During the Central Mass High School Sports Awards ceremony at the Hanover Theatre on June 26, Mike Ross of West Boylston and Jensen Shipp of Sutton High School were awarded Coach of the Year honors for boys and girls teams, respectively. Ross has a proven track record of success in coaching football teams to victory, leading West Boylston to their second consecutive Super Bowl championship with a solid strategy and resilient players. The Lions finished their season with a perfect 13-0 record and secured the Division 8 state title by defeating Carver at Gillette Stadium. Ross has an impressive history of winning Super Bowl titles at various schools, including North High, Grafton High, and now West Boylston.
On the other hand, Shipp’s leadership was instrumental in guiding Sutton to its third consecutive state girls soccer championship. The Suzies claimed victory over top-seeded South Hadley with a score of 2-1 in the Division 4 state final. With a final record of 17-4-2, Sutton has now won a total of 11 state championships in school history. Under Shipp’s guidance, the team also secured Division 5 championships in 2021 and 2022, establishing Sutton as a perennial powerhouse in girls soccer in the state.