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10/15/2018 12:00 AMField Hockey
The Old Saybrook field hockey team has turned around its fortunes around this season and reinforced that fact by recording victories in all three of its games last week. Old Saybrook earned wins versus Valley Regional, Waterford, and Woodstock Academy to boost their record to 7-4-1 on the year, while also qualifying for the Class S State Tournament. Old Saybrook has now won five games in a row as the team gears up for the last few matches of the regular season.
On Oct. 9, the Rams hosted Valley Regional for a Shoreline Conference contest and blanked the Warriors by a 2-0 score. Junior goalkeeper Wendy Bowden earned her first shutout of the season by making 19 saves in the contest. Sophomore Taylor Stone netted both of the Rams’ goals off assists from senior Mandy Beck.
Two days later, Old Saybrook headed to Waterford and grabbed a 2-1 victory to punch its postseason ticket. Beck provided a goal and an assist in the contest, while sophomore Kayla Holt also scored a goal. Junior Leah Wysocki handed out an assist for the Rams, who saw Bowden stop 14 shots in net.
On Oct. 13, the Rams traveled to Woodstock Academy and scored a lopsided 5-0 victory against the Centaurs. Old Saybrook spread the scoring around as junior McKenna Gibson, Holt, Stone, Beck, and Wysocki all netted goals in the victory. Beck had two assists, while junior Izzy Sigersmith contributed on assist for Old Saybrook.
Head Coach Nancy Gatta has been impressed with the way the Rams have risen to the challenges that they’ve faced this season. She said that several players are working hard and have had a heavy hand in helping Old Saybrook turn things around.
“We had another strong week of play, anchored by Mandy and Wendy Bowden. Wendy had two shutouts this week and has been solid all season. Kayla and Taylor are really starting to find their rhythm on the field. They are getting in the right places to score and keep us in the circle for more scoring opportunities,” said Coach Gatta. “Ana Hester had another solid week in the backfield against strong opponents. Also, Izzy Sigersmith and Grace Albert have really improved, and they were major contributors to our success this week.”
Boys’ Soccer
The Old Saybrook boys’ soccer team notched two wins and a tie in last week’s action to qualify for the Class S State Tournament. The Rams earned wins against Norwich Free Academy and Portland, before playing Valley Regional to a draw. Old Saybrook, which has made states in eight straight seasons, now has a record of 8-2-2 on the year.
On Oct. 8, the Rams headed to Norwich Free Academy, where they picked up a 3-1 win against the Wildcats. Two days later, Old Saybrook defeated Portland in a 6-2 road victory. Finally, on Oct. 12, the Rams battled Valley Regional to a 2-2 tie in Deep River.
Girls’ Soccer
The Rams played two matches last week and dropped both contests to move to 2-7-2 on the season.
On Oct. 9, Old Saybrook hosted Portland and took a 1-0 defeat against the Highlanders. Two days later, the Rams lost a 3-1 home contest versus Valley Regional.
Football
The Rams had a bye week for Week 6 and are now preparing to play Cromwell-Portland at home this week. Old Saybrook-Westbrook enters the matchup with an overall record of 1-3. The Panthers are bringing a record of 5-0 into their contest against the Rams. The game kicks off at noon on Saturday, Oct. 20 at Old Saybrook High School.
Boys’ Cross Country
The Rams’ boys’ cross country team competed at the Shoreline Conference Mega Meet that was held at Hale-Ray High School last week. Old Saybrook earned second place at the meet, only finishing behind Haddam-Killingworth.
The Rams were bolstered by a first-place finish from senior Shane Henderson, who clocked in with a time of 18 minutes and 22 seconds. Henderson was followed across the finish lime by sophomore Jacob Schneider (6th, 18:48), sophomore Jack Wiley (15th, 19:17), junior Ian Mason (29th, 19:57), senior LJ Sigersmith (34th, 20:19), junior Noah D’Ambrose (38th, 20:34), sophomore Nate Taylor (55th, 21:24), sophomore Kyle Wisakowski (63rd, 22:07), freshman Zach Nicols (71st, 22:30), sophomore Matt Julius (98th, 24:18), junior Alem Tiden (108th, 27:05), and junior Tyler Nichols (120th, 29:33).
Girls’ Cross Country
Old Saybrook ran in last week’s Shoreline Conference Mega Meet that took place Hale-Ray on Oct. 10. The Rams snagged second place in the meet behind strong times from several runners.
Junior Grace Hanratty was Old Saybrook’s top finisher by coming in sixth place with a time of 22 minutes and 55 seconds. Fellow junior Aliana Castro finished just a second behind Hanratty for seventh place with a time of 22:56. Senior Tehra Givehand took eighth place at 23:03. Other runners for the Rams included freshman Caitlin Wiley (12th, 23:27), freshman Lilly Sigersmith (22nd, 25:26), junior Julia Sultini (28th, 25:47), junior Autumn Szucs (29th, 25:50), and junior Abby Norton (37th, 26:31).