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11/11/2017 11:00 PMGirls’ Soccer
The Hand girls’ soccer squad was triumphant in its first contests of the Class L State Tournament last week to earn a spot in the semifinals. After defeating Fitch and Lauralton Hall in its first two games, Hand advanced to the semifinal round by posting a 2-0 win in double overtime over Barlow on Nov. 11.
The 2nd-seeded Tigers, who were coming off winning the SCC Tournament championship, defeated No. 31 Fitch 2-0 in the first round of the state tourney on Nov. 7. Hand scored with just less than three minutes left in the first half, when Sam Riordan found the back of the net on a corner kick from Viv Mazzarella. The game opened up in the second half, and Hand had many quality chances to score, but Fitch goalkeeper Valentina Silva made six quality saves. Kayla Howard eventually scored an insurance goal for Hand on a pass from Riley Kokoruda on a corner kick play. Morgan Lipford made three saves as Hand outshot the Falcons 13-3.
“Fitch defended well and made it difficult for us to get through, plus it was hard to stay sharp consistently due to the weather conditions. We had to work extra hard for our goals,” said Head Coach David Dikranian. “Defender Sam Riordan continues to score big goals for us. She has become a big-time player. I also thought Chloe Silva had a solid game for us. She seemed really confident out there.”
In the second round on Nov. 9 against No. 18 Lauralton Hall, the Tigers won by a 3-0 final. Hand outshot the Crusaders 12-7 with Lipford stopping all seven shots. Riordan scored the game-winning goal in the first five minutes off a nice corner kick from Mazzarella. Riordan scored her second goal of the tournament when she headed the ball into goal. Both teams traded scoring chances until Hand took over in the second half, when Gabby Egidio battled her way past two defenders and slotted the ball near the post to make it 2-0. Howard scored the Tigers’ third goal on a breakaway from a pass from Taylor Scully.
“I knew Lauralton Hall was going to come out hard, and we struggled to match their intensity in the first half. We made some adjustments and played a much better second half,” said Dikranian. “Gabby Egidio was one of our best players. She tremendous winning balls and creating scoring opportunities. Her goal in the second half was huge. I told her she was going to score a big goal for us.”
Facing No. 26 Barlow in the quarterfinals on Nov. 11, Hand earned a 2-0, double-overtime win. Hand finally broke through in the first OT, when Hayley Dean connected with Egidio, who dribbled through four defenders and hit a shot to the far post over the Barlow goalkeeper. Later, Mazzarella won the ball in midfield, faked past a defender, and swung the ball out wide to Howard, who slipped past four defenders and placed ball far post for goal No. 2.
“I thought Barlow defended very well. They kept everyone back and tried to counter. We had trouble getting through in the first half, but we made adjustments at halftime, and we we’re more effective in the second half. I liked how we played with urgency during the second half and both OT periods. We generated a lot of chances and played well,” said Coach Dikranian. “Hayley Dean came in and played a lot at right outside back and had a strong game. Chloe Thompson played a good amount of minutes subbing in for an injured Viv Mazzarella at center mid. She was very composed and worked well with our forwards. Gabby Egidio was just relentless. She had a nice fake and then blew by four defenders and scored a huge goal. She’s played her best soccer these past few weeks.”
The Tigers (20-1-1) faced No. 3 seed St. Joseph (14-1-4) in a Class L semifinal on Nov. 15 (after press time). With a victory, Hand would play either No. 1 seed RHAM or No. 20 East Lyme in the final on Friday, Nov. 17 or Saturday, Nov. 18.
Boys’ Soccer
On the heels of winning the SCC crown, the Tigers’ boys’ soccer team is in the Class L State Tournament semifinals after winning its first three games in the bracket.
No. 10 seed Hand opened up states with a first-round rout of No. 23 Lyman Hall by an 8-1 score on Nov. 6. In the second round on Nov. 8 at No. 7 Barlow, the Tigers prevailed behind a 3-0 shutout.
Facing Barlow, the Tigers outshot the opposition 12-4. The opening score was by Nick Porte, and then Liam Akers sent one home to give the Tigers a 2-0 lead. Lee Wildermann finished the scoring to give Hand a commanding 3-0 lead at the half. Tommy Hobin recorded another shutout in goal for Hand. The Tigers’ strong defense preserved the shutout, led by Owen McShane, captain Liam Akers, Tommy LaTorre, and Cole Finke.
Hand then took on No. 15 Maloney in the quarterfinals on Nov. 10 and won 3-0 to advance to the Class L semifinals.
The Tigers (17-3-2) played No. 3 seed Guilford (17-2-1) in the semis on Nov. 13 (after press time) at West Haven. The winner moves onto face either No. 1 E.O. Smith or No. 4 Masuk in the final on Friday, Nov. 17 or Saturday, Nov. 18.
“These young men are locked in and focused,” said Head Coach Anthony Mancini. “I cannot say enough about their hard work and determination to be the best on and off the field.”
Field Hockey
One week after taking the SCC Tournament title, the Hand field hockey team won its first two games in the Class M State Tournament to advance to the semifinals.
The 2nd-seeded Tigers defeated No. 15 E.O. Smith in the first round of the Class M State Tournament by a 6-1 final on Nov. 7. Hosting No. 7 Sacred Heart Academy in the second round on Nov. 9, Hand won by a 5-0 shutout.
In the first round, Hand took a 5-0 halftime lead versus E.O. Smith behind goals from Hand Taylor Leckey (unassisted), Nora McCarthy (also unassisted), Kathryn Donahey (from Jacqui Sandor and Sophie Schreck), Maeve Connors (from Sandor and Glena-Kate Gies), and Erickson Richard (unassisted). Richard added a second-half tally from McCarthy. Kylie Gargiulo made a save, and Karen Newton made two for the Tigers.
Facing Sacred Heart Academy, Richard scored two goals for the Tigers, whose other goals were scored by Schreck, Donahey, and Gies. Assists came from Sandor (2), Gies (2), Schreck, Donahey, and Leckey.
The Tigers (18-1-2) took on No. 3 seed Guilford (16-3-1) in a Class M semifinal on Nov. 14 (after press time) at Branford. The winner moves onto the finals on Saturday, Nov. 18 at Wethersfield against either No. 8 New Canaan or No. 4 Branford.
Girls’ Volleyball
Hand won its State Tournament opener before losing a second-round contest against E.O. Smith last week.
The 25th-seeded Tigers defeated No. 8 Bullard-Havens by a 3-0 final (25-14, 25-13, 25-11) in the first round of the Class L State Tournament on Nov. 6. In the second round at No. 9 E.O. Smith on Nov. 9, Hand took a 3-0 loss (25-17, 25-16, 25-12) to finish the year at 9-13 overall.
Football
The Hand football team earned a 34-10 road win over Cross on Nov. 11 to qualify for the Class L State Playoffs with a record of 8-1. The Tigers also improved to 5-0 in SCC Tier 2 to win the division title.
The Tigers defeated the Governors (6-3, 3-1) after storming out to a 27-0 first-quarter lead. Hand took advantage of a Cross fumble, which Phoenix Billings followed up by throwing a 5-yard TD pass. Brian Casagrande then grabbed an interception on defense to return the ball to the Tigers, after which Billings found Chris Bartosic on a 33-yard TD strike to make it 14-0.
Hand kept the points-off-of-turnovers theme going when Julian Banerji took a fumble recovery to the house. Billings next made Michael Tarantino a touchdown target from 15 yards out for a 27-0 command. Hand extended the lead to 34-0 at the half thanks to Billings finding Tarantino again on an 86-yard bomb on 3rd down-and-22. Cross would get its lone score by returning an interception for a touchdown, but it wasn’t enough to overcome the deficit.
Billings completed seven passes for 180 yards and three touchdown, while also rushing 15 times for 78 yards and a TD. Delvantae Hutton was the Tigers’ leading rusher with 24 carries for 141 yards. Tarantino had four catches for 135 yards and two scores.
Hand finishes the regular season on the road against Guilford (4-4) on Wednesday, Nov. 22 at 7 p.m.