This is a printer-friendly version of an article from Zip06.com.
12/26/2018 11:00 PMBoys’ Ice Hockey
The Branford boys’ ice hockey team recorded its first two wins of the season when the Hornets notched victories versus Lyman Hall/Haddam-Killingworth/Cogichaug and West Haven last week. Head Coach Jim DiNapoli’s club stands with a record of 2-1-1 early on in the 2018-’19 winter season.
On Dec. 22, Branford skated to a 5-3 home win against Lyman Hall/Haddam-Killingworth/Coginchaug (LH/H-K/C) at Northford Ice Pavilion. The Hornets trailed 2-0 late in the first period, but stormed back by scoring five of the final six goals of the game to come away with the win. Junior Blake Kustra scored a pair of goals, while sophomore Billy Linder netted the go-ahead goal in the third period for Branford.
LH/H-K/C scored the first two goals of the day to take a 2-0 lead with 1:50 left in the first period. With 1:05 to go, junior Spencer Engstrom scored a goal on an assist by senior Robbie Lionetti to make it a 2-1 game through one. Kustra scored from Engstrom to tie the game a 2-2 just 49 seconds into the second period. About four minutes later, junior Jack Manware gave Branford a 3-2 lead when he scored a goal from Linder and Lionetti. With 7:52 remaining in the frame, the Trojans scored a goal to tie the game at 3-3, which was how it stood entering the third period. Linder scored on an assist from junior Jake Rivera to put the Hornets up 4-3 with 8:40 left in the contest. With 2:01 to go, Kustra scored his second goal of the game to ice the victory for Branford by giving them a 5-3 advantage.
Then on Jan. 26, Branford was on the road to face West Haven at Bennett Rink, where the Hornets posted a 2-0 victory against the Blue Devils. Following two scoreless periods of play, junior Chris Donadio scored on an assist from Kustra to give Branford a 1-0 edge with 6:24 remaining in the game. Then with 4:59 to go, Kustra netted a goal on an Engstrom assist to give the Hornets some insurance with a 2-0 advantage. Sophomore goalie Jared Yakimoff played a great game for Branford by making 49 saves to get the shutout in net.
Girls’ Ice Hockey
The Branford-North Branford-Sheehan-Lyman Hall (B-NB-S-LH) co-op girls’ ice hockey squad lost a pair of matchups in last week’s action. The Wings took a defeat against Simsbury and then lost to the Notre Dame-Fairfield co-op team to move to 3-3 on the season.
On Dec. 22, B-NB-S-LH hosted Simsbury for a non-conference game at DiLungo Rink and took an 8-0 defeat. On Dec. 27, the Wings faced off with Notre Dame-Fairfield/Law/Foran/Weston/Pomperaug at The Rinks at Shelton and dropped a 4-2 decision.
Girls’ Basketball
The Branford girls’ basketball team squared off against Foran on Dec. 27. The Hornets took a 63-41 loss against the Lions at Foran High School to move to 2-2 on the year.
Senior Sophia Araneo scored 17 points to lead Branford versus Foran. Freshman Nicole Pagliaro had six points in the loss.
Boys’ Basketball
The Hornets took a defeat against East Haven and then dropped a contest versus North Haven in last week’s matchups. Branford has a record of 0-3 on the year.
On Dec. 21, Branford hosted crosstown conference rival East Haven and lost to the Yellowjackets by a 61-51 final. The two teams were tied at 12 entering the second quarter, where the Hornets outscored East Haven 17-14 to take a 29-26 lead into halftime. However, the Yellowjackets won the third quarter by a 16-4 margin and went on to get the 10-point victory. Sophomore Tucker Jacobson scored 17 points to lead the Hornets. Junior Kevin Baxter had 13 points, and fellow sophomore Justin Elpi added seven points.
Then on Dec. 27, the Hornets faced North Haven in the Fred Kelly Holiday Tournament and took a 59-46 defeat at North Haven High School. Baxter had 14 points, sophomore Kamryn Holmes scored nine points, Jacobson had eight points, and sophomore Josh Serra added six points for Branford in the game.