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12/15/2018 11:00 PMBoys’ Ice Hockey
The Guilford boys’ ice hockey team began the winter season with an offensive explosion last week. The Indians scored 17 goals between a pair of victories for a 2-0 start to the year.
Guilford edged out West Haven by an 8-7 score in a crazy contest for its season opener on Dec. 12. Connor Hagness and Jack Dacey each netted a pair of goals in the victory. The Indians also received one goal apiece from John DeLucia, Jake Watrous, Steven Tortora, and Mike Letourneau.
On Dec. 15, Guilford bested E.O. Smith by a 9-6 final in another high-scoring duel. Shea Thibault netted three goals for a hat trick, while DeLucia and Dacey both scored two goals in the win. Hagness and Watrous each scored a goal, while Dacey and Watrous had two assists apiece. Thibault, Liam Murphy, and DeLucia all had one assist. Guilford outshot E.O. Smith 35-25 with Alex Attruia making 19 saves in net.
“We had to overcome the adversity of a tough opponent on the road. They tried a bunch of approaches on us, including playing physical, trying to stretch us out, and trapping us. Our veteran players led the way again with help from some of our rookies,” Head Coach Ralph Russo said. “Even though we still have a lot of room for improvement in many parts of our game, it was nice to get this win. Each game shows us something we do well and other things we need to work on.”
Russo’s club captured the SCC/SWC Division II Tournament title for the second straight season last winter. The Indians went on to return to the Division II State Tournament final, where they took a loss against Farmington Valley-Avon-Lewis Mills.
Girls’ Ice Hockey
The Indians started their year by splitting a pair of contests last week. Guilford lost to Hamden, but came back to defeat the Amity-North Haven-Cheshire (A-NH-C) co-op squad for an early record of 1-1.
Guilford hosted Hamden on Dec. 13 and took a 7-3 defeat. Daniella Vickerman, Audrey Rowan, and Mary Evans all scored a goal for the Indians, who saw Maddie Epke contribute an assist.
Two days later, Guilford faced off with A-NH-C and defeated the Blades by a 4-3 score.
Last year, Guilford finished with a record of 7-12 on the season.
Wrestling
The Indians opened the 2018-’19 campaign by hosting Foran, after which they hosted the Guilford Invitational at Guilford High School.
Guilford took a 51-30 loss against Foran on Dec. 12. The Indians received a win from Drew Koval (106-pound weight class, pin at 1:02), as well as victories from Ed Barlage (113, pin at 2:45), Keldon LaRose (132, pin at 1:13), George Sanderlin (138, pin at 3:00), and Vin Mascola (145, pin at 2:25) at the meet,
On Dec. 15, the Indians finished in fourth pace by totaling 138 points at the Guilford Invitational. LaRose took first place in the 132-pound bracket for Guilford. Anthony Bomgardner (126) and Ian Rose (220) both finished as the runner-up in their respective weight classes. Koval (106) came in third place, Barlage (113) finished fourth, while Anousa Sisaketh (120), Sanderlin (138), Mascola (145), Aiden Ghiroli (160) all posted sixth-place finishes to aid the Indians.
Head Coach Craig Vedrani’s squad finished fifth for the SCC Championship and then came third place at the Class M State Championship last year.
Girls’ Basketball
The Indians lost contests against Career and Law during their first week of the season.
Guilford began the year by taking a 48-38 defeat to Career on Dec. 11. The Indians then lost a 54-41 decision versus Law on Dec. 14.
Janie Danaher and Sam Leiby each scored 12 points in the game against Career. Versus Law, Guilford trailed 10-3 early, but then went on an 11-3 run after switching to a 3-2 zone defense. Unfortunately, Law responded with a run of its own to take a 25-16 lead into intermission. The Indians came out strong in the third quarter and cut the lead to 30-28, but Law went on another run to end the quarter with a 39-30 advantage. Danaher scored 16 points and Leiby had 12 points, including an 8-of-10 performance from the free-throw line. Elle Petra chipped in by scoring six points, grabbing 12 rebounds, and blocking multiple shots for the Indians.
Last winter, Head Coach Bob Welsh’s club finished at 11-11 overall, while reaching both the SCC Tournament and the Class L State Tournament.