Recycling” services, between 2012 and 2018, totaling $88,100.

He allegedly submitted false documentation for payment for that work.

Tinkham finally stands accused of receiving payments not supported by any documentation at all. “In total, there are 82 payments totaling $86,703.82 for which payment was made but the District has no invoice or proof of any services rendered.”

The fraud was discovered when Pickles, in 2017, without the authorization of the committee, sought payment of assessments from the district towns for the first time since 2015.

When Carver and Wareham refused to pay, claiming a lack of documentation, Pickles used district counsel, again without authorization, to sue for breach of contract in Wareham District Court.

That suit was voluntarily dismissed.

The actions by Pickles led to the discovery of inappropriate expenditures by the district. Pickles was terminated Jan. 29, 2018.

The district is seeking triple-damages, interest, costs and attorneys’ fees.

The district was created as a regional refuse disposal district in 1973 by a special act of the General Court. It is an independent body-politic, based in Marion, funded by user-fees, assessments to the member towns and agreements with third-parties.

Pickles and Bondi-Pickles are seeking to go to trial. Tinkham is seeking to have the proceedings dismissed.

Tinkham denies all accusations.