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01/07/2017 11:00 PMGirls’ Basketball
The Guilford girls' basketball team improved to 6-3 following a trio of recent victories against Amity, North Haven, and Foran.
The Indians kicked things off by defeating Amity 61-57 on Jan. 3 to start out 1-0 in the SCC Hammonasset Division this year. The Indians featured a balanced scoring attack as Izzy Nerney had 14 points, Kayley McLaughlin added 11, plus Julia Hyman came off bench to score 10 points. Camryn Craig had nine points, eight rebounds, and six blocks for Guilford. Amity knocked down 10 shots from beyond the arc. The Indians had another solid game from the foul line, converting 16-of-21 for the game and 11 free throws in a pressure-packed fourth quarter, where Nerney made 7-of-8 from the charity stripe to seal the win.
The Indians then routed North Haven 68-24 the following night. Guilford got out to a 14-4 lead in the first quarter and never looked back. Janie Danaher and Molly Linell paced Guilford with 12 and 11 points, respectively. Craig had nine points, followed by Amanda King with eight, plus junior Jordan Hedge tallied seven points in a dominant performance by the Indians.
Finally, the Indians bested Foran 44-24 on Jan. 6. After a cold first quarter, the Indians got on track and were sparked by King's scoring to take an 11-point lead into the locker room. The Lions kept it close in the third and trailed 30-22 before Guilford closed out the game on a 14-2 run. King paced the scoring with 12 points, Hyman added seven points, and the two also combined for six steals to highlight an outstanding defensive team effort. Nicole Suchy snared seven rebounds and Craig added six for Guilford.
Previously, in the consolation game of the East Haven Holiday Tournament on Dec. 29, Guilford faced Newington and prevailed 55-38. Guilford raced out to an impressive 28-15 halftime lead. Craig played an outstanding game with a career-high 23 points, a dozen rebounds, and several blocked shots. The Indians never let Newington back into the contest as they shot 48 percent from the floor in the second half, led by Craig's superb play on both ends of the floor, in addition to the hot shooting of junior Amanda King, who knocked down three shots from three-point land and finished with 13 points. Kayley McLaughlin chipped in seven points and led a spirited team defense that held Newington in check.
Boys’ Basketball
The Indians remained unbeaten on the young season by recording two more victories last week.
On Jan. 3, Guilford defeated East Haven 72-41. Noah Rubino scored 22 points and Sam Dombroski added 17 points for Head Coach Jeff DeMaio’s squad.
The Indians then stretched their mark to 4-0 with a convincing 79-49 win over Law on Jan. 6.
Wrestling
Guilford recently saw excellent performances at a pair of marquee meets and then defeated East Haven to improve to 10-1 for the year.
The Indians competed at the Enfield Duals on Dec. 26 and then on Dec. 30 at the Whippet Duals in Windham, wrestling a total of eight contests and going 7-1 between the two meets. The Indians won the Enfield Duals by defeating Enfield (59-21), South Windsor (41-24), Manchester (65-12), and then Killingly (36-34) in the final. In the championship clash, Guilford was down 34-21 entering the last three matches at 120, 126, and 132. Keldon LaRose (120) pinned Mike Charron in 1:52, George Sanderelin (126) won via majority decision, 20-8, over Trevor Johnson, and then Vinny Mascola closed the door at 132 with a 15-0 technical fall over Sam Burdick.
Guilford went 3-1 at the Whippet Duals, besting E.O. Smith (57-15), Berlin (49-22), and Waterford (53-21), while also losing 48-24 to Windham. Keldon LaRose, Jack Six, and Charlie Andrus all went a perfect 4-0 on the day, plus Mascola, Carter Cox, McKayd LaRose, Jonathan Bartlett, and AJ Moscato each won three matches.
The Indians then went to 10-1 with a 43-30 win over East Haven on Jan. 4. Picking up wins were Keldon LaRose (120, pin at 4:59), Mascola (132, 6-5 decision), Joey Santino (138, pin at 3:28), Christion Swan (145, pin at 4:38), McKayd LaRose (160, pin at 1:21), Moscato (170, pin at 1:19), Andrus (182, 2-1 decision), and Jack Six (220, 5-1 decision).
“Overall, I have been pleased with the way the guys have been wrestling. We have a lot to polish up on, but they are wrestling aggressively and showing heart, which is all I can ask for at this point in the season,” said Head Coach Craig Vedrani. “We beat Killingly for the championship at the Enfield Duals by wrestling tough. We were giving up three weights that day and were chasing 18 points before we even got on the mat. Our guys fought off their backs when they needed to, got major decisions, tech falls and pins when they needed to, and did all the little things to win that match. It was a great win for our team. We have a smaller roster this year, but a group of guys who are willing to put in the work, which makes it exciting as a coach. I look forward to seeing what they can accomplish by seasons end.”
Boys’ Swimming and Diving
The Branford-Guilford (Bfd-Gfd) boys’ swimming and diving team competed in two meets last week and split the pair for a record of 1-2 on the year. On Jan. 3, the Hornets recorded an 82-69 victory versus Foran at the Walsh Intermediate Pool. Three days later, Head Coach Ray Beaulac’s squad had a meet at Sheehan and took an 86-79 defeat.
In the Foran win, Corey Gambardella took first place in the 50 freestyle (22.45) and the 100 butterfly (50.74), in addition to swimming on the victorious 200 medley and 200 freestyle relays. Senior Kyle Boucher swam on both relays and also prevailed in the 100 breaststroke with a time of 1:12.84.
Against Sheehan, Gambardella won the butterfly (51.30) and the 200 freestyle (1:44.54) for Bfd-Gfd. Gambardella also swam on the 200 freestyle relay and the 400 freestyle relay, which both prevailed. Senior Alek Karosas was a member of the latter relay and he took first place in the 50 freestyle (24.11) and 100 backstroke (1:01.34), as well.
Girls’ Ice Hockey
Guilford faced off against Hand at the Northford Ice Pavilion on Jan. 4. The Indians took a 9-0 loss to the Tigers to drop to 0-6 on the season.