2018 Fall Tournament Roundup

Girls Cross Country
Rocky Hill’s Elizabeth Stockman defended her Class M championship, running an 18:45 to win her second consecutive state title. Senior Lilah Devine finished 12th at the event, with a time of 20:55, as the Terriers finished fifth overall as a team. The following week, Stockman placed sixth at the State Open at Wickham Park in Manchester.

Middletown’s Ariana Monarca finished ninth at the Class L championship, running a 20:09. Samantha Gorski of Newington and Meghan Gregorski of Wethersfield ran team-best times at the same event.

Emma Drzewiecki ran a team-best (22:25) for Cromwell at the Class SS championships.

Boys Cross Country   
Newington’s Samuel Geisler (16:33), Aiden Toth (16:52), and freshman Michael Bohlke (16:57) placed sixth, 13th, and 16th to help the Indians finish third overall as a team at the Class L championships.  

At the same event, Middletown’s Matthew Lecky placed ninth with a time of 16:44.

Mark Rodriguez placed fifth as an individual and his Cromwell team also placed fifth overall as a team at the Class SS finals.

Rocky Hill’s Ethan Arcata ran a 16:33 to place sixth, helping the Terriers finish seventh overall at the Class M championships.

Owen Gagne ran a team-best time for Wethersfield at the Class MM finals.

Field Hockey
Wethersfield was defeated by Sacred Heart Academy, 3-0, in the opening round of the Class M tournament. The loss ended a succsessful season for the Eagles, who won nine games and will have nearly their entire roster coming back next fall with the exception of two seniors; goalie/captain Anna Kallajian and Afton Dyjak.

Boys Soccer
Wethersfield advanced all the way to the semifinal round in Class L before falling to Daniel Hand, 3-2, in double overtime. Seniors Mike Manousos and Brendon Mansaku scored in the season-ending defeat at Naugatuck High School. The Eagles had defeated Fitch 4-1 in the opening round and then upended both Hartford Public and Weston by the same 3-0 score to reach the semifinals.

Middletown pulled off a shocker in the first round of Class L, defeating East Lyme 3-2. The Blue Dragons were the last team to qualify for the tourney, entering as the #27-seed, but upset the 12-win Vikings behind a pair of goals from Gael Badibanga and another from Joao Oliveira. Middletown fell in the second round to Bristol Central, 2-0, which was the final game for four seniors; Badibanga, Connor Vogel, Javier Prince, and Jacob Shettleworth.

Cromwell made a quarterfinals run in the Class S tourney. In the first round, JJ Tracy tallied a hat trick in the first half in a 5-1 triumph of Thomaston and then the Panthers knocked off top-seed Lyman Memorial 2-1 behind a pair of goals from Nate Sousa. Their run came to an end in in the quarters, losing at Notre Dame-Fairfield 3-0.

Newington won seven regular season games, but lost to Glastonbury (2-0) in the first round of Class LL. It was the final game for several seniors, including leading goal-scorer Hermish Adarkwah and goalie Jack DeGirolamo.

Rocky Hill finished with a losing record in the regular season but took 13-win Lewis Mills to the limit, before losing 1-0 in the opening round of Class M. It was the final game for nine Terrier seniors.

Girls Soccer
Wethersfield earned a first-round bye, thanks to a 12-4 regular season, and then blanked Barlow 3-0 in the second round of the Class L tournament. In the tourney win, Katherine Neilan, Alexis Syzmecki and Olivia Destefani scored and goalkeeper Megan Keleher registered her 13th shutout of the season. The team fell to Tolland, 1-0, in the quarterfinals round.

Newington defeated Guilford 3-1 to win their Class L first round match. Olivia Mullings, Riley Jackson, and Abby Molloy scored in the tourney victory. The Indians nearly upset Masuk in the second round, but lost a 4-3 heartbreaker in overtime.

Cromwell was upset by Old Lyme, 2-1, in the second round of the Class S tourney. The Panthers earned a first-round bye in the tournament, following a 12-2-2 regular season, but Eliza Weston was the only Cromwell that scored in the second round home loss.

Rocky Hill fell to Nonnewaug, 3-1, in the first round of Class M. It was the final game for a great senior class, featuring Annie White, Emma Molloy, Gianna DiMatteo, Isabella Calafiore, Karalina Valente, and Daniella Castanho.

Girls Swimming & Diving
Abigail Francis dominated at the Class L finals, winning state titles in the 100 Breaststroke and the 200 IM by nearly two seconds. Francis also teamed with Alanna DePinto, Olivia Thompson, and Alyssa Pearce to win the 200 Freestyle Relay. Thompson and fellow sophomore Julia Pitchell each had fifth-place finishes in the 50 Freestyle and 100 Backstroke, respectively. The pair of sophomore also teamed with Francis and DePinto for second place in the 200 Medley Relay. The Eagles finished fifth overall as a team at the Class finals and ninth overall at the State Open. Francis finished second (200 IM) and fourth (100 Breaststroke), and the 200 Freestyle Relay finished third at the open.

At the Class L finals, Newington’s Amber Rocheleau took home third place in the 100 Butterfly and fifth at the 200 Freestyle.

Jessica Saucier of Rocky Hill and Rachel McAdams of Cromwell completed admirably at the Class S finals.

Girls Volleyball
Cromwell finished the regular season 10-9 before losing in three sets to Lyman Memorial in the first round of Class S. The loss was the final game for the Panthers only senior, Aijah Caccio, who was a captain and finished second on the team in kills. Junior Sadie Budzik earned All-State after leading the team in kills, aces, and digs this fall.

Rocky Hill fell in three sets at Granby in the first round of Class M. It was the final game for a trio of seniors, including Julia O’Connor who led the team in kills, aces, and blocks. Setter Amanda Schuman and libero Isabelle Miazga were the other two seniors.

Newington earned a home Class L tournament match, following a 14-win regular season, but the Indians were upset in the opening round by Fitch in three sets. The loss was the finale for four seniors; Azya Bass, Alaysiah Hall, Olivia St. Remy, and Rashelle Mezquia.

Zachary Cyr, with his brother Carter Cyr to his left, signed his letter of intent to play college lacrosse at Division II, Franklin Pierce, last Friday at Cromwell High School. Cyr is the first Panthers lacrosse athlete to receive scholarship money.