Rocky Hill Kistryn Arcata at the four line Allyson Toulouse has stressed defense since the first day that she took over as the girls’ head basketball coach for the Rocky Hill Terriers. It didn’t take long for her message to be received by her players, who are rewarding the first year head coach with tenacious defensive efforts on a nightly basis. Their latest effort resulted in a season-defining 58-48 victory over the previously undefeated RHAM Sachems at Rocky Hill High School on Friday night. It marked the first time the Terrier girls have beaten the Sachems since joining the Central Connecticut Conference. “I told {the team} how proud I was of their unselfishness on offense, their intensity on defense, and their poise during all four quarters,” Toulouse said following the game, “I felt that Friday night was the best team basketball we have played yet. We are such a defensive minded team, and that showed so much in this game.” RHAM came into the contest with a perfect 10-0 record and were led by 2013 Gatorade Player of the Year, Sarah Veilleux. Veilleux, who has committed to playing collegiately at St. Joseph’s University in Pennsylvania, came in averaging over 35 points per game this season. She finished with 38 points Friday night, but the Rocky Hill defense frustrated her and her Sachems’ teammates with an incredible defensive scheme. Toulouse deployed a full-court trapping-press defense for most of the game, which helped give the home team an early lead, which they never relinquished. The relentless team-defense allowed Rocky Hill to dominate the game’s tempo from start to finish, RHAM’s only lead of the game was 2-0. Rocky Hill senior captain guard Valerie Kobialka’s layup put the Terriers up 4-2 and Toulouse’s girls never looked back from that point on. They closed the first quarter on a 9-0 run, thanks to two mid-range jumpers by Kraymer Bond and the defensive energy of Madison Stabile. Stabile came off the bench and energized the Terriers with her smothering defense and basket-attacking mentality on offense. The sophomore sensation finished the game with a team-high 13 points and added a handful of steals and rebounds. She also single handedly thwarted a Sachems comeback late in the third quarter. Following an 8-2 run by RHAM, the Rocky Hill lead was cut to 38-31 with 2:32 left in the third quarter. Stabile swung the momentum back towards Rocky Hill with back-to-back layups proceeded by a steal on a cross-court pass. She then grabbed an offensive rebound and finished off glass for her sixth straight point. Bond finished the third quarter with a layup of her own, and the 8-0 Terriers’ run gave the home team a comfortable 46-31 lead heading into the final quarter. Kirstyn Arcata was another of Rocky Hill’s deep rotation of girls that had a big night on both ends of the court. The senior sparked the Terriers with nine of her 11 points in the second quarter. She also was assigned the tough task of defending Veilleux for most of the night. Arcata was able to keep Veilleux from getting inside the key and forced her to shoot difficult jump shots. Her defensive endeavor worked and led to several transition points for the Terriers. “As a coach, there is nothing better than having a deep rotation,” Toulouse said about the team’s depth, “We are able to sustain our defensive intensity because of that. {The players} know what it takes to go hard for 32 minutes, and it fuels their emotion and energy for the entire game. You can see if on their faces.” After the monumental win, it is clear that Toulouse’s preseason defensive vision has come to fruition and that the team is playing with continuity. After starting the season 2-4, the Terriers have won six of their last seven games and are hitting their stride at the right time. The tournament is less than a month away and the team is playing with a confidence that is almost tangible inside the gymnasium. “We have to continue to get better every day, and never be satisfied,” Toulouse said about preparing for a tournament run, “The girls are buying into the system, our team philosophy, their trust in each other, and now we are winning because of it.” “We are peaking at the right time, and I am excited for the next month and half of basketball,” Toulouse added, “This victory is a testament to our relentless hard work, our will to win, and desire to be better.” The team will look to keep the momentum going into February when they travel to Hartford for a 7 p.m. tip with E.O. Smith on Thursday. Toulouse and her Terriers will then return home for a pivotal game versus Hartford Public on Monday Feb. 3rd. The conference game will tip at 5:30 p.m. at Rocky Hill High School. High School Girls Basketball Round-Up Cromwell Back to Championship Form Coach Kelly Maher has her Cromwell Panthers playing at championship level, winning eleven straight games since losing the second game of the season. The latest victory was a 53-31 domination of Old Saybrook. Janelle Harrison is making the most of her senior season, averaging a 17 points and nine rebounds per contest, while shooting a team-high 49% from the field. Fellow senior captain Emily Appleby has assisted Harrison, dishing out five dimes a game. Maher said earlier this season that Harrison and Appleby have been mentoring the younger players, prepping them for a tournament run. One of those players is sophomore Mya Villard, who has been tremendous on both ends of the court, scoring 11 points and hauling down 10 rebounds per contest. Cromwell next travels to the shoreline on Thursday for a rematch with Old Saybrook, who they have defeated the last 13 times. Following the game with Old Saybrook, the Panthers will return home with a chance to avenge their only loss of the season on Thursday, Feb 6th when they battle the Morgan Huskies. The winner of the game will have sole possession of first place in the Shoreline Conference. The game with the Huskies is scheduled to tip at 7 p.m. at Cromwell High School. Wethersfield Forced to be Road Warriors The Wethersfield Eagles started the season losing three of the first four games, but since then they have reeled off six wins in their last eight contests. This run has Michelle Libby’s girls are on the cusp of their first tournament berth in four seasons. “The girls have matured tremendously since the first game.” Coach Libby said, “Their ability to make smart decisions on the court is the biggest factor. They are showing they can close out games. They have learned from last season's struggles and experiences and are demonstrating they are stronger and better competitors this season because of it.” The Eagles are in the midst of a brutal five game road trip, which started with a 51-25 loss to Glastonbury last Friday. The good news is that, following the road trip, the team will finish the regular season playing their last three games at home, starting with rival Manchester on Feb 10th for a 7 p.m. tip. Newington ‘s Seniors Leading the Way As seniors, Stasha Greenalch and Kayla Guest have not only accepted the leadership role on for the Newington Indians, but they have also assumed a bulk of the offensive responsibility. The two seniors have kept Newington afloat in the highly competitive Central Connecticut West Conference. Greenalch is averaging 15 points and six steals per game and Guest is adding 13 points and six rebounds per game. Despite a loss to Northwest Catholic last Friday night, Newington is 7-5 and remain in contention for a tournament berth. They are chasing five teams ahead of them in the conference standings. One of those teams is Simsbury, who they edged 30-28 earlier in the season. They have a chance to leapfrog the Trojans in the standings if they can beat them again on Friday, Jan 31. Tipoff is 7p.m. at Newington High School.
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Wethersfield hockey captain Adrian Budas Dennis Tulimieri is in the midst of his 28th season coaching Wethersfield hockey and is hoping his current Eagles’ squad has a surge during the second half of the season, which would allow his seniors to play in the state tournament. The season hadn’t started as planned for Tulimieri’s Eagles, who had lost their first eight games. However, a 5-1 victory over Rocky Hill-RHAM on Saturday may provide the momentum swing that the team desperately needed. Tulimieri has been coaching long enough to know that a team is only as good as their last game, and the Eagles last game was a convincing win over a crosstown conference rival. Before Saturday’s win, the veteran coach said that the team’s mindset for this season hasn’t changed and their goal was still to qualify for the state tournament in March. In order to accomplish their goal, the young Eagles will most likely have to finish the regular season winning nine of their final eleven games. Last season the team struggled early as well, but finished the season with only one loss in their final three games. Despite the slow start, the team has received great leadership and production from their limited senior class. Senior defenseman Kyler Vonick and forward Billy Connor lead the charge and have both been productive offensively, each tallying 5 points. Between the pipes, the team is young, but improving with every game. Juniors Domingo Rodriguez and Tyler Godlewski have each taken turns protecting the net, along with freshman Joe Sitarz. Sitarz has excelled for a freshman and has the makings to be a stud-goaltender for the foreseeable future. The young Eagles have shown marked improvements as the season has progressed, which culminated with Saturday’s win. In their first three games this season, they were limited to three total goals, but over their last three contests they have more than doubled that output, scoring eight goals. The increase in production could be traced back to the team’s philosophy of “sacrificing for your team”, which Tulimieri said the players on the team came up with. The philosophy means that the players are sacrificing individual accomplishments in return for potential team accomplishments. Tulimieri, who has been on the Wethersfield bench since 1986, knows that the team must continue to compete with their preseason philosophy in mind, in order to achieve their goal. It is said that the first win is always the toughest and now the team has that elusive victory. They have a golden opportunity to keep the momentum going with a rematch against Rocky Hill-RHAM, followed by back-to-back home games against Newington-Berlin-Manchester and Guilford. The contest with Rocky Hill-RHAM will take place on Wednesday, Jan 29th at Champions Rink in Cromwell. Face-off for the conference clash is 8:10 p.m. For three quarters, the Wethersfield Eagles controlled the tempo against the visiting Manchester Indians at the Sports and Medicine Science Academy in Hartford. Senior captains Ryan Peterson and Andrew Kelly paced the Eagles offensively and the team’s man-to-man defense hounded Manchester’s offense, which wanted to push the game’s tempo.
However, the fourth quarter was a different story. Manchester changed to a full-court press on defensive, which resulted in a breakneck pace, allowing the Indians to outscore the Eagles 25-11 over the final ten minutes. The result was a 54-49 Manchester victory, which improved the Indians to 4-4 and dropped Wethersfield to the same mark this season. Peterson, whose smooth offensive style allowed him to attack the Manchester zone defense, and Kelly, who flourished on both ends of the court, each scored 13 points for Wethersfield. The duo, along with Pierce Weatherspoon, Jordan Manchester, and Will Delmastro scored all of the Wethersfield’s points and helped give the home team a 38-29 lead after three quarters. Manchester coach, Jon Hussey, decided to deploy a full-court trapping defense to begin the fourth quarter. The plan initially didn’t work, as Wethersfield scored five quick and easy points, forcing the Indians to use a timeout. After the timeout, Manchester came out with a new sense of urgency and scored the game’s next 11 points. Reserve forward Louis Neals ignited the 11-0 spurt, with back-to-back three-point plays, followed by a steal and uncontested layup. Neals’ heroics gave the Indians a 44-43 lead, which was the team’s first lead since it was 7-6 midway through the first quarter. Wethersfield was able to tie the game at 49 when they pressed defensibly, allowing Peterson to step in front on an errant pass before dishing it to Weatherspoon, who finished with a short jumper off the backboard. The hustle play reenergized the home crowd and forced the Indians to use a timeout with less than a minute to play. Coming out the timeout, Hussey designed the perfect play. The play allowed senior guard Donta Alston, who had a game-high 15 points, to leak out to the baseline and drain a contested three with 14.4 second remaining. Wethersfield was unable to tie the game and Manchester’s Rashad Leggett polished off the scoring with a layup to end the game. “I told our players after the game that we did some good things and some bad things.” Wethersfield coach, Brian Fanelli, said, “We let the game get away from us because we didn't take care of the ball.” In three of the Eagles’ four losses they have held a lead in the fourth quarter. Despite the late game mishaps, the team is still on pace to achieve the goals they started the season with. “The team had set goals to win 15 games, make it to the conference tournament and the state tournament, and make a run in the state tournament.” Fanelli added, “All goals are still attainable and possible if we can play a complete game without too many mental and physical mistakes.” The Eagles look to correct their fourth quarter woes when they welcome the red-hot Glastonbury Tomahawks to the Sports and Medicine Science Academy. Tip-off for the Central Connecticut North showdown will be Saturday, Jan 25th at 6p.m. Wethersfield will also have a chance at redemption against Manchester when they travel to enemy territory of Monday, Feb 10th for a 7 p.m. tip. Lee Schwartzman has been coaching the Wethersfield boys and girls swimming programs for the last half-dozen years. Throughout his time at Wethersfield, he has coached many phenomenal athletes and is hoping that this year’s boys’ season ends with their sixth straight Central Connecticut Conference championship.
“Our goal is always to get our kids to work hard and improve,” Schwartzman said, “Our expectation is to win conference every year and the ultimate goal is to win state.” Schwartzman, who has a passion for swimming that is unmatched, also coaches at the Pine Acres Swim Club in Wethersfield. This give him the opportunity to coach kids from an early age, which helps prepare the young swimmers for the expectations at the high school level. It also allows him to anticipate the quantity and quality of the swimmers that will be coming through the high school swim program. “We usually average between 25 and 30 swimmers, but last year we had a large senior class,” Schwartzman said, “We lost nine seniors, all of who were state qualifiers.” The loss of the seniors and less swimmers doesn’t deter the coach, who said that fewer kids give him more time to work with each athlete individually. He also challenges his swimmers by pitting them against the best competition in order to prepare them for state. “I’d rather have the kids swimming against fast competition, even if that means we have two or three more losses,” Schwartzman said, “because the kids will be faster at the end of the year.” In order to challenge his team further, he often schedules meets against teams outside the area. This includes teams from the shoreline, who traditionally have athletes that swim year-round. Wethersfield has a few swimmers that swim all year, but the goal is for all of the athletes to keep swimming during the off-season. “Swimming isn’t like basketball or football, where playing together matters. It’s all about the time and how fast you can swim,” Schwartzman added, “My goal is to get the kids swimming as fast as they can during the season, but then there are months in between where it’s up to them to swim.” One of Wethersfield’s year-round swimmers is Colin Curtin, who has a chance to win a few state titles and post All-American times this season. Curtin, along with fellow seniors Brendan Stewart and Dan Camilliere, are Wethersfield’s team captains. The trio is hoping to end the season with individual state titles, or possibly a team title. “Individually there are twelve events at state, including diving,” Schwartzman said, “We could win seven of them.” Despite the years of success, the Wethersfield swim team still doesn’t get the recognition that other sports garner. This is something that Schwartzman is hoping to change, but he also realizes that the lack of recognition comes with the territory. “Swimming is a sport that flies under the radar,” Schwartzman said, “Swimmers will never get the level of respect they deserve, whether they’re winning or not.” The success of the program speaks for itself, but the dedicated coach has been able to make the swim meets even more appealing. Their meets are usually scheduled for evenings, which allows for more people to attend, and during home meets there is a chance that the school’s pep band will be playing. Pep bands are unusual for swim meets, but Schwartzman believes that noise, whether cheering or music, is good for the athletes. The team will take on Middletown on Friday, Jan 24th and then host last season’s Class M champion Brookfield at Wethersfield High School on Friday, Jan 31st. The meets are open to the public and admission is free. To cheer on the conference champs and enjoy the festive atmosphere, come see any of the team’s home meets at Wethersfield High School starting 5 p.m. 1/31 Brookfield 2/11 Rocky Hill 2/14 Amity 2/28 Avon On Thanksgiving, the Coginchaug Regional Blue Devils easily defeated Cromwell to spoil the Panthers final home football game of the 2013 season. On Thursday, the Cromwell boys’ basketball team was able to exact a measure of revenge by outlasting the Blue Devils, 49-37, in a physical and intense game. The victory was Cromwell’s sixth straight against the Durham-based school and put a damper on a night of festivities for Coginchaug, who were celebrating Blue Devil Alumni Night. Cromwell, who had scored 78 and 75 points in their previous two games, struggled to score early. They were held without a shot through the first four and a half minutes and didn’t score their first bucket until the 4:26 mark of the first quarter. Coginchaug’s harassing defense and their clock-milking, Princeton-style offense didn’t allow the Panthers to get into an offensive rhythm. Despite their defensive prowess, the Blue Devils also had trouble scoring and Cromwell held an 11-5 lead after the first quarter. The Panthers closed the quarter on an 8-0 run, thanks to a layup from Jake Regula and back to back 3-pointers from Regula and fellow senior Matt Turkington. Versatile forward Josh Green sparked the Panthers off the bench in the second quarter, which allowed Cromwell to expand their lead to 19-13 heading into halftime. Green ignited three fast breaks with steals and wowed the crowd with a highlight-reel layup. He closed the half by knocking down a pair of free throws to thwart a 5-0 Blue Devil run and quite the hometown crowd. The senior’s sensational second quarter was part of his 11 point, six rebound performance. The Panthers came out of the halftime locker room and resembled the offense that had been averaging 60 points per game during their 5-1 start. Regula, who was the game‘s leading scorer with 14 points, heated up in the second half and scored seven of Cromwell’s 18 third-quarter points. Regula’s backcourt teammate Deandre Hamlin finished off the quarter by nailing a 3-pointer with eight seconds left, giving Cromwell a comfortable 37-24 lead heading into the fourth quarter. Coginchaug’s sophomore point guard Cameron Powers kept the Blue Devils competitive with his nifty ball handling and precision bounce passes, but Cromwell’s attacking style proved to be too much. Even the Blue Devils’ strategy of sending the Panthers to the free throw line backfired. The Panthers made eight of ten free throw attempts in the final quarter. The win improved Cromwell to 6-1 and they remain perfect in Shoreline Conference play. Head coach John Pinone has the Panthers playing smart, aggressive basketball and the last time Cromwell started 5-0 in conference play, they made tournament runs. One of those seasons was 2008-2009, which concluded with a State Championship. The Panthers next travel to East Hampton to take on the Bellringers and return home on Thursday, Jan 16 to battle rival Hyde Leadership. Cromwell has won the last two meetings against the Howling Wolves, but the games have been decided by a combined eight points. The game verse Hyde Leadership will tip-off at 7 p.m. Rocky Hill's #28 Chris Young and #88 Tommy Seaver both made All-State The Connecticut High School Coaches Association released their All-State football teams and five local players received Class S honors. Rocky Hill had four honorees and Cromwell had one player make the star-studded team. Rocky Hill’s Chris Young was selected as a running back. Young finished with 2001 rushing yards and 35 touchdowns last season. Young, who concluded his high school career as Rocky Hill’s all-time leading rusher, averaged over ten yards per rush and hit pay dirt every 5.6 carries during his sensational senior season. ““I’m grateful, because it’s not an easy thing to accomplish.” Young, who will have a chance to play for the Connecticut All-State team this spring, said. Rocky Hill’s Tommy Seaver was selected as a tight end. Seaver finished the season with 25 receptions for 410 yards and eight touchdowns. The 6’2” senior saved his best performance for last, when he nabbed five passes for 113 yards and two touchdowns in a playoff loss to Ansonia. “I am definitely honored to have received All-State recognition,” Seaver, who also excelled as a defensive end, said, “However, when looking back at this past season it was all about the team. Every one of my teammates worked hard to accomplish the goals that we did this season, and that's what means the most to me.” Rocky Hill’s Greg Marzilli was selected as a kicker. Marzilli converted 60 of 67 extra point attempts and made four of eight field goal attempts. The versatile star was also a major reason why Rocky Hill had excellent field position all season, as 31% (26 of 86) of his kickoffs resulted in touchbacks. Andrew Jenkelunas was best known as Rocky Hill’s quarterback, but he made the All-State team as a defensive back. From his safety position, he finished with 64 total tackles (42 solo) and intercepted two passes, returning one of thieveries for a touchdown. He also recovered a fumble and had a handful of pass breakups. “I am very honored to be selected all-state,” Jenkelunas, who also threw for ten touchdowns compared to only three interceptions in leading Rocky Hill to their most successful season in school history, said, “But I think any number of kids on the team could have gotten it this year. I am more satisfied with our great results of the season and how great of a year we had.” Cromwell’s Mike McNally made the team following one of the best seasons a punter has had in the state’s history. The senior, who was also the teams’ placekicker, dropped 23 of 37 (63%) punts inside the 20-yard line and averaged an amazing 51.2 yards per punt. He also had four of his punts travel over 70 yards, including a booming 77 yarder in the season opener. Last season, the Rocky Hill girls’ basketball team finished with a very respectable 14-8 record and won a tournament game in Peter Egan’s last season as head coach of the Terriers. Now, Allyson Toulouse assumes Egan’s vacated seat on the bench and is hoping to help the lady Terriers make the next step towards a title. The first year head coach is putting her own stamp on the basketball program, while maintaining the traditionally fundamentals that are a staple of the Terrier girls.
“The style of play from last year's coaching to this year is very similar,” Toulouse said, “having a base that {the player} are already comfortable with has helped the process immensely.” Toulouse wants to combine the ideology of the last coaching administration with the defensive mentality and fundamentals that she acquired from years of playing. “I am a big defensive minded coach. I grew up with that mentality when I was a player both in high school and college,” Toulouse, who is East Hampton High Schools all-time leader in points and steals, said, “I am a strong believer that defense is the most important part of basketball, and if you can defend, the offense will take care of itself.” Toulouse learned those defensive principles while in high school and then honed her defensive craft while starring as a guard at Southern Connecticut State University. While at SCSU, she was a key component on the Owls 2006-2007 national championship team, who were led by legendary women’s basketball coach Joe Frager. Frager coached the importance of team defense and Toulouse is now implementing those same defensive principals into the Rocky Hill girls program. “We create our offense from our defense,” Toulouse said about this season’s squad, “These girls have responded very well to that challenge, and I think we are going to be one of the toughest defensive teams in our conference this year.” Rocky Hill has four seniors that are helping lead the defensive charge, including forward Kirstyn Arcata and guards Valerie Kobialka and Kraymer Bond. The team is off to a 3-4 start and the tenacious Terriers’ defense is molding into the defense that Toulouse envisioned, holding two of their opponents under 33 points this season. Now that her defensive philosophies are taking shape, Toulouse hopes to tackle the second goal of her three-part plan. “November through January 1st we have certain goals, then those goals change as we get into the second half of our regular season.” the first year coach said, “Finally, I evaluate those goals, and we shape them to reflect what goals we want to accomplish in our post season.” The team is in the midst of a three game road trip, but they return home Tuesday, January 14th to host Tolland. Come see the new-look Terriers’ defense in action at Rocky Hill High School. The game tips at 7p.m. Girls Basketball Round-Up Wethersfield Winning With Defense The Wethersfield Eagles started the season 1-3, but have since won their last two games to even their record at 3-3. Their latest victory was a 55-23 pasting of the Fermi Falcons. After struggling defensively in a loss to Weaver (87-40), Michelle Libby’s Eagles have tightened the reins on defense and held their last two opponents to 27 and 23 point, respectively. Greenalch Leads Newington to Fourth Straight Win After splitting their first two games, the Newington Indians have won four in a row, thanks to Stasha Greenalch’s domination on both ends of the court. During the four game winning streak, Greenalch is averaging 21 points and eight steals per game, including an amazing 12 steal performance in a 20-point victory over Bloomfield. Cromwell Back to Championship Form The Cromwell Panthers have won four consecutive games, after having their 29 game winning streak snapped earlier this season. The defending champions have defeated their last two opponents by a combined 60 points and the potent Panthers’ offense has not been held under 40 points in any game this season. |
AuthorSports Editor for the Rare Reminder, Glastonbury Citizen, and Rivereast News Bulletin Archives
April 2024
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