Printer Friendly Version - 2016 Hand Tigers Fall Year in Review

The Hand boys’ soccer squad defeated Barlow 1-0 in the Class L State Tournament final on Nov. 19 as the Tigers claimed their first state title since 1997. Junior Liam Akers netted the winning goal in overtime for the Tigers.Photo by Chris Eadevito/The Source

The 2016 fall season was full of triumphs for the Hand Tigers, whose boys’ soccer squad won its first state title in 19 years. Elsewhere, Tigers’ girls’ soccer reached the state semis, the girls’ swimming and diving squad made a postseason splash, and Steve Filippone coached the last game in his 27-year tenure as the head coach of the Hand football squad.

The Hand boys' soccer team finished at 11-1-4 for the regular season. After losing to Guilford on penalty kicks in the SCC Tournament quarterfinals, the Tigers went on a magical run in the Class L State Tournament en route to their first title since 1997.

In the tournament, the 2nd-seeded Tigers made their first state final since 1999 after defeating Weston, Wethersfield, and Guilford. Head Coach Stan Latkowski's group then claimed the state crown with a 1-0, double-overtime win over Barlow on Nov. 19. Junior Liam Akers scored the OT goal for the Tigers, who finished the season with an overall record of 15-2-4.

Making the All-Housatonic Division Team for Hand were Drew Montgomery, Jon Gulcicek, Akers, and Jake Brown. Montgomery also made the All-SCC First Team, while Gulcicek was a Second Team selection. Brown, a senior midfielder; Gulcicek, a senior defender; a Montgomery, a senior midfielder all made the New Haven Register All-Area Team.

Head Coach David Dikranian and Hand faced off against St. Joseph in a Class L State Tournament semifinal and took a 1-0 defeat this fall. The Cadets broke the scoreless deadlock by scoring with 15:18 to go in regulation and hung on for the win.

The Tigers finished the year at 16-3-3 overall, winning the SCC Quinnipiac Division title and making their first SCC Tournament final appearance since 2009.

Heather Banghan, Lily Geshwind, Kayla Howard, Riley Kokoruda, and Taylor Scully all made the All-Quinnipiac Division Team for Hand. Kokoruda and Geshwind also made the All-SCC First Team, while Howard and Scully were on the Second Team. Earning New Haven Register All-Area honors were senior goalie Geshwind and junior midfielder Kokoruda. Dikranian was named the All-Area Coach of the Year.

After losing to Branford in the SCC Tournament, Head Coach Ally Johnson and Hand came back from a two-set deficit and defeated the Hornets 3-2 (17-25, 23-25, 25-20, 25-12, 18-16) in the second round of the Class L State Tournament. In the quarterfinals against Pomperaug, Hand lost a tough five-setter by the final of 25-18, 25-23, 17-25, 13-25, 10-15 to conclude the season at 17-6 overall.

The Tigers also won the SCC Oronoque Division title this fall. Chika Ogbejesi and Amanda Gentile made the All-SCC First Team for the Tigers.

Hand scored a road victory against Avon by a 2-1 final in the first round of the Class M State Tournament. In the quarterfinals versus Guilford, the Tigers lost 4-3 to end the year at 9-8-2 overall. Hand also made the SCC Tournament.

Earning All-SCC First Team honors were Hollis Wivell and Taylor Leckey. Sophie Schreck was a Second Team selection.

Head Coach Jen Lyman and Hand went 7-4 for the regular season before finishing fourth at the SCC Championship.

Freshman Kayla Mendonca took home the crown in the 100-yard backstroke to help Hand finish fourth at the meet. Mendonca swam a time of 57.93 seconds in the backstroke and also tied for second in the 200 freestyle at 1:57.02, making All-SCC in both of her events. Also earning All-Conference honors were Allie Mascia with second-place showings in the 50 and 100 freestyles, plus Noelle Bergere with her second-place performance in the diving. Then at the Class L State Championship, Hand finished seventh. The meet kicked off with the Diving Championship and senior Bergere finished second by scoring 439.3 points for a new program record. The Tigers also boasted a pair of runner-up finishers in Mendonca, who swam a time of 58.6 seconds in the 100 backstroke; as well as junior Mascia, who finished second in the 50 freestyle. In the 200 medley relay, the unit of Mendonca, senior Caroline Genther, junior Case Porter, and Mascia finished fifth in 1:52.58, which set a school record.

Hand finished with a record of 2-8 in Steve Filippone’s final season as head coach, defeating East Haven and Guilford. Filippone finished his career with a record of 223-82-5, plus seven state championships that came in 1989, 1997, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2011, and 2012.

Making the All-SCC Division I Team for the Tigers were Brett Bilcheck as a kick returner and Nick Leone at linebacker.

Head Coach Steve Swift and Hand finished fifth at the SCC Championship and were seventh at the Class L State Championship this season.

The Tigers, who were coached by Tim Geary, came in 13th place for the SCC Championship, after which Hand finished in 16th place at the Class L State Championship.

Steve Filippone coached his final game with the Hand football team on Nov. 23, when his Tigers defeated Guilford 44-0 at the Surf Club. Pictured is Filippone (right) with Larry Ciotti, who was his predecessor as head coach. Ciotti and Filippone are the only two head coaches in Hand football history thus far.Photo by Kelley Fryer/The Source

Riley Kokoruda (right) and Hand girls’ soccer made their first SCC Tournament final since 2009 and reached their first State Tournament semifinal since 2006 this year.Photo by Kelley Fryer/The Source