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Massachusetts field hockey team forfeits against opponent with boy player, catches eye of Riley Gaines

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Massachusetts field hockey team forfeits against opponent with boy player, catches eye of Riley Gaines


The Dighton-Rehoboth field hockey team has decided to put the safety of its players ahead of two potential victories this season, forfeiting both of its games against an opponent that includes a male on its roster.

It’s a move that caught the attention of prominent women’s rights advocate, 12-time All-American swimmer Riley Gaines, who encouraged other schools to stand up.

“Safety and fairness should take priority over inclusion,” Gaines said Tuesday in a post on X. “Schools shouldn’t participate in the farce. I know it’s easier said than done, but all schools should follow Dighton-Rehoboth’s example.”

Gaines’ comment came after Dighton-Rehoboth Superintendent Bill Runey informed the media Monday evening that the regional high school’s field hockey team had opted to forgo its game against Somerset Berkley, scheduled for next Tuesday.

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The team also decided to forfeit its second game with Somerset Berkley, scheduled for Oct. 8.

Not all were on board with the development, with a critic saying on social media, “So quitting is encouraged now? sad how far our nation has fallen.”

In a release to the media, Runey cited the district’s “Interscholastic Athletics” policy, which the School Committee passed in June allowing student-athletes to forfeit games against teams with players of the opposite sex.

Coaches won’t be penalized for forfeiting games against such teams.

“Our Field Hockey coaches and captains made this decision, and we notified our opponent accordingly,” Runey stated in a release. “The district supports this decision as there are times where we have to place a higher value on safety than on victory.”

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“We understand this forfeit will impact our chances for a league championship and possibly playoff eligibility,” he added, “but we remain hopeful that other schools consider following suit to achieve safety and promote fair competition for female athletes.”

Matt McKinnon, Dighton-Rehoboth’s athletic director, said the team made the decision “toward the end of the summer,” one that he called a “surprise to Somerset Berkley,” in a statement to The Sun Chronicle.

On Tuesday, Somerset Berkley Superintendent Jeff Schoonover shared this statement: “The Somerset Berkley Regional School District follows all MIAA regulations and school district policies for participation in interscholastic athletics. Somerset Berkley supports the rights of all students to access and participate in athletics for which they are eligible.”

Somerset Berkley has been a field hockey powerhouse over the years, a team that has had boys help lead them to numerous Division 1 state titles.

The Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association has said it won’t intervene in Dighton-Rehoboth’s policy that allows an athlete or coach to opt out of playing against mixed-sex opponents.

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According to the MIAA handbook, males are allowed to participate on female teams in Massachusetts based on the state’s Equal Rights Amendment.

Boys’ field hockey is not offered in Massachusetts, allowing males to play the sport on girls’ teams, per the MIAA rule.

Dighton-Rehoboth, a rural district of roughly 2,500 students in Bristol County, has risen in the national debate of whether males and females should be allowed to intermingle in sports following a scary incident involving its field hockey team last year.

A girl player, in her senior year, had to be rushed to the hospital after suffering significant facial and dental injuries when a Swampscott High School boy player’s shot struck her in the face.

The same player who took the shot, off of a corner, scored both goals in a 2-0 shutout for Swampscott in a tournament contest.

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Swampscott Athletic Director Kelly Wolff called the incident “an unfortunate injury” that came on a “legal play” and the shot “deflected off her teammate’s stick.”

The nature of the play also triggered a debate on MIAA equipment rules– field hockey players are allowed to wear facial protection on offensive corners, but the equipment is not required.

“The Swampscott player who took the shot is a 4-year varsity player and co-captain who, per MIAA rules, has the exact same right to participate as any player on any team,” Wolff said in a statement at the time.

A legal note from the MIAA highlights how “boys have been competing on girls’ teams, and girls have been competing on boys’ teams, for more than 40 years,” based on the Equal Rights Amendment and Title IX.

Runey and a team captain, after the “horror” last November, called on the MIAA to revisit its guidelines. He  also pointed out how the advancement of equipment and training that student-athletes receive today should require officials “to be more thoughtful about all of our rules and policies regarding safety.”

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“Seeing the horror in the eyes of our players and coaches upon greeting their bus last night is evidence to me that there has to be a renewed approach by the MIAA to protect the safety of our athletes,” Runey wrote in a letter to the school community.

The MIAA has said “student safety” is not a “successful defense” in not including males from playing on female teams and vice versa. “The arguments generally fail due to the lack of correlation between injuries and mixed-gender teams,” the association said last year.

The Dighton-Rehoboth varsity field hockey team stands together between quarters during a game against Apponequet. (Photo By Matt Stone/Boston Herald)

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Massachusetts

Mass. House votes to set new rules for DiZoglio’s audit

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Mass. House votes to set new rules for DiZoglio’s audit


Twenty-eight lawmakers dissented Wednesday as the Massachusetts House voted to set new terms around what state Auditor Diana DiZoglio would be able to review in the legislative audit voters authorized her to carry out in 2024.

Almost all House Democrats voted for the measure, which also proposes to make more state government records accessible to the public. Three Democrats — Cambridge Rep. Mike Connolly, Attleboro Rep. Jim Hawkins and Fall River Rep. Alan Silvia — joined the body’s 25 Republicans in voting no.

Speaker Ron Mariano said the bill responds to an ongoing call from voters for more transparency out of Beacon Hill and provides a path forward in lieu of a what he called “politically motivated audit conducted in violation of the Constitution.”

Leaders of the House and Senate have resisted DiZoglio’s audit push, arguing that a probe by the auditor’s office would run afoul of the separation of powers laid out in the state Constitution, bringing the legislative branch under the review of a piece of the executive branch.

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“We are not accountable to any constitutional officer,” said Rep. Mindy Domb, an Amherst Democrat. “We are only accountable to our constituents.”

Taunton Rep. Lisa Field, a Democrat in her first term, said she was among the 72% of Massachusetts voters who backed the audit ballot question in 2024.

“Due to legitimate concerns and questions about constitutional privileges and separation of powers, we have been stuck on this audit issue for more than a year,” Field said. “Let’s not be like Washington, D.C. and accept such gridlock — not about the audit and not about public records. Let’s not let perfect be the enemy of good progress.”

The House’s bill would authorize DiZoglio to review what it defines as the “administrative functions” of the Legislature, going back to the 2021 fiscal year. Those areas include the adoption of annual budgets, official audits of the House and Senate by independent firms, spending by both chambers, and the execution of any financial settlements with lawmakers and employees.

It would also newly apply the state’s public records law to the governor’s office, and create a process by which people could request and receive certain legislative files.

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Massachusetts is currently the only state where the Legislature, governor and judiciary all claim to be exempt from the public records law.

Warren Republican Rep. Todd Smola described the process that led up to Wednesday’s vote as opaque in and of itself. Mariano last week said the House would take up what he called comprehensive transparency legislation, but did not say when or what, specifically, the bill would do.

The bill was circulated to members of the House Ways and Means Committee around 10:30 a.m. Tuesday, and committee members had a little over a half hour to vote on whether to advance it. Smola, the ranking Republican on the committee, said during that 34-minute window, “we had members on both sides of the political aisle that were calling each other back and forth to say, ‘Can you explain this portion to me?’”

“We are so much better than the process that has unfolded,” he said. “And for the sake of people that are asking us for transparency, that is not transparency. That’s the opposite of transparency.”

Rep. Michael Soter, a Bellingham Republican, said he was particularly concerned with a part of the bill that removes the courts from settling disputes between the auditor and the Legislature.

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He said that by setting its own rules around an audit, the House would be “ensuring the auditor can only see exactly what we allow her to see and nothing more.”

It’s not clear yet if the Senate will pass the bill. Last week, state senators voted to turn over a limited set of documents to DiZoglio. The documents the Senate plans to provide mirror the records she would be allowed to review under the House bill.

Asked if he expected the Senate to agree to the legislation, Mariano on Tuesday said only, “I talked to the Senate.”



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French-Mediterranean Eatery Charts Opening In Boston

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French-Mediterranean Eatery Charts Opening In Boston


BOSTON, MA — An international restaurant group with locations across the globe is preparing to open its first Massachusetts restaurant this year.

LPM Restaurant & Bar, a French Riviera-inspired restaurant founded in London, is set to open on the second floor of the Four Seasons Hotel One Dalton Street in Back Bay, according to Four Seasons. The hotel lists the restaurant as “Opening Summer 2026,” while the Boston Business Journal reported the restaurant plans to open in September.

The Boston restaurant will mark LPM’s debut in the Northeast and its third U.S. outpost, following locations in Miami and Las Vegas, according to a Four Seasons announcement.

LPM, also known as La Petite Maison, was founded in London in 2007 and is known for French-Mediterranean food, Mediterranean ingredients and dining rooms influenced by Belle Époque design.

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The business operates locations in London, Dubai, Miami, Abu Dhabi, Hong Kong, Riyadh, Limassol, Doha, Mykonos, Kuwait, Boston, Maldives and Bangkok.

Four Seasons said LPM will take over the space that formerly housed One Dalton’s breakfast concept, One + One. The restaurant will join other dining options at the hotel, including Zuma and Trifecta.

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Massachusetts high school under investigation after teachers diagnosed with breast cancer

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Massachusetts high school under investigation after teachers diagnosed with breast cancer


A Massachusetts high school is under investigation after “several” teachers have been diagnosed with breast cancer or precancerous conditions.

The state Department of Public Health is set to visit Uxbridge High School on Thursday to “conduct a series of air quality tests,” to determine whether the multiple cases are potentially connected.

Superintendent David Ljungberg and Principal Michael Rubin alerted families and district staff on Monday of the “sombering news,” after Uxbridge High School’s graduation over the weekend.

“We are writing to inform you about a concern we are investigating at Uxbridge High School,” Ljungberg and Rubin stated in the letter. “Several female teachers have been diagnosed with breast cancer or precancerous conditions over the past few years.”

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“It is, of course, possible that these multiple cases are not connected to one another,” the leaders added, “but out of abundance of caution, we are looking into any environmental factors at the school that may be a factor in their diagnoses.”

The 123,000-square-foot school, with an enrollment of roughly 600, was constructed in 2012 at a cost of $45 million, including a $22-million state reimbursement.

Uxbridge school leaders say they notified the state Department of Health and local health board as soon as they became aware of the cases, seeking “counsel about how best to proceed.”

“Massachusetts DPH officials have indicated that there is no evidence of immediate danger in the building and no reason to limit access to or use of the facility at this time,” they wrote in their letter. “In fact, the public health officials have commended our decision to approach them with these concerns, our readiness to partner with them in support of the evaluation process.”

Health officials are assessing the school’s interior and exterior to “ensure there are no issues with the infrastructure that would present risks (including electrical, plumbing, mechanical, HVAC, and other systems)” and the indoor and outdoor air quality on campus.

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The superintendent and principal said that state officials have ruled out water supply as a “risk factor” after “thorough testing.”

“The team has reached out to the women who have been diagnosed, requesting data to evaluate whether there may be a connection among their cases,” Ljungberg and Rubin wrote. “We are grateful for their cooperation.”

They added that the state has said discovering an environmental “smoking gun” is “rare” in workplace investigations.

“However, even if a direct causal link is not established,” the leaders wrote, “the administration is utilizing this process to rigorously test the building and guarantee that it meets all safety standards moving forward.”

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