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03/03/2018 11:00 PMGirls’ Ice Hockey
The Amity-North Haven-Cheshire girls’ ice hockey team recorded a shutout victory in its State Tournament opener, after which the Blades lost a one-goal contest in the quarterfinals to close out another excellent season. The Blades finished with an overall record of 18-6 in their second year with Head Coach John Peschell, notching one win in both the SCC and State tournaments this winter.
The 5th-seeded Blades opened up states last week by hosting Hand-Coginchaug-Old Lyme for a first-round game at The Rinks at Shelton on Feb. 27. This was the third meeting between the teams in two weeks and, just like the first two, the Blades emerged victorious, this time by the final score of 4-0. The Blades had previously earned a 5-3 win over the Tigers in their regular-season finale on Feb. 13, followed by a 3-2 win against them in the SCC quarterfinals on Feb. 19.
For round three in states, the Blades scored two goals in the first period, one in the second, and another in the third for the 4-0 victory. Andrea DelVecchio scored on assists from Shannon Reilly and Meghan Hogan to give the Blades a 1-0 lead. Later in the first period, Megan Spring scored a goal from Cally Dixon and Tess Csjeka to give them a 2-0 lead through one. The Blades made it 3-0 in the second period when Haley Cable scored on assists from Reilly and DelVecchio. Reilly picked up her third point of the night when she scored a goal from Kelsey McCarthy and Katie St. Peter in the final frame to wrap up the 4-0 win. Goalie Julianna Daddio made 14 saves to get the shutout for the Blades, who outshot the Tigers 30-14.
Then on March 3, the Blades traveled north to face off against the 4th-seeded Suffield-Enfield-Housatonic-Ellington-Metropolitan Learning Center co-op squad and dropped a 3-2 decision in a quarterfinal matchup at the Twin Rinks in Enfield.
With the Blades trailing 1-0 in the second period, Csejka scored on an assist from Spring to tie the score at 1-1, which was how it stood through two. The Blades took a 2-1 lead in the third period when Melissa Montesi netted a goal on an assist from Dixon, but Suffield scored the final two goals of the game, and came away with the 3-2 victory.
Cheerleading
The North Haven cheerleading team competed at the Class L State Championship at Floyd Little Athletic Center on March 4. The Indians scored a season-best total of 179.8 points to take third place out of 21 teams at the meet. Watertown finished in first place, and Lauralton Hall took second place. The Indians had previously posted a second-place performance at the SCC Championship this year.
Boys’ Swimming and Diving
The North Haven boys’ swimming and diving team finished in 10th place at the SCC Championship meet that took place at Southern Connecticut State University on Feb. 28. The Indians scored 295 points to place 10th out of 15 teams at the meet.
Prior to the meet, North Haven Head Coach Martha Phelan was named the SCC Division II Boys’ Swimming and Diving Coach of the Year. The Indians went 7-4 overall and 6-1 in their division this year with Phelan, who was also named the SCC Division I Coach of the Year, as well as the Connecticut Interscholastic Swim Coaches Association’s Coach of the Year with the girls’ team last fall.
North Haven’s 200 freestyle relay turned in the Indians’ best showing at the SCC Championship by finishing in third place with a season-best time of 1:33.86. Junior John Stoeffler, freshman Tanner Powell, sophomore Carlo Frunzio, and junior Will McCleery were the swimmers who posted that third-place finish for the Indians.
Stoeffler also finished in the top eight of two individual events at the SCC meet. In the 50 freestyle, Stoeffler swam a time of 22.81 seconds to take fifth place. Then in the 100 freestyle, Stoeffler’s time of 50.79 was good for an eighth-place finish. On top of that, Stoeffler swam the anchor leg of North Haven’s 200 medley relay that took sixth place with a season-best time of 1:46.35 and also featured McCleery, Frunzio, and junior Kevin Powers.
The Indians’ 400 freestyle relay of Cargan, Powers, sophomore Stephen Borrelli, senior Riley Powell came in 12th place with a time of 3:51.01 at SCCs. McCleery took 11th place in the 100 backstroke with a lifetime-best mark of 5:06.82, and he also placed 23rd for the 100 backstroke at 1:01.76. Frunzo finished 18th in the 100 breatstroke (1:08.48), while Riley Powell finished in 20th place (1:09.41). Frunzio also finished 29th in the 100 butterfly (1:01.46), and Tanner Powell finished 29th for the 50 freestyle in 24.86.
Boys’ Ice Hockey
The North Haven boys’ ice hockey team wrapped up its regular season by posting a pair of shutouts last week. The Indians also heard word about how their side of the bracket is shaping up in the Division II State Tournament.
North Haven hosted the East Haven-Old Lyme-Old Saybrook-East Hampton co-op squad at Northford Ice Pavilion on Feb. 26 and prevailed by a 3-0 shutout.
Two days later, North Haven was the road team when it took on another SCC/SWC Division II opponent in Branford at Northford Ice Pavilion. The Indians blanked the Hornets by the final score of 6-0 to finish the regular season at 10-9-1. North Haven won its last four regular-season games and seven of its final nine en route to its winning record and a berth in states.
In the Division II State Tournament, North Haven is the No. 11 seed and played first-round game against No. 6 Glastonbury (9-10-1) at Trinity College on March 6 (after press time). With a victory, the Indians would face the winner of Guilford and E.O. Smith/Tolland in the quarterfinals on Friday, March 9. The semifinals are at Ingalls Rink on Monday, March 12, and the state final takes place at Ingalls at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, March 16.
Boys’ Basketball
The North Haven boys’ basketball team didn’t play a game last week, but the Indians did find out who they are playing in the first round of the Division III State Tournament.
The Indians, who went 12-8 for the regular season and have an overall record of 12-9, are the No. 10 seed in the DIII State Tournament and hosted No. 23 seed Woodstock Academy (8-12) in the first round on March 5 (after press time). If they won, the Indians either played at No. 7 Southington or hosted No. 26 Berlin in a second-round contest on March 7 (after press time). The quarterfinals are on Friday, March 9; the semis take place on Tuesday, March 13; and the championship game is at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville on either Saturday, March 17 or Sunday, March 18.