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11/12/2016 11:00 PMField Hockey
On the heels of winning its first SCC Tournament title in program history, the Branford field hockey team prevailed in its first two games of the Class M State Tournament to advance to the semifinal round. The Hornets, who are the No. 3 seed in the bracket and own a record of 19-2, opened the Class M tourney with a home game against 14th-seeded Pomperaug and claimed a 4-0 win on Nov. 8. Two days later, Branford hosted No. 6 seed East Lyme and won another 4-0 decision in a quarterfinal contest.
This is the 27th time that Branford is competing in a state semifinal and the Hornets will play No. 7 New Canaan (13-4-1) at Trumbull High School at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 16. If Branford wins, it will face the winner of 4th-seeded Guilford and No. 8 Lauralton Hall for the crown at Wethersfield High School on Saturday, Nov. 19.
Opening the Class M Tournament against Pomperaug, the Hornets scored a pair of goals in each half on their way to the win. Molly Zaffino scored the first goal on Karly King’s assist with 17:40 remaining in the opening half. About two minutes later, Zaffino assisted a goal from Brianna Shaw and Branford was up 2-0. Nine minutes into the second half, Autumn McHenry had the ball at the top of the circle and made a solid pass to Zaffino, who scored to make it 3-0. Two minutes after that, Zaffino netted her third goal when Carol Frye found her on a pass from the 25-yard line. Keira Integlia made two saves in goal for the shutout.
Head Coach Cathy McGuirk credited the Hornets for putting together an all-around complete team performance in the 4-0 victory.
“These goals are a direct result of great play from the mids and backs, who are getting balls and keeping them from getting through and, as a result, are passing the ball up to give the team scoring opportunities. I said mids and backs, but the forwards are also playing good D. It is true team effort,” McGuirk said. “Our solid, strong center back Alanna [Grimm] is continually getting balls and running down the opposition—our silent force. [Other key factors were] Carol controlling the mid field, LanLe [Crotty’s] dribbling and ball movement and Britney [Bunbanlu] getting low to beat the opposition, and the consistent play of Sabrina [Torcellini], Autumn, Kiersten [Bjork], Emily [Sachs], Carly [Shea], Karly, Brianna, and Molly.”
Other players who contributed to the win for Branford were Liante Claude, Abby Robinson, Fiona Palmieri, Leah Pendl-Robinson, Caitlin Baker, and Maggie Martin. Coach McGuirk credited for the Hornets’ bench for displaying its usual enthusiasm, as well as the players who videotape the games.
Facing East Lyme in the quarters, Branford scored all four of its goals in the first half to get the victory. Zaffino netted the first three for the Hornets in the game’s first 11 minutes. Zaffino’s first goal was set up by Frye, the second was assisted by Grimm after she beat three defenders and brought the ball down field, and Zaffino’s third score came on a corner with McHenry and Shaw helping the play materialize. Thens 11:06 to play in the half, Torcellini made it 4-0 when she scored on Frye’ helper. Integlia had two saves in the game, while Erica Klarman also played the cage for Branford, which took 40 shots on goal.
Boys’ Soccer
The Hornets saw their season come to a close with a 2-1 loss at 7th-seeded Torrington in the first round of the Class L State Tournament on Nov. 8. Branford, which was the No. 26 seed, finished the year with a record of 6-10-1.
Head Coach Paul Hunter said that Branford played a terrific game and dominated much of the first half with crisp passing and trapping that put Torrington under a lot of pressure at both ends of the field. After creating several good scoring chances early on, the Hornets broke the ice in the 27th minute, when Ethan Boileau scored a great goal after receiving a chipped cross from Hazem Salem. Unfortunately, Branford conceded the equalizer just after the second half began as a miscommunication left a headed back pass in no man’s land, where a Torrington player corralled it and scored. Branford continued applying pressure, but despite getting several more goal-scoring chances, the Hornets couldn’t get one in, and Torrington scored in the 77th minute for the 2-1 win.
“I was extremely proud of the way the team played and they perhaps deserved a better fate,” Coach Hunter said. “A telling compliment came from the Torrington head coach as we shook hands at the end of the game when he said, “How in the world did your team only go 6-9-1 during the regular season?’ We now look forward to next year.”
Volleyball
After winning its Class L State Tournament opener, Branford was eliminated from the bracket by dropping a five-set contest against Hand on Nov. 10. The Hornets ended the year with a record of 15-8.
As the No. 13 seed, Branford began state tourney play by posting a 3-0 (25-21, 25-16, 25-7) home win over No. 20 Middletown on Nov. 8. Three days later, the Hornets played at No. 4 Hand in a second round matchup and took a 3-2 defeat by the final of 17-25, 23-25, 25-20, 25-12, 18-16.
Football
Branford took a 26-18 loss at Law in a SCC Tier 3 contest in Milford on Nov. 11. The Hornets dropped to 4-5 overall and went to 2-3 in tier play with the defeat.
Branford trailed Law 14-12 after the first quarter. Noah Lordan scored on a 1-yard touchdown run before Law scored the next two TDs for a 14-6 lead. With 19 seconds left in the frame, Griffin Lynch found Brian Nichols on a 49-yard scoring strike to make it 14-12. Law scored only touchdown of the second quarter on a 40-yard rush and led 20-12 at halftime.
Law used a 60-yard TD pass early in the third quarter to extend its lead to 26-12. Carden scored on a 2-yard run with 28 seconds left in the game for the 26-18 final.
Lynch completed 19 passes for 166 yards for the Hornets. Lordan ran 10 times for 99 yards, while Carden gained 94 yards on 24 carries. Nichols caught three passes for 64 yards and Danny Thomas grabbed seven catches for 59 yards. Louis Norman and Kordele Brown had seven tackles apiece on defense.
Branford closes the season with its annual Thanksgiving Day game against East Haven. The game will take place in East Haven on Thursday, Nov. 24. Last year, Branford won 10-7 to keep the Yellowjackets from making the State Playoffs. This will be the 75th edition of the rivalry and the Hornets lead the all-time series 38-32-4.
Girls’ Swimming and Diving
Kaitlyn Haynes competed for the Hornets at the Class M Girls’ Diving State Championship and posted a score of 299.75 points to finish in 11th place among 19 divers at Bulkeley High School on Nov. 9. Branford is competing at Class M Swimming Championship at Wesleyan University at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 15.