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10/27/2018 12:00 AM

Palmer Notches 400th Win with Guilford Field Hockey; Girls’ Cross Country Places 2nd in States


Kitty Palmer earned win No. 400 as head coach of Guilford field hockey when the Indians defeated Haddam-Killingworth 6-1 on Oct. 24. Photo by Kelley Fryer/The Courier

Field Hockey

The Guilford field hockey team saw Head Coach Kitty Palmer record a personal milestone last week, after which the Indians advanced to the semifinals of the SCC Tournament.

Guilford earned a 5-0 win over Shelton on Oct. 23 and then claimed a 6-1 triumph against Haddam-Killingworth the following day to finish the regular season with a record of 13-2-1. The Indians’ win against H-K also marked the 400th career victory for Kitty Palmer, who is in her 37th season as head coach of the field hockey team at Guilford High School (GHS).

“After 37 years of coaching, I owe this milestone to all my players, who have been my pleasure to coach,” Coach Palmer said. “Guilford is a great town with great families, and I have been blessed with outstanding athletes to teach them the exciting game of field hockey. I love the kids and all they’ve done for the GHS field hockey program. They get me excited every fall. Four-hundred wins is a credit to them.”

Then as the No. 2 seed in the SCC Tournament, Guilford defeated No. 7 seed Sacred Heart Academy by a 4-0 score in the quarterfinals on Oct. 26.

The Indians were bolstered by multiple-goal performances from Celia Mariconda (5), Ella Stanley (4), Hannah Tillier (3), and Emily Torre (2) during last week’s action. Mia Tilton and Maddie Epke also scored one goal apiece on the week.

The Indians (14-2-1) will face No. 3 seed Hand (11-4-2) in the SCC semifinals at home on Tuesday, Oct. 30 at 7 p.m. The winner moves onto the final, which is also at Guilford, versus either No. 1 Cheshire (17-0) or No. 4 Branford (9-5-2) on Saturday, Nov. 3 at 3 p.m.

Girls’ Cross Country

Guilford finished in second place as the Class L State Championship last week. The Indians tallied 80 points to finish a close second behind E.O. Smith (76) on Oct. 26 at Wickham Park.

Meredith Bloss earned runner-up honors for the race by clocking in with a time of 19:20, only finishing behind New Milford’s Claire Daniels (18:56). Also running for Guilford at states were Clara Wiesler (7th, 20:00), Gianna Siciliano (12th, 20:37), Emma Bonz (28th, 21:27), Olivia Skapczynski (31st, 21:31), Julia Antony (40th, 21:56), and Alyssa Lent (51st, 22:29).

Boys’ Cross Country

The Indians came in fifth place the Class MM State Championship at Wickham Park on Oct. 26.

Guilford’s competitors at the state meet were Elijah Dillon, who finished 19th in a time of 17:34; along with Ben Crair (21st, 17:35), McKendry Eschinger (31st, 17:57), Griffin Hughes (36th, 18:02), William Dinauer (40th, 18:07), Keldon Larose (47th, 18:15), and Jacob Shiffrin (56th, 18:24).

Football

The Indians posted a 21-7 home win over Foran on Oct. 26 to improve to 4-2 this fall.

Ethan Vashel threw three touchdown passes to help Guilford defeat SCC Tier 2 school Foran (1-6). Colin Downer led the defense by recording seven tackles and two sacks in the win.

Guilford will travel to Milford to face Law (4-3) for an SCC Tier 3 clash on Friday, Nov. 2 at 7 p.m.

Boys’ Soccer

Guilford finished the regular season by tying one of its rivals last week and then took a loss in the SCC Tournament quarterfinals.

Guilford played Hand to a 1-1 stalemate on Oct. 22 to conclude the regular season with a mark of 8-5-3. Then as the No. 8 seed in the SCC Tournament, Guilford lost to top-seeded Xavier by a 2-1 score in a quarterfinal game on Oct. 26.

Next up for Guilford (8-6-3) is the Class L State Tournament, which begins on Tuesday, Nov. 6.

Girls’ Soccer

The Indians concluded their regular season with a tie, before losing in the quarterfinals of the SCC Tournament last week.

The Indians played to a 0-0 draw against Law on Oct. 22 to finish the regular season at 5-5-6. Guilford then opened play in the SCC Tournament as the No. 8 seed and took a 2-1 defeat to top-seeded Mercy on Oct. 26 in the quarterfinals.

Next up for Guilford (5-6-6) is the Class L State Tournament, which opens on Monday, Nov. 5.

Girls’ Swimming and Diving

Guilford wrapped up its regular season by taking a 96-84 loss against Sacred Heart Academy on Oct. 22. The Indians finished with a record of 0-10 on the year.

Alex Mayo recorded victories in the 100 butterfly (1:05.42) and the 500 freestyle (5:30.45) for the Indians. North Haven’s 200 medley relay of Julia Earle, Haley Moriarty, Mayo, and Brynn Leslie took first place in a time of 2:09.07. Elizabeth Hicks finished third in the 200 freestyle (2:23.38), Leslie placed third for the 200 individual medley (2:38.69), and Audrey Rowan was the runner-up in the 50 freestyle (32.59).

Sadie Booth claimed second place in the diving competition by totaling a score of 161.05 points. Hicks finished third for the 100 butterfly (1:16.59), Leslie was second for the 100 freestyle (1:04.54), and Moriarty came in third for the 500 freestyle (5:54.56). Guilford’s 200 freestyle relay of Rowan, Earle, Hicks, and Natalie Bryan claimed third place at 2:05.78. Moriarty finished second for the 100 backstroke (1:16.51), Chloe Shoff was second for the 100 breaststroke (1:26.68), and the 400 freestyle relay of Hicks, Leslie, Moriarty, and Mayo came in as thee runner-up with a time of 4:13.39.

During the previous week’s action, Guilford held its Senior Night when the Indians hosted West Haven on Oct. 18. Prior to the meet, Guilford honored the five members of its senior class: Yanenesh Ayele, Booth, Hicks, Rachael Lai, and Shoff. Mayo improved on her school record time while winning the 100 butterfly with a mark of 1:04.28, in addition to taking first in the 200 IM with a 2:17.23. Moriarty took first place in both the 50 freestyle (28.23) and the 100 freestyle (1:00.82) for the Indians.

The Guilford girls’ cross country team finished second at the Class L State Championship at Wickham Park on Oct. 26. Pictured from the Indians are Julia Antony, Gianna Siciliano, Meredith Bloss, Clara Wiesler, Alyssa Lent, Emma Bonz, and Olivia Skapczynski. Photo by Kelley Fryer/The Courier