First-year EHS baseball coach Malik Love foresees better days ahead after finishing up 2024 with much success

Senior captain Alex Lara chosen Everett’s lone GBL all-star representative; Tide also earns league sportsmanship award

By Joe McConnell

Everett High School baseball head coach Malik Love recently wrapped up his first year in charge of the program. The Crimson Tide started slowly, but as the season went on, they started to come together to secure a 7-13 record, including winning their last three games to end the season with success. They hope it’s just the beginning for a much better 2025 campaign.

“It was a phenomenal way to end the season after battling so much adversity early on as a team trying to get used to a new coaching staff,” said Love. “Hopefully, after winning our last three games, we can carry over that momentum into next year.”

But before Love flips the calendar to 2025, he still had some unfinished business to complete on this year’s club.

Senior captain Alex Lara was the team’s lone Greater Boston League (GBL) all-star representative. Love said of Lara: “(he) showed a tremendous amount of leadership, especially during the off season, when he taught younger players the fundamentals of the game. During the season, he didn’t allow our record to affect him. He still showed up for every practice and game, always leading by example, and hopefully that will rub off on the players coming back next year.

“After his walk-off single to left against Greater Lawrence on Senior Day, he showed a lot of emotion, because he realized that his high school career was coming to an end, and baseball was the only sport he played at the high school. He showed his teammates that it’s OK to play with emotion in a positive way,” added Love.

The Greater Boston League (GBL) coaches also awarded the Tide with the team sportsmanship award. “They knew we were in a lot of close games, and that our players brought energy and enthusiasm to remain competitive in them,” said Love.

Lara was also recognized by Love during the team’s breakup banquet at Anthony’s in Malden, along with his senior classmates and teammates Justin Longmore and Rico Vega. They each received trophies as a show of appreciation for their efforts in the program throughout their scholastic careers.

This year’s roster was made up of primarily sophomores and juniors, and that makes Love optimistic for next season. “The returning players already know our expectations as a coaching staff,” said Love, “and with that said we can get down to business right away.”

His first order of business is to find a way to keep prospective baseball players in the Everett school system. “When I was the program’s JV coach last year, I know I lost four eighth graders that were on my roster to area private schools,” Love said. “This year’s eighth grade baseball players have to realize that they will reap the rewards if we can keep more of the city’s athletic talent like themselves around during their high school years.”

Love promises that he and his staff will continue to teach the fundamentals of baseball to go along with showing the players the proper amount of discipline and teamwork. His ultimate goal is to get them ready to play college baseball.

Love is also an assistant varsity football coach at the school. He works with the wide receivers, tight ends and running backs for coach Justin Flores’ squad. His commitment to the Everett High School athlete does not end at the conclusion of the spring season. He runs One Love Performance, a camp for all Everett football and baseball players from the youth sports level to high school. Parents may reach out to him on his One Love Performance Instagram account for more information.

Love simply wants to see his Tide baseball program return to glory, showing that winning consistency just like its football counterpart. “I expect to not just get into the states next year, but to win a few postseason games, as well,” said Love.

If hard work means anything, that will certainly be the case sooner rather than later.

Tide GBL spring all-stars for 2024

As the spring season concludes, here are the Everett GBL all-stars in all sports: Girls lacrosse: Amanda Verteiro and Victoria Rodrigues; Softball: Emilia Maria Babcock, Bryanna Mason, Peyton Warren, Emma Longmore and Gianna Masucci was chosen league MVP; Baseball: Alex Lara; Girls tennis: Yasmine Laabadla and Tracy Pham; Boys tennis: Bryant Jimenez; Boys volleyball: Henrique Franca and Kalleb Miranda; Crew: Gurkiran Kaur; Boys track: Kayshaun Eveillard and Shane MacKenzie; Girls track: Darrynn Desrameaux, Kaesta Sandy, Layla Bentancur-Cardona and Darrynn Desrameaux was the GBL’s Field Athlete of the Year.