If Bobby Tarr's collegiate football career is over, he will be able to say he went out on top.
The Byfield native may have played his final game for Bentley University Nov. 5 when he led his team to a 42-26 victory over Assumption College.
Tarr had his fifth 100-yard rushing game of the season, giving him a total of 860 rushing yards and five touchdowns on the season. Bentley finished 6-4.
Tarr has another year of eligibility, as he was a medical redshirt as a freshman after he was diagnosed with myocarditis, an inflammation of the heart muscle due to infection. Tarr is unsure of whether he'll return for a fifth year.
If Tarr does leave the school following his graduation in the spring, his collegiate career will have ended in a similar fashion to his high school career. Tarr was third in the Northeast-10 Conference in rushing and was a selection to the Weekly Honor Roll following his last game.
As a high-school player at Bishop Fenwick, Tarr set all-time North Shore records for rushing yards (5,598), carries (593) and touchdowns (69). As a senior, he rushed for 2,544 yards and 31 touchdowns.
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The highlight of Newburyport High alumnus Joe Clancy's season came at Tarr's expense.
Clancy, a 2009 Newburyport High alumnus, was a part-time quarterback at Merrimack College this fall. He led the Warriors to a comeback 33-29 victory over Bentley on Oct. 8. Clancy completed 10 of 17 passes for 159 yards and two touchdowns, including the game-winner on the first play of the fourth quarter.
That was Clancy's final extended opportunity of the season, as he attempted only 16 passes over the team's final five games. Senior quarterback James Suozzo got much of the work at quarterback for Merrimack down the stretch. Merrimack finished 6-4, but lost three of its final five games.
Following Merrimack's comeback victory over Bentley, Warriors coach John Perry had this to say about his quarterback situation.
"It's a great 1-2 punch for us," said Perry. "We wanted to emphasize the things that Joe does well. Bentley is great in coverage and Joe is good at spotting up those throws. There is no question that (Suozzo) is one of the best quarterbacks in our league and I think that Joe, given the opportunity, will prove he's one of the best.
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Newburyport's Jillian Kinter saw her soccer season at Colgate University come to a disappointing end in the semifinal round of the Patriot League Tournament.
The Raiders (11-6-2) fell to Army 2-0 at home. Colgate won the Patriot League regular-season title and was vying for its second NCAA Tournament appearance in the last three seasons. However, only the Patriot League Tournament champion advances to NCAAs.
Kinter, a two-time state champion soccer player at Newburyport in 2007 and 2008, was the Patriot League Offensive Player of the Year. The junior completed the season with eight goals and seven assists. She led the conference in shots (55), points and assists.
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Merrimac's Maddy Bissaillon, a senior midfielder on the UMass Lowell soccer team, was a Northeast-10 Conference First Team selection for the second time in her career. Bissaillon was also a Northeast-10 All Rookie Team selection as a freshman.
Bissaillon was also named to the Capital One Academic All-District 1 Team selection, voted upon by the College Sports Information Directors of America.
UMass Lowell fell to Southern New Hampshire in the NE-10 Tournament quarterfinal. Bissaillon had two goals and six assists on the season.
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Triton Regional High alumna Keely Maguire appears to have overcome leg injuries that plagued her freshman and sophomore cross-country seasons at the University of New Hampshire. Maguire, a junior, placed 24th overall at the 36-team NCAA Division 1 Northeast Regional Saturday at the University at Buffalo. Maguire was the top finisher for the Wildcats, who placed 12th as a team.
Maguire finished the 6K course in a time of 21:27. That result came two weeks after Maguire placed fourth at America East Championships, completing a 5K course in 17:03.
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Newburyport High alumna Lindsay Cullen, a junior at Bates College, placed 45th overall at the NCAA Division 3 New England Regional Cross Country Championship earlier this month. She missed All-New England distinction by 10 spots. She was second among Bate College runners.
Cullen also placed 31st overall (23:57 for 6K) at the New England Small Colleges Athletic Conference Championship and seventh overall (19:22 for 5K) at the Maine Intercollegiate Championships.
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Newburyport High alumnus Jon Wright, a freshman wide receiver at the Massachusetts Maritime Academy, caught a pair of touchdowns in the team's 38-35 loss to Bridgewater State in the Cranberry Bowl, which was the season finale for both teams. Wright finished fourth on the team in receiving yards and touchdowns (3). Mass. Maritime finished 5-4, the team's first winning season since 2000.
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Triton Regional High alumnus Andrew McManus is the starting center for a Western New England football team that will play Salisbury University in the NCAA Division 3 playoffs tomorrow. Western New England (10-1) won the New England Football Conference title with a 20-13 victory over Framingham State last weekend.
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