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10/14/2018 12:00 AMFootball
The East Haven football team recorded its second consecutive shutout and its third of the season when the Yellowjackets earned a 35-0 home win versus Bethel on Oct. 12. East Haven improved its record to 5-0 this year with the non-conference victory. Five different Yellowjackets scored touchdowns, and senior kicker Evan Damian booted home five extra points to help Head Coach Scott Benoit’s squad stay undefeated at the halfway point of the regular season.
East Haven’s defense played an outstanding game by forcing Bethel to finish the night with negative rushing yards. Senior Jason Gieparda grabbed an interception that he returned 27 yards for a touchdown for the Yellowjackets, whose defense also forced Bethel to commit four fumbles, each of which were recovered by the Wildcats (1-4).
“We played very well defensively,” Coach Benoit said. “There were a lot of penalties, but we tackled really well. We shut down their offense.”
East Haven’s first four touchdowns all came during the opening half. Junior quarterback Tanner DiVito found the end zone from four yards out for the game’s first score, after which senior fullback Ryan Cordova converted a 7-yard touchdown run. Senior running back Michael Manning ran home a 12-yard touchdown, followed by a 33-yard TD rush from sophomore running back Eric Araujo.
For the game, Cordova rushed for 109 yards on eight carries, while DiVito ran six times for 76 yards. Manning (58 yards), Araujo (38), senior Mike Castellano (25), and sophomore Alex Duarte (16) all contributed to East Haven’s ground game. Through the air, DiVito finished with 99 yards passing, while Jake Marquardt had three receptions for 68 yards for the Easties.
“It was a very sloppy, penalty-filled game. At the end of the day, we’re 5-0, and we have to be happy with that,” Coach Benoit said. “But after a 35-0 win, nobody is happy, which is a good thing. Nobody is satisfied with the effort last night. Having said that, it’s good to be 5-0 at the midway point.”
Next up, East Haven will play a road game versus fellow SCC Tier 3 team Guilford at 7 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 19. Guilford is 2-2 overall and 1-1 in Tier 3. East Haven has a record of 2-0 in Tier 3 and is tied with Sheehan for first place. The Yellowjackets are also currently ranked third in the Class M State Playoff rankings in which the top eight teams qualify.
Girls’ Soccer
The Easties split a home-and-home against SCC Hammonassett foe Hand to go with a victory versus Wilbur Cross last week. With these results, the Yellowjackets improved to 5-4-2 overall and are now 2-3 overall in divisional action.
On Oct. 8, East Haven took a 2-1 road loss against Hand at the Surf Club in Madison. Sophomore Isabella Pilato scored East Haven’s goal from a distance on an assist by freshman Emily Mazzucco. Sophomore goalie Angelina Munoz made 12 saves for the Yellowjackets.
The very next day, East Haven took on Wilbur Cross and earned a 2-1 victory on the road. Freshman Emily Pycela scored on an assist from Pilato for East Haven’s first goal. The Yellowjackets scored their second goal when the ball bounced in the net off a Wilbur Cross player for an own goal. Munoz made five saves in the win. Head Coach Jake Hackett said that the Yellowjackets needed to battle to find a way to win against the Governors.
East Haven then played host to Hand on Oct. 13 and executed a flawless game-plan to earn a 1-0 victory versus the Tigers. Pilato assisted Pycela for the lone goal of the day. Munoz played a brilliant game in goal by coming up with 17 saves.
“It was a tough week. To play a team as strong as Hand twice in a week is a big ask, but I’m proud of my girls and all the work they put in to come out of this week with two wins,” Coach Hackett said. “That competition is tough, but we wanted to prove we’re strong enough to compete with the top teams and, with our performance against Hand, I think we did.”
Boys’ Soccer
East Haven had one game on its schedule last week when it faced Cheshire in an SCC Oronoque Division contest on Oct. 13. The Yellowjackets took a 4-0 loss against the Rams to move to 0-10-1 on the season.
Volleyball
The Yellowjackets split their two contests in last week’s action and how have an overall record of 9-5 for the season. East Haven lost to North Haven and then defeated Lauralton Hall last week.
On Oct. 10, the Easties lost to North Haven by a 3-2 (25-18, 23-25, 21-25, 25-15, 15-10) score in an SCC Oronoque Division matchup. East Haven dropped to 3-2 in divisional action with the defeat. Senior captain Diana Kalman had 12 kills and five aces, while junior Bella Ragaini had 36 assists with six digs. Senior captain Megan Roberts recorded 13 digs for the Yellowjackets.
East Haven bounced right back by claiming a 3-0 (25-15, 25-20, 25-18) win over Lauralton Hall on Oct. 12. Kalman notched 17 kills, and Ragaini dished out 35 assists in the victory. Senior Alannah Doheny finished the match with eight kills and six digs for East Haven.